Something to think about...
You've been quoted the passage about how you are not to yoke yourself unequally to an unbeliever. I fully agree you should not be in a hurry to *marry* this young woman, but you just met her so that shouldn't be an issue anyway.
But I am surprised that no one quoted to you the many scriptures that declare that one MUST read and believe the book we call the Bible, in order to be Saved.
Oh wait....that's because
there aren't any.
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Don't get me wrong, I think the Bible is a great book, and it's the only record we have of the eye-witness testimonies of those who had the honor of living in the days when Christ walked the earth incarnate the first time. But do we worship the book or the God who inspired it?
All through those very Scriptures we see the pattern over and over of people who "get it" telling other people about what they "get" until those people are moved by that *living* testimony to start *really* asking and seeking. But we *don't* see Paul suggesting people read up on what James had already written, or John saying "You can't possibly be Christian until you've read the Torah...(which would have been the only easily collected works available in his day).
The average converted Christian hears the testimony of the *living* Christians around him. He reaches a point where he wants the relationship with the Lord that they have and he finally says some version of the sinner's prayer, accepts Jesus, and is Saved. He then *starts* developing his relationship with the Lord.
Most converted Christians *start* seriously looking into the Scriptures at that point...very few read first and get converted that way.
I'm willing to *bet* that this woman hasn't actually read the Bible, or that she started at Genesis, got wrapped up in the Law, and didn't make it any further because she'd broken enough of the laws to feel wholly worthless and overwhelmed at the end of reading them. She's probably heard a dozen "quotes" that aren't actually IN the Bible, from other people who haven't actually read it, which are also messing her up. And like most people today, she's exposed to the VAST "resources" that go on and on about how the Bible is broken or just literature or whatever.
But you *have* apparently read the Bible and it's important to
you. So start with that. Grab your favorite Bible story...the one that reaches out to you and really speaks to you. Ask her to read it with you. Share with her how it touches you or how you see God reflected in it. Even if she takes the Bible as pure mythology, she ought to be able to do that much with you. Read the words of Jesus and ask see if she thinks the words recorded there come close to anything He would say or teach. At best, you'll get her to realize the worth of the Bible. At worst, you'll start reading and she'll start running like her ears are on fire...either way you will know the truth of her nature.
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As for trust....
Your girlfriend mentioned that she doesn't trust the men who wrote the Bible. Why does she think she *needs* to trust them. She says she believes in God...doesn't she trust HIM? It's not like He didn't know they were writing a Bible
But which Bible? There are over 100 translations of the Bible available just in English. That's nifty, but there are a LOT of people on this planet who are never going to learn English and there are many bibles that went directly from Greek and Latin to languages other than English. Even if you learn Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek, you have over two dozen extant manuscripts to choose from and some of those
do not agree for one word in five!
The bible isn't a just book, it's a
battlefield. The 66 book KJV that many hold as the "final say" on all things biblical had EIGHTY books in it even as published in the US till the late 1800's. Satan's always publishing the "next best translation" with this or that messed up in an attempt to stumble people. There was even a movement to strip the entire OT from the record, and you can still find copies of "abridged" bibles, or bibles adding in "newly found" texts that were never before a part of any book called a bible, etc.
Left solely to the belief that we have to depend on MEN to get a complete accurate picture of GOD, we're pretty much doomed. It can't be done. You are left with a scattered, badly translated, badly interpreted, incomplete collection of myths and taboos absolutely no better than any other religion's collection of myths and taboos. One man's word is not guaranteed to be any more truthful than another.
God doesn't ask us to trust the men He inspires.
God asks us to trust
Him.
Do you think He just ignores what men try to do?
The miracle of the Bible is that you can have that much variation and STILL end up with the
same overriding Message. God has his hand on
every translation of the Bible on earth. He rains on the just and the wicked alike.
He knows there are versions of "Bibles" out there that have little to nothing to do with His word, and if that's where an honest seeker starts, He will get them from those words to His Word safely. I'm living proof of that.
He also knows there are people digging around in valid texts for loopholes. They'll have their reward in time too. But NO ONE who is genuinely seeking the Lord is left unanswered or lost.
This girl apparently believes in God and believes in you. Ask her why her God would lead her to fall in love with a guy who so deeply believes in the worth of the Bible, if the Bible had no value.
