My Analysis of the Bible Part 1D: My Belief

My Belief 

So how do I view the Bible? I think the best place to start is investigating what God’s word is. If we are to align ourselves with the nature of a God, surely there must be some medium on earth in which God communicates with us. To get this answer, I turn to the Bible. Now this raises a question of why I would look in the Bible for an answer when I do not believe it is God’s word. While I doubt the inerrancy of the Bible, I do see it as a collection of ancient historical and theological accounts. And yes, I do view them as historical, but not to modern standards. For instance, Job is a poetic work, so why would I believe that it is attempting to accurately portray history?⁵ I would compare it Shakespeare’s Romeo and Juliet. It certainly takes place in a real world setting, but for no reason should it be taken as an accurate historical event. The beginning of Genesis refers to God as separating the waters creating air. The ancient view of the world was a flat disc surrounded by water.⁶ While the author may have been trying to portray history, their limited knowledge made their description less than accurate. So why did the author of Genesis write the account? I would think to demonstrate God’s role in our life as a creator, as a force of good and justice and a love for his creation. I believe these things. So the Bible therefore must be studied to understand author intent as well as the resources they had and ancient understanding of the world. This also calls into question the integrity of the authors. If the author is not divinely inspired, then how can we trust him to give us sincere doctrine? That is a good question, and something one should study up on while reading the Bible.

To go back, what is God’s word then to me? John gives us a straight answer: Jesus. Jesus Christ, according to John, is the divine medium in which God acts and communicates to the world.⁷ This medium was put into human form through the man Jesus who walked the earth and taught, and was eventually crucified. I don’t believe any book can ever live up to this perfection. Now of course if a skeptic like me is reading this, you are probably asking why I would believe Jesus is the perfect word of God. I have personal, subjective reasons for believing this. In summary, I have lived "following Jesus", and I have lived not following Jesus and I have found meaning and joy in my life doing the former. Following Jesus of the gospel's teachings has created a framework of thought that I have found liberating. It has brought meaning to my life that I haven't found elsewhere. Are some details in my own faith wrong? Probably. But my faith rests upon the subjective truths I have found in the bible, not the historical truths. So for me, the word of God is Jesus, but not necessarily the literal man who walked the earth 2000 years ago. Instead, it is the truths that I have found to be transforming in my own life the have been associated with the Jesus of the bible and the teachings that are attributed to him.

5. The content of Job
Job is a work of poetry. In the Jewish tradition Job is counted among the poetic books in the sect of scripture known as Writings (or Ketubim). This section also includes Psalms and Proverbs. While this by definition does not mean it is inaccurate, it provides no reason to suspect its purpose is anything beyond inspiring faith and devotion to God, not historical accuracy.

6. The Sky dome of Genesis
In the first description of creation, we see that God separates waters in order to create space for his creation. Genesis 1.6-8:

“And God said, “Let there be a dome in the midst of the waters, and let it separate the waters from waters.” So God made the dome and separated the waters that were under the dome from the waters that were above the dome. And it was so. God called the dome Sky. And there was evening and there was morning, the second day.”

We now know that our sky is not separated by waters, but rather our sphere is surrounded by vacuum. Now I have heard it argued that the water above the dome is water vapor, but there is no reason to think that the author(s) of Genesis had a concept of water vapor floating in the sky. If he did, he certainly made no attempt to describe it effectively.

7. The Word of God according to John
In the gospel of John, Jesus is named immediately as the Word of God. John 1.1-5:

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things came into being through him, and without him not one thing came into being. What has come into being in him was life, and the life was the light of all people. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness did not overcome it.”

And then John 1.14:

“And the Word became flesh and lived among us, and we have seen his glory, the glory as of a father’s only son, full of grace and truth.”

Jesus is described as the Word of God becoming flesh. Through this Word the world was created and the life that inhabits it. It is God’s medium of action. Jesus, being the Word on earth, was a light to bring life. This Word of God is what I have faith in.