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bible:bible_misconceptions

Introduction: This page describes frequent mistakes people make with the Holy Bible. Common mistakes and sayings which are not Biblical. This isn't an exhaustive academic list, this is just a quick list of the basics. This is NOT professional advice, do your own study. Let me know of errors at https://www.facebook.com/roycebarber or my bio page. Scripture passage numbers to be added soon.
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* The exact word “Hell” or “Purgatory” is not in some Bibles because the Greek language didn't have that exact reference. But there are many references to the general idea of a Lake of Fire. The general idea of “Hell” is the same as the Lake of Fire. Hell is a divorce from God's love, and being like a lake on fire in some way. More details to be added.
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* Adam and Eve ate fruit of some sort from the forbidden tree, and not necessarily an Apple of any kind.
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* The Bible doesn't say the snake in the garden of Eden was Satan at all. But in Revelations it does say Satan is like a snake or dragon in general, and that he is trapped deep in the Earth, not roaming about the Earth. Satan is completely trapped, he is not a snake as we know them.
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* There are not just 10 Commandments, there are vastly more. The 10 we all know, are just the most popular. There are roughly 600 commandments.
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* We don't know that Jesus was a carpenter. Or what his occupation was, before his days of evangelizing about God and salvation.
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* Some churches teach that Jesus's mom Mary has never sinned, and some churches even worship and pray to Mary. (Looking at you Catholics). There's no logic to any of this. Mary was a nice everyday ordinary person. Jesus is the ONLY human to be without sin.
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* There were not necessarily three kings bringing gifts to the baby Jesus. They were wise men, and we don't know how many there were.
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* Some people believe that over the centuries, the Bible text has been altered to suit the ideologies (opinions) of the editors. In fact, there are only a very small number of textual alterations that modern philologists and critics consider intentional changes; most are simply errors in spelling or copying. More on this at: http://listverse.com/2008/04/20/top-10-misconceptions-about-the-bible/
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* The Bible doesn't say the word “Trinity”, but it does mention that God and the Holy Spirit and Jesus are all part of God. Thus, there is a Trinity.
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* No one knows the exact shape of the cross. Chances are it was a T shape, which the top part of the T is what is carried by the person being crucified. It's extremely heavy to someone who is already almost dead from being tortured beforehand. Many people died long before being put up on the cross. Some people were nailed to an actual tree. But not through the hands and feet, it was through the wrists and ankles because those are a sturdier (stronger) part of the body. In ancient times, the hand and wrist were the seen as same area of the body. Nails were through Jesus’s wrists and ankles.
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* We are not to strictly live by the Old Testament law. The New Testament is the law we are to live by. While deeply respecting the Old Testament. The Bible is the Old Testament with the New Testament after it. It's not JUST the Old or New, it's both. While the Old Testament is not our law, it's still good to learn and understand it.
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* Humans do not become angels. Angels are vastly different than humans.
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* Heaven will come down to Earth, and Heaven will be Earth. Will Hell be destroyed, is hard to say, but it won't be part of Heaven.
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* In Heaven there are no genders. Our spirit body will not have marriage, and it will not have a “male” or “female”. The spirit body is something new and perfect. Heaven will have trees and roads, perhaps even careers.
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* Being good does not mean you'll go to Heaven. Being saved by the grace of Jesus, by asking Jesus into your heart, and turning away from your sin, is the major part of being saved. Being an amazingly nice person is not going to get you saved. But, being nice is helpful in being spiritual healthy and receptive to God's plan for you.
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* Some believe the Bible crammed full of hidden meanings. This is not so. It's not all obvious, but it's not a book of puzzles to solve.
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* The human soul goes to Heaven or under the ground (known as Hell). The soul does not haunt anything, there are no ghosts nor haunted houses. The Bible says there is a great chasm cavern between the living and the dead. That said, there are some form of demons roaming the earth yet it's difficult to say what impact they have. Demons are fallen angels, they were never alive like humans are.
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* The Bible does not say Satan is a red dude with a tail and horns. But, it does describe Satan as dragon-like and snake-like. Satan is a fallen angel, but not human-shaped and not human at all.
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* To tithe 10% each week, does not refer only to money. It refers to any resource you own and can give to God's kingdom.
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* The Catholic Church has many beautiful rituals and intricate chants, but they are not a cult. Almost everything they do is fine, as it's the way they choose to worship God. It's not entirely Bible-based, but it's what they enjoy. But they do idolize Jesus's mother Mary and the Saints, and the magical empowerment of clothing the saints wore. Some of them practically worship the Pope who is just an everyday person. So those are some heavy problems they have. But the bottom line is they love Jesus Christ and that's what gets people saved.
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* Jehovah's Witnesses are not a cult, they are fairly close to mainstream Christianity, they believe in the Holy Trinity (God, Jesus, Holy Spirit) but they don't call it a Trinity. They don't celebrate holidays. Their church is lovingly called a Kingdom Hall (referring to God's Kingdom). They have some heavy logic, and unproductive incorrect logic in their older literature. But many modern Jehovah's Witnesses are regular ol' Christians. The more traditional Witnesses have some oddball traditions that are harmless.
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* Speaking in tongues, means to accurately speak another real language. It does not mean to mumble gibberish for no reason. Unless you enjoy that.
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* “The Message” Bible is a study translation from popular author Eugene Peterson. Use it for study but not as your only Bible. It's fairly important to read (yet still optional) because it explains a lot of the translation meanings of Biblical words. Words that most people don't know the meaning of. It's kind of like having a personal translator to the original languages the Bible was written in. But always keep a regular Bible on you. Most daily people will not recognize any passage from The Message.
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* “The Prodigal Son” does not use the word Prodigal in reference to returning. The word itself means wasting a lot of money or a very wasteful person.
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* What is Satan's goal? Satan doesn't want to simply kill all humans. Some of the humans would go to Heaven. Instead, Satan wants to DISTRACT all humans from God, so no one goes to Heaven. Your focus is your destination. The enemy goal is to destroy all good things in the long run, especially your hope of salvation.
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* If a rude neighbor believes in Jesus but doesn't want to be saved, is he saved? No, he is not! The enemy knows the Bible, knows God and Jesus and the Holy Spirit, and knows the Bible is accurate. BUT the enemy hates salvation and thus is not saved.
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To be explained and added;
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* Some people say faith and science have a conflict. Science is the study of God's creation.
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* Some people say Easter is about a few conflicting things, including some ancient pagan rituals. But the reality is that no one you know has ever worshipped a rabbit. Easter or Spring Festival, is an umbrella term to cover many modern events on the same day.
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Thank you to the following sites for your articles and personal advice;
* http://www.faithfacts.org/search-for-truth/misconceptions-about-christianity
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* Please Google “Bible Misconceptions” with an open mind, and don't believe everything you read on Google. Do a careful study.
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bible/bible_misconceptions.txt · Last modified: 2018/02/05 07:38 by reb