Does the Bible encourage people to think they're real stories?

Question

Even when I believed that stuff I found it fairly obvious that they are just stories to teach a lesson. I mean, there's so many impossibilities that can't be put off as anything but magic. It wasn't meant to be taken on face value, which is why we have human fossils before Adam and Ever "existed", and you can't build a boat big enough to carry too of every animal that would float, and if you did two of a species can't repopulate the world. The cells and atoms in a wooden staff CANNOT rearrange to become a snake. Now if all this really happened then how come it stopped happening after we had the knowledge to prove it impossible? You can believe in God just do it reasonably, this is a man made religion whether you believe in God or not so lighten up.

And yes I believe in the big bang and evolution. Where did all the matter come from you ask? Well I'd say it's just always been there, now obviously as this was extremely long ago no one can know for sure but just because we don't know is that really proof that there's and all powerful deity ? I don't think so. This is all just thought, don't go crazy about it.

By the way, just to educate people who may not know, even Darwin never stated we ever evolved from apes. This is impossible. However, we did at one point have a common primate ancestor and some evolved into apes and others evolved into humans, they were never one species.

And what do you think about how the old church demonized the other religions so they would have more people under their thumb. It may be different now a days but the old church was as evil as they come, 5 million women were burned over 300 years for being free thinkers hich made them witches. This is who put together the modern Bible, you can believe God is perfect but that is proof that the church, Bible, and religion is not.

No I watched the Nova about the great flood, and they even found what they thought was a piece of the arch, awesome, the proves there was a flood and a boat. But it doesn't prove anything else, how big the flood was, that he had two of every animal on it, and from my days in engineering school I'm pretty sure that's impossible. But just because these places and things existed doesn't mean they were to the same extent or purpose the Bible said. I know Florida exists and I could write magical stories about it and publish it. Now let's say global warming puts Florida under water and somehow it fall out of conventional knowledge like Ninevah, if they found Florida underwater right where my magical stories said it was does that prove my magic stories correct?

I know it was the Roman Catholic church that did it, I just shortened it to the church. And then they altered the Bible to their own means, burning the gnostic gospels and keeping the ones they liked. As far as who was persecuted the most isn't my point, they did it and they played a big roll in the modern view of God, I'm just asking if that's who you want to trust with your faith.

Answer 1

I think it can. Some people are very...strict when it comes to religion. If something doesn't explicitely state that it's not meant to be taken literally, then they'll take it literally. As Galileo said, though 'I do not feel compelled to believe that the same God who endowed us with sense, reason, and intellect intended us to forego their use.' So long as people use common sense, it shouldn't be a problem.

Answer 2

The Bible states what it says. You either believe it or you don't. Archaeology has uncovered some real amazing stuff. Ninevah was being doubted last century before they found it. The Biblical stories were thought refuted because of Ninevah's apparent lack of existance. That arguement has been dropped and forgotten.

Think of this:
If the Bible is true, then you have a devil and other devils that want it to be thought of as false. They will influence accordingly. What they cannot do is overpower something God won't allow them to overpower. And that is the way of scripture. Oh they tried! And the debates go on about things sometimes in the manner of political campaigns.

But the truth wins out. Many have questioned the existence of many things in the Bible. Archeology has found something really amazing, and I bet you didn't hear about it.

http://www.leaderu.com/theology/burialcave.html


WHOA! Hold on. That's just what I am talking about. I just saw you rendition about historical persecutions and you have it a bit wrong. Whatever your source is, trash it. It's doing you no good.

Protestants were persecuted the most, Dan C. It was the Roman Catholic Church that did that. Don't get the two mixed up!

Answer 3

Since I believe in a Creator, I believe the Creator can change His creation from one form to another. This includes the wooden staff to a snake. Unless you've taken the measurements given in the Bible and calculated exactly how big that boat was, you have no argument there. If you study other theories besides Darwinism, you might discover that one theory for the existence of fossils lines up with the great flood story. Suddenly a massive flood covering the entire earth for over a year would creat massive amounts of sediment suddenly and would wash that sediment over creatures great and small. The larger the creature the more mobility, therefore the larger animals are more often found at higher levels. Reasoning is the biggest part of religion. In fact it is the religion that gets in the way of faith often times. Christian faith calls for peacemakers. This does not omit responsibility to self defense or common sense.

Answer 4

Yes, actually the bible does encourage belief in its own stories. Even Jesus spoke as if he believed the old testament stories. "It will be like the days of Sodom and Gomorrah when..." etc.