Moses & History (part 1)

For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope.
Romans 15:4

We recently received an email from a student who heard us teach at a camp and is now attending college. The camper wrote:

We have been talking about Genesis and the birth of Moses, and my professor has mentioned several times that those pieces of the Bible may not be historically accurate, but are just told to depict a characteristic of God. I know you mentioned that the Bible is one of the most historically accurate books we have, and that is not lining up with this new content I am being told. Do you view the story of creation and for example the birth of Moses to be completely written as it happened or not? I am very confused how we believe the Bible is infallible while still believing content like that is not true, but more of a literary element. I know this is a deep question and you are very busy, but if you get a chance and could give me some guidance I would greatly appreciate it.

The following is part 1 of our response:

The first thing that comes to mind is Jesus’ words in John 5:46, “For if you believed Moses, you would believe Me; for he wrote about Me.” In that chapter, Jesus confirms the Jewish belief that Moses, by inspiration of the Holy Spirit, composed the Torah/Pentateuch. Moses is mentioned by name 79 times in the New Testament as a real person in real history who truly wrote Genesis–Deuteronomy.

Regarding Jesus, here is what He said about Moses’ authorship:

Matthew 8:4, Mark 1:44, Luke 5:14 – Jesus said Moses wrote the Torah, specifically the leprosy laws in Leviticus 14.
Matthew 19:7-8 & Mark 10:3-5 – Jesus confirmed that Moses wrote the Torah, specifically marriage laws in Deuteronomy 24.
Matthew 22:24-32, Mark 12:19-27, Luke 20:28-38 – Jesus confirmed that Moses wrote the Torah, as He specifically declared the writings of Moses are “Scripture” (Matt. 22:29 & Mark 12:24). He also confirmed Moses recorded the inheritance laws in Deuteronomy 25 and quoted Exodus 3:6 as real history and Scripture written by Moses.
Mark 7:10 – Jesus specifically said Moses wrote down in the Torah the Ten Commandments as well as the passages of Exodus 21 and Leviticus 20.
John 3:14 – Jesus confirmed the historicity of Numbers 21, including Moses and the bronze serpent.
John 6:31-32 – Jesus confirmed the historicity of Exodus 16, including Moses and the provision of manna.
John 7:19-24 – Jesus confirmed that Moses wrote the entire Torah (verse 19) and specifically the Sabbath and circumcision laws.

Jesus’ statement in Matthew 22:29 and Mark 12:24 that Moses' five books are Scripture is highly significant. The Greek word for "Scripture" (graphé) is used 51 times, including II Timothy 3:16, which says, “All Scripture is God-breathed”. The New Testament is adamant that the Old Testament, in particularly the first 5 books, are directly inspired by God. They were regarded by Jesus, the Apostles, and all Jewish people of that time as genuine, factual history.

Here is what I never hear professors who deny the historicity of Genesis, Exodus, etc., address: Was Jesus wrong when He taught that Genesis through Exodus is real history? If so, what does that do to His credibility and deity?

In Matthew 19:4-5, Jesus specifically quoted Genesis 1:27, 2:24, and 5:2 as real history; Jesus taught the Creation account was real history. He referred to Abel (Matthew 23:35) as the first prophet, a real person in history, confirming the historicity of Genesis 4. In Matthew 24:37-39 and Luke 17:26-27, Jesus confirmed the historicity of Noah and the global flood (Genesis 6-9). And in Luke 17:28-32, Jesus confirmed the historicity of Lot and Sodom & Gomorrah, including his wife turning into salt (Genesis 19).

Jesus made it very clear that everything in Genesis is real history. For someone to deny that is to say Jesus was wrong or that someone knows more than Jesus. The rest of the inspired New Testament authors all agree with Jesus with numerous references to Genesis, Exodus, etc. as real history with real people.

< Older Post

Newer Post >

September/October 2025 Printed Newsletter

October 2, 2025

Flooded Marine Reptile

By Matt Miles • October 2, 2025

The Flood during Noah’s day was a devastating judgement against the sin and wickedness of the time. Most people focus on what the Lord did as He saved the eight people and animals on the Ark. Yet while they were being saved, the Flood destroyed the earth and left behind some remarkable things. Geology around the globe shows water burial of plants and animals. Many of the animal remains show signs of drowning and then burial. One particular reptile that shows this is the Ichthyosaurus. From what we can understand, water was her home for everything in life, even giving birth to live young. This well designed creature may even help us trust the Word of God when it comes to the history of the Flood. In our Mobile Museum of Earth History we exhibit a research replica of an ichthyosaur called Stenopterygius quadriscissus . She is from Holzmaden, Germany and is one example of hundreds that have been found in the area. The reason we can so confidently state this fossil is a “her,” when we rarely know for sure about fossil animals, is because she is pregnant. She has three babies present with her remains: one under her tail, one in or near the birth canal, and one still inside. Our fossil is in situ, which means the fossil remains in the rock matrix it was buried in. So, the presence of momma and babies are how they were buried and not articulated in some manner after excavation. This is important to show the rapid, watery burial that must have taken place to lock this scene in the fossil record. The Flood trapped organisms all over the world in different life positions. Sometimes the fossils left behind have shown eating, hunting, sleeping, swimming, nesting, or drowning. When it comes to ichthyosaurs around the planet, there is a significant number of females that seem to be pregnant. They have been found in the fossil record on at least four continents. A fair assumption would be that Ichthyosaurs had a certain time of year they mated and gave birth to young, much like sea turtles today that nest from late spring to late fall depending on the region around the world. So it should come as no surprise that we find pregnant ichthyosaurs all around the world as the Flood lasted an entire year. It would have buried the females that were pregnant near their location of habitat. Evolutionists maintain that ichthyosaurs lived tens to hundreds of million years ago and each of the mothers found in the fossil record just died while giving birth. This is difficult to support in a millions magnitude time scale. That would mean every time a disaster happened, millions of years apart, the right conditions existed to quickly bury ichthyosaurs that just so happened to be pregnant. It just might take some “faith” to trust that “miracle” would happen over and over again through eons of time. Or you can have faith that the Word of God’s history is correct with a judgement of man’s sin bringing global devastation through the Flood during Noah’s 600th year of life. The Word of God is trustworthy, with even the fossil record showing us glimpses of historical evidence in support of our faith. I’m so thankful we don’t need blind faith to trust our salvation! Blessings.

Our God Whom We Serve Is Able

By Ryan Cox • October 2, 2025

14 Nebuchadnezzar spoke, saying to them, “Is it true, Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego, that you do not serve my gods or worship the gold image which I have set up? 15 …if you do not worship, you shall be cast immediately into the midst of a burning fiery furnace. And who is the god who will deliver you from my hands?” 16 Shadrach, Meshach, and Abed-Nego answered and said to the king, “O Nebuchadnezzar, we have no need to answer you in this matter. 17 If that is the case, our God whom we serve is able to deliver us from the burning fiery furnace, and He will deliver us from your hand, O king. 18 But if He does not, let it be known to you, O king, that we do not serve your gods, nor will we worship the gold image which you have set up.” Daniel 3:14-18 In the 6th century BC, three young men stood up for their faith in the one true God, for which someone attempted to kill them. Today, in the 21st century AD, one young man was gunned down for his faith in the one true God. And sadly, Charlie Kirk is not the only one. According to The Esther Project, martyrdom for the cause of Christ is commonplace around the world ( theestherproject.com/statistics ). On average: 322 Christians are killed monthly. 214 churches or Christian properties are destroyed monthly. 772 forms of violence (beatings, kidnappings, etc.) against Christians are committed monthly. 100,000 to 160,000 Christians are killed annually in the 21st century. 1.093 million Christians were martyred between 2000 and 2010. And more than 70 million Christians are believed to have been martyred since the 1st century, with more than half killed in the 20th century alone under communist and fascist governments. And how should Christians respond? Peter wrote, “ if anyone suffers as a Christian, let him not be ashamed, but glorify God in this name ” (I Peter 4:16). Jesus took this a step further; He told us, “ …love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you ” (Matthew 5:44). Now, as Shawn Grant, minister at Kissimmee Christian Church, FL, preached on the Sunday following the assassination, th at may not be what you want to hear right now, but that is what Jesus has told us we must do. Why? So the world will see the difference Jesus makes! The night of and the days after the assassination, businesses did not have to board up their stores. Police and soldiers did not have to be deployed. There were no riots, no property damages, no police spat upon – only tears, prayers, and a witness to the world that Jesus is the answer. So noticeable is this to the world, there were more international press requests for the Charlie Kirk memorial service than are requested for Super Bowls. Within seven days of his death, Kirk’s ministry Turning Point USA had received over 54,000 campus chapter requests. And most importantly, scores of videos of young people considering or even deciding to give their lives to Jesus have been posted to social media platforms.