what the bible says

Here is a post from another thread. I thought it was interesting and it raises some good points. 

JJ, what if the Bible clearly did say when life began? What then? Do you take everything the Bible says as fact,without argument even in the face of contradictory scientific proof? What do we do with our reason and intellect? I think part of the problem we get ourselves into, is that we believe the Bible has something to say about every facet of our lives, and have used it to polarize ourselves.

This got incredibly long, sorry, but it was fun to write.. if you read it all, then comment, ..:)

God created us with a brain, and gave us reason, logic and intellect for a reason.
The bible itself says "examine everything carefully, keeping the good and discarding the bad."
We do not need to stop thinking
That is a huge problem in religion today. People twist the bible to make it say things it does not say, and when that happens you do have to stop thinking. atheists also take things out of context to try to prove it wrong ...
Some things are tradition and not biblical. Galileo got in trouble with the church because of his discoveries, and advocating the idea that the earth goes around the sun instead of hte other way around.. the problem was, that was church tradition. and not bible...
The bible does not say either way. It does say things like the sun rising or setting, but ... that has been a common way of phrasing things since we had words. we still say that today, but it really doesnt. we say today the sun isnt shining when it is cloudy ... everyone knows that isn't literally true. yet we still say it all the time ..and everyone knows what is meant

An example today is the idea of creation. Seven literal 24-hour periods, or seven periods of time.. i lean towards the latter, there are logical problems with the seven 24-hour period idea, one being that the earth was not created on day one, so you could not measure day one ... also the hebrew word translated "day" can just as easily be translated into English as "time" ..
That is not the real issue in my opinion. Whether it was 7 days, 7 seconds or 7 bajillion years doesnt matter.. There is no real controversy here between science and the bible .. the problem comes when you try to force it to say something it does not say.
The real issue is ... "In the beginning God Created"
The problem is on both sides. Athiests take evolution to mean God did not create..wheras pure science based on observation, experimentation and reason, cannot say one way or the other. it can only say that species develop over time. .which does not contradict the bible at all. The bible does not say..

If there is a logic problem, or even a blatant contradiction with science, that should raise a flag.
You don't blindly choose one or the other,
If that happens, you need to study more. chances are the problem is more in your understanding than with either science or the bible.... a huge problem is that people think they have things figured out so they blindly go forward and twist the bible or science to fit that set of beliefs .. religious people, atheists, pubs, dems ... the problem is they are interpreting evidemce through the lense of their ideology, which is backwards.. which is why i say truth is more important than ideology.... are we willing to admit that our ideology might be wrong? What do you do when you are faced with evidence that contradicts your beliefs.. many people dismiss it .. what we should do in that case is study more..

If you cannot show a clear teaching throughout the entire bible on an issue, ... then to be intellectually honest, you have to say ... it doesn't say. and you should keep studying...also another important point .. studying an issue is not trying to find evidence to fit your beliefs .. it is pursuing truth where ever it leads, and if you have to change your belief on an issue .. then .. you have to make a choice.
Some people say they are using biblical principles in making decisions. I say that is a dangerous idea... and that is one area where i am a bit radical even in christian circles.. it is a slippery slope from "biblical principles" to making it say what it does not say....

A key point in biblical interpretation is understanding the type of literature it is. What was the intent of the writer?  Also context is everything... one verse by itself does not mean anything .. for any issue you have to seek what the ENTIRE bible says about it..
Interpreting the bible is no different than interpreting any piece of literature. To really understand what  the bible actually says, you have to study a lot, you have to think a lot, and use reason a lot.

The Psalms are poetry. we all know what poetry is .. so the ideas presented in poetry are literally true, but the words used are metaphors. whether the things literally said are true is irrelevant.... the psalms are more for comfort and thinking about things in different ways - just like any poetry is - so it should not be used for setting doctrine... psalms speak of God's strong right arm ... God doesnt have arms, God is not a person with a physical body ...
Jesus told stories, parables, these are stories to make a point. the points are literally true, but the stories themselves may or may not be, He talks about a sower and the seed, and how it grows if it is in good soil... he is not talking about how to farm here..
Other times his sermons are recorded, and these are clear  teachings .. love your neighbor as yourself.. that is a direct order from the chief :)

And there are times where the bible does speak to an issue, but it is not clear .. the problem is that people want it to be clear, so they take one part and ignore the other part.
Free will and predestinaiton is one issue .. this is a deep philosophical issue.. the new testament writers say both and seem to have no problem with that .. to me that should be part of the equation... if they didn't have a problem .. why do we?
It really is like .. can god build a rock too big for god to move?
It is easier to pick one or the other and make the bible say that .. but ... we should be looking to what it actually says ..
Some people ask what about when the bible contradicts science (my answer to that is, you don't yet have it figured out.) ,... i like to ask, what about when the bible contradicts your ideology?

Many controversial issues are controversial because there is room for interpretation. We dont have all the evidence, or what evidence we have does not really answer the question.
So we take up what evidence fits our belief system and dismiss the rest as heresy ... its easier to do this than it is to actually think.

So.. if you can line up what the bible says, what pure evidence says - what you can see,.what you can think .. if they all line up, then you have truth .. if they do not all line up the problem could be that you do not yet really have it figured out and need to study more..
You don't need to shut off your mind or intellect when studying the bible - or anything else, but you do need to try to shut off your ideology...