For fun, take a moment and take this quick test of Bible knowledge. The answers will be at the bottom, but please do not look at them until you have read this article in its entirety. It may show you something about yourself that you did not know. At this time, please do not look in the Bible.

1.Where in the Bible is the phrase, ”God helps those who helps themselves?”
2.Put the following in the order in which they occurred: Moses in Egypt, Isaac’s birth, Judah’s exile and Saul’s death.
3.In what two books of the Bible is the birth of Jesus mentioned?
4.The Passover story is in what book of the Bible?
5.In what book do we read about the missionary journeys of Paul?
6.Was Jesus a sinner like us?
7.Is the book of Hezekiah in the Old Testament or the New Testament?
8.What six Old Testament books deal with the nation of Judah after the 70 year exile in Babylon?
9.According to the gospels, did Jesus do most of his preaching in Galilee or in Judea?
10.In what two New Testament books does Paul clearly discuss the fact that we are saved by faith?

Now, after answering those questions, I have three more simple, true or false questions that you need to answer.
1.True or False – BIBLE MIRACLES ARE IMPOSSIBLE.
2.True or False – ALL RELIGIONS LEAD TO GOD.
3.True or False – ALL GOOD PEOPLE GO TO HEAVEN WHEN THEY DIE.

The reason why I ask these questions is for you to find out how much you really know about the Bible. In two articles I recently read the point has been made that we do not read as a society as we once did, except for what we read on the internet or in some magazine. More often than not, we try to get the gist of the matter as quickly as we can, and then move on. We think and read in “sound bites” – short 20 or 30 second bites that helps us get the gist of what we want to know so we can move on.

In another article, Michael J Vlach wrote that we have a crisis in American churches: Bible knowledge is at an all time low. Questions were asked of incoming freshmen who have been reared in churches and are going to “Christian colleges,” and they have found that the level of Bible knowledge in these young people is abysmally low. In a study of beliefs of mainline “Protestants” they found that only 35% of mainline protestant church members believe Christ was sinless; 34% believe that the Bible is totally accurate and only 20% believe that Satan is real. Among Baptists, they found that only 34% believe that Satan is real, and only 55% believe that Christ was sinless, and 66% believe that the Bible is totally accurate. He goes on to state that the reason for this ignorance is from the desire among preachers to preach on relevant social issues rather than dealing with Bible doctrine, and the fact that the secular, “tolerant, anything goes” worldview has had a greater impact on Christians rather than a Bible based worldview. The way to change that is to get back to basics and teach the Bible once again.

I am made to wonder if a survey is done among members of the church, what the outcome would be. But then, perhaps, the above little test will tell us. How did you do? HERE ARE THE ANSWERS:
1.The Bible nowhere says “God helps those who help themselves.”
2.Isaac’s birth, Moses in Egypt, Saul’s death, Judah’s exile
3.Matthew and Luke
4.Exodus
5.Acts
6.No – he was sinless. 2 Corinthians 5:21; 1 Peter 2:22-24; 1 John 3:5
7.Neither – there is no book in the Bible called Hezekiah
8.Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, Haggai, Zechariah, and Malachi
9.Galilee
10.Romans and Galatians, though he mentions it in all of his books
11.FALSE – Mark 16:16-20 Hebrews 2:2-4; 1 Corinthians 13:8-10
12.FALSE – Matthew 7:13-14; John 8:31-32
13.FALSE – Acts 10, 11

Brethren, let’s know the book and know what God requires of us to be the people he wants us to be.