Below are answers to some of the commonly asked questions about this series of books.
Do you hate the Bible or something?
Not at all! The Bible has been transformational for my life and has led me to a deeper revelation of our God. I even took a year out of a well-paid job to go to Bible college.
However, my incorrect view of God and my misperceptions of what a Christian life looked like led me to misunderstand many passages. It has taken me years to undo those misunderstandings. This series is an attempt to help others to learn from my mistakes.
How did you go about writing the series?
I took much of my misunderstandings and wrote them out. I then read each passage with fresh eyes. I prayerfully meditated on the meaning of each passage, while making use of at least three commentaries. I then used my God-given imagination to discover any new misunderstandings and false beliefs.
These writings were then split between the synoptic gospels per theme. For example, the Ungospel of Matthew explores the unbiblical concept of Jesus as the worldly Messiah.
For some passages, I discovered more than three common misunderstandings, so these will be discussed in the Not the Bible blogs and/or our social media accounts. They could be given to subscribers as extras in the future.
Why did you not write a non-fiction book to point out the errors?
We are wired for stories. Hollywood knows this truth as well as other media outlets. Therefore, Hollywood can influence popular opinion far more effectively than political lobbying.
Jesus knew this too, and that’s one of the reasons he spoke using stories (parables). Stories invite us into the dialogue, they beckon our participation. They reach places in our hearts and minds that dry facts cannot.
How can I use it in small groups?
I have made use of parables that are familiar to everyone, such as the Prodigal Son, to great effect in all-age services or during a 10 minute children’s slot in a service.
I begin by telling the children that I’m going to read a passage but I get easily confused and thus, I sometimes say the wrong thing. I then ask them to help me out by pointing out when I make a mistake.
As I read the passage, they raise their hands or shout out when I’ve made a mistake. I respond, “Have I? Are you sure? What should it be?” They then correct me. Children love when they have free license to educate an adult.
It ends up being a lot of fun and hopefully the children and any adults present learn a lot as well.
Have you written a commentary or something that points to the truth about the passages you highlight?
Many people have asked for that. Whilst it would undoubtedly make a great product to sell, it would be at the expense of you taking time to go back to Scripture and spend some time with God to seek out these truths for yourself. This is precious and I don’t want you to miss out on this.
However, since I know that I might receive countless emails about it, I’ll be posting a commentary on a passage from the Not the Bible blog each week.
But here’s the deal – if I do that, solely because I want you to receive as much benefit as possible – I’d like you, the reader, to choose a passage that God has spoken to you through a “Not the Bible” blog or book. Tell me what you learned and I’ll post it on my blog. You can get in touch via my contact page.
Do you still have an unanswered question?
Get in touch with me via my contact page and I’ll do my best to answer it.