Set in a courtroom, The Bible On Trial: Beyond a Reasonable Doubt examines the contributions of biblical analysis, ancient historical voices, archaeology and the testimony of first-century followers of Jesus Christ in its quest to determine the reliability and accuracy of the Bible’s message.

In this Men’s NetWork Bible study, attorney Craig Parton leads the investigation. Along the way, Dr. Paul Maier of Western Michigan University, Kalamazoo, Mich.; Dr. Randall Price of Liberty University, Lynchburg, Va.; Dr. Jeff Kloha of Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, Mo. and Joel Lampe of The Bible Museum, Goodyear, Ariz. contribute insights and analysis from their respective fields on the crucial issue of the Bible as a trustworthy work in which to place our faith.

Employing three “Standards of Reliability,” the authenticity of the Bible is evaluated according to the “Bibliographical,” “Internal Evidence” and “External Evidence” tests. By assessing how the Bible stacks up against other well known manuscripts of ancient literature, The Bible On Trial shows itself to be a remarkable and meticulous achievement when compared to any document from any time period. That this is so should come as no surprise. “The Bible claims to speak for God. It should be held to the highest standard,” Parton says.

But what then of the message? “It’s one thing to agree the text is reliable. It’s quite another to say that it is true,” Parton says. The Bible makes the claim that Jesus is the Son of God, that He came to take away the sins of the world, and that He rose from the dead three days after He was crucified on a hill outside of Jerusalem. The Bible indicates Jesus is the Savior of the world and the central figure in all of human history.