I would like to share with you a sermon from Doug Hamilton, preacher at the Junction City Church of Christ, Junction City, KS.

On Why the Bible is the Best-Selling Book of All Time?

By Doug Hamilton, Junction City Church of Christ, Junction City, KS
Doug Hamilton Video link

→ I want to start, by talking about the five ALL time, best selling books

List of the Top Five Best-selling Books in the World

→ Coming in at Number 5 is…​

  1. The Little Prince, a children’s book, published in France in 1943, has sold more than 140 million copies and [was] translated into 250 languages.

  2. The Lord of the Rings has sold 155 million copies since being written in 1954. It has been translated into 38 languages.

  3. The Quran has sold more than 800 million copies and has been translated into 114 languages. Though this is the book representing the second largest religion in the world, many Muslims do not own a copy and are illiterate.

  4. Quotations from Chairman Mao Tse-Tung. They sold more than 1.1 billon copies and translated [it] into 14 languages. This is largely due to the fact that it was required reading in the communist country.

  5. And the #1 Best Seller of all time is: The Bible, The Bible has sold nearly 7 billon copies.
    It has:

    • 1,189 chapters (more than all the verses of every Beatles song ever recorded)

    • 31,103 verses (twenty-five thousand more than the Quran)

    • 774,746 words (more than the first five books of Harry Potter combined)

    • And as of 2020, the full Bible has been translated into 704 languages. The New Testament has been translated into 1,551 languages and parts of the Bible have been translated into 1,160 additional languages.

If the Bible was included on the New York Times Best-selling List, it would have been #1 every single week since the conception [of the list] in 1942. This is why they do not include it, for it would have to called “The New York Times Second-Best Selling List”. The Bible is the best-selling book in the history of publication. Why? Why is this?

Why IS the Bible the Best-Selling Book of All Time?

1. It is archeologically superior.

The Bible is not a book that starts out Once upon a time, but in a [certain] time[&]place perspective. There are thousands upon thousands [of] points of reference that can be validated from an archeological perspective.

  • Mountains, rivers, lakes, cities, roads, trees and other references can be dated to be accurate.

  • The customs of the varying groups mentioned throughout [the Bible], from the cradle of civilization to the end of the first-century is extremely accurate.

  • Events from early on in the flood all the way to the persecution of the Christians are all in a time/place dimension.

  • The cultures, from shepherds to kings, are all brought into the discussion of the text, all with great accuracy.

Time and time again, the Bible will state a location of a site, the archeologists start digging, and the truth of the Bible’s archeological superiority shines forth, helping to explain why this is the #1 best-seller of all-time.

2. It is scientifically superior.

In the first book of the Bible alone we can confirm the First and Second Law of Thermodynamics, genetics, numerical science, biology, climate change, continental drift, the geologic column and pre-historic life. While scientists are constantly seeking a missing link that has never been found, the Bible aligned with facts, proclaim[s life] was created independently of each other.

  • Gen 1:25 And God made the beasts of the earth after their kind, and the cattle after their kind, and everything that creeps on the ground after its kind; and God saw that it was good.

Intellectual scholars promoted for centuries the idea that we lived on a flat earth, but the Bible said differently.

  • Isa 40:22 “He sits enthroned above the circle of the earth, and its people are like grasshoppers. He stretches out the heavens like a canopy…​” (NIV)

  • Job 26:7 "He stretches out the north over empty space, and hangs the earth on nothing.”

The Greeks thought Atlas bore the flat world on his shoulders. Of course, they don’t explain what Atlas was standing on in order bear the world on his shoulders and if they had, they would have to explain what or who was supporting what Atlas was standing on, and so on and so forth.

That’s a similar problem to the origin of species. All life came from a simple single cell, they say. Where did the 1st cell come from? Did it come from inanimate matter? And if it did, where did that lifeless matter come from? Was it always here? Is matter eternal? They used to think so. But then the idea of a big bang came into being, where all the matter of the universe sprang into being all at once. Which is, of course, another problem. Where did matter come from? If it had a beginning, that is, if it sprang into being all at once, that means that before that…​ matter did not exist. So, I ask you again, where did matter come from?…​ And so on and so forth.

This is just two of hundreds of examples where the Bible is true and the educated elite were wrong. Part of the reason why the Bible is the #1 best-selling book of all-time is because it is scientifically accurate.

3. It is poetically superior.

There have been many works of poetry put together that have moved the soul of a person to great comfort. The Bible is superior in this way, being a great source of encouragement for the hurting soul.

  • Ps 23:1,2 The LORD is my shepherd, I shall not want. 2 He makes me lie down in green pastures; He leads me beside quiet waters.

  • Ps 55:6 And I said, "Oh, that I had wings like a dove! I would fly away and be at rest.

  • Isa 6:3 And one called out to another and said, "Holy, Holy, Holy, is the LORD of hosts, the whole earth is full of His glory."

  • Isa 40:31 Yet those who wait for the LORD will gain new strength; they will mount up {with} wings like eagles, they will run and not get tired, they will walk and not become weary.

  • 1 Corinthians 13:13 (ESV) So now faith, hope, and love abide, these three; but the greatest of these is love.

Just one trip through the Psalms can lift your spirit to new heights. If you want to know why [the bible is] the #1 best-seller of all-time, then consider it is poetically superior to all other writings as a whole.

4. It is prophetically superior.

There are many hundreds of prophecies that were fulfilled from the Bible. In detail great nations were accurately predicted to fall. Droughts were predicted numerous times, occurring just as planned. Kings would rise and fall as planned. Astronomical events would occur [just] as predicted.

Jesus was mentioned hundreds of times with accuracy centuries before His coming, including His family origin, place of birth, childhood, His ministry, His miracle-working, His parables, His triumphal entry [into Jerusalem], His cleansing of the Temple, His betrayal, His [kind] of death to be suffered, His burial, His resurrection; His ascension all were predicted centuries prior. This is one of the biggest reasons that the Bible is #1 on the best-selling list for it is prophetically superior to all other writings.

5. It is relevantly superior.

There is the misconception that the Bible is an out-of-date book that really does not have anything to do with everyday [modern] life. There could be nothing further from the truth, for it is truly the Book of Life and is able to be alive and well [and relevant] in our everyday lives.

Like Marriage for example: 

Most couples enter the marriage covenant with the idea that it is for life, yet millions of divorces occur every year. The Bible gives marital insight in many topics including dating, engagement, covenant, sexual relations, family leadership and growing old together.

  • Eph 5:31 For this cause a man shall leave his father and mother, and shall cleave to his wife; and the two shall become one flesh.

Parenting: 

If you are like most parents in the world, you might have noticed that children are not easy to bring up. If only there was an instruction book with this topic in mind. The #1 best-selling book of all-time, the Bible, has been providing sound parenting advice for more than two millennia.

  • Prov 22:6 Train up a child in the way he should go, even when he is old he will not depart from it.

  • Eph 6:1-3 Children, obey your parents in the Lord, for this is right. 2 Honor your father and mother (which is the first commandment with a promise), 3 that it may be well with you, and that you may live long on the earth.

Money: 

Want to learn about money? Want to know how to make the ends meet and prosper? Want to know how to make good investment decisions? Want to improve your credit rating? The Bible gives great insight to financial issues many hundreds of times. Entire national economies have come and gone for centuries, but the monetary teachings of the Bible are unchanging. Principles like saving, investing, debt, charity and fiscal responsibility are found in the Bible and most certainly are applicable today.

Relationships: 

Besides our immediate family, this #1 best seller of all time helps us in our other relationships that we have: Friendships, enemies, business, professional, government and employment. You name it; it is covered.

This Bible is the #1 best-seller partially for the reason that it is applicable. It is relevantly superior to all other writings to have ever touched the printing press.

6. It is morally Superior.

Think of all the self-help books that are on the market today and over the last few decades. Many of them try to promote a standard of living that is being sought for a better life. Some reach the level of a big seller, but none surpass the Bible to become the #1 best-seller. The Bible promotes a standard of morality that is head and shoulders above all other publications.

  • While the world says eat, drink and be merry, the Bible says to take it all in moderation.

  • While the world says that being promiscuous is good and will bring you happiness, the Bible said that it will bring great turmoil in their lives.

  • While the world is saying that it is a “Dog Eat Dog” environment, the Bible says to love all and seek no harm to others.

  • While the world says it is okay to hate your enemy, the Bible says that we should love them.

  • While the world is teaching us to put ourselves FIRST, the Bible says to value others as more important than ourselves.

Look at all the morality that the world teaches and compare it to the morals taught in the Bible. Without a doubt, the Bible is morally superior. This is yet another reason why it is the #1 best-seller.

7. It is spiritually superior.

What is the world of literature offering you that is comparative to the Bible? The Bible carries with it the words of eternal life. [Let that sink in!]

  • John 3:16 "For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life.

  • John 10:10 "The thief comes only to steal, and kill, and destroy; I came that they might have life, and might have {it} abundantly. [-- a full life.]

  • John 14:6 Jesus said to him, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father, but through Me.

  • John 17:3 And this is eternal life, that they [may] know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent.

  • Rom 6:23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

Do you want to know what the #1 reason is as to why the Bible is the #1 best-selling book of all time? It is because the Bible carries the hope of eternal life for the one that wishes to pursue it.

Conclusion - The Bible is…​

  1. Archeologically Superior

  2. Scientifically Superior

  3. Poetically Superior

  4. Prophetically Superior

  5. Relevantly Superior

  6. Morally Superior

  7. Spiritually Superior

    to every other book.

And that’s why the Bible is the best selling book of all time ever written!

Invitation

We are extending the invitation, now, to anyone who is subject to it. Come,…​ while we stand and sing.