The Human Side Of Jesus ~ Scripture References

THE HUMAN SIDE OF JESUS

SCRIPTURE REFERENCES 

1.  He felt compassion  ~  Matthew 14:14, 15:29-31, 15:32

2.  He wept  ~ John 11:35 

3.  He was thirsty  ~  John 4:7, 19:28

4.  He hungered  ~ Matthew 4:2

5.  He was troubled  ~ Mark 14:33

6.  He agonized  ~  Luke 22:44

7.  He needed strength  ~  Luke 22:43

8.  He bled  ~ John 19:1-2

9.  He died  ~  John 19:30

 

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Can I Trust Bible Translations ~ Evidence For The Bible, Part 17

HAVE YOU EVER STARTED WATCHING A VIDEO, thinking, "I will just watch a few minutes to see if this video is worth watching" and then found yourself unable to stop?  That happened to me when I began watching this video from Mike Winger, discussing Bible Translations and other writings pretending to be Bible translations. 

This man is knowledgeable, is not biased toward any one translation, is a great speaker, and has a personality that leaves you wanting to learn more, whose only goal is to help you understand what each has to offer.

Have you ever encountered a church fellowship which declares, "We are KING JAMES ONLY and all other translations are from Satan!"  Yes, those do exist and I just wish such fellowships well and a fond goodbye.

I am sharing this blog on my eNewsletter, Facebook, and Bill & Dory Gray Christian Ministries Blog Site -  because I personally believe there is a lot of good information to be found in this video, and many of my Friends may subscribe to one and not the other.  This way I reach more Friends with what I consider important information.

So get a cup of coffee, or tea, sit back, relax, and most likely you will learn how to choose which Bible translation is best for your need today.  And you will get a few tips on which are "The Good, The Bad, and The Ugly" of Bible translations, paraphrases, i.e., more commentary than translation, and which are so far out in left field, they are best avoided.

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CAN I TRUST BIBLE TRANSLATIONS ~ EVIDENCE FOR THE BIBLE, Part 17
The Good, The Bad, The Ugly! - Evidence For The Bible
Mike Winger, Learn To Think Biblically - Nov 11, 2016
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BCPoKIE5y1U

Specific Subjects / Translations discussed in this video:

About Bible Translations In General (this is important info), KJV, NKJV, RSV, NRSV, NASB, ESV, HCSB, NIV & 2011 NIV, THE LIVING BIBLE, NLT,  THE MESSAGE, NEW WORLD TRANSLATIONS, NIRV, ISV, NABRE, NJB, NET BIBLE, Conclusion.

Is it a conspiracy?  Do translations intentionally change the Bible's message?  Is the NIV a "gay Bible"?  Is it the "Not Inspired Version"?

There has been a lot of false information floating around about how the Bible has been translated.  Many people are confused about the difference between Textual Sources and Translational Methodology.  Many are under the false impression that newer translations are "taking out" various passages that belong in the Bible. 

However, there are some genuinely bad translations.  This video is an attempt to bring clarity and rationality to the discussion and leave you with a general understanding of Bible translations. 

Check out all the videos in this series "Evidence for the Bible"

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If you found the time spent watching this video was worthwhile, you man want to share this blog with your FRANs (Friends, Relatives, Associates, Neighbors).  Please feel free to share it far and wide.

God bless, have a wonderful, blessed day,

Bill

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A New Friend Just Alerted Me To A Problem With My Facebook Profile.

A New Friend Just Alerted Me To A Problem With My Facebook Profile.  Most of us write our profile info, post it on our Facebook Profile page, and never check it again.  Today I learned that is not good.

My new Friend told me, "I just noticed three links on your FB page, but I cannot successfully get to any of the three sites, for some security reasons.  Any ideas?"  So happy he alerted me to this problem.  This is my response to him:

Hi Reed, Thanks for alerting me to the problem with the three links on my Facebook profile page.  I have made corrections:

1. WAS:  http://www.facebook.com/bill.gray.5/notes
    NOW IS: http://www.facebook.com/bill.gray.5/  

Several years ago, Facebook discontinued the Facebook Notes feature - which is too bad for I had 500 blogs posted there.

2.  WAS:  http://www.BillDory-Christian-Ministries.BlogSpot.com/
     NOW IS:  http://BillDory-Christian-Ministries.BlogSpot.com/

By God's grace, this blog site will continue for many more years.

3.  DISCONTINUED:  http://www.tnvalleytalks.hoop.la/displayForum/forum/208733512872150234

In 2016 a new atheist-leaning publisher discontinued the Forums, even though many read and posted there.

THE FIRST link is my Facebook page and I have removed "NOTES" so you should be able to open my profile page, but no longer the Notes page.

THE SECOND link is our Bill & Dory Gray Christian Ministries blog site and it appears that I needed to remove the "www" from it.  When I attempted to open it myself from my profile page, I also got a security notice.  But once I removed the "www" it opens fine. 

That is a good point for all of we Facebook users - we should periodically check any links we put in our profile, for web browsers frequently change the game by adding some new security feature.  It is good to keep links we want to share up to date.

THE THIRD link is sadly no longer valid.  I suppose I leave it there for sentimental reasons.  It is from from my hometown newspaper, the TimesDaily, based in Florence, Alabama.  For years I read the newspaper online to keep up with the happenings in my hometown area, the Shoals of Alabama. 

But I would never enter their Forum site - for to me Forums were only "spitting contests" and I had no time for that.  However, in Jan 2007, I noticed a Forum post titled "What Is A Christian?" and that intrigued me.

The Shoals area of Alabama is like the Belt Buckle of the Bible Belt.  So I wanted to read how my hometown folks would answer that question.  What I found was that the Forums, especially the Religion Forum, were dominated by two atheists, GoFish and DeepFat.  So I joined to refute them - and stayed for 8 years.

During those years, I found myself in the middle of discussions with the two resident atheists - with a few more atheists and agnostics - with vanilla-flavored non-believers - with an angry Legalistic believer - with Roman Catholics - with a few New Agers and cultists, and others.  By the way, there were a number of solid Christian believers active in the Forum also.

There was one fellow who adamantly preached The Urantia Book which he claimed is a spiritual, philosophical, and religious book equivalent to our Bible. 

And just as there is an active "Flat Earth Society" worldwide - there is also a large number of people who are members of the "Urantia Book Society" - begun in the 1950s when, supposedly, aliens from outer space gave the Urantia Book to a medical doctor in Chicago - and from that he formed the society which is still very active today.  

Do I hear the Twilight Zone theme song playing in the background?

Needless to say, we had a lot of interesting discussions.  And I believe I was the only one using my real name to post.  To the best of my knowledge, most other forum members used pseudonyms.

On the TimesDaily Forums, a moderator asked me why I was using my real name to post, warning me it could be dangerous, and I told him that when I share the Word of God, I will not do it hiding behind a pseudonym.  He commented that he had been tracking my posts and that he never found me to be argumentative nor rude.  

On the Religion Forum the program kept track of how many members were posting at any given time - and how many non-posters were just there to read.  The Readers-Only typically outnumbered the members posting by a 10-20+ to 1 margin.  I often reminded the naysayers that the non-posting readers were my target audience, not the many flavored antagonists active on the Religion Forum.

I stayed on that Forum until 2015 when a new publisher took over.  He had all the flavor of an atheist - so I was banned when I reported a member for posting, "Bill Gray should be killed!"  The man posting that open threat was banned for one week, I was banned for life.  Why?  Because I posted Conservative Christian writings on the new publisher's Religion Forum. 

When I tried to appeal my case, he told me in no uncertain terms that I would NEVER be allowed back on "his Religion Forum" again, never!  Within a year, he removed all the Forums, even though many Shoals area folks, living in Alabama and all across America, were very actively posting and/or reading to know what was going on back home.  I don't think I have to tell you that the new publisher was not an Alabamian.

During that 8 year run on the Religion Forum, online I met a fellow Alabamian named Nathan Tabor, a Christian from a small town near Huntsville, now living in North Carolina.  Nathan was, and is, very involved in Republican politics from a Christian view - with many contacts in the GOP ranks.  He ran for Congress and, although he did not win, he made a good showing. 

Nathan owned an online newspaper called The Conservative Voice.  He invited me to post as a guest columnist.  For about 4 years I posted hundreds of articles, mostly on the Faith & Family page, at times on the Politics page, until Nathan sold to a larger organization and they only wanted columnists with known names, so my run on The Conservative Voice was over. 

But it was fun and educational while it lasted.  Because of my time on The Conservative Voice, I did get mentioned in a book written by a non-believer, my 15 minutes of fame.

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In the book "The Court and the Cross: The Religious Right's Crusade to Reshape the Supreme Court" (Beacon Press 2008), by Frederick Lane, published June 12, 2009 - Lane declares:

One of the leading websites for the Christian Right is "The Conservative Voice," a news and commentary site founded by Nathan Tabor, who holds a Masters in Public Policy from Pat Robertson’s Regent University.  As the site proudly proclaims, Tabor was once described by the late Jerry Falwell as a “young Jesse Helms.” .  .  . 

Tabor’s "The Conservative Voice" website, however, has been a much more successful endeavor.  Committed to promoting “Faith, Family, Freedom” - Tabor’s site features over 100 columnists, including a variety of conservative icons: Pat Buchanan, William F. Buckley, Robert D. Novak, Phyllis Schlafly, Paul M. Weyrich, to name just a few.

One of the more strident “conservative voices” (on The Conservative Voice) is Bill Gray, a former computer industry worker who runs an online Christian ministry called the Bill & Dory Gray Christian Ministries.  In an editorial published in 2007 on The Conservative Voice website, Gray emphatically summarized the fundamental fears of the Christian Right movement:

America is in a fight for its very life - from the inside!  Our American society, our American culture, is on the brink of implosion.

This may sound very dramatic, but it is true.  America is like a huge keg of dynamite, and the fuse - is the fallacy of “Separation of Church and State” perpetrated by Secular Humanism, comprised of the ACLU, the NEA, Liberal Politicians, Gay/Lesbian Activist groups, and other atheistic organizations.

After recounting numerous references to God and the Creator in the history of the American colonies and the early days of the Republic, Gray concluded his essay with an unequivocal call to Glory:

We must protect our nation, founded UNDER GOD and for the GLORY OF GOD.

The next time you hear some fanatic screaming “First Amendment Rights” or “Separation of Church and State” - tell him to go lock himself in a padded room and scream to himself.  For we no longer want to hear it.

We are Americans, living in a Christian nation which was founded by Christian believers.  You have a right to read your Qur'an, your Torah, or any other sacred book you have, you have a right to worship rocks, stars, the sun, and the moon, or plaster statues, if you like. 

You have the right to live as you like, in any lifestyle you choose.  Just do not try to force that lifestyle upon me, or upon my children or grandchildren.

Gray also took the time to defend the comments that (Ann) Coulter made on CNBC, although Coulter may wish that he had chosen a more felicitous metaphor: 

“What is my opinion of Ann Coulter?” Gray asked rhetorically.   “Ann is like a beacon light - a lot of pigeons will leave their droppings on it - but it raises awareness and guides people.  Ann, like Jerry Falwell, often says things that, to some, are outrageous.  But, you have to admit, it does make you think.” 

Gray said that even though it might not have been expressed well, Coulter’s fundamental argument was correct:

Will Jews who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as their long awaited Messiah be saved?  No.

Neither will Germans, Africans, British, Polish, Latin Americans, Mexicans, etc. - no one, regardless of your nationality or ethnic culture, will be saved except through Jesus Christ.  He makes this very clear in John 3:3, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again, He cannot see the kingdom of God.”

So when you think of Ann Coulter; do not think of her as a loudmouth - but instead think of her as a beacon light covered with pigeon poop - but still making her case for Conservative Christianity.  God bless Ann Coulter!

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During my time writing on The Conservative Voice, I did learn a valuable lesson.  For years I had been writing to an audience numbering in the hundreds and thousands with my eNewsletter, Facebook, and Bill & Dory Gray Christian Ministries blog site - but The Conservative Voice had a readership of over 250,000, worldwide. 

My newsletters and writings had been aimed primarily at fellow believers and also those seeking more Christian information as they considered making an eternal decision.  And I did became guilty of writing in the Christianese language.

On The Conservative Voice, with a much more diverse readership - I learned that if we use Christianese words and phrases, we may lose many readers.  On the other hand, we can use other words which mean the same, but are more palatable, more readily received by the secular world.  Then my writings would be read by the larger target audience we should be looking to connect with, the unbeliever. 

Was I compromising?  No.  I would never change the meaning, only the wording.  Example:  Rather than write, "I am indwelled by the Holy Spirit" - I learned to write, "I have the Holy Spirit within me."  A subtle difference, but effective.  We believers know that both mean the same, but the second phrasing would not cause the non-believer to walk away, thinking I was on an acid trip.

To my new Friend, Reed, thank you for bringing the Facebook Profile problem to my attention.  I look forward to having more dialogues with you.  

God bless, have a wonderful, blessed day,

Bill

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Which Bible Translation Is Best For You?

BIBLE TRANSLATIONS ~ Which translation is best for you?  If you are serious about studying God's Word, you must have asked, or been asked, which Bible translation you are using - and is that the best one for you?

There are legalistic churches in most denominations, and among the independent ranks - who will tell you that their church fellowship is a KJV ONLY church.  That is sad when a fellowship is that dogmatic.  And that is a church which I would visit only one time. 

There are church fellowships whose predominant Bible used in their worship service is KJV.  No problem with that - as long as they do not declare me an infidel for using my NASB or a NKJV in church, in my studies, and in my writing.

How well I recall when I was saved in the Filipino-American Church of Irvine (FACI) in 1987 and began attending their Friday Night Family Bible Studies.   I was a new believer, eager to dive into a study of the Bible and God's message to us.  Every night as we lay in bed, Dory and I would read our Bibles.  I switched between reading the Old Testament and the New Testament.  And all went well until I hit a brick wall called Romans.  I could not grasp Paul's message in that book.

At our next Bible study I told our pastor, Pastor Sam Lacanienta, about my predicament and he asked, "What Bible are you reading?"  And I showed him the only Bible I had, a KJV Bible given to me by a visiting team of Mormons.  He went into the next room and came back with new NASB Study Bibles, one for me and one for Dory.  That night I began to read Romans and "Viola!" it started making sense for the first time.

That NASB Study Bible has been my go-to Bible since then.  About that same time, at the suggestion of Pastor Sam, I began my Christian writing ministry.  When I am writing a blog, I try to be consistent using one translation, either NASB or NKJV.  But there are times when the King James or the NIV will better explain the point I am sharing.  

In my early writing days when I wanted to share a Scripture verse or passage, I would have to type it, which led to many typo mistakes.   Then, praise God, the Blue Letter Bible web site went live in 1996 - and finally I could copy/paste verses into my writings eliminating the typo mistakes. 

Since then the Blue Letter Bible, Classic Version (blbclassic [dot] org) has been one of my major writing tools.  That web site has a gold mine of tools to aid in our studies - about 15 translations, concordances, great commentaries by many different pastors/scholars, etc.  If you are serious about your personal Bible studies, find that web site and bookmark it.

In the chart below which I am using to present the flow of Bible translations through the millennia - I have added color to better show the flow of the translations which brought us our English version Bibles today. 

Orange being the early Hebrew/Aramaic writings and the Qumran Dead Sea Scrolls used to verify our Bibles today.  Yellow showing the different translations leading to the abundant English language Bibles available to us today.  Blue to show the Latin Vulgate, 405 AD, leading to the Roman Catholic Douay Bible.  This may point you to the Bible translation best for you in your study of God's Word and make your studies even more exciting.

To my KJV ONLY Friends and brethren, you will notice that seven English language Bibles preceded the King James, eight if we include the Roman Catholic Douay translation. So how can anyone make the claim that one Bible, the KJV, is the ONLY English language Bible?

In the 1960s, the Decadent Decade, when many young people were getting high and letting it all hang out, i.e., the Hippies.  Many of them blowing their minds on drugs - God brought two things into the picture:  (1) Pastor Chuck Smith and his wife, Kay, and (2) Paraphrase, easy to read, versions of the Bible.  The Paraphrases are really only commentaries, but served a great purpose in God's plan.

In 1965, Pastor Chuck and Kay Smith felt God calling them to minister to the drugged-out Hippies in Southern California, bringing many of them into the Calvary Chapel - Costa Mesa church family. 

And in 1971 the New Living Bible was published offering people with little or no knowledge of God's Word a paraphrased English version.  That paraphrased version of the Bible had many thousands of people, young and old, reading the Bible for the first time.

Upon reading God's Word, even in a paraphrased version, that brought many into the local churches where, as they studied with other believers - they began to move to a true Bible translation in place of the paraphrase.  Back then the NASB was very popular, along with other true Bible translation. 

But praise God, the paraphrased Bible brought them to church - where they could get involved and mature into knowledgeable believers.  So while I would not use a paraphrased version, except as a commentary, I praise God for it being there when so many needed to read the Word of God.

I pray you find this chart and blog informative and, if you are looking for the right Bible translation for you, that this has helped you.

God bless, have a wonderful, blessed day,

Bill 

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Been Thinking About! ~ Grace vs Law

BEEN THINKING ABOUT!  ~  Reading This Morning In The Book:  "Bible Answers For Almost All Your Questions" By:  Elmer L. Towns  ~  the two sections below really made me think.  I have long known that the Law was just a foreshadowing of the Grace to come in Jesus Christ, but it often shines a light of clarity on our understanding when we put it in writing.

That is also one reason that I have long suggested in my writings that every believer, as well as every local church fellowship, should make the effort to put their Statement of Faith, what we believe from the Bible and what we share from the Bible - in writing.  When you put your SOF in writing, it is like a light from God has added clarity to your faith.  It also makes sharing the Gospel with others much easier and more productive.

Believe it or not, a few years ago in my research, I came across the web site of a church in the Midwest, and when I could not find their Statement of Faith, aka Statement of Beliefs, on their web site, I sent an e-mail asking why I could not find this vital bit of information about their church on their web site.  Right away I had a response telling me, "We do not post our Statement of Beliefs because we do not want to offend anyone."

Whoa!  You are afraid that what you believe and teach about God - will offend someone?  Really?

I replied, "Well, you most certainly have offended me.  And I have no doubt that you also have offended God."

Yes, I realize that I may sometimes sound like a broken record.  But if we, as Christian believers, do not understand what we believe about God, salvation, and our Christian faith well enough to put it in writing - how can we say, or be sure of, what we believe?  When witnessing to a non-believer and they ask, "What does your church teach?"  What will you tell that person?

These are the two bright illuminations I found this morning in Mr. Towns' book "Bible Answers For Almost All Your Questions":

1.  WHAT DOES THIS PHRASE MEAN: “The Law Was Given By Moses, But Grace And Truth Came By Jesus Christ” (John 1:17)?

~ ~  THE LAW demonstrates that man is evil  ~  GRACE demonstrates God’s desire to save man.

~ ~  THE LAW shows how far man has fallen into wickedness  ~  GRACE saves the lost.

~ ~  THE LAW demonstrates blessings that can be earned  ~  GRACE is a free gift.

GRACE Is God’s Love Demonstrated In JESUS CHRIST! (John 3:16).

2.  WHAT IS THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN EVERLASTING LIFE AND ETERNAL LIFE?

Those who believe in Jesus Christ will have “everlasting life” (John 5:24).  However, “he who hears My word, and believes Him who sent Me, has eternal life” (John 5:24, NASB). 

Technically, the words everlasting and eternal come from the same Greek word, i.e., ainois.  Both everlasting and eternal mean life without end. 

However, when the King James Version was being translated, the translators chose to use two English words based on the context of their translation.

When God saves you, from that moment on you have EVERLASTING LIFE.  The word everlasting means life begins and never ends.

However, ETERNAL LIFE means life that never began and life that will never end. Only God has eternal life.

Technically, when you get the life of God, i.e., ETERNAL LIFE - you get the life of God that has always been in existence. 

When you are saved, you have both EVERLASTING LIFE and ETERNAL LIFE.

I pray that these thoughts bring some clarity to your faith and that it encourages you to set aside time to think about and put in writing your personal Statement of Faith.

God bless, have a wonderful, blessed day,

Bill 

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While Waiting For The Right Moment To Share

WHILE WAITING FOR THE RIGHT MOMENT TO SHARE my doctor's office experience from earlier this week, the video below with Mike Huckabee and Dr. Phil McGraw pops up in YouTube.  Wow, what timing!

Dr. Phil speaks about being willing to stand up and be heard, about what our children are being exposed to in our schools, and about standing up for our faith.

That rang a bell!  Last Tuesday I was in the Dermatologist's office to have what looked like a Big Beauty Mark removed.  I don't know what else to call it, for she said it was not a mole, nor was it a growth which might be malignant, but she did not tell me what to call it. 

And, hey, I don't need a beauty mark, I am already beautiful to the One who counts, Jesus Christ.  So she chose to use Cryotheraphy, a procedure using an extremely cold liquid spray to freeze and destroy abnormal tissue. 

While we were discussing this procedure, she asked if I ever had a similar tissue problem before, and I told her no.  Then for some reason I chose to share with this lady, whom I had no idea what her faith is, or if she has any faith, my experience with divine healing.

About 20 years ago, Pastor Ed from our CICF church, with Dory and me, led a Wednesday Bible Study at the Vintage Terrace seniors community in Corona, CA.  Pastor Ed and I would alternate leading the studies.  One week Frank, a senior living there, told us the moles on his face were malignant. 

About a week later, as I was combing my hair, there was a snag and blood on my right temple.  Dory and I were concerned, especially so soon after Frank's diagnosis, and my growth looked very much like those on Frank's face.  We agreed that I should see a doctor.

That night, as Dory was asleep and I lay in bed, I held my right index finger on the growth and prayed a simple prayer, "Lord, please heal or remove this growth."  That was my whole prayer.  Yet immediately I felt a warmth come over me and I felt such peace, somehow I knew He had said, "Yes."  So I rolled over and immediately fell asleep.

The next day, the growth was visibly smaller, the next even smaller - and on the fourth day, that growth, whatever it was ~ was gone!  How do I know it was really there, not my imagination, and gone in four days?  Because to this day, maybe 20 years later - the white discoloration from its removal is still there on my right temple for all to see.

Fast forward a few years and I had joined the Religion Forum on my hometown newspaper, the TimesDaily, to refute several atheists who had taken residency there and were flooding that forum community with their atheistic views.

During a discussion I shared on the Religion Forum about what I knew was my divine healing.  And our two resident atheists along with a few legalistic Christians, and a gathering of agnostics and vanilla-flavored non-believers - all were up in arms, several referring to Bill's Magic Finger.  As you can imagine, they all had a field day over Bill's Magic Finger and Bill's Divine Healing.  One Agnostic/Atheist Wannabe asked me, "Bill, do you have a Magic Finger?"  And I told him, "No, I have a mighty God!"

But laugh as they did - I still knew it was true.

Do I believe that God always heals when we pray?  I remember hearing Pastor Chuck Smith commenting about folks who asked him to pray for their healing.  His would tell them, "I will pray for you, but even then you have a 50/50 chance of healing, if that." 

What Pastor Chuck was saying was that no man can heal us, only God can heal us.  He may choose some man through whom He gives His healing, but it is still God and not man.  Nor is it those Prosperity Preachers with their "Slain In The Spirit" sideshows who are defaming the beautiful divine healing which comes only from God.

Do I believe that God always heals when we pray?  No, we most often cannot know why He heals one person and not another.  But in His divine wisdom, He does.  I do not now why He chose to heal me that one time, but I will proclaim it.

Back to my Dermatologist last Tuesday, when I shared about my healing of the growth on my temple - she made no comment and gave no visible reaction.  But still, for her and the nurse present - both heard and the rest I will leave up to God. 

Why did I choose that moment, that time, to share this with the Dermatologist and her nurse?  I have never shared with a doctor before, although I probably should have.  Maybe God wanted one, or both, of them to hear it at this specific time, for His own reason.

While living in Orange County, in our family doctor's office many years ago, - I was in her x-ray room waiting for the med tech to call me.  Sitting there I noticed a full body chart on the wall showing all the muscles, organs, and bone structure in the human body.  Looking at that chart, I thought to myself, "How can any doctor, with that knowledge, not believe in the God who created such a complex, beautiful life form?"  Yet I never overtly shared with her.

So now, let's hear what Mike Huckabee and Dr. Phil have to say about standing up for America, our children, our families, and our faith. 

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EXCLUSIVE:  Dr. Phil on The HIJACKING of America
Mike Huckabee Show  -  May 8, 2023

Dr. Phil McGraw talks (about) what we need to do to get America back on track and he says it starts with the family unit.  Has our country been hijacked?  Don't miss his insightful interview, here on Huckabee!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XOc903o_n4o

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God bless, have a wonderful, blessed day,

Bill

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Last Evening My Wife, Dory, And I Had A Discussion About Bible Studies

LAST EVENING MY WIFE, DORY, AND I HAD A DISCUSSION ABOUT BIBLE STUDIES  ~  And while we both agreed on the necessity for, and importance of, weekly Bible studies, we disagreed on how they should be, or could be, led.  She suggested that most Bible studies today use Pre-Written Bible Study Guides and I am strongly opposed to the use of Pre-Written Study Guides for leading an effective Bible study.

The funny thing is that we both agree that the most effective and most enjoyable Bible studies we have attended in past years have been Expository Bible Studies, where we take a book of the Bible and study through it verse by verse. Whereas most Pre-Written Study Guides are Topical studies. 

Typically the way our past studies have been led is that the Bible Study Leader will open in a short prayer, then give a very brief description of the book to be studied.  Then starting with the study leader, we each read a verse, or possibly a short passage when appropriate, and the that person will share what he/she believes God is telling us in that verse/passage.

At that point others may offer an expansion of the readers comment, or may have a different understanding of that verse/passage.  Others may offer agreement, expansion, or even another view.  The beauty of this style of reading, then discussing verse by verse is that everyone, from Youth to Senior, may participate in open discussion with no criticism of any participants views. 

Then the Bible Study Leader should bring the discussion back into focus, i.e., look again at what is written in the Bible.  That is why this person is called a Bible Study Leader and not a Bible Study Teacher.  He/she "leads" the discussion, but does not take the role of teacher, as in a sermon style study.

That is how a Conversational Bible Study is conducted.  True, if a group has been accustomed to having a Bible Study Sermon for a long time - it may take a few sessions for everyone to become comfortable with a study where we each participate and not just listen, while trying not to fall asleep.  Once the transition has been undertaken, your group will become a truly dynamic Bible Study Group.

Now let's discuss some of the pros and cons Dory and I discussed, or was suggested, last evening:

1.  Using a Pre-Written Bible Study Guide:  My main objection with this style of Bible study is that ALL Pre-Written Bible Study Guides are written to be a "one size fits all" guide.  That is rather like schools which "grades on a curve" - so that no one is left behind, and everyone gets a good grade.

That does not work in real life, nor does it work in effectively studying God's Word.  In such study guides the questions are dumbed down to the simplest form to include everyone, instead of causing everyone to dig deeper into the meaning of a verse or passage.

Do some, at times, get left behind in a discussion style Bible study?  Possibly, for a moment.  That has happened to me.  In 1991 I was a relatively new believer who had not delved into prophecy, especially End Times Prophecy.  In 1991 Iraq invaded Kuwait during the Gulf War and in their retreat, Iraq set the Kuwait oil fields on fire - causing the skies to be black with smoke. 

Those darkened skies caused Bible study leaders around the globe to jump into the study of End Times.  And our study did just that.  Our study leader, Tom Fletcher, began our study talking about the Rapture, the Tribulation, etc., taking us knee deep into End Times Prophecy, while I was still wading in an ankle deep understanding of prophecy.

That evening I was totally lost, having no idea what Tom meant by the Rapture, Tribulation, and other such teachings.  I kept my mouth shut all evening, rather than show my level of Biblical illiteracy.  BUT, I went home that night determined to understand End Time Prophecy.  And for the past 30 years I have been studying, and at times leading Bible studies, on End Times Prophecy.

That style of Conversational / Discussion style Bible study worked for me, causing me to dig deeper into Scripture.  And it can work for everyone the same, if given a chance.  Using a Pre-Written Bible Study Guide seldom, if ever, gives such an effective result.  One size does not fit all.  And a sermon style Bible study only helps cure Insomnia.

2.  Bible Study Guides help those Leaders with limited time to prepare:  Then they should step aside and let someone else who has more time lead the study.  I had a similar situation at our IBBC-Riverside church.  Danny Garcia and I were asked to lead the Seniors Sunday School Class which I was happy to do, not realizing I faced one big obstacle:  Filipino Seniors, even though they speak English, are more comfortable studying the Bible in their Tagalog language. 

We found that Danny leading in Tagalog was much more effective and had better participation than me leading in English.  I stepped aside and not to be a distraction in the Seniors Class, I went to sit, as a participant, in the Adult Sunday School Class led by Ben Gallardo. 

But that makes me wonder, are Seniors not considered Adults?  Just curious why Seniors, Adults, and Youth have to be segregated instead of studying together.  And many church fellowships break the study of God's Word into many more distinctive groupings.  I have seen some churches with as many as 20 different Bible Study / Sunday School Class groups. 

Dory get aggravated when I ask if God has authored a Men's Bible, a Women's Bible, a Youth Bible, etc.  But I feel that is a valid question.  Has God authored 20 different Bibles - or has man written those distinctions into God's Word?  Think about it!

3.  A Bible Study Leader Does Not Have To Be A Bible Scholar, only a person who will take the time to prepare for the upcoming study.  I am reminded of a seminar I attended in the early 1970s, presented by a large brokerage firm, I believe Merrill Lynch, to recruit new sales persons, aka, financial planners.  Several guys in blue suits were presenting the seminar, while a local vice president stood on the sidelines.

During the Q&A session I raised the question:  "Is it illegal for a Merrill Lynch sales agent, financial planner, to invest in the same investment properties he/she is recommending?" 

The vice president fielded my question, and with a laugh said, "You are suggesting that we have inside information.  If we did, we would be out on our yacht instead of in this seminar.  Right?  We do not have any more information than you do."   And of course, my first thought then was, "If that is true, why should I trust you to invest my money?"  Investing your money is one thing, investing in your eternal salvation is very much another.

4.  You Want A Bible Study Leader Who Has The Time To Prepare - using the only "One Size Fits All" book, the Bible - and does not depend upon a Pre-Written Study Guide as a crutch for not being prepared.  Would you take your car to an auto mechanic who is using an "Auto Repair For Dummies" book?  Studying God's Word is very important, for both the leader and the participants, meaning that both should prepare ahead of time.

No, Dory and I did not go into this level of discussion last evening.  But our discussion led me into deeper thoughts on the subject of Bible Study.  Your Bible study evenings should cause you to have deeper thoughts on the meaning of God's Word also.

In a Bible study, it is okay to disagree if we are discussing Non-Essential Christian Doctrines.  But we should never disagree on the Essential Christian Doctrines.  And prayerfully, at the end of a good Bible study, most disagreements will have been worked out. 

But if not, as long as the Essentials are correct - the Non-Essentials will not affect one's eternal salvation. They merely give good points for discussion - and they are important in digging more deeply into God's Word, which will make YOU a more effective Christian witness. 

Usually when a person holds a different view of Eschatology, i.e., End Times Prophecy, than me - I do not argue, I merely tell that person, "On the way UP, we both will know the Truth" - and leave it at that. That leaves us good Christian brethren, both looking toward that final promotion into eternity.

If you are not sure which Christian Doctrines are Essential to your eternal salvation - and which are Non-Essential, i.e., do not determine your eternal salvation, these two short videos will help.  Over the years I have created and refined them to be useful in personal studies and possibly in small group studies.  Each frame can be halted for discussion:

New Bible Study Intro Videos - Essential and Non-Essential Christian Doctrines
https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL_YT3Rttutri61xd6wmbOD7y0uibrt8KD

God bless, have a wonderful, blessed day,

Bill

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