Christians. I actually have a question this time?

Question

What lessons does the bible offer. I gotta tell you, I've been reading this thing and I'm pretty confused. It's all over the place. What major points should I take about how to live my life. Please don't say accept Jesus because that doesn't tell me anything.

Answer 1

My understanding of Christianity is that we are meant to treat our fellow people with respect and compassion. If anyone says they are a Christian and treats another person in a nasty manner, then they have failed the expectations of true Christianity and they are hiding behind their church.

I have known people who have held responsible positions in their denomination, yet they have no people skills at all and no compassion. But the fault lies with them as individuals, not in Christianity as a faith.

We are told plainly that we are expected to treat each other as equals. You feel better within yourself if you know you have helped someone who needs help more than yourself, so that's what we need to do more of and to do it willingly, not begrudgingly. If we do help, we shouldn't expect something in return from another person. If we want something back, then we're helping for the wrong reasons.

When people say "accept Jesus", I think what they should be saying is to live our lives helping others the way Jesus demonstrated.

Answer 2

What you need is to get into a Bible Study group, Where you get not only to read, but to study the Bible as well.. There should be other Christians to talk with about the time, and the meaning of what your are reading. In that way you will get to understand what it all points to, and accept what God has done for us. When you do that your life will change, and you will want to tell others about it. I would suggest a Catholic Bible study, however you are free to do your own choosing. Merry Christmas to you and yours

Answer 3

The Bible is a collection of books, written by a wide range of people, from doctors and kings to simple fishermen over a period of thousands of years. In it you will find poetry, songs, history, stories of love, stories of hate, stories of the underdog overcoming in the face of overwhelming and impossible odds.

I remember that I too found the Old Testament a bit confusing, perhaps it would help to start in the New Testament, you can start with Matthew for example.

The first four books of the New Testament are called the gospels, and they relate the story of Jesus, his life, death, and resurrection, from the viewpoint of four different disciples. In them you will find profound lessons of forgiveness, love, compassion, and mercy.

If you could just read, meditate, memorize, and live out what was in the four gospels by imitating the life of Jesus, you will be well on the right road.

May God bless you as you embark on this journey!

Answer 4

Matthew22:37-39:"You must love Jehovah your God with your whole heart,and with your whole soul and with your whole mind.This is the greatest and first commandment.The second,like it,is this,you must love your neighbour as yourself"
This two commands encompass all aspects of our lives.
John 17:3:"This means everlasting life,their taking in knowledge of you the only true God and of the one who you sent forth,Jesus Christ"
So taking in accurate knowledge,Bible truths can lead us on the road to salvation.However the Bible does not teach automatic salvation as some think.....Matthew 24:13:"He that endures to the end will be saved"
So we need to live our lives in harmony with Bible principles.We need to take in accurate knowlege and we need to exercise our faith by speaking to others about what the Bible contains,as per Jesus instructions found at Matthew 28:19,20:"Go therefore and make disciples of people of all the nations,.....teaching them to observe all the things I have commanded you....."
The Bible is man's instruction book for life now and life that is to come.To get the most out of it you really need to have a Bible study with Jehovahs Witnesses.They have a thorough and accurate understanding of the Bible and offer free home bible studies.

Answer 5

The Bible is so confusing because it is written in a way to instruct both the individual that is reading it and also for a whole nation to succeed by following it. Keep reading it with an open mind. As you get older you will start to understand more and more of it. You can't rush and become impatient to learn everything from it at once. Just maintain the determination to achieve that understanding and also apply it to your daily life as you learn and understand it's message.

Answer 6

Put it this way, until the average Christian decides to take some classes in Ancient Hebrew, Aramaic, Greek; First and Second Temple Judaism, Hellenistic society and culture; Halachic, Haggadic and Mishnaic Judaism, they will never have a single solitary clue as to what they read. To them it is just a bible. To the educated it is something entirely different.

Answer 7

Treat other people tehe way you want to be treated.
Matthew 24:34-37
Parables are good!

Parable of The Good Samaritan

Luke 10

Luke 15: 11 Prodigal Son

Answer 8

Here's the gist of the Bible...
- Adam and Eve are given literally everything in the world and warned not to eat the fruit from the tree of Knowledge of Good and Evil. They don't listen to God. The results are that they are now burdened with sin and family strife.
- With God's help, Moses leads the Israelites out of Egypt. God provides for them and guides them. Still, the Israelites grow impatient and unfaithful. Because they become headstrong, their bickering and in-fighting causes them to wander around the wilderness for forty years.
- The Israelites establish a theocracy overned by Judges. All of the neighboring countries have kings. The Israelites start saying. "Hey, maybe we should have a king, too!". God warns them against it but the Israelites are stubborn and choose a king. This leads to political manuevering, war, and corruption.
- God warns Solomon not to take wives of other nationalities as a means of political expediency. Solomon doesn't heed God's advice. After Solomon's death, his kingdom is split and won't be reunited until 1947.
- God sends Jesus as our Savior. Jesus preaches love of God, love of one' neighbor, and giving hope to the hopeless. This "radicalism" threatens the religious establishment. His message is also rejected by those wanting a more miltaristic Messiah. He is crucified. The Jewish nation is overrun by the Romans and the Temple is destroyed - never to be rebuilt as of yet.

Basically, there is one recurring theme: God loves us and gives us His guidance. People become too full of themselves, are tempted, or plain just don't care. They then reap the consequences.

These consequences aren't neccesarily God's "wrath" anymore than a kid not wearing a heavy jacket in winter and catching a cold is his mother's "wrath". It's simply a matter of consequences of one's actions.

It's a simple message really - trust God and things will work out. That doesn't mean life will be easy, it doesn't mean we won't have trials or setbacks, but if we always trust in Him, He will guide us, strengthen us, and lift us up.

Answer 9

Love. Jesus says that is the first and best commandment, to love others as we love ourselves. But, I gotta say, you sound as tho you are pretty close minded. If you feel this way I don't care how many bibles you read, you won't get dog squat from them! Good luck.

Answer 10

You have to learn to rightly divide the word of God - this means studying it.
It is all over the place.
The bible witnesses or confirms itself in its own verses, back and forth, back and forth with words that were written over time - words that came true years later after originally written.
I also read the bible from cover to cover and did not get that much from it, until I started studying it.
This is a great place to study. They have live broadcasts, tapes, cds, that you can get free or buy very inexpensively.
They are the best.
Go check it out:
www.shepherdschapel.com
It is on the web and tv
If you do this, you will see for yourself what a gift this is.