I recently read two articles; one was titled “10 Bible Verses That Were Changed In Translation,” and “10 Dark And Ungodly Christian Beliefs.” Both are written in a deceivingly winsome style, but the intent is not so innocent. The first leads some to think the Bible is untrustworthy and the second is an attack on the Christian faith predicated on the Scriptures.

People attack the Bible and the Christian faith founded upon it for a host of reasons. It is even fashionable to do so in the culture we live in now. The motives can range from genuine questions about matters of faith to viciously maligning the Scriptures believers embrace as sacred.

I have been an ardent student of the Bible for over forty-five years and I am currently in my fifty-eighth reading through the Scriptures. The issues raised in these two articles are nothing new, and the only reason I address them here is because those who are uninformed may be mislead by them.

I cogently, albeit inductively, addressed the issue of textual corruption over the long period of translation over three years ago in an article entitled Providential Preservation (Christian Concepts, January 2015), the issue raised in the first article above.

I can’t address the twenty issues raised in these two articles in my brief response here, but I question the means they used to reach their conclusions.
    
The word “church” is first introduced in the Scriptures by Jesus in Matthew 16:18. It is an entirely New Testament term understood within the context of what Christ has said about it and His apostles. When one tries to draw an understanding of practices in the church based upon Levitical ceremonies of the Old Testament, while ignoring the historical context of each misleads readers.
    
It is nothing more than cherry-picking verses out of the Bible to create what is known in logic as a “straw-man argument.” That is, one makes up a weak argument that misrepresents the real issue so it can be easily refuted. Skeptics do it all the time when it comes to God’s Word, and simpleminded readers fall for it all the time. It’s a very popular tactic among critics of the Scriptures and those who read them.
    
The religious leaders in Jesus’ day questioned whether His teaching was from God. Jesus answered, “If anyone is willing to do His will, he will know of the teaching, whether it is from God or whether I speak from Myself,” John 7:17. The truth of whether the Scriptures are of God lies in what we experience when we do as God says, not an empty argument.
    
Some will accuse me of having “blind faith” in the Bible because I defend it here. I maintain there is a great difference between faith and blind faith; but to those who accuse me of having blind faith in the Bible I ask, what kind of faith is one exercising when one believes what critics say about the Bible?
    
His stage name was W. C. Fields. In the 1930’s and 40’s he parlayed his Vaudeville experience into a film career. Renowned for his salacious levity, he was once asked if he had ever read the Bible. Holding little sacred and always looking for a laugh Fields replied, “Yes, I was looking for loopholes.”
    
I encourage everyone to read through the Scriptures this year without looking for loopholes.

Recently, Amy Grant, Christian songwriter, and her country music star husband, Vince Gill, announced they would be hosting Amy’s niece’s wedding on their family farm. Amy said it was her family’s “first bride and bride” nuptials.

Amy continued, “Honestly, from a faith perspective, I do always say, ‘Jesus, you just narrowed it down to two things: love God and love each other.” Faith perspective in what?

There has been some criticism from the Christian community as you might expect about Grant and Gill hosting a same-sex marriage. Franklin Graham commented that “God defines what is sin [in the Bible], not us; and His Word is clear that homosexuality is sin.”

Of course, Franklin is right. The question then would be, Why do people who claim to be Christians have a skewed perspective of love as taught in the Bible? The answer is either they do not believe God’s Word or misunderstand and subsequently misapply them.

But it is difficult to believe one misunderstands what the Scriptures teach about homosexuality because God’s Word is clear on sexual sin with no ambiguities. I do not believe they understand the biblical context of God’s love or God’s holiness.

Most people will say that God is love, and that is true, but God’s love cannot be based on what one imagines God’s love to be apart from its Scriptural context. I have said if you could use only one word to describe God that word would be holy.

The first time the word ‘holy’ is used in Scripture is when Moses turns aside to investigate the burning bush that is not consumed. When he gets to the bush, God speaking from the bush tells Moses, “Do not come near here; remove your sandals from your feet, for the place on which you are standing is holy ground,” Exodus 3:5.

When Isaiah saw the Lord “lofty and exalted” the seraphim cried “Holy, holy, holy is the Lord of hosts, the whole earth is full of His glory,” Isaiah 6:3.

God did not enjoin Israel to be “loving as I am loving,” He commanded them “you shall be holy, for I the Lord your God am holy,” Leviticus 19:2. God is not holy because He is loving; He is loving because He is holy. God’s love flows from His holiness.

In our culture today there are many who try to understand God from the perspective that He is loving, and He is. But our culture has misinterpreted and misapplied what biblical love is. God’s love, biblical love, is first of all holy, and that is not the perspective of many in our culture today.

I find it sad that those who name the name of Christ have forsaken the authority of the Scriptures which Christ did not. Paul framed it well when he wrote, “although they know the ordinance of God, that those who practice such things are worthy of death, they not only do the same, but also give hearty approval to those who practice them,” Romans 1:32.

My wife, Joyce Ann, and I read through the Scriptures together last year and have begun reading through them again. Some may wonder why we discipline ourselves to read through the Bible each year. Here are a few of those reasons.

One cannot read about the life of Christ without realizing the Scriptures were important to Him, and if they were important to the Son of God they should be important to us as His followers.

I think sitting under the preaching of God’s Word each Sunday should not be a revelation of what the Bible says, but a confirmation of what I have been reading for myself. I prefer to know what I believe about the Scriptures and what they say firsthand and think through why I believe them.

Although written by approximately forty human authors over a period of around 1600 years the Bible has a wonderful unity and needs to be read and understood from this perspective. Reading it over again reminds me of this truth, spares me from being isolated on favorite passages, and prevents my memory of what they say from being supplanted by my imagination of what I think they said.

Constantly pouring over the Scriptures I see things I missed before but have become clearer as I (hopefully) mature in Christ. Reading the Word of God is one of the disciplines that aids in that maturation. The Book of Books enjoins us to renew our minds so that we begin to see life from God’s perspective.

Focusing on His perspective helps prevent us from being blinded by the confusion of current events that can overwhelm the thinking of the best of us. We see events through the lens of time, God sees the same events through the lens of eternity, and we are in constant need of His eternal perspective so that we do not lose our way in time.

I have said the first four words of the first chapter of Rick Warren’s bestselling book, “The Purpose Driven Life,” are the most important in the whole book; “It’s not about you.” If you believe as I do that God created us, then He created us to fulfill His plan and purpose, not ours. The Father has revealed His will to us in His Word.

If you are searching for the true meaning of life this is the only book that has it. Why not read the Manufacturer’s owners’ manual that reveals to us in grand detail the One who made us and why?

I have a very simple reading plan; I begin with Genesis 1:1 and read an average of five chapters a day, Monday through Friday. When I get to Ruth or Jonah, each with only four chapters, that is all I read that day. When I get to books like Daniel with twelve chapters I read six chapters one day and six the next.

I keep a journal and post my thoughts on some portion of what I have read on my Facebook page Monday through Friday. On weekends I read and study other parts of the Bible, my Sunday school lesson and sermon preparation for those times when I get an opportunity to preach.

I pray you will consider reading through the Bible in 2023.

“The grass withers, the flower fades, but the word of our God stands forever,” Isaiah 40:8.

Another holiday season is upon us and many are absorbed with Christmas shopping and looking for that gift that is just right for each one on our list. As one grows older the list seems to grow longer.

Each year I am reminded of how the hustle and bustle of shopping can cause our attention to focus more on things than on people. It is very easy to allow our focus to shift from what the real meaning of Christmas is to things that are far less important.

Most of you probably do not know who Hugh Haynie is, or should I say was; he died in 1999. Hugh was a political cartoonist. His cartoons could be seen in the Louisville Courier-Journal on the editorial page. But his work was often published in the newspapers of America because Hugh had a way of making his point very clearly in the cartoons he drew.

I grew up in Jacksonville, FL reading the Florida Times-Union. Every year at Christmas time one of Hugh’s cartoons ran in the Florida Times-Union that even as a boy touched my heart with its simple truth. I think it was published in the Christmas Eve edition, but I began to look for it every year.

The cartoon pictures a man going over what must be his Christmas list sitting at the bottom of a small hill of wrapped presents. In the top left portion of the cartoon is an artistic rendering of the face of Christ superimposed on the scene. The caption reads, “Now let’s see. Have I forgotten anyone?”

It is a poignant reminder that during this time of the year that we celebrate the birth of our Savior Jesus Christ, our busy shopping schedule and hectic preparations for the big day can cause us to lose sight of the “Reason for the season.”

That first Christmas was not celebrated then as it is now, nor attended with the same attention it receives today. In the grand scheme of things the birth of Christ went relatively unnoticed. The nature of Christ has not changed in over two millennia, He did not force His way into the inn then and He does not force His way into our thoughts and hearts today.

If we are not careful His birth and its significance will go, even amid the lights and festivities, as unnoticed today as it did then. Now let’s see. Have we forgotten anyone?

“Joseph also went up from Galilee, from the city of Nazareth, to Judea, to the city of David which is called Bethlehem, because he was of the house and family of David, in order to register along with Mary, who was engaged to him, and was with child.

“While they were there, the days were completed for her to give birth. And she gave birth to her firstborn son; and she wrapped Him in cloths, and laid Him in a manger, because there was no room for them in the inn,” Luke 2:4-7.

Earlier this month a German restaurant in Richmond, Virginia, Metzger Bar and Butchery canceled a reservation made by the faith-based organization The Family Foundation. When the members of learned they had been denied service they said, “We’ve been canceled! Again.”

In a Facebook post the restaurant’s owners said they refused to serve the group, “After the owners of Metzger found out it was a group of donors to a political organization that seeks to deprive women and LGBTQ+ persons of their basic human rights in Virginia.” The owners further said, “We have always refused service to anyone for making our staff uncomfortable or unsafe and this was the driving force behind our decision.”

Clearly, the owners of the restaurant and the faith-based group have different views regarding abortion and sexual morality, that is a common disagreement in our culture today. If this had occurred in Colorado instead of Virginia, The Family Foundation could file suit under Colorado’s anti-discriminatory statues.

But this happened in Virginia, not Colorado.

I think the owners of any business in America should have the right to discriminate on who they do business with or serve based on their beliefs. If a web designer in Colorado has the right to discriminate on the type of website one designs, then a restaurant should have the right to discriminate on who they serve, that is what liberty is about.

What the restaurant owners in this case cannot not do is say they do not discriminate or, they are inclusive or tolerant with those who disagree with them. It would be hypocritical to do so and an unwise business decision for two reasons; heterosexuals outnumber homosexuals, and heterosexuals can reproduce.

This is what The Family Foundation had to say on their own blog, “Welcome to the 21st century, where people who likely consider themselves ‘progressives’ attempt to recreate an environment from the 1950s and early 60s, when people were denied food service due to their race.” The post continued, “At The Family Foundation, we believe individuals in private business should not have to violate their convictions … However, most, if not all, faiths not only allow for the provision of services, like food, to those with whom they disagree, but they also encourage it.”

Members of The Family Foundation obviously think they have been treated unfairly and “canceled, again.” I understand how they feel, defending biblical truth in this cultural climate costs and according to Paul, in his letter to Timothy, it is to be expected. “Indeed, all who desire to live godly in Christ Jesus will be persecuted,” 2 Timothy 3:12.

Certainly, being discriminated against and “canceled” are forms of persecution, but it cannot be compared to what our brothers and sisters are experiencing in other countries around the world where they are tortured and martyred for their faith.

Our attitude should be in keeping with Peter’s instructions, “Make sure that none of you suffers as a murderer, or thief, or evildoer, or a troublesome meddler; but if anyone suffers as a Christian, he is not to be ashamed, but is to glorify God in this name,” 2 Peter 4:15-16.