Would the world be a better place if the bible as we know it never existed? I know what kind of question is that? That's what I thought as I began to ponder the question myself. As in all situations I sought the guidance of the Holy Spirit. Ironically enough his answer was amazingly "Yes". I thought, "how could that be"? And then I experienced a moment of revelation. One that was simple, yet powerful and has changed my relationship with God forever.

God asked me, "would you believe in Me, even if you never read that I existed?" At first I was puzzled. So I asked how else would I have known He existed. Isn't the Bible the "Word of God"? The "Bible" as we know it today is a translation or better yet, "his Royal Highness' (King James) translation of ancient text that was written in Hebrew and Greek. It has been revised more than a thousand times, and men of good intent have misinterpreted most, if not all of the original meaning of the actual holy writings.

The Gospel was not to be used to establish hypocritical doctrines, biased decrees and beliefs, or to pass judgment on the world, but to convert souls to Christ and cause the people to have faith in a God they had never seen. There is no confusing that Jesus lived, died and was resurrected. The fact is, no matter how one would say it, what language one might say it in, or what style one might choose to deliver the "Gospel", it is to be expressed from one believer to another. When Jesus instructed the disciples to go out spreading the word, He didn't send them out with copies of the holy scrolls or the laws of Moses. Instead, He sent them out with only their testimony of Him. An account of what they'd seen and heard from Him. And before Christ left the earth, his command was simple: "Go into all the world, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and the Son, and the Holy Spirit". Nowhere in the command did He mention that they should form a book, make it "holy", and call it "The Bible". He didn't say preach that book from a literal interpretation of numerous languages and words with different meaning from different cultures and from different time periods.

Ask yourself this question, "would I still have the faith I have now if the Bible as we know it never existed at all"? The men and women of old believed by the testimony of the believers. [For instance, the African slaves couldn't read so] their belief was based on the testimony of what other people said God did for them. What others learned or experienced of the Holy Spirit. And the proof was in the manifestations of the Spirit. The speaking in tongues, the healings in Jesus' name, the miracles, and casting out of demons in His name were all proof that there is power in the name of Jesus. This would be fact and will always be fact whether there was a King James Version of the Bible or any other version ever published. I believe God allowed writings and such versions of the ancient texts to get us to the place we are today. So we would know what He did in the lives of people back then. And you know what? GOD IS STILL SPEAKING! He wants us to move out of the church buildings, out of the classrooms, out of the temples and mega-churches into the streets, hearts and homes of people in the world. I believe God wants us to witness not from or by a book, but from our hearts and by the Holy Spirit.

The truth is, God is real. Not because some book says so. But because we can feel Him. We can see His works. The Holy Spirit knows all things, even the deep things of God. As God's mouthpiece, you don't need a man made book to witness. However, you will need the God given light that shines bright from within you. It's impossible to give the King James Version or any other version the power to condemn, judge, or govern any of God's children today. Have you ever noticed that the only book [according to text] that was ordained by God to be written is the book of Revelation? There is no other book in the Old or New Testaments (OT and NT) that was ordained to be published or signified by one of God's angels. The OT and the NT are documents/records produced by men of God who believed that they heard a word from the Lord. But nowhere was it documented that God commanded them to write what they heard, proclaim it to be Gospel or declare it unto God's people as He did in Revelation. It is clear that God told John to write everything he heard (Rev. 1.3,9). Nowhere (but in Revelation) is it stated that one would be blessed for reading and understanding the book.

Most of the NT are letters by Paul who never in any letter directly states that God told him to write a letter of for it to be put in a book. Paul only wrote letters because he was one man; he couldn't be everywhere at the same time. However, it is encouraging to know that Paul states in some of his letters that he was inspired by God to write certain things to the churches, but the letters themselves were of his own doing. In some of the letters he wrote, he admitted he wrote them because he loved and cared for those who would read them. But whatever he wrote was only directed toward the people he was writing to. Think about it. Did the people of Galatia ever know what Paul wrote to the people of Collosse? Did the people in Rome know that Paul told the women in Corinth to be silent and to only speak to their husbands and to be subject not to the Holy Spirit but to their masters? Actually, they were subject to their husbands, but anyone you have to obey is not exactly a "mate" but a "master". In 1855, taking the things that Paul wrote in his letters literally led to lawmakers in the state of Missouri to use those words to declare black women to be the property of her master and was without the right to defend herself against her master's acts of rape. The point is, God may have spoken to Paul, and he may have been inspired to write what he heard and thought at the time. But I don't believe Paul knew his letters would be published for the whole world to read. If he had, he would have written some things differently.

The Bible as we know it has caused wars, the slaughtering of innocent people (Native Americans), the founding of evil, selfish, gold-seeking nations, the conquering of other nations (Aztecs, Jews, S. Africans), slavery (African Americans), murder (Matthew Sheppard and countless others), crime (church burnings and lynchings), and hate. In fact, it's ironic that the NAACP would honor a Rev. Phelps for his "work with black clients" yet didn't take any objection to his being the founder of Godhatesfags.com. Now, does this sound like something God ordained? A God who has no hate? A God who is not like man? A God who says, "in Me there is no confusion"? The God who sent His Son to the world to liberate humanity from sin would ordain a book that would create pain and horrifying events that cost people their lives? I don't believe for a minute that God ordained a book that would create all this confusion. It is my sincere prayer that we as believers seek a deeper and more intimate relationship with God. It is my prayer that we use the Bible as we know it today as a point of reference, a map for personal knowledge and understanding of times past and relating as much as we can to the present. I pray that we allow the Holy Spirit to inspire us, encourage and guide us into the blessed will of our Heavenly Father.