Why do so few Americans read the Bible they value?

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Tcg
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Why do so few Americans read the Bible they value?

Post #1

Post by Tcg »

Americans value the Bible and as many as 9 in 10 households own a Bible. Some own as many as three or four. A recent survey suggests that slightly over half think America would be worse off without the Bible. source Presidents are sworn in using the Bible and in some cases courtroom witnesses are sworn in using the Bible. Clearly, the Bible is held in high regard.

This regard, however, doesn't result in equal levels of reading the Bible. Only 1 in 5 Americans have read all of it and only 9% have read all it more than once:

Image

This leads to these questions for debate:

Why do so few Americans read the Bible even though it is held in high regard?

Is it possible that it is viewed highly because few have read all of it?


Tcg
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Re: Why do so few Americans read the Bible they value?

Post #41

Post by JehovahsWitness »

Difflugia wrote: Fri Oct 29, 2021 2:40 am
On an unrelated note, an investment of three hours has rendered me an expert on Jehovah's Witnesses.
If it is unrelated why make it? I have read that the thread is not about Catholics, not about the tiny Amish community, so I can only presume, a post about Jehovahs Witnesses will be dismissed on the same basis.



Tcg wrote: Thu Oct 28, 2021 12:52 pm
The subject of this thread asks about Americans as a whole and not Catholics in particular.

Tcg

Still, since the thread is talking about BIBLE READING and Jehovahs Witnesses have been mentioned as a group, I will submit the following related to the question of reading of religious scripture amongst the American (and Canadian) populace.


Image
source: https://www.pewforum.org/religious-land ... scripture/

JEHOVAH WITNESS







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Do Jehovahs Witnesses read the Bible? [this post]
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"For if we live, we live to Jehovah, and if we die, we die to Jehovah. So both if we live and if we die, we belong to Jehovah" -
Romans 14:8

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Re: Why do so few Americans read the Bible they value?

Post #42

Post by 2ndpillar2 »

Tcg wrote: Wed Oct 27, 2021 3:25 pm Americans value the Bible and as many as 9 in 10 households own a Bible. Some own as many as three or four. A recent survey suggests that slightly over half think America would be worse off without the Bible. source Presidents are sworn in using the Bible and in some cases courtroom witnesses are sworn in using the Bible. Clearly, the Bible is held in high regard.

This regard, however, doesn't result in equal levels of reading the Bible. Only 1 in 5 Americans have read all of it and only 9% have read all it more than once:

Image

This leads to these questions for debate:

Why do so few Americans read the Bible even though it is held in high regard?

Is it possible that it is viewed highly because few have read all of it?


Tcg
Reading, or hearing the bible weekly, as done repeatedly, using the same quotes on a yearly basis, as is done in the Catholic and Amish congregations, does not bequeath understanding (Matthew 13:13). One also needs to know the history behind the compilation of the bible, along who edited it, and when it was compiled, and by whom. Credibility, or non credibility matters. Reading the whole bible does not give insight/understanding, without the help of the anointing (1 John 2:27). It would only point out the hypocrisy of the churches and their teachings, and contained in the NT canon itself, not the meaning of the Law and the prophets. To find out the answer to your question, you would have to "read it all". One full reading will only raise questions. You would have to read again to find some initial answers to those questions, and then further read it again to get more specific answers. To follow the example of Yeshua, you would have to fast while eating/consuming the bread of life to incorporate it into your physical being. (Matthew 4:1-4)

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Re: Why do so few Americans read the Bible they value?

Post #43

Post by JamesWilbur »

[Replying to Tcg in post #1]

We must understand that all those who are to be in Christ were chosen by God before the foundation of the world. Ephesians 1: 4 Those who God has chosen will be drawn by God to hear the Word of God, and hearing, being one of the chosen, they will be given belief and faith in Christ, and they will find that they believe. Ephesians 2: 8-10; Hebrews 10: 16; Philippians 2: 13 It is not a reaching out to be saved, because before God regenerates the spirit of our mind, we are spiritually dead to God and the things of God. Ephesians 2: 1

Also understand that a person who is to be in Christ, is ordained, chosen, predestined, called, drawn, and given to Christ. It is all God's doing and has nothing to do with the actions of the sinful fleshy mind, and everything to do with God's transforming the righteous spirit of our mind to see His moving us where He desires us to be, i.e., IN Christ Jesus.

What you see going on in the Church today does not surprise God, He has told you in the Word that the day will come when His people will find themselves under His discipline and chastisement as He trains us up in the way we WILL go.

Those who truly believe and have faith in God should constantly ask the leaders of the Church to teach them from the Word and not from the works of man. Romans 10: 17

I the last days the Word of God says that there will be a famine for the Word of God, by the unbelieving and faithless people of God. We have many in the Church who proclaim Christ, yet do not truly believe what God has said and promised in His Word when the trials and tribulations of life rise to surround us. It is time for judgment to fall on the Church, not to destroy the body of Christ, which cannot be done, but to discipline us up in the way we should go, through pain and chastisement if necessary. Hebrews 12: 1-11

1 Peter 4: 17-19 It is time for judgment to begin with the household of God. If it begins with us first, what will be the outcome for those who do not obey, believe and live by faith in God for all things. If it is with difficulty that the righteous is saved, what will become of the godless person, the sinner, those who do not truly believe and have faith in God for all things in their mortal and spiritual life.

The reason for believers not reading the Word of God diligently is the sin and unbelief in what God has said in His Word. God will deal with that problem for the unbelieving and faithless, and all will be saved but as one who goes through fire.

We also have another problem going on in the churches of today. Have you gone to church fellowship and noticed that the majority of fellowship parking lots are empty. I submit to you that it is time for God's judgement, chastisement and training to fall upon the true believers in the Church.

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Re: Why do so few Americans read the Bible they value?

Post #44

Post by JamesWilbur »

All those God has called and caused to be born again into Jesus Christ are given belief in God's Word. Ephesians 2: 8-10 Believing results in righteousness. Romans 10:10 God places His Word into the regenerated spirit of the mind of the chosen elect of God. Hebrews 10: 16 It is God who is at work in us, both to will and to work. The works of the sinful fleshly mind are futile and have been condemned by Christ to perish. Romans 8: 3-4

I believe answers to the questions about God must come from God's Word. Assumption, and presupposition not backed by facts are useless.

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Re: Why do so few Americans read the Bible they value?

Post #45

Post by 2ndpillar2 »

JamesWilbur wrote: Sat Oct 30, 2021 1:10 pm All those God has called and caused to be born again into Jesus Christ are given belief in God's Word. Ephesians 2: 8-10 Believing results in righteousness. Romans 10:10 God places His Word into the regenerated spirit of the mind of the chosen elect of God. Hebrews 10: 16 It is God who is at work in us, both to will and to work. The works of the sinful fleshly mind are futile and have been condemned by Christ to perish. Romans 8: 3-4

I believe answers to the questions about God must come from God's Word. Assumption, and presupposition not backed by facts are useless.
One is not born into "Jesus Christ", they are born of God (1 John 3:9), which is to say "his seed abides in him", which is to say, the Word of God resides in him, the "little children", in the form of the anointing (1 John 2:27 & 1 John 4:16). Those who "practice sin" are born of the "devil" (1 John 3:8).

As for your sources, Ephesians is often argued as being a pseudepigrapha work. According to Romans 16:22, Tertius wrote Romans. And of course, the early church, per Eusebius, didn't believe Paul wrote Hebrews. And what is sin? Sin is transgression of the Law, and the false prophet Paul's companion declared that the law was nailed to the cross, so how does sin exist, and why are you going to die (Jeremiah 31:30)? As for the canon of your NT, first published in 367 AD by the Roman church leader, Athanasius, who was also co sponsor of the false Trinity dogma, coordinated with the Roman emperor Constantine, at Constantine's convened Council of Nicaea in 325 AD. So your basis of thought, apparently based on a canon of selected unknown writers, set in place by a daughter of Babylon (Revelation 17:5), under the leadership of the Roman emperor Constantine, the beast with two horns like a lamb (Revelation 13:11). I think you might want to consider what is "God's word", as with respect to what Yeshua considered as God's word, and leave the false prophets and their minions to fend for themselves (Matthew 7:13-23) & (Matthew 13:41).

Romans 16:22 22 I, Tertius, who wrote down this letter, greet you in the LORD.

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Re: Why do so few Americans read the Bible they value?

Post #46

Post by Tcg »

JamesWilbur wrote: Sat Oct 30, 2021 1:10 pm All those God has called and caused to be born again into Jesus Christ are given belief in God's Word. Ephesians 2: 8-10 Believing results in righteousness. Romans 10:10 God places His Word into the regenerated spirit of the mind of the chosen elect of God. Hebrews 10: 16 It is God who is at work in us, both to will and to work. The works of the sinful fleshly mind are futile and have been condemned by Christ to perish. Romans 8: 3-4

I believe answers to the questions about God must come from God's Word. Assumption, and presupposition not backed by facts are useless.
If you review the O.P. you'll find that I didn't ask anything about God. I asked about the Bible which many Americans value, but few read. You'll note also that I didn't ask about Christians specifically, but Americans as a whole.


Tcg
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Re: Why do so few Americans read the Bible they value?

Post #47

Post by brunumb »

JamesWilbur wrote: Sat Oct 30, 2021 1:10 pm I believe answers to the questions about God must come from God's Word. Assumption, and presupposition not backed by facts are useless.
And God's word can be found in the Bible, so why do so few of those allegedly Christian Americans read it?
George Orwell:: “The further a society drifts from the truth, the more it will hate those who speak it.”
Voltaire: "Those who can make you believe absurdities can make you commit atrocities."
Gender ideology is anti-science, anti truth.

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Re: Why do so few Americans read the Bible they value?

Post #48

Post by Purple Knight »

JehovahsWitness wrote: Sat Oct 30, 2021 3:24 amStill, since the thread is talking about BIBLE READING and Jehovahs Witnesses have been mentioned as a group, I will submit the following related to the question of reading of religious scripture amongst the American (and Canadian) populace.
It's completely unsurprising to me that the Christians people consider furthest fringe - JWs and Mormons - actually read the content the most. Why? Well how do you get to be non-fringe, that is, how do you get to be mainstream? By believing what everyone else does and not necessarily the actual canon.

If you chose the actual canon over simply following the herd, you would be fringe almost by definition. The only possible world where someone is mainstream who reads the content and selects the canon over the herd, is a sane world, where everyone else would do the same.

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Re: Why do so few Americans read the Bible they value?

Post #49

Post by JamesWilbur »

[Replying to 2ndpillar2 in post #45] Ephesians 2 4-6 states we were raised with Christ and seated with Him in the heavenly realms, IN Christ Jesus present tense. We are both spiritually here in Christ but we are also spiritually in Christ in the Heavenly realms. When you are given belief Ephesians 2:8-10; Hebrews 10: 16; Philippians 2: 13 it results in righteousness. Being righteous God has place our spirits in Christ, believing you have been saved and are totally righteous and holy in the spirit of your mind, thus believing God has placed us INTO Christ. Romans 10: 10; Colossians 2: 9-10; Ephesians 4: 23

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Re: Why do so few Americans read the Bible they value?

Post #50

Post by JamesWilbur »

[Replying to Tcg in post #46] And I believe I stated in my posting is that the majority of people in this country, i.e., unbelievers do not read the Scripture is because they are just that unbelievers, uncalled, unled, unsaved, and having a bible in the house is meaning less to the unbeliever. 1 Corinthians 2: 14-16 The problem I have is the disobedience of the proclaiming Christian who puts the bible on the shelf and rarely opens it. God states that the true believer in Christ who is in such disobedience will find themselves under their Father's discipline, and chastisement, not to be removed from the Church, but to train up the child in they way they should go.

If the average unbelieving American John 6: 28-29 continues to sin in that manner, their Father will deal with them, and then raise them up as one who is going through a fire, but they will be saved, because they have been given true belief in the Lord Jesus Christ, our Lord and our God.

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