Biblical illiteracy has reached epidemic proportions even within
the sanctuary of God's church. In a recent survey, many
Americans were convinced that Joan of Arc was Noah's wife and the
Epistles were the spouses of the Apostles. Most have no clue that the
Bible contains 66 books in 3 languages spanning 1400 years. Ten out
of ten people cannot even find the book of Hezekiah . . . and if you
wonder why, you might just be part of the problem. Our airwaves
are littered with misinformation about the Bible and no small dose of
outright heresy. What's worse, most Christ followers have little ability
to distinguish truth from error because they are only vaguely familiar
with the Word of God.
If the Bible really is the revelation of God, this appalling ignorance
will inevitably have detrimental effects on the Church. How will
Christians discover and implement their spiritual gifts if they are not
grounded in the Word? How will beleaguered spiritual warriors send
the enemy into retreat apart from the Sword of Scripture? How will
shepherds feed their flocks without the meaty doctrines of the Bible?
Our assemblies are bloated with the cotton candy of pop-psychology
that so tickles itching ears.
We have mastered the mass assembly with seeker-sensitive
sermons and clever marketing strategies. Don't get me wrong,
this is fantastic progress for evangelism. And frankly, if one had to
choose between evangelism and edification, one should prioritize
lost sheep over emaciated sheep every time. At the same time,
there is no necessary reason for making such a choice given the
informational and technological advances the Lord has graciously
put at our disposal. That's what this book is all about. We want to
offer you the methods of interpretation through technologically
available information. In other words, this book will give you a
college-level course in How to Interpret the Bible using nothing but
your own Bible and free internet resources.
