ELMER, BISHOP ELI, AND MARILYN REGARDING THE BIBLE

What delayed this post in getting us three together at the same time so we could discuss this.  What started me to ask Elmer and Bishop Eli the questions was I watched some programs on Trinity Broadcasting Network last Saturday and it seemed that each broadcaster had a different view over the reading of the Bible.  So I asked Elmer, who thought we ought to bring Bishop Eli  into this.  I don't know if we will get this all in one post or not.  Marilyn

The views that we give on here are ours.  What we believe.  We do not go by televisions, but buy our beliefs and upbringing.  It is not our will to upset someone or change their views.  It is our way. Bishop Eli.

What Bible do you read?  We read the King James Bible and Martin Luther's German Bible.  In our home Elmer and I both have sever different Bibles, too.  I do have an New International Version Bible, which I sometimes use for reference.  The main Bible that I use is the King James Bible.  I have it in with German on one side of the page and English on the other.

How many times a year do you read the Bible?  Bishop Eli and I both can't really answer that.  We don't count.  I would say several times.  I read the Bible daily.  Also, I start at the beginning, but sometimes I got back and forth from the Old Testament to the New Testament especially when I reading something in the Old Testament that relates to the New Testament.  Also, I look up in the Bible for many, many reasons - like problems, if someone is sick, seasons, Religious days, etc. So I do read the Bible, as does Bishop Eli, through each year, but I can't say I read it straight through.  The Bible is not how many times a year you read, but that you learn from it.  It is understanding it.  It is getting to know the Lord more and more each day.

How long should it take someone to read through the Bible?  As long as it takes you to read it.  Do you have to the read the whole Bible in a year?  It would be an honor to the Lord if you could, but no where does it say how long it should take you to read the Bible.  If it takes you six months, a year, three years - it doesn't matter.  What matters is that you read it, understand what it says in the Bible and with each reading should give you better knowledge, love and  understanding of the Lord.  Some people can read faster than others.  Some people have a harder time reading that someone else.  The Lord understands people who have problems reading.  The truth of the Bible is not how fast you read it or how many times you read it, but that you understand and it brings your closer to the Lord.

What do you consider the Bible?  We consider the King James Bible, the word of the Lord.  We take it just as it was written.  We do not believe in the changes that some religious groups believe today.  Like some groups believe that divorce is correct.  We do not.  Some groups do not believe hair covering for ladies is necessary, we do.  I could go on and on how people and church groups have changed what is written in the Bible, in their views.  We do not.  As it is written in the Bible is what we believe and live.

What if you don't understand some things in the Bible?  Bishop Eli:  There are many things in the Bible, I don't understand believe it or not.  People think the Bishop knows that Bible backwards, forward and upside down.  But the truth is, the Bible to me, is like to everyone else.  Every time I read something it the Bible - maybe I have read it hundreds of times - in that reading it may come to light to me in a thought or view I never thought before.  If you come to something you don't understand.  Stop.  Pray over it.  If the Lord does not give you the wisdom.  Go on.  Maybe it is not the time for your to understand that.  He will give you the wisdom, when He feels you need it.  Now, I know a lot of religious people will argue with me.  But, I have learned over the years before I was Bishop and now that I am Bishop, when it is necessary, the Lord will give me the understanding.  Sometimes I will have an understanding one way of a passage and all of a sudden reading it years later, He gives me another understanding of the same passage.  Maybe I grew in my understanding or my wisdom or my life and He wants me to see this passage in a different way.

Do you know in memory all the passages, chapters, and verses?  Some I know, but not all of them.  I use what wisdom I have, when necessary.  I do not use it to show off to others.  Sometimes, in church, or in someone's home, when it is necessary.  If you don't have that knowledge, don't worry about it.  If you know the verse, that is important.

Do your views ever change like on Birth of Jesus or the Crucifixtion  ever change to you?  No, they do not change, but some passages or views may change.  For example, I believe the Birth of Jesus as it is written in the King James Version of the Bible, but I have had different views on different passages or views.  What I believed as a child when my parents read the Birth of Jesus to me are a better knowledge and wisdom now.  As I got a better knowledge of the Bible, the Lord gave me a better understanding.

I think sometimes we make reading of the Bible so hard on ourselves, myself included.  Before I read the Bible, I saw a prayer asking the Lord to give me the wisdom and understanding He wants for me that day.  Elmer, Anna, and my wife Emma also pray before reading the Bible.  When should you read the Bible?  When it is best for you.  It does not matter if it is in the morning, noon or evening.  It should be a time when you can sit and read it.  In our home, I try to read in the morning when I rise.  I feel, I am awake and ready for the word.  Emma and I also have Bible reading and prayer in the evening.  Also during the day, I try to get a chance to read the Bible.  Sometimes it is just a passage.  Sometimes a chapter.  Sometimes I just let the Bible fall open and that is what I read.  None of us, that I know have full knowledge of the Bible.  So if you don't understand something, don't worry about it.  The Lord will give you wisdom in your time.  I know I am repeating myself.  But the Bible is meant to be a joy, knowledge, understand of the Lord.  It should not be like a school book that you have to read.  You should want to read the Bible.  It is a book that you can turn to at any hour of the day or night.  It is the knowledge and teaching of the Lord.  You should want to read it every day to know the Lord better.

Trust God's Wisdom,
Elmer
Bishop Eli
Marilyn