Don't Twist the Bible

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Don't forget that the Lord is patient because he wants people to be saved. This is also what our dear friend Paul said when he wrote you with the wisdom God had given him. Paul talks about these same things in all his letters, but part of what he says is hard to understand. Some ignorant and unsteady people even destroy themselves by twisting what he said. They do the same thing with other Scriptures too. My dear friends, you have been warned ahead of time! So don't let the errors of evil people lead you down the wrong path and make you lose your balance. Let the gift of undeserved grace and the understanding that come from our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ help you keep on growing. Praise Jesus now and forever! Amen.

2 Peter 3:15-18 - CEV

What do you do with verses in the Bible that are hard to understand? Do you pray for understanding or “twist” them to fit your own personal prejudices about what they “should” mean? Even the Apostle Peter admitted that some of what Paul said in his writings was “hard to understand.” If Peter, who walked with Jesus for three years found it hard to understand some of what Paul wrote, do you think it will be easy for you?

Often, we seek to find someone who believes they do understand that part of the Bible and ask them “what we should believe” about it.

Many years ago a large part of what I “believed” about what the Bible was actually saying, was based on what other people told me! Many parts of my understanding came from someone who told me something like: “I know the Bible says this or that, but what it really means is:”

If you want to understand any book, the best way is to ask the author of the book. If you want to know what the Bible means the only reliable source is to ask the Holy Spirit! It was the Holy Spirit who guided the hands and minds of men to write the Scriptures. And the Holy Spirit, who lives in you as a follower of Jesus, can reveal to you what the Bible is saying, even the “difficult parts.”

So don’t “twist” the Scriptures to make them align with something you heard, even from a respectable man or woman of faith. Let your understanding be adjusted by the Holy Spirit Himself until your understanding agrees with what the Bible itself says.

“Lord Jesus, let my understanding of the Scriptures come from the Holy Spirit and not from the opinions of men. Praise Your Holy and Righteous Name now and forever, Amen.”