Hankster said:
I know. The Church I go to seems to be very understanding in that aspect. I just get a little shy and embarrassed about being a grown man and not being up to speed with this. I'm not completely in the dark but I also can't hold my own in a battle of Bible wits. I'm getting there though.
Honey, I know people who have been Christians and/or gone to church for 40 years who couldn't tell you the name of Jesus's mother. OK, that's a slight exaggeration, but
ONLY a slight exaggeration.
I am very proud of you for wanting to learn, and for wanting to live the right kind of life. :love :love :love
I recommend the following books (you might find some at the liberry if you don't wanna buy them all):
- Mere Christianity by C. S. Lewis (or anything else by C. S. Lewis)
- The Calvary Road by Roy Hession
- A Quick Overview of the Bible: Understanding How All the Pieces Fit by Douglas Jacoby (I have not read this one, but it looks legit, and has good reviews on amazon)
- Evidence that Demands a Verdict - Josh McDowell (or anything else by Josh McDowell)
I would also HIGHLY recommend getting a Bible that you understand and enjoy reading, if you don't already have one. Money well spent, my friend. My current Bible is the New Living Translation (NLT), which reads in modern language, but not edgy. I also like The Amplified Bible (that might be my next Bible in several years), and I've used The New American Standard Bible (NASB) and The New International Version (NIV) in the past, as well as the standby King James Version (KJV). Which is beautifully poetic, but written in Shakespearean English, so it's kinda hard to dig out the meaning of things sometimes. I've heard people like the New King James Version (NKJV), but I personally like the NLT better.
ALSO - I highly recommend getting a Life Application Study Bible. It has all manner of studies you can do, and commentary that goes along with each book telling the background, etc. They also have specialty ones, like for teens, the military, etc. I got one for a friend that was a Life Application Bible for Addicts, where the studies, etc., were geared to be companions of the principles of AA/NA.
If you want to read the Bible itself, I'd start with John in the New Testament and Psalms/Proverbs in the Old Testament. John is the veriest loving and humble writer, and outlines the life of Christ beautifully. The Psalms are WONDERFUL in showing God's love and how other people have gone through things like we do. Proverbs is just plain awesome common sense and wonderful insight.
ONE LAST THING - Jesus said in order to come to Him, we must be like little children. I've heard it said that if anything is taught about Christianity that can't be understood by a five-year-old, then it's too complicated. That is not to say that deep and complex studies are wrong, but the bottom line/the basic principles of Christianity are simple. Simple enough for a little child to understand. So I figure that means anybody on any level can learn.
