Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
Sure it's possible, but the well-used Bible is carried as .... a prop? None of the disciples needed that. Just makes one look like a salesman. This actually matters. If you can't speak from the heart of what your beliefs means to you and can be advantageous, but have to rely on it to point to, it's rather incriminating. And it just leads to an overabundance of frauds in the field.
I didn’t mean you carry it with you every day, everywhere, but rather you read and study it all your life. Then you can live it out. It is my opinion that a Christian should never “graduate” from holy scripture. I would not trust a Christian who has not cracked open his Bible recently.
I would not trust a Christian who has not cracked open his Bible recently.
I wouldn't trust a Christian who can't explain why he/she believes what they believe without reading scripture, and would choose hiding behind a book when they should be freely and naturally associating with others of all kinds. In churches, "reading the bible" is always given a free pass over putting any faith or knowledge into use. Hiding behind the walls of a church is also along the same whimpy path. As John Eldredge said in "Wild at Heart", most churches are full of posers. Most energy is applied to an outer image and mask, and superficiality.
Last edited by Thoreau424; 10-21-2022 at 04:19 PM..
I didn’t mean you carry it with you every day, everywhere, but rather you read and study it all your life. Then you can live it out. It is my opinion that a Christian should never “graduate” from holy scripture. I would not trust a Christian who has not cracked open his Bible recently.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Thoreau424
I wouldn't trust a Christian who can't explain why he/she believes what they believe without reading scripture, and would choose hiding behind a book when they should be freely and naturally associating with others of all kinds. "Reading the bible" is always given a free pass over putting any faith or knowledge into use. Hiding behind the walls of a church is along the same whimpy path as well.
Can’t a person do both, be a lifelong student of the Bible AND put God’s word to use?
Sure it's possible, but the well-used Bible is carried as .... a prop? None of the disciples needed that. Just makes one look like a salesman. This actually matters. If you can't speak from the heart of what your beliefs mean to you and can be advantageous, but have to rely on it to point to, it's rather incriminating. And it just leads to an abundance of frauds roaming around.
Actually, the disciples, and Jesus had the Septuagint as their Bible. Jesus to the unbelieving Pharisees - ''Have you never read . . . ?''
Can’t a person do both, be a lifelong student of the Bible AND put God’s word to use?
If they actually studied the Bible with the "mind of Christ" and tried to understand what our ancestors misunderstood and interpreted about God, Yes. But few, if any, do that. They THINK they are reading words dictated by God's Holy Spirit instead of getting into the states of mind associated with God's Holy Spirit and reading with His guidance.
If they actually studied the Bible with the "mind of Christ" and tried to understand what our ancestors misunderstood and interpreted about God, Yes. But few, if any, do that. They THINK they are reading words dictated by God's Holy Spirit instead of getting into the states of mind associated with God's Holy Spirit and reading with His guidance.
There are hundreds…no, thousands of people in my church alone, who a) believe the Bible is 100% God’s word from start to finish, without error, and b) love God and serve others, prompted by the Holy Spirit that lives within them. How do I know this? I see it with my own eyes! So, you are wrong!
There are hundreds…no, thousands of people in my church alone, who a) believe the Bible is 100% God’s word from start to finish, without error, and b) love God and serve others, prompted by the Holy Spirit that lives within them. How do I know this? I see it with my own eyes! So, you are wrong!
The bold is no endorsement of their perspicacity, Jimmie! If they do not and cannot see the obvious errors, contradictions, and inconsistencies in the Bible, they are in no position to be considered very discerning or discriminating. I believe your church has fine, decent, and loving people, but they are misguided by the stupid belief that the Bible is God's word instead of just being what tells us ABOUT Jesus who IS the ONLY Word of God (Logos)! Logos does NOT mean actual "words"!
!
I didn’t mean you carry it with you every day, everywhere, but rather you read and study it all your life. Then you can live it out. It is my opinion that a Christian should never “graduate” from holy scripture. I would not trust a Christian who has not cracked open his Bible recently.
I suppose if an atheist said he didn't trust christians you'd probably be complaining. Double standard!
The bold is no endorsement of their perspicacity, Jimmie! If they do not and cannot see the obvious errors, contradictions, and inconsistencies in the Bible, they are in no position to be considered very discerning or discriminating. I believe your church has fine, decent, and loving people, but they are misguided by the stupid belief that the Bible is God's word instead of just being what tells us ABOUT Jesus who IS the ONLY Word of God (Logos)! Logos does NOT mean actual "words"!
!
Jesus never intended for people to be carrying around books (or scrolls). If the messages and teachings aren't figuratively "written" on your heart and mind, then you're just nurse-feeding on text printed on paper / papyrus.
Read it yes, as an "infant", and learn, but then go forward as an 'adult' as the disciples did. Too many are stuck in the toddler stage, and don't want to progress any further. The modern churches certainly encourage the former more than the latter, as we should pacifier-carry our Bibles, and remain behind the safe walls of the church with the yes-crowd. Compared to Jesus' teachings and directions, it's a fraud and scam.
Good post. By the time I was twelve, I'd probably read the entire Bible at least twice.
I joined a Bible study at work for a while. They were serious fundamentalist types, and I started to get away from that group when I mentioned having difficulty in my marriage and one woman looked at me as if I was an idiot and said, "Just open the Bible to a random spot and your answer will be there."
Like one of those Magic 8-Ball toys.
The answer was get a restraining order and a lawyer. Even my priest at the time said, "Get yourself out of this. We like to preach reconciliation when possible, but in this case, there would be no point."
I studied the Bible again some years later when I took the Episcopal Seminary's EFM course. It was a four-year theological study of the OT, NT, the History of Christianity, and in the last year, a series of books on different aspects of Christianity in the modern world. (My favorite was Care for Creation, a Franciscan Spirituality of the Earth, about connecting with nature and looking out for the planet.) It was very thorough and examined the Bible historically and in context and most of all, honestly. That some of the books are not written by those whose names are attached to them, such as 2 Peter or 2 Thessalonians (Paul). Doesn't mean they are without value, but it was a look at the Scriptures under the lens of reality.
I might use the Bible as a reference now and again, but I've read it, examined it, studied it, and I'm not going to be stuck in it. It seems to me that too many are. And hey, maybe that's where they are comfortable staying, and that works for them.
Please register to post and access all features of our very popular forum. It is free and quick. Over $68,000 in prizes has already been given out to active posters on our forum. Additional giveaways are planned.
Detailed information about all U.S. cities, counties, and zip codes on our site: City-data.com.
Please register to participate in our discussions with 2 million other members - it's free and quick! Some forums can only be seen by registered members. After you create your account, you'll be able to customize options and access all our 15,000 new posts/day with fewer ads.
