By Norita Sieffert
In the novel "The Morabi," the main character Kalavit, who turns out to be the Morabi, was taught all about the gods when he was growing up. But as he comes to adulthood and takes over as chief of his island he comes to the conclusion that he has no faith in these gods at all. And as certain incidents occur and he finds himself adrift in his canoe, he understands that he is also adrift in his own doubt and confusion.
So many of us are like the Morabi. We were brought up believing in something but now as adults we don't know if we still believe or not. We feel like we drift in our confusion and doubt. The Bible says that we can have confidence in God but what if we don't believe the Bible?
There are so many reasons to trust this fantastic book. It is among the oldest in the world and it is still very popular in bookstores. Along with this, there are thousands of fragments and copies that date back a couple of thousand years or more. These copies and fragments confirm just how long the Bible has been a great influence in the world. Just as an example, there are something like 650 copies of the Iliad by Homer. This sounds like a large number, and very few would say that the Iliad we read today is much different than the original manuscript. When talking just about the New Testament of the Bible, there are 257 uncial (written in capital letters) manuscripts; 2795 miniscule manuscripts; 2200 lectionaries and 115 papyrus manuscripts. This comes to more than 5000 fragments and copies.
The sheer number of copies also confirms the Bible's continuing accuracy. Many of you have played the game "telephone" so you'll know what I'm referring to here. A person whispers a word or phrase into someone's ear. Then that person will turn and whisper it to another person. By the time you reach the end of the line the original word or phrase has become something else entirely. It is not that someone goofed up on purpose. It's just that this is what happens when humans transmit information to others. Mistakes are made. This explains the inventions of such things as erasers and backspace keys. But if you measure a new Greek or Hebrew translation of the Bible today against a copy from 2000 years ago you will be amazed at how correct it still is. And this accuracy takes into account the fact that the Bible has been copied over and over by many people over many centuries.
The Bible is not full of contradictions as a few will claim. Certainly there are some difficult texts that we have trouble understanding. And certainly many doubters will carry in a long list of so-called contradictions. The real truth is that scholars have trimmed the list of difficult passages to about two dozen. Sometimes these difficulties appear because we have so many copies and translations. As we mentioned earlier, people do make mistakes. A few of the difficulties remain because we just don't know what the original author meant. There were at one time many difficulties found in the King James Version of the Bible. But when ancient texts were unearthed that are now available to us today most of these problems have been fixed.
The Bible is a multifaceted book and there are still areas that people find difficult. But there is no place where any major doctrine contradicts any other major doctrine. Even though the Bible was written by 40 different people over a period of about 1500 years, it is striking just how united it is. And as people make new discoveries, I staunchly believe that the remaining difficulties will be solved also. You can think about it like this. In the almost two thousand years since the last book of the Bible was penned, there hasn't been a single discovery that has come along and discredited the Bible. That is an amazing record.
The Bible is obviously a book that is trustworthy. And it stands alone compared to other writings just because of what it contains. Many will doubt the Bible until they actually look into it. C.S. Lewis (who wrote the Narnia series) and Josh MacDowell among others were atheists until they actually gave the Bible a read. Then they turned around and became solid Christians. Go ahead and Google "atheists who converted to Christianity" and read their testimonies. You can also read "The Morabi" and see how it works out for Kalavit. But I would be interested in hearing how it turns out for you also.
"For You are my hope; O Lord God, You are my confidence from my youth." Psalm 71: 5 (NASB).
About the Author:
Norita Sieffert has spent a lifetime learning to overcome these very same issues, and conquers them one day at a time. She has fully committed herself to knowing and serving Jesus Christ. To browse her latest fiction titles on Kindle, go to her online bookstore (http://tinyurl.com/9g57na3) .
In the novel "The Morabi," the main character Kalavit, who turns out to be the Morabi, was taught all about the gods when he was growing up. But as he comes to adulthood and takes over as chief of his island he comes to the conclusion that he has no faith in these gods at all. And as certain incidents occur and he finds himself adrift in his canoe, he understands that he is also adrift in his own doubt and confusion.
So many of us are like the Morabi. We were brought up believing in something but now as adults we don't know if we still believe or not. We feel like we drift in our confusion and doubt. The Bible says that we can have confidence in God but what if we don't believe the Bible?
There are so many reasons to trust this fantastic book. It is among the oldest in the world and it is still very popular in bookstores. Along with this, there are thousands of fragments and copies that date back a couple of thousand years or more. These copies and fragments confirm just how long the Bible has been a great influence in the world. Just as an example, there are something like 650 copies of the Iliad by Homer. This sounds like a large number, and very few would say that the Iliad we read today is much different than the original manuscript. When talking just about the New Testament of the Bible, there are 257 uncial (written in capital letters) manuscripts; 2795 miniscule manuscripts; 2200 lectionaries and 115 papyrus manuscripts. This comes to more than 5000 fragments and copies.
The sheer number of copies also confirms the Bible's continuing accuracy. Many of you have played the game "telephone" so you'll know what I'm referring to here. A person whispers a word or phrase into someone's ear. Then that person will turn and whisper it to another person. By the time you reach the end of the line the original word or phrase has become something else entirely. It is not that someone goofed up on purpose. It's just that this is what happens when humans transmit information to others. Mistakes are made. This explains the inventions of such things as erasers and backspace keys. But if you measure a new Greek or Hebrew translation of the Bible today against a copy from 2000 years ago you will be amazed at how correct it still is. And this accuracy takes into account the fact that the Bible has been copied over and over by many people over many centuries.
The Bible is not full of contradictions as a few will claim. Certainly there are some difficult texts that we have trouble understanding. And certainly many doubters will carry in a long list of so-called contradictions. The real truth is that scholars have trimmed the list of difficult passages to about two dozen. Sometimes these difficulties appear because we have so many copies and translations. As we mentioned earlier, people do make mistakes. A few of the difficulties remain because we just don't know what the original author meant. There were at one time many difficulties found in the King James Version of the Bible. But when ancient texts were unearthed that are now available to us today most of these problems have been fixed.
The Bible is a multifaceted book and there are still areas that people find difficult. But there is no place where any major doctrine contradicts any other major doctrine. Even though the Bible was written by 40 different people over a period of about 1500 years, it is striking just how united it is. And as people make new discoveries, I staunchly believe that the remaining difficulties will be solved also. You can think about it like this. In the almost two thousand years since the last book of the Bible was penned, there hasn't been a single discovery that has come along and discredited the Bible. That is an amazing record.
The Bible is obviously a book that is trustworthy. And it stands alone compared to other writings just because of what it contains. Many will doubt the Bible until they actually look into it. C.S. Lewis (who wrote the Narnia series) and Josh MacDowell among others were atheists until they actually gave the Bible a read. Then they turned around and became solid Christians. Go ahead and Google "atheists who converted to Christianity" and read their testimonies. You can also read "The Morabi" and see how it works out for Kalavit. But I would be interested in hearing how it turns out for you also.
"For You are my hope; O Lord God, You are my confidence from my youth." Psalm 71: 5 (NASB).
About the Author:
Norita Sieffert has spent a lifetime learning to overcome these very same issues, and conquers them one day at a time. She has fully committed herself to knowing and serving Jesus Christ. To browse her latest fiction titles on Kindle, go to her online bookstore (http://tinyurl.com/9g57na3) .