The Bible is viewed by some as the definition of Christianity. The contents of the Bible for this group defines their religion in its entirety. They believe it is more than inspired; they believe it is infallible.
For the other extreme, the Bible is viewed as a loose set of guidelines, or perhaps even suggestions for living rather than laws by which humanity will be judged.
Of course, not to be excluded is the group that feels the Bible is so flawed that it represents the best case against Christianity.
To add additional layers of complexity, arguments have ensued between people that place equal value on the word of God regarding its context, its meaning, or the wording of a particular translation.
With so many methods available to misinterpret the Bible, it becomes easy to see how there can be so much disagreement among Christians over even the most fundamental doctrines and concepts. You may even wonder (and if you are not wondering, should should wonder) whether you are misinterpreting the Bible. Here are a few ways:
1. The Bible is infallible. Even though we do not actually have original manuscripts of what Moses, Isaiah, John, or Paul wrote, there are those that think the book is perfect. This of course does not even touch on which translation should we consider to be accurate. For example, Genesis describes God as being penitent and sorrowful that he created man, as if the creation was a mistake (Genesis 6:6-7) Really? God made a mistake? Or is it possible that the Bible may have a mistake? God didn't write the Bible, so odds are, there are some flaws. That doesn't mean it's bad, just flawed... kind of like you...
2. The Bible is complete. This is convenient for those that want to do something that is not specified in the Bible. There is even a scripture in the Bible that seems to back it up, and it decries the adding or subtracting of the prophecy of this book. (Revelation 22:18-19) Of course, God said something almost identical in Deuteronomy 4:2, and yet a lot of prophecies were added after that. Additionally, there was no such thing as the Bible in the days of Moses or of John. It was compiled hundreds of years later. There are lots of references in the Bible to books that did not make it in. (book of the Wars of the Lord (Num. 21:14); book of Jasher (Josh. 10:13; 2 Sam. 1:18); book of the acts of Solomon (1 Kgs. 11:41); book of Samuel the seer (1 Chr. 29:29); book of Gad the seer (1 Chr. 29:29); book of Nathan the prophet (1 Chr. 29:29; 2 Chr. 9:29); prophecy of Ahijah (2 Chr. 9:29); visions of Iddo the seer (2 Chr. 9:29; 12:15; 13:22); book of Shemaiah (2 Chr. 12:15); book of Jehu (2 Chr. 20:34); sayings of the seers (2 Chr. 33:19); an epistle of Paul to the Corinthians, earlier than our present 1 Corinthians (1 Cor. 5:9); possibly an earlier epistle to the Ephesians (Eph. 3:3); an epistle to the Church at Laodicea (Col. 4:16); and some prophecies of Enoch, known to Jude (Jude 1:14).)
The conclusion? The Bible has a lot of good stuff... but complete? Not so much...
3. The Old Testament has been fulfilled; it's not important anymore. Of course there are elements of the Old Testament that are no longer required. Christians no longer perform animal sacrifices, observe the Passover, and are even able to eat pork and shellfish. That does not mean anything that came before Christ was rendered unimportant. Christ was very concerned about the law and the prophets. (Matthew 5:17-20) In fact, an examination of Matthew 5 indicates that Christ wanted people to live by a higher law than they had previously known. No longer was it sufficient to say "an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth," but instead, "love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you and persecute you." (Matthew 5:44) Isaiah gave many prophecies about Christ's second coming, which are obviously yet to be fulfilled. (Isaiah 2) The Old Testament may contain references to things that are no longer used in terms of "Law of Moses" specifics, but there were many important events that help us understand who God is, how he deals with his children, and what life's purpose is. Saying the Old Testament doesn't matter anymore is like saying arithmetic isn't important anymore because you're learning algebra. Guess what, you still need it!
4. As long as you believe in God, it doesn't matter what the Bible says. Certainly there were times before the Bible. There were even times before the oldest book in our Bible was written. Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob all lived before Moses wrote Genesis and told their story, so no amount of the Bible played a role in how they made decisions and recognized God. That having been said, the Bible is important today. Does a person need to be baptized to enter the Kingdom of Heaven? or is believing God exists all that is important? The Bible contains Jesus's answers to these important questions. (John 3:5) For a Christian, the importance of learning what Christ did and taught should be obvious...
5. Everything in the Bible is symbolic. Stories in the Bible that describe events such as the flood in the days of Noah, or a time when men lived hundreds of years before dying, or even when Elijah called down fire from heaven may seem fantastic. Some people feel more comfortable if they dismiss such events as metaphors for something. It must be more believable to say that God "figuratively" plagued Egypt, or that he "figuratively" raised Lazarus from the dead. Unfortunately, people that subscribe to this thinking are "figuratively" full of crap.
6. Everything in the Bible is literal. On the other side of the coin are those that embrace every parable and analogy as the literal truth. These kinds of people were like the ones weirded out when Jesus told them they needed to eat his flesh. (John 6:51-60) There are many things that were done symbolically. The details of animal sacrifice and ordinances all had meaning beyond the literal actions. The many parables that Jesus taught were to help certain people learn specific things. People who failed to understand symbolism then are much like those that fail to understand it today... they "literally" don't know what the Bible is saying.
7. Some verses in the Bible aren't politically correct, so the whole book must be false. Some people seem to know only those verses in the Bible that discuss dealing with suspected adulterers under the Mosaic law and government, or the verses in which Paul talks about women being silent in churches. (Deuteronomy 22, 1 Timothy 2:11-12) Since there are verses in both the Old and New Testaments, I guess you can just dismiss both of them, right? I mean, it's not possible for some parts of a book to be more important than other parts, right? If you don't have a problem with say... homosexuality, adultery, or fornication... then you can just dismiss what the Bible says about it because of the politically incorrect verses, right? And because you only read a handful of controversial verses, you have a good idea about the themes and principles in the rest of it, right? On the other hand, could it be that you have no idea what the Bible is about, or that your assumptions about what is good or bad that come from your cultural traditions may have as many flaws as (or perhaps even more than) those cultures described in Biblical times against whom you are eager to pass judgement? Do you honestly think that being politically correct is more important than learning the true purposes of mankind and life itself?
8. The Bible is too difficult to understand, so I'm better off without it. So said the 40-year-old McDonald's employee about high school math.
9. The Bible is the highest authoritative source. Don't get me wrong. I love the Bible. I believe the word of God is contained in beauty, power, and authority within it. The problem with viewing the law as authoritative was the same issue that the Pharisees had. They were so consumed with ensuring they knew the law that they missed out on recognizing the law-giver when he came among them. God is the highest authoritative source; the Bible is not. If you think that God is not capable of communicating with mankind except by means of a flawed book (See #1 and #2) then why call him God? If he sent prophets and angels in times past to augment or clarify the meaning of his word, why should our time be so different. Hint: it's not.
10. The Bible has a code that can be used to calculate the exact date of when Jesus will come again and everything else that will happen in the future. How can I put this?.... It's a book... just try reading the words... Counting characters is missing the point...
Ultimately, there are innumerable ways to misunderstand the Bible. People have used it to justify hunting down so-called heretics, and also used it to excuse those guilty of terrible crimes. People have used it to condemn and to justify the same acts. I assert that very few in either group have actually read the entire Bible... let alone qualified themselves to interpret it.
Of course the Bible can be difficult to read and to understand, but the effort required to do so is well worth it. The Bible may not contain the answer to every question, but with eloquence and power it can shine light on the truth. There are few things in the English language as powerful as the declaration of Jesus Christ in John 11: "I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believeth in me, though he were dead, yet shall he live: And whosoever liveth and believeth in me shall never die." (John 11:25-26)
Additionally, the Bible points us to God for additional wisdom. The Prophet Joseph Smith was confused by the heated debates between various sects that all seemed to use the same Bible to endorse themselves and condemn one another. He writes:
"While I was laboring under the extreme difficulties caused by the contests of these parties of religionists, I was one day reading the Epistle of James, first chapter and fifth verse, which reads: If any of you lack wisdom, let him ask of God, that giveth to all men liberally, and upbraideth not; and it shall be given him. Never did any passage of scripture come with more power to the heart of man than this did at this time to mine. It seemed to enter with great force into every feeling of my heart. I reflected on it again and again, knowing that if any person needed wisdom from God, I did; for how to act I did not know, and unless I could get more wisdom than I then had, I would never know; for the teachers of religion of the different sects understood the same passages of scripture so differently as to destroy all confidence in settling the question by an appeal to the Bible." (Joseph Smith - History 1:11-12)
Here is the wisdom of the Bible... it directs us, as it did Joseph Smith, to God himself.
In the end, any other persuasion derived from the Bible is erroneous. Why call it the word of God if it does not lead us back to him? I assert that it can and does for all those that diligently search its pages.
