Is the Jefferson Bible enough?
Question:
I recently conversed with someone who is living in a sinful lifestyle, but who I believe is starting to question her life choices. She is in her 70s now and has cancer. She mentioned that she is reading the “Jefferson bible” and wondered if that is “enough.” She asked me to research it since it was foreign to me. I did some research and am following up on her request, but I want to be careful not to discourage her attempt to learn more about Jesus. I feel like she is avoiding the rest of the bible because it condemns her lifestyle.
There are so many things that Thomas Jefferson cut out of this version. I cannot believe the book ends with Jesus in the tomb, leaving out his resurrection.
I did offer to do a Bible study with her. Since she is interested in Jesus, I told her how Jesus could be found in every book of the Bible. Maybe that will be a way to get her to look beyond this version.
I’m trying to answer her in a gentle but truthful manner. Any advice?
Answer:
I would ask her two questions:
- Is she interested in learning about who Jesus really is, or is she looking for a Jesus that suits her? Truly understanding a person leads us to face ideas that make us uncomfortable because it forces us to confront our own flaws.
- Can you really learn about someone through a heavily edited book? Jefferson didn't want to believe in miracles, so he removed sections of the Bible that gave evidence of such things happening. The Jesus that Jefferson imagined is not the real Jesus.
If she wants to learn about the real Jesus, then she needs to learn from the unedited source. True, she will likely encounter ideas that she might not feel comfortable with, but that is why the Bible is so well known and admired. It causes people to change for the better by exposing the reader's inadequacies and showing a better way.
If she is interested in learning about the real Jesus, offer to show her, through the Scriptures, just who he was in his actions and his claims. Whether she decides to change because of what she learns is up to her, but at least she will know what the full Bible actually says.
