The Bible is arguably the best selling, most read, most influential book in history. It has inspired countless acts of compassion and been used to justify many wars. Some see the Bible as absolute truth and others as myths and lies. Many who agree with the teachings they see in the Bible are strenuously opposed to others who also agree with the Bible but see its teachings differently. People can interpret the Bible as they choose by focusing on various passages as their starting point. Some people keep coming back to justification by faith as the central concept for interpreting the Bible: “A man is justified by faith apart from the deeds of the law” (Romans 3:28). Others might focus on John 3:16: “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” Still others point to the very first verse of the Bible: “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth” (Genesis 1:1). Those are all key passages in the Bible that guide our thinking, but even more central for us are the passages on which Jesus Himself says the whole Bible hangs:
A lawyer asked Jesus a question, testing Him, and saying, “Teacher, which is the great commandment in the law?” Jesus said to him, “‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, with all your soul, and with all your mind.’ This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like it: ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ On these two commandments hang all the Law and the Prophets” (Matthew 22:36-40).
On this website you will find a number of articles about what the Bible says. All of them are based on the premise that the Bible explains itself better than any tradition or dogma, and that everything in the Bible hangs on loving the Lord and loving our neighbor.