Taking bibles to church?

I think the question in the OP should be,

Why wouldn't you bring your Bible to church? (other than the obvious reason that you already have one there)

 

Taking your Bible to Church

Well, Most Southern Baptist that I know carry their Bible to Church, as do I. I can make notes during the sermon if I wish.

 

I would just point out that the Bereans certainly compared his words to scripture as Paul was teaching, and then they continued studying scripture and comparing it with what Paul taught later. This is cited as being "noble" in the Bible, so it's certainly a good thing to do, I'd say.

 

Your a nerd who reads the NLT (the nerdy liberal translation)

 

I do the same thing. When I was teaching Sunday School I found my PPC to be very useful because I too had multiple versions of the Bible, commentaries, Strong's Concordance, maps, etc.

 

Love you guys tooo!!!

I guess I was asking for it! huh?

The NLT....

Now the real "nerdy" bible is the one that was floating around on the net a couple yrs ago for trekkies... remember the Klingon version!

And yep, I downloaded it!

Boy, oh boy!

 

I don't think anyone is suprised.

 

:laugh: :wavey:

BTW, where has Johnv gone? .. he used to be a trekkie too?

Just FOR THE RECORD!:

I would not carry that version... I don't know where it is now either...

I will stick to my trusty.... KJV1873, NIV, NLT, NASB 4 barrelled Bible.

(Which is the one in my classroom!)

 

Wow, what high tech stuff you all have. I am still thumbing through the bible like a slow poke.
Funny, I thought you all were just REALLY smart Ok, I still believe that even though some are cheaters

Seriously, there is always a bible onhand since my wife carries one in her tank of a purse. We share it sometimes, especially if there isn't one in the pew for whatever reason.
With bibles in the pew, I usually grab those. They work fine, and are KJV 1611.

 

For what it's worth, taking your Bible to church is a rather recent practice with Christianity. For most of Christian history (up until about the mid-1800s) it was completely impractical to take your Bible with you.

For the first 1500 years no Bibles existed in a compact format that were either affordable or portable for a family to take with them to Mass. From then until the mid-1800s the biggest hindrance was the thickness of the paper used for Bibles. Each family would have had a Bible but it would have remained in the home. Pulpit Bibles from that time are great reminders of how heavy each copy of the Scriptures would have been. It was completely unreasonable to think a family or person would take their Bible to church with them.

Since then we have had a luxury that the vast majority of Christians have never had. We can take our personal copy of God's Word to church and write in it and read it alongside the preacher. We have copies of the Scriptures that are highly portable and very cheap. Remember that in today's money a copy of the Scriptures in the fourth century (when the canonization process ended) would have been equal to about $150,000 if not more. You had to pay a copyist monk to do do it and it took the better part of a year to get a copy of the NT.

We have a God blessed luxury, imho we should take advantage of it. That said we shouldn't make having our Bibles a prerequisite for church. It doesn't matter if you take it and use on Sunday, but shelve it until the next Sunday. What matters is how you use it and grow in its contents throughout the week.

The sad thing is that most preachers who claim to be expositors actually aren't, they use a pseudo-expository style. "This is my Bible, and I will never refer to it again..." isn't an awfully good philosophy (we'd all agree) but saying you are an expositor but never really get to exposition isn't awfully credible either.

just some history

 

I've been using a tablet pc lately so I can write on the screen and over the text I cut and paste into a Word doc...but I'm a techno-geek

 

just for what it's worth, this kind of thought process saddens me. I know some terrifically faithful Catholic brothers and sisters in Christ. They have a vibrant faith and study the Bible often. They are terrific examples of humble Christianity to me and other Protestants we know.

Don't forget that the majority of Christians, in the history of the Church, have been born and died under Roman Catholic or Eastern Orthodox faith. To malign them like this doesn't seem very fair nor biblical.

I know I'll get flamed for this, but it really is where I'm at when conversations turn this way.

Also remember, spiritual maturity doesn't equal Bible knowledge...it is what you do with that knowledge. I know some great, spiritually mature Catholics...just a thought

 

1. Good history lesson. :thumbs:

2. I'm still reading (can't say, Listening)...

3. This is sound reasoning.

4. True expositors, you will know them by their fruits. :thumbs:

 

The post was not meant to malign the Catholics. This is something I heard and was asking a question.

I do agree with your point that without a doubt Catholics will be in heaven, and no doubt some from our faith will not.

 

maybe my tone did not reflect my intention, it was more of a casual observation. I didn't think you were trying to come down hard on Catholics. Apologies if it sounded that way.

Agreed! Let us celebrate our agreement!

Thanks for the reply post, I appreciate your words!

 

Until the last 40 years or so Catholics were discouraged from reading the Bible. They were to study the catechism of their church primarily. Back in the 16th century people were even forbidden from possessing anything but the Latin version, which nobody could read even if they could read their native language. But in the past 30 years there has been an explosion of Catholics studying God's Word. That came about after Vatican II in the 1960's. They study it through the warped lens of Catholic doctrine and tradition, of course, but they are reading and studying it nonetheless. And that is a Very Good Thing, I believe. Faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of God. God's Word speaks for itself, and it can change any stoney heart in spite of flawed doctrines created by men.

 

The following is transcribed from early Baptist John Smyth's 1608 work The Differences of the Churches of the Seperation:

1 Wee hold that the worship of the new testament properly so called is spirituall proceeding originally from the hart : & that reading out of a booke (though a lawful eclesiastical action)is no part of spirituall worship.

2 Wee hould that seeing prophesiing is a parte of spiritual; worship: therefore in time of prophesiyng it is vnlawful to have the booke as a helpe before the eye

3 wee hould that seeing singinging a psalme is a parte of spirituall worship therefore it is vnlawful to have the booke before the eye in time of singinge a psalme

.....

Chap. 17 Concerning the vse of translations for the hearers.

Hitherto aperteyneth another question: whither the hearers may have their translations or the originals to read or search in time of prophesy.

The answer is Negative that it is not lawful for these reasons.

First: the Prophets & Apoostles wrote bookes, but did never devide their bookes into chapters or verses: Henry Stephen first made the verses of the new Testament : Seing, therfor that chapter & verse were of mans invention, hence it followeth before chapter & verse came in the hearers could not turne to search their bookes in tyme of hearing.

Secondly: the Apostles in quoting testimonyes of the Prophets doe not quote chapter & verse, but only say: it is written: by Zachary,by Jeremy.The Scripture saith: The Holy Ghost saith, &c. Therby teaching vs that there is no vse of Chapter and verse for searching in tyme of hearing : For no doubt they preached as they wrote.

Thirdly: never was ther any mention made of any hearer that ever had his booke to search in tyme of hearing.

Fourthly : Searching quotations hindereth attention:for the mynd & affections are distracted from hearing by seeking the places: seing the mynd & hart should follow the voyce of the speaker , as in prayer , so also in Prophesying.

Lastly manuscripts being few & very deere & large(ther being yet no printing found out; all could not have or bring their bookes , but there is only one kind of true & profitable hearing, eyther all to have bookes and search , or none to have them.

Seing therfor bringing bookes & searching them in tyme of hearing was not from the beginning : Therfor that also is a part of the mystery of iniquity in hearing the word.

 

Most pastors know that many more take their Bible to church than those who have a heart for God.

 

We go to church to learn the word of God(Sunday school preaching), why would we not want the word of God to read from, we go to church to worship that same God, why would we not want to take His written word with us.