What do (or don't) you believe in the Bible?

[Hannah]

I am just curious to what degree people here believe in the Bible, and how seriously they take it?

I find it VERY hard to "pick and choose" what I believe in. I mean, if the story about Creation is made up, then maybe the prophecies about Jesus are made up too? Etc, etc.

I want to believe in everything in the Bible, but after a secular education, and against scientists who say they have the objective truth, it's not that easy.

So here is an attempt to check what people find it hard to believe in.

I do not mean to stir up any hard feelings and I do not judge or critisize people who look at this from a different angle than me. I am hoping for an honest opinon on what stories from the bible are less easy to believe in. If you think of something else which did not occur to me, please write about it in a comment!

"I find it hard to believe in..."

[Watchman]

I find it hard to believe that the Bible is the sum total of God's revelation to man. The scriptures themselves teach us that the Holy Spirit is our teacher...simply verbalizing (since I don't like the phrase, just sayin'!)

W

[keyzer soze]

well I find every single one of those "hard to believe in" since they are all miracles and I don't see miracles like that all too often... so for me it has become an "all or nothing" sort of thing because too much of the bible builds on the rest. I mean, if creation didn't happen like it says then a lot of the reasoning that Paul uses in his theology is faulty and based on fictitious stories. If Jonah didn't get swallowed by a fish for 3 days then I think Jesus believed in a lie. if Jesus was born of Joseph and not God then he is not the son of God.

if miracles and prophesies didn't really happen then the "God" of the bible Himself would say to NOT BELIEVE in the bible. these things happened so that we CAN BELIEVE they are from God.

the donkey speaking story does make me chuckle every time I picture it... luckily we have Shrek movies to help us make that a little more "believable"! LOL

[ChristianCoffee]

I spent a very long time trying to disprove the Bible so I could continue upon whatever road I wanted to. Eventually, God softened my heart, and spoke to me in a way I could understand. I have no issues with believing everything that is in the Bible. For me, there are only 2 questions: do you believe it all? Or do you pick and choose? The issue with picking what you want to believe is that then you are believing a different Gospel then what Jesus preached. If Jesus is whom He says He is (The Way, The Truth, and The Light), then I want to know and believe EVERYTHING He has said.

For myself, there is no question: it is all real.

[Brother Mark]

How about this option...

"I believe all the scriptures are true and accurate. But sometimes, I have difficulty submitting to and trusting in what God says."

[RollTide21]

well I find every single one of those "hard to believe in" since they are all miracles and I don't see miracles like that all too often... so for me it has become an "all or nothing" sort of thing because too much of the bible builds on the rest. I mean, if creation didn't happen like it says then a lot of the reasoning that Paul uses in his theology is faulty and based on fictitious stories. If Jonah didn't get swallowed by a fish for 3 days then I think Jesus believed in a lie. if Jesus was born of Joseph and not God then he is not the son of God.

if miracles and prophesies didn't really happen then the "God" of the bible Himself would say to NOT BELIEVE in the bible. these things happened so that we CAN BELIEVE they are from God.

the donkey speaking story does make me chuckle every time I picture it... luckily we have Shrek movies to help us make that a little more "believable"! LOL

It doesn't have to be all or nothing. Our Faith is based on the Gospel that Jesus Christ died for the sins of mankind and rose from the Grave for the Atonement of our sin. This is recorded plainly by the Gospels and that simple premise is what is revealed to us by the Holy Spirit when we receive Christ. Certain Truths accompany that Faith, naturally. The Virgin Birth, Jesus' Miracles, Death and Resurrection, etc. Those types of things accompany Faith in Christ in that they support the Gospel that He is the Son Of God.

As for the rest of the options listed, I believe most every one of them actually happened, but not because I feel like I MUST believe them. I just know that there is a God and, with the parting of the Red Sea, for example, He certainly chose the Nation of Israel as His people and...why WOULDN'T he have been able to perform this miracle? The 6 day Creation and Young Earth? Meh. Science seems to suggest otherwise, but, of course, God can do whatever He wants. I think God created the Universe, but I think it's much older than what YEC people think. If it is, it does nothing to change that I trust in the Truth of the Resurrected Christ. My Faith is in Jesus, not the Bible. ***Edit***To clarify that last statement: I do believe in the Spiritual perfection of Scripture. I just don't believe we must believe in a literal reading of all of the text.

[ChristianCoffee]

It doesn't have to be all or nothing. Our Faith is based on the Gospel that Jesus Christ died for the sins of mankind and rose from the Grave for the Atonement of our sin. This is recorded plainly by the Gospels and that simple premise is what is revealed to us by the Holy Spirit when we receive Christ. Certain Truths accompany that Faith, naturally. The Virgin Birth, Jesus' Miracles, Death and Resurrection, etc. Those types of things accompany Faith in Christ in that they support the Gospel that He is the Son Of God.

As for the rest of the options listed, I believe most every one of them actually happened, but not because I feel like I MUST believe them. I just know that there is a God and, with the parting of the Red Sea, for example, He certainly chose the Nation of Israel as His people and...why WOULDN'T he have been able to perform this miracle? The 6 day Creation and Young Earth? Meh. Science seems to suggest otherwise, but, of course, God can do whatever He wants. I think God created the Universe, but I think it's much older than what YEC people think. If it is, it does nothing to change that I trust in the Truth of the Resurrected Christ. My Faith is in Jesus, not the Bible.

I understand about your faith being in Jesus, Tide. I truly do. But I would like to use 2Tim 3:16 to explain why the entirety of scripture is true.

It states: All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right (New Living Translation)

That one verse clearly states all Scripture. Not just parts of it, or most of it. All of it.

The way to be transformed is to have knowledge of God, which is revealed in His Word. Jesus stated "I am the Way, the Truth, and the Light. None may come to the Father but by me."

King David in the Old Testiment tells us to "Meditate on the Word of God daily"

If the entire Bible is the Word of God, should we not accept it as fact? We accept the Risen Christ as fact because it is written there. We accept the Flood, the Tower of Babel, King David and Goliath. We believe Jesus called 12 "regular" people to follow Him. We believe that one of them betrayed Him with a kiss. We believe He died and rose again, and that He will return.

I do not want to create dissension, but what I do wish to point out is that while your faith is correctly placed in Jesus, I am guessing that the main reason why is because you have read about Him in the Bible. So how can you state that while your faith in Jesus is complete, you do not necessarily have faith that the Bible is all true? I am not referring to young/old earth, pre/mid/post trib, but I am speaking of the entire Bible being the inspired Word of God.

Or maybe I am just misunderstanding you.

[Watchman]

I noticed someone had trouble with Balaam's donkey speaking. I agree...if only the Democrats would shut up!

[glad4mercy]

I am just curious to what degree people here believe in the Bible, and how seriously they take it?

I find it VERY hard to "pick and choose" what I believe in. I mean, if the story about Creation is made up, then maybe the prophecies about Jesus are made up too? Etc, etc.

I want to believe in everything in the Bible, but after a secular education, and against scientists who say they have the objective truth, it's not that easy.

So here is an attempt to check what people find it hard to believe in.

I do not mean to stir up any hard feelings and I do not judge or critisize people who look at this from a different angle than me. I am hoping for an honest opinon on what stories from the bible are less easy to believe in. If you think of something else which did not occur to me, please write about it in a comment!

"I find it hard to believe in..."

I have no problem believing in any kind of miracle, for with God anything is possible. The last one regarding Revelation is interpreted differently by different believers. Some hold the visions of Revelation occurred in the Past, ( Preterist), some that the visions span history from the first to second coming, ( Historicist), and some hold that most, ( though not all the visions in Revelation) are yet future, ( Futurist). I believe that some of the visions of Revelation were fullfilled in the first century, some have happened down through the centuries, and much will be fullfilled in the future, so I don't know which category I would fall in.

The Bible doesnt give us the age of the earth, but it does tell us that it was created in six days. I have no problem in believing that. God could have created it in the blink of an eye if he wanted to. I also do not have any problem with the fact that the universe appears old. Adam was created fully grown, so he had the appearance of age, so what's to say that the universe was not created with the appearance of age, i.e what appears to have taken billions of years occurred over days; (God's power wonderfully forming and shaping the universe). And if I'm wrong about a relatively young earth, and the earth is billions of years old, that doesnt make the Bible any less accurate, because the Bible does not state the age of the earth anywhere. I myself believe that the earth is a lot younger than what "old age" earth proponents believe, but I would not limit it to less than 10,000 years. No the story of creation was not made up.

Definitely believe in the historical accuracy of the Bible, definitely believe it is the inspired, inerrant, and infallible word of God in it's originals, ( and the translations are wonderfully accurate, just stay away from the New World Translation and be cautious with paraphrases), and definitely believe that the miracles recorded in the Bible were supernatural acts of YHWH. Put me down in the I believe it all category. God Bless

PS- the most amazing and unbelievable thing in the Bible is that God loved a sinner like me so much that He sent His only Son to die for me. The Love of God is unfathomable, yet I believe, because the Bible tells me so, and I have tasted and seen that the LORD is GOOD. Science, philosophy, and the wisdom of man cannot explain or disprove what God has done for His own, but those who have been touched by God know and understand. .

[RollTide21]

I understand about your faith being in Jesus, Tide. I truly do. But I would like to use 2Tim 3:16 to explain why the entirety of scripture is true.

It states: All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right (New Living Translation)

That one verse clearly states all Scripture. Not just parts of it, or most of it. All of it.

That's right. I certainly believe that Scripture is inspired by God and I wholeheartedly stand by Paul's saying that it teaches us what is true and makes us realize what is wrong in our lives as well as teaches us right from wrong. That doesn't mean that Scripture must be taken literally. What Paul is saying is that Scripture is Spirit-led and is therefore profitable for instruction in Spiritual Truth.

The way to be transformed is to have knowledge of God, which is revealed in His Word. Jesus stated "I am the Way, the Truth, and the Light. None may come to the Father but by me."

Jesus IS the Word of God, not the Bible. He is the Word made Flesh.

King David in the Old Testiment tells us to "Meditate on the Word of God daily"

Psalm 1:

1 Blessed is the one
who does not walk in step with the wicked
or stand in the way that sinners take
or sit in the company of mockers,
2 but whose delight is in the law of the LORD,
and who meditates on his law day and night.
3 That person is like a tree planted by streams of water,
which yields its fruit in season
and whose leaf does not wither—
whatever they do prospers.

David was an OT Saint under the Old Law. He is encouraging people to delight in and meditate on the Law of God and rejoice to follow in God's commandments. For us, this means for us to meditate on and delight in following the Law of the Spirit of Christ. Scripture is certainly a way to do this, but for Spiritual guidance, of which Scripture is replete.

If the entire Bible is the Word of God, should we not accept it as fact? We accept the Risen Christ as fact because it is written there. We accept the Flood, the Tower of Babel, King David and Goliath. We believe Jesus called 12 "regular" people to follow Him. We believe that one of them betrayed Him with a kiss. We believe He died and rose again, and that He will return.

I believe that the Word of God is the Word of God. By His Word He spoke everything into being, by His Word He spoke to Moses and Abraham, and His Word was made flesh in Christ. The Bible is a means for speaking Spiritual Truth to us via the Holy Spirit. If we equate "The Word of God" with The Bible...meaning we say that the words on the page are God's ACTUAL words, then we get what we have now: Division and Dissention with all claiming that their interpretation of the Bible is "God's Word".

I do not want to create dissension, but what I do wish to point out is that while your faith is correctly placed in Jesus, I am guessing that the main reason why is because you have read about Him in the Bible.

Sure. But what about the earliest Believers who heard the Gospel from one of the Apostles?

So how can you state that while your faith in Jesus is complete, you do not necessarily have faith that the Bible is all true?

I believe the Bible is fully inerrant. I just see no obligation to believe that all of it is literal. It's a Spiritual Book.

I am not referring to young/old earth, pre/mid/post trib, but I am speaking of the entire Bible being the inspired Word of God.

I believe the Bible to written by men who were inspired by the Holy Spirit. With that, I believe that God has much to say to us in the Bible. His Word, however, is larger than the Scriptures.

Or maybe I am just misunderstanding you.

I would only clarify that I believe it is possible to believe that Scripture is perfectly inspired by God, yet this doesn't necessarily mean that it is to be taken literally...or even that, if there is some minor discrepancy...this means that Scripture is NOT inerrant. God is Spirit and He speaks to us in Spirit.

[IMINXTC]

I deny that that it is possible for the Bible to be at the same time infallible and errant in its assertions.

[PneumaPsucheSoma]

Believing certain interpretations or doctrines may be difficult; but believing the substantial reality of people, events, and overall message of scripture is not difficult. The last choice listed is subject to one's view of eschatology, and I'm not a Futurist; but scripture is still the source and is wholly trustworthy.

[Watchman]

I would like to use 2Tim 3:16 to explain why the entirety of scripture is true. It states: All Scripture is inspired by God and is useful to teach us what is true and to make us realize what is wrong in our lives. It corrects us when we are wrong and teaches us to do what is right (New Living Translation)

That one verse clearly states all Scripture. Not just parts of it, or most of it. All of it.

Here's the quandary, CC. Scripture does NOT tell us what writings are God-breathed and which are not. Further, scripture does NOT contain a command from our Father to compile all the God-breathed writings and to view them as a book, a roadmap, or whatever. Jesus stated unequivocally: the scriptures do this---they testifiy of Him. So, what keeps other writings that testify of Him from being scripture?

W

[Liquid Tension]

I noticed someone had trouble with Balaam's donkey speaking. I agree...if only the Democrats would shut up!

Great!! Now I need to get a towel to wipe off the soda I just sprayed all over my monitor.

[Watchman]

Great!! Now I need to get a towel to wipe off the soda I just sprayed all over my monitor.

Sorry about your monitor...sometimes the truth causes spraying.