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Fish Tales (From the Belly of the Whale) - Excerpt 3

The Bible has inspired many of the finest contributions to human culture, and some of the most damaging

Turning Light into Darkness (Cont’d)

Into the Belly of the Whale

Slaves obey your masters; judge not or else you’ll be judged; wives submit to your husbands; an eye for an eye and a tooth for a tooth—all familiar concepts that have their origin in Scripture. Yet every one of them, when reinterpreted apart from their proper context, is used to justify behavior that’s clearly opposed by the true spirit of Scripture, from cover to cover.

The maddening result: Although The Bible has inspired many of the finest contributions to human culture, like the universal brotherhood of mankind, the existence of the human soul, and the equality of every individual on this planet, it’s also inspired some of the most damaging, such as slavery, genocide, and warfare.

How and why can such contradictory energies be fueled by the same source of inspiration? And more importantly, how is this paradoxical nature of Scripture exploited by the enemies of truth who seek to confound our understanding of it at every turn?

(…you’re reading Part 5 of a 41-part series. If you like what you’re reading and want to continue, please SCROLL DOWN. To read this series from the beginning, go to Part 1. Or to read the first half of this chapter, Click Here…)
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To hear Kent and Zen Garcia talk about correcting biblical misconceptions, from September 9th, 2021, CLICK BELOW.
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These questions are precisely what this book, Fish Tales (From the Belly of the Whale), will seek to answer, so that by better understanding the numerous factors that contribute to this dilemma, we’ll be that much closer to disarming their effect in our lives.

Counting down one misconception after the other, we’ll analyze how these biblical concepts have become so misconstrued over time, revealing the three-step principle involved in this process.

Step One: To create a great misconception, latch onto any idea that forms a legitimate basis of biblical truth. Step Two: Isolate that truth from its context and then discourage any reference to other verses that might contradict it. Step Three: Repeat this new version of the so-called “truth,” in zealous opposition to all that’s contained in the initial version of said truth.

While this process might seem at first too simple to be of any real effectiveness, any doubt as to its power is eliminated upon seeing this three-step principle in action.

For example, if you ask a hundred people, you’ll find that practically everyone believes The Bible says, “Money is the root of all evil.” Here we have a classic case of a great misconception. That’s because, one, it presents us with a solid slice of scripturally-based truth; two, it’s examined entirely in isolation from its original context; and, three, it’s quoted so often and with such conviction that it’s actually entered the lexicon of human ideology.

Such simple steps, yes; but consider how effective these three simple steps are, after all. Consider how often you, too, have been tempted to believe that money is the root of all evil—that is, if you consider yourself a true believer of The Bible.

Of course you’d only be tempted to believe it should you resist the urge to check Scripture for yourself, because then you’d discover the Apostle Paul really said that the “love of” money is the root of all evil, and not as most people assume, that money, in and of itself, is the offending root.

So, if you’ve ever wanted to know why The Bible presents such a contradictory reality, then it’s time to take your own plunge into the belly of the whale. There, you’ll discover that just because the sacred truths of Scripture have often been distorted by those who wish to turn light into darkness, this isn’t the final chapter of the tale. And in the end, you’ll find that when God sets forth His intention in Scripture, He actually means what He says and says what He means, regardless of centuries of disinformation that contribute to the greatest misconceptions ever blamed on The Bible.

So ends this Excerpt from FISH TALES (FROM THE BELLY OF THE WHALE). To read more, please click on one of the following links:

To continue with this series, read the Next Preview to find that many of the biblical truths we’re being sold are a mere shadow of the original facts.

Read the Next Excerpt to learn how The Bible is a source of tremendous wisdom, but in the wrong hands, a source of insidious disinformation.

Read the Previous Preview to find out why we eagerly run toward the light one day and then eagerly flee from it the next.

Read the Previous Excerpt to reveal what we see in the mirror: the face of a fearless seeker of truth, or of one afraid of truth.

To read this series from the beginning, go to the First Excerpt to see if you can tell the difference between a genuine message from The Bible and a counterfeit version.

To hear Kent talk more about his book Fish Tales (From the Belly of the Whale), CLICK HERE.

To get a copy of Fish Tales (From the Belly of the Whale), CLICK HERE.

To hear an audio presentation of this chapter of Fish Tales, CLICK HERE.

To watch a video presentation of this chapter of Fish Tales, CLICK HERE.

 
Selected Bibliography

1. Matthew 4:19; Mark 1:17

2. Hebrews 11:6