Encouragement to study the Bible

[Elijah John]

More than a few Evangelical Protestant Bible teachers encourage their followers to study the Bible each day on their own. In the grand old Protestant tradition of the "Priesthood of all believers".

One wonders, (and this is the question for debate) would they be so encouraging if the rank and file came up with non-conventional, unorthodox interpretations of Scripture?

The way some of us here on these boards have done?

Say...if the independent Bible scholar through his or her own studies learned things like:

-The Bible never teaches the Trinity
-The Bible contradicts itself in some very important ways
-The Bible never really teaches that Jesus is "God" (except, arguably, for the Evangelist John)
-That blood sacrifice is not what God ever wanted or needed.
-That Jesus didn't return when he said he would. (in the lifetime of his apostles)
-That Jesus is not in the Old Testament.
-That Old Testament characters were in communion with the Father without going through Jesus, and did not pray in the Messiah's (Jesus) name.

Would Protestant Evangelical Bible teachers still encourage independent Bible reading in these cases? Would they encourage their followers to share the results of their studies?

Or would they stifle the results of such scholarship?

[Elijah John]

More than a few Evangelical Protestant Bible teachers encourage their followers to study the Bible each day on their own. In the grand old Protestant tradition of the "Priesthood of all believers".

They should also recommend them to remain in truth, then there would not emerge wrong ideas and “contradictions� or misunderstandings, like that Jesus didn’t return as he said.

Truth as defined by who?

Truth as defined by Christ.


"I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life."

"Remain in Me, and I will remain in you. Just as no branch can bear fruit by itself unless it remains in the vine, neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in Me." John 15:4



Peace to you both,
your servant and a slave of Christ,
tammy

OK then, if one takes an oath to testify truthfully in a trial, and someone testifies "Jesus" or "Christ"...would that testimony convict or aquit the defendant?

(one assumes "truth" would aquit, assuming the defendant was innocent)

And if one were to take a true-false quiz in school, and answer "Jesus" or "Christ" for every question, would that student pass?

In other words, what in the world does it mean to say that "Jesus is the truth" beyond pious cliche?

[Elijah John]

just say, when one takes all that Bible tells, there is no problem with how Jesus returns. If you want do have more specific answer or explanation, please show the scriptures and explain why you think they are not correct.

It's not so much the "how" it's the "when"...

Matthew 16:27-28New International Version (NIV)

27 For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father’s glory with his angels, and then he will reward each person according to what they have done.

28 “Truly I tell you, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.�

.

Granted, in another passage (from John, I think) Jesus says "only the Father knows".

But it's hard to take all the Bible says when the Bible contradicts itself, or when the above verse/prediction fails the test of time.

[Elijah John]

Truth as defined by Christ.


"I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life."



Peace to you both,
your servant and a slave of Christ,
tammy

"Truth as defined by Christ" you then goes on to quote the verse that he (Christ) is the Truth. How is that not circular?

[tam]

More than a few Evangelical Protestant Bible teachers encourage their followers to study the Bible each day on their own. In the grand old Protestant tradition of the "Priesthood of all believers".

They should also recommend them to remain in truth, then there would not emerge wrong ideas and “contradictions� or misunderstandings, like that Jesus didn’t return as he said.

Truth as defined by who?

Truth as defined by Christ.


"I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life."

"Remain in Me, and I will remain in you. Just as no branch can bear fruit by itself unless it remains in the vine, neither can you bear fruit unless you remain in Me." John 15:4



Peace to you both,
your servant and a slave of Christ,
tammy

OK then, if one takes an oath to testify truthfully in a trial, and someone testifies "Jesus" or "Christ"...would that testimony convict or aquit the defendant?

(one assumes "truth" would aquit, assuming the defendant was innocent)

And if one were to take a true-false quiz in school, and answer "Jesus" or "Christ" for every question, would that student pass?

In other words, what in the world does it mean to say that "Jesus is the truth" beyond pious cliche?

Please take a second look at the words I was responding to and who they were referring to; I bolded and underlined them above.

To remain in the truth means to remain in Christ.


He speaks the truth (truth is His language, the pure language), He bears witness to truth, and He is the Truth of God. If one wants to be led into all truth (rather than just some truth here and some truth there), then Christ is the one we must listen to and remain in.


(And if we are listening to Him, then we are also listening to His Father; if we are remaining in Him, then we are also remaining in His Father.)


Peace again to you,
your servant and a slave of Christ,
tammy

[1213]

It's not so much the "how" it's the "when"...

Matthew 16:27-28New International Version (NIV)

27 For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father’s glory with his angels, and then he will reward each person according to what they have done.

28 “Truly I tell you, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.�

.

Ok, thank you. I don’t know why you connect those two things. Jesus doesn’t say some of them will not die before the rewards. He says some of them will see “the Son of Man coming in his kingdom�. That is not same as “will reward each person according to what they have done.�. Why do you think they are the same?

Also, “the Son of Man coming in his kingdom� came true very soon according to the Bible:

After six days, Jesus took with him Peter, James, and John his brother, and brought them up into a high mountain by themselves. He was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and his garments became as white as the light. Behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them talking with him.
Matt. 17:1-3

[Elijah John]

It's not so much the "how" it's the "when"...

Matthew 16:27-28New International Version (NIV)

27 For the Son of Man is going to come in his Father’s glory with his angels, and then he will reward each person according to what they have done.

28 “Truly I tell you, some who are standing here will not taste death before they see the Son of Man coming in his kingdom.�

.

Ok, thank you. I don’t know why you connect those two things. Jesus doesn’t say some of them will not die before the rewards. He says some of them will see “the Son of Man coming in his kingdom�. That is not same as “will reward each person according to what they have done.�. Why do you think they are the same?

Also, “the Son of Man coming in his kingdom� came true very soon according to the Bible:

After six days, Jesus took with him Peter, James, and John his brother, and brought them up into a high mountain by themselves. He was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and his garments became as white as the light. Behold, Moses and Elijah appeared to them talking with him.
Matt. 17:1-3

Because they are in the very same paragraph. Jesus in those verses is speaking of his 2nd coming.

If it is as you say,(that he was referring to the Transfiguration), where are the rewards and punishments, and the angels?

[1213]

Because they are in the very same paragraph. Jesus in those verses is speaking of his 2nd coming.

Yeah, but they are speaking of different things. The 27 is speaking of “Son of Man is going to come in his Father’s glory with his angels� and the 28 is speaking of “Son of Man coming in his kingdom�. I don’t see any good reason why one should think they are the same thing. It is possible to speak many things in same paragraph and because Jesus clearly tells what the few people will see, it can’t really be justified that he actually meant something else than what he says in the Matt. 16:28.

[bjs]

[Replying to Elijah John]

I was under the impression that were discussing the encouragement to study the scriptures. If that is so, any assumption which is held to be true regardless of what the scriptures say is a negative.

HJ scholarship has its place, but its stated goal is not study the scriptures. HJ scholars say that they are trying to fit the Christian scriptures into their pre-existing worldview. Again, I am not necessarily saying this bad; only that it is not an example of someone studying the Christian scriptures to discover what those scriptures say.

[Elijah John]

HJ scholars say that they are trying to fit the Christian scriptures into their pre-existing worldview..

Please support that statement. Which HJ scholars say this? Where?

That sounds more like something an apologist would likely do.

[paarsurrey1]

Encouragement to study the Bible

One may/must study Bible, no harm in it, but one must know, as becomes evident when studying Bible OT and NT, that it is not the literal word of God. It is not even written by Moses or Jesus or dictated by them or written by the persons authorized by them, they could not check the drafts even.
Nevertheless, there is a light of guidance from One-True-God in them which shines forth and that should be sought from them avoiding the mixed darkness, due to reaching us through narrators, scribes and the clergy who were human beings with merits and demerits naturally associated with them:

[5:45] Surely, We sent down the Torah wherein was guidance and light. By it did the Prophets, who were obedient to Us, judge for the Jews, as did the godly people and those learned in the Law; for they were required to preserve the Book of Allah, and because they were guardians over it. Therefore fear not men but fear Me; and barter not My Signs for a paltry price. And whoso judges not by that which Allah has sent down, these it is who are the disbelievers.
https://www.alislam.org/quran/search2/s ... 5&verse=37

So Bible should be read with care, please.

Regards

Posts 1,4,5, 13, 14
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