What You Heard in Church Might Be Wrong!: An Appeal for Thoughtful, Insightful, and Spirit-Led Bible Study

By The Padre

The issues in this book are not issues you will hear much about in church. For many, they are firmly settled. But are they? The observation of the author is that many Christians are content to allow all biblical interpretation to be done for them and to accept what they are told. Most Christians study the Bible, but look only for the familiar and accepted interpretations. Dont be afraid to look for the unexpected as you read. This work encourages the reader to decide for themselves on a select number of issues for which different interpretations may be possible. Bible study is so much more rewarding if we learn to think carefully of the text that we read. It is my prayer that God will open new vistas to the reader as He speaks to them through His holy word. Bible study can be a lot of fun.

• Language: English
• Publisher: WestBow Press
• Release date: Jun 20, 2017
• ISBN: 9781512785791

The Padre

As a child of about ten, the author made a conscious decision to give his life to the Lord. After high school, he enlisted in the United States Marines. He was stationed on Oahu, Territory of Hawaii, where he met his future wife. After discharge, and working in an underground gold mine, the padre (his underground nickname) felt called into ministry, so he struck out for college. He earned a B.A. in Religion and a Master of Divinity. Ten years in pastoral ministry was followed by forty in Developmental Disabilities, most conspicuously serving disabled children, birth to three. Now retired, his spare time is engaged in writing. This present work has grown one piece at a time, year after year, scripture by scripture. As it did, his desire to help Christians to be more inquisitive about God’s sacred word grew, resulting in this book.

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Copyright © 2017 The Padre.

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be used or reproduced by any means, graphic, electronic, or mechanical, including photocopying, recording, taping or by any information storage retrieval system without the written permission of the author except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews.

Scripture quotes are taken from the King James Version of the Bible.

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ISBN: 978-1-5127-8580-7 (sc)

ISBN: 978-1-5127-8581-4 (hc)

ISBN: 978-1-5127-8579-1 (e)

Library of Congress Control Number: 2017907469

WestBow Press rev. date: 06/19/2017

Table of Contents

Dedication

Foreword

Preface

Acknowledgment

Prologue

Ye also, as lively stones, are built up a spiritual house, an holy priesthood, to offer up spiritual sacrifices, acceptable to God by Jesus Christ (1 Peter 2:5).

Introduction

The Bible Says It and I Believe It!

Is Taking the Name of the Lord in Vain Unpardonable?

Thou shalt not take the name of the Lord thy God in vain, for the Lord will not hold him guiltless who taketh His name in vain (Exodus 20:7).

Eli, Eli, Lama Sabacthani?

Why hast Thou forsaken me? (Matthew 27:46).

Who Married Mary And Joseph?

Ichabod

And she said, the glory is departed from Israel: for the ark of God is taken (1 Samuel 4:22).

The Great Omission

Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit… Matthew 28:19

Beyond the Sunset

Where does the Bible say we go when we die?

The Doctrine of The Trinity

Upon This Rock

The Unpardonable Sin

Whose Calf Is It, Anyway?

What About the Heathen In Africa?

I am the way the truth and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me. (John 14:6).

Baptism for the Dead

…else what shall they do, which are baptized for the dead, if the dead rise not at all? Why are they then baptized for the dead? (1 Corinthians 15:29).

Epilogue

About the Author

Bibliography

Scripture References

Dedication

T his book is lovingly dedicated to the memory of my late wife, in recognition of the spirit she instilled in me for inquisitive study of the Scripture. It was she who taught me, a young U.S. Marine, the basic tenants of the gospel, and it was she who encouraged me to follow through with the calling I felt into ministry, as she also encouraged me in the educational pursuits we both knew would be necessary for a fruitful life of service.

For forty-four years of marriage she stood beside me; she was my critic, my counselor, my aide and, yes, sometimes my confessor. Her chosen role was always that of support and enablement. I dreamed the dreams and defined the challenges, but without her steadfast support, so many of them would never have been attained.

This one’s for you, Sweetie! I will meet you in the morning, over there.

Foreword

O ne of my New Testament professors in Seminary used to say, The Bible doesn’t mean what it says. And the Bible doesn’t say what it means. The Bible means what it means!

This book gets to that truth – digging out what the Bible means in many of those apparent discrepancies; apparent because there are no real discrepancies in God-inspired Scripture. Once we have the benefit of an authoritative exegesis of the original languages of the Bible, Hebrew and Greek, we can emerge with an informed faith that can stand the test of close scrutiny from even the most skeptical critic.

This book does that for the reader – tackling the tough topics and helping us apply the truths discovered to our everyday lives.

Unfortunately, that’s not always true when we attend church. Some sermons are preached from the pulpit that do not portray what the Bible really means. If we’re not careful then, we can accept, without really doing our homework, things that are said that may lead to beliefs and practices that can mislead us and those who might be looking to us for answers.

So, I’m trusting that when you finish reading this book, you’ll be truly a useful servant in the Kingdom of God by grasping what’s really being revealed in the Bible. I hope that too, going forward, you’ll weigh carefully what is being shared in a Bible class or in a Sunday Service when it comes to discerning those hard sayings on topics that require some pause for study and reflection.

Such is the usefulness of this book – rare and unique, scholastic and experiential – that taken to heart, can protect you from shallow, errant acceptance of things taught from the pulpit and podium that just might not be right!

Dr. Glen Allen

Founding Executive Director

FaithWorks, Christians in Mission

Flagstaff, Arizona

Preface

M y intent here is not to criticize or correct church officials, pastors, preachers, or lay leaders. Most of them spend day after day, week after week, in deep study of the scriptures and in a prayerful search for wisdom so that they might faithfully transmit the Word of God to the community of the saints.

My intent is to challenge the person in the pews to accept nothing regarding scripture or practice just because someone said it. Think about the verses you read and what you hear. Do they really mean what you were told? Is there another interpretation that is possible? Is the interpretation you heard consistent with the setting in which it occurs, with the circumstances to which it relates, and with biblical teaching and doctrine as a whole?

In the following pages, I will offer some alternative explanations of some very familiar scripture passages, church doctrines, and accepted positions. I have always heard many of