Question 1

Can you give me tips on how to read the Bible?

Accepted Answer

Absolutly. Below are resources and outlines that will help you when studying scripture.

Choose a time and place to study! Before studying Gods word you have to begin with consistency. Start by creating a healthy rythym that you know you will stick to, even if it gets hard! This may be 30 minutes for thing when you wake up in the morning. Maybe it is 15 minutes during lunch at school or work, or maybe its the last 30 minutes before you go to bed that night. Regardless of the rythym you have to choose one! This will be vital as you apply the steps below when studying Gods word.

Always understand context! Context is the key to grasping Gods word. Knowing who the author was writing to, why where they writing, what was the author experiencing as they wrote, etc. All help us apply the word in our lives correctly. Below are links to videos you can watch to better understand context to scripture.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R-rDUoKmceg
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lU1L_5C8mw4
Choose a translation you understand! When it comes to scripture there are many different translations to choose from, some are trustowrthy, and some... well, not so much. Choose a translation that majoirty of Christinas and scholars widely accepts as an accurate and easy translation of scripture. Common good choices include: ESV, NIV, CSB, NKJV, HCSB, NLT.
Each of these translation maintain the validitiy of scripture while making it easier to digest as you read.

Choose a book of the Bible, stick with it, and ask questions! When studying Gods word, one of the worst things you can do is open it up randomly, jump from book to book, or begin studying a book that you may struggle to comprehend. If you are new to reading Gods word, or ar epicking it back up after some time away, always start with a book that communicates clear and simple truth, while setting the stage for the future books you may plan to read. Some of these begginer books include: Any of The Gospel's, Matthew Mark, Luke, and John (Although specifically John is considered the best "begginer book".) ; James, Proverbs, Ephesians, or the Psalms.
These are all good choices when begging your jounrey through Gods word. When you choose one, stick with it to the end, and never be afraid to ask questions! If you want to know some of the best tools you can use to ask questions refer to number "4".

Use tools to help you study! When diving deep and breaking down Gods word, never be afraid to ask questions! God is not afraid of your questions, but it does matter which tools you use! Using Google, AI (Such as Chat GPT), or other certain "non-verified" tools, may lead to bias or innacurate responses. However, there are many tools you CAN use that are helpful in answering questions. Many of the tools that are trusted include: Bibleref.com / Blueletterbible.org / Bible.com / logos.com / livingwaters.com. Just to name a few
In addition to online resources their on many trusted voices you can learn from when studying scripture. Youtube is a great place when used correctly for studying Gods word. Those trusted voices include: Wes Huff / Frank Turek / Sean McDowel / Pastor Anthony Mitchell 2819 / Pastor Josh Howerton Lakepoint Church / RuslanKD / The Beat with Allen Par / Pastor JP at Harris Creek, and so many more!
As you seek out these individuals, and maybe find other individuals you enjoy watching, always compare their word to THE WORD!

Use study methods that help! When studying Gods word, having organization always helps create clairty. MAny people use many methods when studying Gods word. You can look up and find many opinions and methods if you search through the internet. One of the most trusted method is often referred to as the "SOAP" method. However, I call this the "PSOAP" method. This stand for, "Pray", "Scripture", "Observation", "Application", "Pray". Below is a full breakdown.
Pray - Ask God to reveal to you the word He is speaking, ask Him to give you wisdom and show you how to apply it before you begin to study.
Scripture - Choose a scripture or passage to read, if you have been in a particular scripture or passage than continue from that place and stick to it!
Observation - Pull the context out of the passage, extrapolate and understand the author, who they are writing to, and how this verse applies to the audience.
Application - Now apply what you learned for yourself. Ask yourself how this can transform you, ask yourself where God was in the passage and how it can make an impact in your olife.
Pray again - Finish your study with once again praying and asking God to solidify all that you learned, ask Him to make it go from head knowledge to heart knowledge and begin a work in you!

As you begin understand and spending time in Gods word, you are proactivly chasing a relationship with Him. Our prayer is that these 6 simple steps catupult your journey of Faith through better understanding His word.

Question 2

How do we know our Current Bible has all the correct books? Why were some books included and other not?

Accepted Answer

This is one of the most important and most common questions people ask when it comes to Christianity and the Bible:

“How do we know what is currently in Scripture is accurate? What about books not included, or books that were deleted?”

Below are explanations, historical evidence, and trusted resources that can help answer those questions and strengthen your confidence in Scripture.

Understand What the Bible Actually Is
The Bible is not one single book written by one person at one point in history. The Bible is a collection of 66 books written across roughly 1,500 years by over 40 different authors on 3 different continents, all telling one unified story centered around God’s plan of redemption through Jesus Christ.
What makes Scripture so incredible is that, despite being written across centuries by kings, prophets, fishermen, doctors, shepherds, and more, its message remains unified and consistent.
The Bible was not randomly thrown together. The books included in Scripture were recognized because they consistently aligned with:
God’s revealed truth
Apostolic authority
Historical reliability
Eyewitness testimony
Consistency with the rest of Scripture
The Bible Was Not “Changed Hundreds of Times”
One of the biggest misconceptions is that the Bible has been endlessly rewritten or heavily altered over time. In reality, the Bible is the most documented and preserved ancient text in human history. For comparison:
Most ancient works only have a handful of surviving copies. The New Testament alone has over 5,000 Greek manuscripts and over 20,000 total manuscript copies in various languages.
Some of these manuscripts date extremely close to the original writings. Because we have so many copies from different regions and time periods, scholars can compare them against one another to identify copying mistakes and confirm accuracy. This actually strengthens confidence in Scripture rather than weakens it.
What About “Deleted” or “Removed” Books?
This is another major misunderstanding. Most books people claim were “removed” from the Bible were never actually considered Scripture by the majority of early believers in the first place. Books such as:
…were written much later than the biblical books and often contradicted the teachings of Jesus, the apostles, or the Old Testament.
Gospel of Thomas
Gospel of Judas
Gospel of Mary
Book of Enoch
The early church did not randomly reject these books. They examined them carefully and asked important questions such as:
Was this connected to an apostle or eyewitness?
Does this align with the teachings already recognized as Scripture?
Was this consistently accepted by early believers?
Does this contradict previously revealed truth?
Many of these extra books failed those tests. That does not mean they have zero historical value, but it does mean they were not recognized as inspired Scripture.
The Canon Was Recognized, Not Invented
The word “canon” refers to the recognized collection of inspired books that make up Scripture. A common misconception is that a group of people centuries later sat in a room and “created” the Bible. That is not what happened. The early church did not invent Scripture, they recognized which writings were already consistently being treated as authoritative and inspired across the Christian world. By the late 300s AD, the official canon lists simply confirmed what believers had already been widely using and recognizing for generations.
Jesus Trusted the Scriptures
If Jesus treated Scripture as trustworthy, then His followers should too.
One of the strongest reasons Christians trust Scripture is because Jesus Himself trusted Scripture. Throughout the Gospels:
Jesus quoted the Old Testament constantly.
Jesus referred to Scripture as authoritative truth.
Jesus fulfilled Old Testament prophecy.
Jesus taught that God’s Word was trustworthy and eternal.

Important Truth About Variations in Manuscripts
This level of honesty and documentation is actually rare among ancient 	historical documents.
Yes, there are small differences between some manuscript copies. However, the overwhelming majority are:
spelling differences
grammar differences
word order differences
None of the major doctrines of Christianity are threatened by manuscript variations. In fact, because scholars openly compare manuscripts, we can see transparently where minor variations exist.

Trusted Resources to Learn More

Videos
“How We Got the Bible” — Sean McDowell
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZondJF2HXN8

“Can We Trust the Bible?” — Wes Huff
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Xil20H9yPE

“Who Chose the Books of the Bible?” — Mike Winger
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ak06MSETeo4

“Were Books Removed From the Bible?” — Frank Turek
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4M9x7g8R8r8

Helpful Websites

Bible Manuscript Evidence
https://biblearchaeologyreport.com

Bible Questions and Research
https://www.gotquestions.org

Historical and Context Study Tools
https://www.bibleref.com

Greek and Hebrew Study Tools
https://www.blueletterbible.org

Final Thought
At the end of the day, Christianity is not built on blind faith. God has given us historical evidence, manuscript evidence, fulfilled prophecy, eyewitness testimony, archaeology, and the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ as reasons to trust Him and His Word. The more people honestly study Scripture, its history, and its reliability, the more they often discover that the Bible is not weak under investigation, it becomes stronger under it.

Question 3

If the Bible has been translated so many times, and written by sinners, how can we know its true?

Accepted Answer

This is another incredibly important question, and honestly, one that many Christians and non-Christians alike wrestle with:

Below are explanations, evidence, and resources that can help answer that question and build confidence in God’s Word.

The Bible Was Written Through Humans, But Inspired by God
One of the most important things to understand is that Christians do not believe the Bible was merely written by random people giving their opinions. Christians believe Scripture was written by human authors who were guided and inspired by God Himself.

The Bible says:
“All Scripture is God-breathed…” — 2 Timothy 3:16
God used real people with real personalities, writing styles, experiences, and backgrounds, but He guided the message they wrote.
Think of it this way:
Moses wrote differently than David.
Paul wrote differently than Luke.
John wrote differently than Peter.

Yet all of them point toward the same unified message about God, sin, redemption, and Jesus. The fact that the Bible maintains one consistent story across 1,500 years, over 40 authors, and multiple continents is one of the reasons many people believe it is divinely inspired.

“Translated Many Times” Does NOT Mean “Changed Many Times”
A common misunderstanding is that modern Bibles are translations of translations of translations, like a giant game of telephone. That is not how Bible translation works.

Modern Bible translations are translated directly from the earliest Hebrew, Greek, and Aramaic manuscripts available.
For example:
Old Testament → translated from Hebrew and some Aramaic
New Testament → translated from Greek manuscripts
So when scholars create modern translations like the ESV, NIV, CSB, or NKJV, they are not translating from another English Bible. They are going back to the original language manuscripts.

This is why studying ancient manuscripts matters so much.

We Have an Enormous Amount of Manuscript Evidence
The Bible is the most well-preserved ancient document in history.

For comparison:
Most ancient writings only have a few surviving copies.
The New Testament alone has thousands of manuscript copies.
Because we have so many manuscripts from different regions and time periods, scholars can compare them against one another to confirm accuracy and identify small copying errors.This actually strengthens confidence in Scripture.

If somebody tried changing the Bible significantly, it would immediately stand out because we have so many manuscript copies to compare.

What About the Fact That Humans Are Sinful?
Yes, every human author of Scripture was a sinner. That’s actually one of the major themes of the Bible itself.

The Bible never tries to paint humanity as perfect. In fact, many biblical authors openly exposed their own failures:
Moses disobeyed God.
David committed adultery and murder.
Peter denied Jesus.
Paul persecuted Christians before following Christ.
Yet despite human weakness, Christians believe God is powerful enough to communicate truth through imperfect people.

Throughout Scripture, God consistently uses broken people to accomplish His perfect purposes.

The Bible Is Historically Reliable
Another reason many people trust Scripture is because the Bible consistently aligns with:
historical locations
real governments
known rulers
archaeology
cultural details
Archaeology has repeatedly confirmed places, people, customs, and events mentioned in Scripture.

The Bible is not written like mythology or fantasy. It is deeply rooted in real history.

Jesus Is the Center of Christianity
Ultimately, Christianity is not based only on believing a book exists.

Christianity is centered on the person of Jesus Christ:
His life
His teachings
His death
His resurrection
And Jesus consistently treated Scripture as truthful and authoritative.
If Jesus truly rose from the dead, then His view of Scripture matters more than anyone else’s.

Why Christians Believe the Bible Shows Us How to Live
Christians believe the Bible is not simply a rulebook.
The Bible reveals:
who God is
why humanity is broken
what sin is
why we need salvation
how God loves us
how we are meant to live
The teachings of Scripture are meant to lead people toward truth, freedom, transformation, love, wisdom, and relationship with God.

When lived correctly, biblical principles produce:
forgiveness
humility
integrity
self-control
love for others
purpose
hope
The Bible does not merely give information, it transforms lives.

Trusted Resources to Learn More

Videos:
“Can We Trust the Bible?” — Wes Huff
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Xil20H9yPE

“How Accurate Is the Bible?” — Sean McDowell
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DB18or8bJ10

“Why Trust the Bible?” — Frank Turek
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nJSlmoXpzxk

Helpful Study Resources:
Bible Questions and Answers
https://www.gotquestions.org

Bible Context and Study Tools
https://www.bibleref.com

Original Language Study Tools
https://www.blueletterbible.org

Bible Reading App and Plans
https://www.bible.com

Final Thought
Christianity invites people to examine the evidence, wrestle with difficult questions, and seek truth honestly. The more many people study Scripture, its history, its consistency, fulfilled prophecy, manuscript evidence, and the person of Jesus, the more they often discover that the Bible is not weakened by investigation, it is strengthened by it. And beyond simply being historically reliable, Christians believe God’s Word has the power to transform lives because it points us directly to Jesus Christ.

Faith Under fire

Students Asked These Questions

Can you give me tips on how to read the Bible?

How do we know our Current Bible has all the correct books? Why were some books included and other not?

If the Bible has been translated so many times, and written by sinners, how can we know its true?