I see it differently. If someone gave up on Christianity because of something in the Bible or something about the Bible, they may have given up on Christianity unnecessarily. Even if someone is leaning towards the door and is about to leave Christianity because of something in the Bible or something about the Bible, they don’t have to leave.
And here’s why that is - Jesus’ most devout first century followers never owned the Bible, never read the Bible...because there was no ‘the Bible’ to be had or read. But these men and women turned the world upside down; they’re the reason that people worship Jesus today; and they never held the Bible because there was no ‘the Bible’ until the fourth century.
So what happened...? What did they believe...? What did they know...? Why is it that people are so quick to (and so easily persuaded to) walk away from faith because of a book that didn’t even exist when Christianity began...? How we talk about the Bible can be an obstacle. And what we point to as the foundation of our faith...for most Christians...unfortunately, is the Bible. We’ve been taught...unfortunately...that the Bible is the foundation of our faith.
What served as the foundation of faith for the first century church...? We should take the cues about the foundation of our faith from those who were closest to the action...the first century, first followers of Jesus. What was the foundation of Peter’s faith…? Where did Peter get his hope…? How is it that he was now walking around in the open - being bold and confident and preaching - whereas before, he was afraid and hid for his life...? The foundation of his faith was not something he’d read or had read to him. The foundation of his faith was something that he’d seen.
What should be the foundation of our faith...? What should be the center of our confidence...? Peter would say “that’s easy...the resurrection of Jesus. The foundation of our faith is not a book - it is an event. The Bible did not create Christianity. The Christians eventually created the Bible. The foundation of our faith is not a group of manuscripts; the foundation of our faith is not a book ~ it’s the events that inspired the book; events that inspired writers, guided by the Holy Spirit, to document conversations, insights and events—the pivotal event being the resurrection of Jesus.
Peter believed what he believed because of what he saw. He saw Jesus die, and later, he saw the risen Jesus. The resurrection of Jesus was the foundation of Peter’s faith; he clearly said so. The resurrection of Jesus is the foundation of my faith as well
