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| The Bible contains all the life lessons we need. |
There are two things we should probably never discuss in any diverse group of people, one is politics and the other is religion. Most people believe in just what they choose to believe and those things that seem to make their lives more comfortable.
The Bible needs no defense. It is not like our Constitution, which must be defended each and every day. We will mention some of the history of the Bible and how thousands of years ago, some people knew about the problems that we all face today and actually presented solutions to these problems.
Let's begin with a statement from the Smithsonian Institution in Washington D.C., which is known as America's national educational facility:
"The factual bases of the stories are hidden from our view archaeologically. The stories remain a part of folk traditions and were included in the Bible to illustrate and explain theological ideas such as: Where did humans come from? If humans were created by God (who is perfect and good), how did evil among them come to be? If we are all related as children of God, why do we speak different languages? It must be remembered that the Bible is primarily a book of religion, a guide to faith. It was not a book of history, poetry, economics, or science."In 2006, the Smithsonian opened a new exhibit "In the Beginning-Bibles Before The Year 1000" and in this exhibit are over 70 of the earliest biblical artifacts in existence, including pages and fragments written in Greek, Latin, Hebrew, Arabic, Syriac, Armenian, Ethiopian and Coptic, many on display for the first time in the United States.
In 1604, King James I of England, after convening the Hampton Court Conference, instructed some 47 translators to write a new English version of the "Great Bible" to conform to the beliefs of the Church of England.
The Old Testament was translated from the Hebrew texts and the New Testament was translated from the Greek texts. In 1611, the first "Authorized Version" was published, and the first publication of what we know as the "King James Version" was published in the late 1800s.
Now that we have learned some of the Bible's history, we must look at some of the "truths" found in this book. It is important to note here that the arrangement or order of the books of the Bible were assembled by translators and may or may not be in the exact order of the events as they occurred. The only people who knew for sure were the people who lived during those early times.
We must also understand the Bible is not a series of short stories, but divine teachings and instructions for living our lives that must be considered after reading the entire book.
Before we make our own interpretation of any particular verse found in the Bible, we should always read the chapter before and the chapter following that verse in order to get a better understanding of exactly what that verse is telling us.
Domestic violence is at epidemic levels in the United States today. If we search the Bible, we can find that violence and abuse just may have been a problem in the days of Jesus. Let's look in the book of Ephesians, Chapter 5, and we will find in verses 25-28:
"Husbands, love your wives, even as Christ also loved the church, and gave himself for it; That he might sanctify and cleanse it with the washing of water by the word, That he might present it to himself a glorious church, not having spot, or wrinkle, or any such thing; but that it should be holy and without blemish. So ought men to love their wives as their own bodies. He that loveth his wife loveth himself."We find another reference as to how husbands should treat their wives in Colossians, Chapter 3, verse 19:
"Husbands, love your wives, and be not bitter against them."Is this a fable or a truth, you are the judge.
The abuse of children just might be the most detested act of violence in the country. It would be very difficult to find anyone who doesn't become angry and totally disgusted upon hearing about a child being molested or murdered. Jesus had an opinion on child abuse and you can find that opinion in Matthew 18, verse 6:
"But whoso shall offend one of these little ones which believe in me, it were better for him that a millstone were hanged about his neck, and that he were drowned in the depth of the sea."This same philosophy about child abuse can be found in Mark 9:42 and again in Luke 17:12. It is very easy to see how Jesus felt that abusing a child was a horrible event. Is this truth or just a myth? You are the judge.
Have you ever put your total trust and confidence in some other person only to have that person turn on you or in some way betray your trust? What does the Bible have to say about putting more faith in man than in God? Turn to the book of Micah, Chapter 7, and verses 5-7:
"Trust ye not in a friend, put ye not confidence in a guide: keep the doors of thy mouth from her that lieth in thy bosom. For the son dishonoureth the father, the daughter riseth up against her mother, the daughter in law against her mother in law; a man's enemies are the men of his own house. Therefore I will look unto the LORD; I will wait for the God of my salvation: my God will hear me."There are many other references to "friends" and "trust" found in the Bible and it is definitely not advising us not to have friends, but only to choose our friends wisely. How did people know thousands of years ago that this would be happening to us in 2014?
There are volumes to be written on the truths of the Bible and yet there would still be those who would not be convinced that what Christians believe to be the inspired word of God, written by men, is any more than a fairy tale.
It is sometimes very difficult to understand just how someone who has no deep-rooted beliefs in anything could have any type of happiness or peace in their lives.
We are living in very difficult times. We are fighting wars in foreign lands and we are all fighting our own personal battles in our daily lives. Many choose to face all of these battles alone, with no direction and no guiding influence, while others struggle to hold on to the faith that has been handed down from generation to generation. What would we have our children to believe and will their lives be based on a myth or the truth?
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