Questions About the Bible
Does the Bible have errors?
Is it trustworthy? The original writings had no errors at all. The manuscript copies we have today contain small differences between them primarily from the human copiers making mistakes. But the Bible—the translated Bible—we have today is accurate and trustworthy. The Bible is the most accurate book in human history barr none. And don’t just take my word for it! There is so much evidence: archaeologically, historically, scientifically, the documentary manuscript evidence. This book is true and trustworthy. So listen to it, read it, believe it, and live it. It’s the voice of God to you because He loves you and cares for you and wants you to hear His good, true voice.
Why are there so many translations of the Bible?
Which one is the best one? Here’s the bottom line. No matter your language, the translations are almost all, without a doubt, true and trustworthy to the original word. Some of them are more formal, more word-for-word. Some of them are my dynamic, more thought-for-thought. But the best translation is the one you can read (or listen to!) and understand. So what level of reading are you at? What words and descriptions best help you understand God’s truth? That’s the translation you need to pick up, open up, listen to, read, and believe.
10 Reasons We Should Read the Bible
It’s where we come to encounter God and hear His voice.
It’s how we relationally get to know Him.
It’s how we get to honor, praise, and glorify Him.
It’s where we experience the work He’s done in the past.
It’s where we understand the work He’s doing here and now.
It’s where we look to know what He is going to do.
It’s where we find protection. The Sword of the Spirit is the Word of God from Satan who’s on the attack; it’s part of our defense.
It’s where we find hope for ourselves and for others.
It’s where we learn to live life according to His wisdom.
It’s where we find a way to obey and hear the voice of our heavenly Father.
So what do we do? We need to get in, read, study, and enjoy the Word of God.
10 Ways to Read Your Bible
The Bible’s big! How do we study it? Here are 10 ways to read your Bible:
Cover to cover, through the whole Bible
Read through the New Testament—Read 1 chapter for every weekday. You’ll get through the whole New Testament in a year if you do that!
Read through Proverbs—do 1 Proverb for every day of the month (there are 31 Proverbs!)
Read through Psalms—Let the Psalms guide your prayers.
Read through Romans and slowly study through it.
Pick another book of the Bible, like John, and study through it at your own pace.
Use a devotional guide or study Bible to help you learn.
Pick a character and follow that character throughout the Bible.
Pick a place and follow all of the events that take place there.
Pick a topic and look across the whole Scripture to see what God says.
What is the Bible and where did it come from?
2 Timothy 3:10-17 tells us that the Bible was breathed out by God to make us wise for salvation and equip us to love, teach, train, correct, and confront others through the voice of God. It’s where we encounter and get to know and experience who God is. Ultimately, the Bible was written by over 40 humans over hundreds of years. But the author was God; the writers were the pens in God’s hand, breathed out by God. The Bible is full of historical descriptions—poetic promises and truths, prophetic writings, and Psalms full of wisdom. It’s so amazingly full of wisdom. The Bible, ultimately, is God’s voice. It is accurate and true; so listen to it and read it.
How do I understand the Bible?
You can use resources, commentaries, study Bibles, and online resources like gotquestions.org, biblehub.com, and biblestutools.com. But you can also ask yourself some good questions. Ask yourself: Who is writing this? Who are they writing it to? What is the context of when it is being written? What style of literature is it—poetry, prophesy, or history? What are we learning about God here? What are we learning about who He is and what He does? What are we learning about ourselves—what God is calling us to be or do? Why does this passage matter? Then think about how you can apply these truths to your own life. Is there a sin to avoid? A command to obey? An example to follow? A prayer to offer? A truth to remember? An attitude to change? Or a teaching to share?
How can you tell if a Bible teacher is true or false?
One of the warnings of Scripture is that there will be many false teachers, many false teachings, many false prophets; as time goes on, they will increase. So how can you tell if a teacher is true or false? The best way to recognize what is false is to know what is true! The Bible is true. The more you study it, the more you know the truth, and the better you will recognize the lie. Sometimes the lie is directly opposed to the truth; sometimes the lie is leaving out part of the truth—telling you a partial truth. You can look at the teachings of a teacher and see if what they are saying is true by seeing if they live it out. If someone is living contrary to God’s demands, then there’s a likelihood that their words might be false as well. So test the teachings, test the prophets, test the teachers and make sure you know that what you’re hearing and seeing is true.
Is the New Testament more important than the Old Testament?
No! The Bible is not two different stories; it is one, BIG story. Yes, there may be some passages in the Old Testament that are harder to read, harder to understand, and slower to read. But Jesus Christ is the same yesterday, today, and tomorrow. So the whole Scripture is given to us from God. An important phrase that might helpful in understanding this is: “The new is in the old concealed, and the old is in the new revealed.” They go together hand in hand, and the more you read the whole Scripture—Old and New Testament—the more you’ll be amazed at how good and amazing and consistent our God is.
Are Christian devotionals good to use?
They can be a great help and encouragement in your Christian walk, but they can also be an impediment, slowing down your growth and maturity. If you only experience God secondhand, through another person, you’re missing out. The Bible is not easy always, but it is good and understandable. If you are in Christ, you have the Holy Spirit to help you understand! Let me encourage you to grow towards getting in the Bible directly, hearing God’s voice first-person to you! Christian books and devotions can be a great help but getting to where you read and hear the voice of God directly is the best place to be for your spiritual growth and maturity.