The Red Letter Edition Error

I've heard that certain Christians believe only the words in red type are important. They naively assume that because Christ said those lines, they matter more than the rest of Holy Scripture. The truth is that every single word in the Bible is important.

Folks who regard those red letters in the Bible as being more important should open their red letter editions and read John 5:39. The Bible in Basic English renders this verse as, "You make search in the holy Writings, in the belief that through them you get eternal life; and it is those Writings which give witness about me."

If the rest of the Bible wasn't as important as the sayings of Jesus, why did he tell the Pharisees that their scriptures spoke of him? Printing Christ's sayings in red ink was just somebody's idea, not the way the scriptures were originally written down.

Then there's Matthew 21:42 (BBE) which says, "Jesus says to them, 'Did you never see in the Writings, "The stone which the builders put on one side, the same has been made the chief stone of the building: this was the Lord's doing, and it is a wonder in our eyes?"'"

In that verse, Christ quoted Psalms 118:22 and 23 (BBE) which reads, "The stone which the builders put on one side has become the chief stone of the building. This is the Lord's doing; it is a wonder in our eyes." If the Old Testament writings weren't as important as Christ's sayings, why then did he quote from them to identify himself?

The Old Testament also contains references to Christ's crucifixion. Mark 14:49 (BBE) quotes him as saying, "I was with you every day in the Temple teaching, and you did not take me; but this is done so that the Writings may come true."

Then there's Christ's quoting of Psalms 22:1 (BBE) on the Cross. Matthew 27:46 (BBE) reads, "And about the ninth hour Jesus gave a loud cry, saying, 'Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani?' that is, 'My God, my God, why are you turned away from me?'"

If only the words in red were printed out in order, they wouldn't make much sense. We wouldn't know to whom Christ was saying what he said in most cases. 

On Thursday, if Christ hasn't returned, I plan on posting about a horrendous lie sweeping the African continent.