I started to read the Bible when I was about 12 years old. I was in confirmation class, and while we didn’t really study the Bible for class, I wondered about it. I remember being a little freaked out by some of the stories, especially the Book of Revelation! I also remember being surprised I was allowed to read the racier and inappropriate parts, like what Abraham did to his wife! (twice) or what David did to Bathsheba? There are lots of parts of the Bible that children should not be allowed to read, but there are even more that they should. Jesus was a pretty interesting character – He was not very much like the guy I learned about in Sunday School!
The Bible matters for a lot of reasons, but I have learned over the years that it isn’t read very much. Sure, there are Bible-Believing churches and Christians who say they read the Bible, but the truth is that they read parts of it, just like the rest of us. Recent examples of pastors being fired by their churches for alleged “socialist/commie statements” in sermons prove this. When accused of those “Un-American” activities, they defended themselves by saying they were just quoting Jesus. Their accusers didn’t believe them. This is one reason the Bible matters. The Bible also matters because, even though most of us don’t know it well, it is the foundation of our faith. That doesn’t mean that the church is completely run on Biblical principles; that would be impossible to do in the 21st century. It would also be problematic. There are too many contradictions in it; we could never find consensus.
The Bible should not, but often is, taken literally, which is the cause of most of our problems throughout history. For example, Leviticus 19:19 prohibits wearing wool and linen clothing mixed together. It also prohibits planting two different seeds in the same field. In Luke 14, Jesus told His disciples that if they didn’t leave their families, they couldn’t follow Him. I could go on, but I think you get me. The Bible should, however, be taken seriously. It should guide our lives the way Jesus told us to; every rule needs to pass the “love” smell test. If the Bible tells you to do anything else (smite someone, stone them, etc), Jesus said, don’t do it (Mt. 22:40).
There is no shame in not having read the Bible; you are in good company. If you want to go deeper into your faith, why not try to read it? A good start would be today – join our monthly Zoom Bible Study. You have nothing to lose and everything to gain. We will decide how we proceed at noon and 7pm – if you decide you don’t like it, no worries. I will also be re-starting our in-person Bible Study after my sabbatical. I think this will be fun – hope you do too. The Zoom Link is below.
Prayer – Your word, O God, is a lamp to guide us through the darkness. Help us learn together, for Your sake. Amen.
Today’s art is “Revelation of God” by Aaron Herrera.
The Rev. Dr. Steve Ohnsman, PhD. Pastor, Calvary UCC Rdg PA is inviting you to a scheduled Zoom meeting.
Topic: Zoom Bible Study – 2nd Thursday at Noon & 7:00pm
Time: Mar 14, 2024 07:00 AM Eastern Time (US and Canada)
Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/83057160660
Meeting ID: 830 5716 0660