Last week during chapel, Santa Fe Christian High School students got to hear from Austin Fruits, a Christian speaker who works with Josh McDowell Ministry.   

During his talk, Fruits presented a case to SFC students that your Bible can be trusted by laying out actual biblical manuscripts and scrolls and telling the story of the scribes and Christians who passed God’s word down to others. 

When chapel concluded, students were able to come up to the stage and view the ancient manuscripts and scrolls. The artifacts included a Torah scroll estimated to be around 650 years old and various New Testament manuscripts.  

“Young people are searching for something real, something to fix their broken world and to heal their own pain,” said Fruits. “The Bible is the solution and the ancient manuscripts of both the Old and New Testament provide tangible confidence that the Bible we have today can be trusted. It’s not wishful thinking or blind faith, it’s trust based upon evidence. The Bible’s reliability matters because its message is not a private truth, but a public reality, and high schoolers are craving its hope.”

Some of the items included miniature parchment dated from the late 4th century with the Coptic writing: “Seek first the Kingdom of God…” This is likely from a codex of the Gospel of Matthew, chapters 6 and 7. 

“It was amazing to see so many students engaged and excited about the artifacts,” said Mike Siciliano, SFC’s dean of students. “It’s not every day students get to be exposed to biblical history in such a tangible way.”

Students flocked to the stage to get close to the artifacts and walked away with a better understanding of the Bible’s origins. 

“This week’s chapel was a unique opportunity to learn about the reliability of the Bible, which helped me gain a deeper understanding of the incredible journey the Bible has been on to end up in our hands today,” said Jacob Anderson, a junior at SFC. “Being able to see some of the oldest copies of the Bible in person was a truly impactful experience and helped strengthen my faith.”