To those who regard the Bible as a sacred work, worthy of reverence and lifelong study, there is much that is admirable in such devotion. Its endurance across centuries, its moral influence, and its capacity to uplift the earnest reader cannot be denied. Indeed, external confirmations through archaeology and historical research such as the discovery of the Dead Sea Scrolls, the Tel Dan Stele, and the Cyrus Cylinder have lent credibility to many of its narratives. These validations, while not theological in themselves, do affirm the Bible’s remarkable preservation and historical grounding.
But even more important than confirming the events described in the Bible is to engage seriously with the claims often made about the Bible. Chief among these is the widely held assertion that the Bible is the Word of God.
This, however, is a deeper question, one that cannot be resolved by appealing to archaeology, ancient manuscripts, or consistency of tradition. The real issue is not whether the Bible has been preserved, but how its contents have been understood, transmitted, and interpreted through the ages.
A perfectly preserved text is not automatically a perfectly understood one. Human limitations, of memory, bias, translation, dogma, and time inevitably color how messages are passed along. Many of the words attributed to Christ, for example, were written decades after His physical departure from the earth, by those who had heard them secondhand or committed them to memory. In such cases, the human filter cannot be discounted. Even those with the best intentions may fail to convey the spirit of a message, despite repeating its words. Thus, while the Bible contains invaluable spiritual truths, we must resist the temptation to declare every passage as it stands today as the direct expression of the Divine Will.
To do so is not humility, it is presumption.
There is also an important distinction that must be acknowledged: the spiritual is not the same as the Divine. Man, as spirit, is part of Creation. He is subject to the unchanging Laws that govern the spiritual and material realms. The Creator, however, stands above and beyond Creation. That which comes from the Divine is pure, living, and untouched by the filters of human intellect. While man may receive illumination, he remains a vessel, not the source.
To describe any human-written text, however inspired, as of equal essence with the Divine Word is a leap no creature is qualified to make. This is not conviction born of understanding. It is assumption, however sincere.
Yet none of this diminishes the Bible’s worth. On the contrary, when we free ourselves from rigid dogma and begin to read with awakened spirits, examining, reflecting, and earnestly seeking, we begin to perceive the deeper truths it points toward. We are no longer content with surface words or inherited explanations. We begin to live the truths we grasp, rather than merely reciting them.
The highest spiritual realities cannot be locked in books, no matter how sacred. They are not formulae or footnotes. They are life itself. They are clarity, movement, conviction, and light. And above all, they are accessible only to those who seek inwardly and freely, rather than relying on external validation or inherited faith.
Let the Bible remain a guide, a lantern on the path, but not the destination. Let it inspire, but never confine. Let us honour it not with blind allegiance, but with open hearts and living actions.
For those who truly seek Truth, it is not the book alone that leads them there, but the awakening of the spirit within.
And in that seeking, honest, humble, and free, may each one find what they were created to discover.
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