Holy Bible question

It's a book of true promises from God to us. God wants us to read it

I don't read it as it was a book like a novel or an essay or something like that. :)

Yep I did. It was part of the top 100 list that I made myself read a few years ago-it was part of it, so I read it.

I read it a few times for different reasons. It has reeeeaaaaaallllyyy slow and pointless parts. But it does have so fun stories in there. Those were some screwed times.

I read the Bible over and over again. I read it as if it was any other book, I start in Genesis and read right through Revelation, then usually the next day I start over again. I change translations every few times, my favorite is still the King James Version. I started reading it this way a few years ago and find I just like it better this way. Usually I end up reading it about six times a year. Just started over today!! :-}

Sophie wrote: "I have recently commented on a discussion about the characters of the Bible we admired, and a question came up to my mind: are there any people who read the Bible as if it was any other book-like a..."
Not for mee do I read it like any other book.Other books are foe entertaining and fun, when I read the bible I want to get closer to God and learn to be better then I am.It's also my safe place to run and learn.

I read it for the reason I read, play, watch or listen to anything: to learn and/or experience someone else's ideas.

Also, I never got how anyone could argue either for or against something they haven't actually read. it'd funny: now that I have read it, I don't think I will do either. Make no mistake: I'm not Agnostic, Atheist, religious or Deist. I sit in a position where I disagree with these gods' teachings, regardless of their state of existence. However, every religious text does have some very valid ideas, all of which we can gather together into one rule: don't be an ass.

I have a few rules I have developed in my life-long study of religion:
1. I don't think that anyone should neither completely devote themselves to a single text or set of texts, but that doesn't necessarily mean we shouldn't read them and learn a thing or two; or even gain a new view of certain things.

2. Whether the characters in certain texts existed or not should never be a factor when it comes to their teachings. Never. That sort of judgment, deciding whether you agree with them, should be completely based off of the words themselves, not on whether or not the person existed.
-This also comes with the connotation that just because someone existed doesn't mean you should follow their teachings. Again, that should lie solely in whether or not you agree with the words, not the person's state of existence.
This is why it doesn't matter if I believed in God. Because whether he exists or not, I still don't agree with the things he did. This is also why, no matter what anyone says, no matter what quote in the Bible, God and Jesus are still two distinct characters/beings, and is why I do appreciate many of Jesus' teachings, despite my loath for the God aspect.

3. Just because I don't agree with you, doesn't mean I think you're wrong.

These three things tend to be very hard for people to understand when trying to argue something towards me. They tend to think that, even if they could legitimately show me that God exists, that I will change the way I think; and they also tend to think that I think they are wrong. These are incorrect.

I'm not necessarily looking for an argument, but it seems to always come up, so keep those things in mind before launching into a soul-saving tirade, because I actually like other people having religion, in an odd way. That's another people tend to oversee: I'm not trying to tear their religion away, I don't mind what they believe.

One thing that bothers me is Atheists' tendency (not all of course, but many) to misunderstand people who state a religion. A lot of the time, when people say something such as, "I'm Christian," they don't always mean what some Atheists think immediately. They immediately think of all the terrible parts in the Bible, and assume that the Christian in question has appropriately labeled themselves. When, actually, a lot of the time the person either doesn't know the full connotations they have given themselves with the Christian label, and other times they have their own interpretation (because, lets face it, all art is always up to interpretation). So I read the Bible, so that I can actually talk to them about their religion, rather than sparking an empty argument.

And, finally, the most important thing of all: to understand the people around me. It's the same reason I read other religious texts and learn about other languages, cultures and histories. I think it is extremely important to understand at least a little bit about all of the different peoples that color the mosaic that is our global society.
And I might be crossing a line here: I think everyone could do to learn about as many religions in as much depth as possible. The same goes for language. No one seems to understand how dangerous it can be to misunderstand someone. There is always confusion, hurt feelings, and on larger scales there is war.
And besides, we live in such a fascinating world and know little about it, let alone the people who populate it.

I think a lot of problems would be solved if everyone gave the effort to learn about other people's belief systems.

I read the Bible and each time i feel God gives me a new message to meditate and understand the truth of his words he has left behind to believe n have faith in him alone.

I'm reading it because I want to be able to say that I have read the whole thing. And I am reading it like a novel, sort of. I'm trying to be more critical about it, like how everyone should approach any kind of work.

Bueno, yo empecé a leer la Biblia porque en tiempos de Franco prácticamente estaba- si no prohibida- mal vista. Lo que interesaba a la Iglesia Católica era más bien el catecismo, pero no os torturaré con esa cosa. De todas formas, para ser el libro que debe dirigir nuestras vidas, pues yo, como Abraham, debería vender a mi esposa a mi jefe, como él hizo: la esposa de Abraham era muy hermosa y para que el faraon no lo matase para acostarse con ella, Yave aconseja a Abraham que la haga pasar por su hermana. ¡Buena jugada vive Dios! (Nunca mejor dicho). Abundan las órdenes tales como :"Matarás a todos, hombres, mujeres y niños y arrasarás todo. A Josue esto se le daba muy bien. Asimismo, el rey David, enamorado de la esposa de su primer general, ordena que este se coloque en un combate en primera linea para que lo maten, como así ocurre, y así poder divertirse un rato. Tenemos luego el Nuevo Testamento. Jesus desdeña a su madre en las bodas de Caná por el asunto del vino. Aconseja que si uno ha pecado mucho, se ahorque, y tiene una extraña manía a los higos, porque los maldice.
Y sí, salvadas esas y otras incongruencias, es amena la Biblia, y literariamente buena e incluso a veces históricamente fiable dentro de lo que se alcanza de tiempos tan remotos. Pero vamos que no sé.

It is God's word to us...it gives us wisdom and direction in our lives. It is not like any other book ever written. It is from God to us. We should memorize it as much as possible and strive to live by it's precepts. It can never be replaced and will stand for eternity...God's Word will never pass away.