COMIC BIBLE - The Book Of GodSample

"THE PROCESS OF THE BIBLE - HOW THE BIBLE WAS COLLECTED"

Canon: the rule by which everything is judged

The word "canon" is used to describe the books in the Bible, because each book in the Bible was scrutinized to see if they belonged in the collection of Holy Scripture. It is important to understand that the people involved in this process were seeking God's guidance in what they were doing, and that the guidelines they judged the writings of the Bible by were both logical and inspired.

The process was like this: God inspired the writing; people of God recognized it; people of God collected it. Books not in the Bible were not lost FROM the Bible; they were not included because they were not meant to be in the Bible. All of these steps are not man-made, but instead used by God to help us get to know him better.

For a book to be included, it had to be:

Authoritative (does it claim to be the Word of God?) Prophetic (did a servant of God write it? did eyewitnesses to Jesus write it?) Authentic (does it tell the truth about God and humanity?) Dynamic (does it change lives when it is believed and followed?) Received (did the people of God accept it when it was written?)

While these guidelines are what were used to determine the canon of the Bible, they also make an interesting way to reflect on the place of Scripture in your own life. Because by its very nature, as God's Word, the Bible requires reflection and response.

With the Bible's claim to be the Word of God, how does that affect how you think about the words found inside?

How have the truths about humanity and God found within Scripture affected the way you think about humanity and God?

You most likely have a copy of the Bible, and you have access to God's Word through the Internet and other sources. But how does your heart and mind and soul receive the text? How has the Bible changed your life?