Why do people Change the meaning of the bible to suit their preference?

Question

I see people doing this all the time and it disgusts me. I just recently answered a question on discrimination homosexuality, and someone actually stated that most of the people in the bible were homosexuals and that God praised them!! It's not just that, but many other things. Why do people want to distort truth?

Answer 1

It is easier to distort the truth than to face it. However, there are lots of Christians who hold different opinions on the meaning of particular sections in Scripture or doctrines derived from it. Two are baptism and the Lord's Supper. Baptists honestly believe that it is wrong to baptize infants. Catholics, Lutherans, and others believe it is right to baptize infants. Denominations that are of the Reformed tradition do not believe in the Real Presence of Christ in the Lord's Supper. However, the same group of Catholics and Lutherans do believe in it. These differences are honest and sincere and are not to my knowledge self-serving at all. But getting back to your example: I suspect that the person who claimed homosexuals were praised in the Bible is either attempting to validate homosexuality as God-pleasing or is simply mocking Scripture and faith as is so often the case in this particular section of the website. We should be surprised by neither possibility. Both Jesus and Paul warned of such attitudes. Pray for these people.

Answer 2

Especially in Western culture !!

Most such individuals never heard the word 'hermeneutics' and what it means.

One common mistake is in the area of semantics : they assume that a word had the same meaning 3 000 years ago as it has today.

Another is what is termed a 'hidden agenda'. What amazes me is WHY would someone try to prove the validity of homosexuality FROM THE BIBLE when it is so plainly condemned in both the Old and New Testaments !! Why try to use the BIBLE? If someone chooses to live an open homosexual, that's your choice. But the Bible does not support it.

I have heard the Rastafarian use the Bible to support their dread locks and use of marijuana : when Jesus went up into the mountains for 40 days, he survived on weed and the people could not recognize him upon His return because He was natty-dread. And "JAH" - meaning God - is also used in the KJV (Old Testament).

Then there is 'dance' - most often a musical instrument in the O.T.

I better stop here.

Answer 3

The Bible was written very ambigously, to allow for a lot of interpretation. If I had a message in mind before reading the bible, like "Homosexuality is wrong", and then scanned the pages for a passage that might be remotely applicable, then I could use that against homosexuality and I'd have the Bible as a "credible" source to back me up.
What bothers me is that people tend to focus on the nitpicky passages, like the ones about homosexuality, but ignore the huge, obvious messages, like be a good person and treat everyone fairly and with respect.

Answer 4

We all cherry pick. One man's cherry picking is another's use of God-given common sense. And when you say "God is a source of morale," is that sort of like the social director on a cruise ship? Also, the Bible never requires slavery, and never suggests that children be beaten. It gives rules for conduct in a world where slavery is very, very common, as you well know. That's not the same as saying everyone should have slaves, as you ought to realize. It advocates firm discipline, and until just a few years ago, corporal punishment was looked on as integral to good parenting. In fact, it's been such a short time that it may well be in the future that it might come back into fashion. Certainly, in many communities it never went out of fashion. I'm having a hard time figuring out how you get from the real world situation to your (giant) leap that the Bible is responsible for all of that. It's obviously not. Lots of cultures having nothing to do with the Bible have slavery and beating of children as part of discipline, and I'm not even going to get into those cultures that believe in genital mutilation. Perhaps you're in favor of that, since it's not in the Bible. I don't know. I would hope not, but I don't know.... Hey, I'm just reacting to your text.

Answer 5

Wherefore God also gave them up to uncleanness through the lusts of their own hearts, to dishonour their own bodies between themselves. Who changed the truth of God into a lie, and worshiped and served the creation more than the Creator, who is blessed forever, Amen ( Romans 1:24-25 ). One of the biggest signs of God's abandonment in any society is that they become obsessed with sexual immorality and perversion. God's Word answers your question. People who are living contrary to God's Word change the truth of God's word to a lie. But read on in verse 26-28 the consequences that will fall on their heads if they do not repent and turn from their sin. The Lord will "give them up" to their vile affections and He will give them over to a reprobate mind. When a person is given a reprobate mind, that's the end of the line for them because they now can't see Truth even if they wanted to. Don't get disgusted. Think of it as prophecy being fulfilled because that's what it is.

Answer 6

May I be honest? I recently asked a question in which passages of the bible were quoted in order to provide "proof" that they their viewpoint was correct, and in every single instance, I myself read the passages with care and got a very different message from what was written. Do you see what I'm saying? The bible is up to the interpretation of the individual.

What I don't understand is if people aren't hurting anyone with their beliefs, why does it matter if their view differs from someone else's? A single view isn't the only one. It's the reason there are so many religions in this world.

Just my 2 cents, my viewpoint. No offense meant to anyone.

Love and light to you and yours

Answer 7

It happens all the time, as you point out. Human nature is to take something and turn it into a situation/reality that best suits them, or, possibly, that they can relate to. The person that said god praised homosexuals might have been one themselves; whatever best fits their needs. People will continue to do it, no matter what. We all take things out of context, and we as a society will do so for the rest of our time on this earth.

Answer 8

You're assuming that the bible that you have is the right one. This book has been changed, rewritten, and retranslated so many times that it simply has no validity as a source of either information or spirituality. It's been politicized and even rewritten to satisfy a king's terror of witchcraft. (That would be good ol King James).

Although I'm not sure why someone would think everyone in the bible is gay - there's too many "begots" in there for EVERYONE to be gay.

In order to distort truth, there has to be truth to begin with. You'll find a lot of death, rape, genocide, and torture in the bible, but not much truth.

Answer 9

Because the Bible was written by an assortment of savages centuries ago, and even a "Christian" isn't so primitive as to actually hold the same opinions as they did, even though he's bound to believe that he does. In practice, he's worked out an elaborate system of excuses for ignoring the injunctions he finds inconvenient.

I'm sure you think you know the "real" meaning of the Bible. So does every "Christian," but you all tend to disagree with each other on fundamentals - and the rest of us don't believe in the Bible at all. At best, the meaning that you think you know is representative of the prejudices of a negligible clique of bigots.

Answer 10

i think because it is easier than facing the truth,people take the bible out of context only to suit thier own purposes it is disgusting when you know the truth and God said when you know the truth it will set you free