This is a common question from both believers and unbelievers. And for some, is one of the strongest objections to Christianity. I know of someone who actually left the faith over this. So this is an important issue, yet responses to this question are not as common as you would expect them to be, and a large portion of the ones that do exist are unsatisfying. So, today I devote my writing to this very issue.
The Bible Is Spiritual Food, Not A Spiritual Pill:
This is important, the Bible is not simply there to increase knowledge of the world. Biblical studies feed the spirit. And like food, you don't want to simply swallow it and leave. You want to go slow and savor each bite. The Bible being vague in parts can make you do that.
If the text were easy to read, you could blow through the whole Bible, know everything and never pick it up again. But that is not what God wants for us. The richness of the text requires some work to reap the benefits, but it is also designed to be inexhaustible, I have read and studied Genesis 1 more times than I could count but yet I still recently discovered something new within the text. You could study a single verse for a week, non-stop and still uncover new things. If the text were easy to read and yet still contained all that information, the Bible would be wider than a car.
If the text were easy to read, you could blow through the whole Bible, know everything and never pick it up again. But that is not what God wants for us. The richness of the text requires some work to reap the benefits, but it is also designed to be inexhaustible, I have read and studied Genesis 1 more times than I could count but yet I still recently discovered something new within the text. You could study a single verse for a week, non-stop and still uncover new things. If the text were easy to read and yet still contained all that information, the Bible would be wider than a car.
Prophecy Is Supposed To Be Vague:
I will make the same point here that Dr. Michael Heiser has made *many* times, God wants prophecy to be vague. This is because Satan, the other fallen angels, and the demons can read the Bible too. If the prophecies in the Old Testament about Jesus were more "clear" than Satan would never have allowed Jesus to be crucified. And our salvation would be hindered.
Instead, this information was kept from the forces of darkness and God instead used Satan to bring about his plan. Satan believed Jesus crucifixion was a defeat of God. But he was wrong, because he did not understand the Old Testament prophecies.
Instead, this information was kept from the forces of darkness and God instead used Satan to bring about his plan. Satan believed Jesus crucifixion was a defeat of God. But he was wrong, because he did not understand the Old Testament prophecies.
The Bible Clear On What Is Important:
All that being said, the main points the Bible communicates are very clear. Any who deny the following are either ignorant of the text, or are biased beyond reason. These are truths made extremely plain by scripture:
- There is a God
- This God knows all things past, present, future, and possible
- This God has the power to do anything he wishes, controlling all things
- The presence of this God pervades everything he has created
- This God is the standard by which good and evil are measured (just as Chicago is the standard by which a picture of Chicago is measured)
- This God is responsible for the existence of everything else, creating the universe itself
- This God purposely created humanity as the "top dogs" of the Earth
- Human beings are not just physical, but are partly immaterial, this immaterial nature continues on even when the physical part is destroyed
- This God is responsible for moral law, and commands us to love him, and love our fellow human beings as ourselves
- If we did live up to that standard, we would be in a state of eternal happiness and love, in a perfect world
- Those who do not live up to that standard are guilty before God, and are doomed to a state of eternal separation from God, an inferior state
- All humans have failed to live up to this standard, and are in a state of perpetual rebellion against God
- God is one being
- The Heavenly Father is God
- The Holy Spirit is God
- Jesus Of Nazareth (The Son) is God
- The Father, Son, and Spirit are three distinct persons
- God, and all three God persons, are eternally present without beginning or end
- At around 5 BC, the Son person was born into this world as a human being, growing up as any human being would
- As part of the plan of God, the Son knowingly died on the cross to pay the debts for human sin, enduring the punishment we sinners deserve
- As confirmation of his claim to divinity, the Son (Jesus) performed miracles in public and gathered a following, the greatest miracle was his resurrection from the dead after three whole days
- To receive the free gift of salvation offered to us, and payed for by the death of Christ, we must genuinely repent of our sins and accept God as the authority over our lives
- Once saved, we are guaranteed to eventually gain the reward of perfect happiness and love, and keep it forever, as though we never sinned
- Salvation cannot be earned through simply doing more good than bad in your life, all sin requires punishment (good deeds don't "cancel out" evil deeds), the question is "is your sin going to be punished on judgement day, or 2000 years ago on that cross?"
- Jesus commanded his followers to preach these things all over the world, it is the sole reason we remain here, rather than receive our undeserved reward immediately
- There are non-human sentient entities that are evil and do not belong in this world, they hate God and will attempt to stop us from spreading the gospel
- One day, Jesus will return to Earth and judge all humanity according to their works, but his followers will be judged not by their own works, but by the works of Jesus, who lived the only human life that lived up to the perfect standard of God, because Jesus is God
Thanks for reading! And if I missed anything, feel free to let me know!
- There is a God
- This God knows all things past, present, future, and possible
- This God has the power to do anything he wishes, controlling all things
- The presence of this God pervades everything he has created
- This God is the standard by which good and evil are measured (just as Chicago is the standard by which a picture of Chicago is measured)
- This God is responsible for the existence of everything else, creating the universe itself
- This God purposely created humanity as the "top dogs" of the Earth
- Human beings are not just physical, but are partly immaterial, this immaterial nature continues on even when the physical part is destroyed
- This God is responsible for moral law, and commands us to love him, and love our fellow human beings as ourselves
- If we did live up to that standard, we would be in a state of eternal happiness and love, in a perfect world
- Those who do not live up to that standard are guilty before God, and are doomed to a state of eternal separation from God, an inferior state
- All humans have failed to live up to this standard, and are in a state of perpetual rebellion against God
- God is one being
- The Heavenly Father is God
- The Holy Spirit is God
- Jesus Of Nazareth (The Son) is God
- The Father, Son, and Spirit are three distinct persons
- God, and all three God persons, are eternally present without beginning or end
- At around 5 BC, the Son person was born into this world as a human being, growing up as any human being would
- As part of the plan of God, the Son knowingly died on the cross to pay the debts for human sin, enduring the punishment we sinners deserve
- As confirmation of his claim to divinity, the Son (Jesus) performed miracles in public and gathered a following, the greatest miracle was his resurrection from the dead after three whole days
- To receive the free gift of salvation offered to us, and payed for by the death of Christ, we must genuinely repent of our sins and accept God as the authority over our lives
- Once saved, we are guaranteed to eventually gain the reward of perfect happiness and love, and keep it forever, as though we never sinned
- Salvation cannot be earned through simply doing more good than bad in your life, all sin requires punishment (good deeds don't "cancel out" evil deeds), the question is "is your sin going to be punished on judgement day, or 2000 years ago on that cross?"
- Jesus commanded his followers to preach these things all over the world, it is the sole reason we remain here, rather than receive our undeserved reward immediately
- There are non-human sentient entities that are evil and do not belong in this world, they hate God and will attempt to stop us from spreading the gospel
- One day, Jesus will return to Earth and judge all humanity according to their works, but his followers will be judged not by their own works, but by the works of Jesus, who lived the only human life that lived up to the perfect standard of God, because Jesus is God
Thanks for reading! And if I missed anything, feel free to let me know!