Just the New Testament

[Quatchu]

What do people think about copies of the Bible with only the New Testament and psalms. There basis as i understand it is that one can come to a saving faith in Christ without the Old Testament. Personally I have always had a bad feeling about giving some one a Bible that has only the New Testament, just seems incomplete to me.

 

[Rufus]

I have a NT, Psalms, and Proverbs pocket Bible. I'm sure when most of those are made the intention isn't to get rid of the Old Testament but make something that is compact.

 

[Peairtach]

I'm sure people can come to faith with just the OT too.

 

[Quatchu]

I'm not in the business to say how God can call a person to him. He certainly can use only a NT or just the OT. I have been in several minstrys were i provide Bibles to either children or people from non-christian backgrounds, and i will always opt for a full version any day. I just feel a full version has the complete Law and Gospel, and they will be better off with the complete word of God.

 

[Pergamum]

People are sometimes hungry for the Word, but no need to choke them by giving an infant a t-bone steak. I like booklets of the Gospel of John to give people at first, and then wean them into the NT and then the whole thang. If they are that interested to start at Genesis and read straight through, why even give them a bible, have them go and buy one themselves to show good and holy priorities with their money.

 

[AThornquist]

I bought NTs to give out during evangelism (if the people didn't have a Bible and desired one) because 1) they were cheaper and 2) if they showed any fruit, I would be more than happy to buy them an entire Bible. These are merely for introductary encounters with Scripture, and if they read the whole New Testament and end up lacking the OT, they are already far better off than most.

 

[Jack K]

For evangelism it can be helpful to start people out with just a selected part of Scripture. Or where cost is a consideration, printing and distributing just a section of the Bible is better than none.

But I think the popular idea that believers will generally do well enough with just a New Testament stems from the notion that the New Covenant has made most of the Old Testament obsolete except as background material for understanding the New. That's part of the legacy of dispensational thought, and it's dangerous. It's not only incomplete, but inadequate.

 

[ZackF]

For evangelism it can be helpful to start people out with just a selected part of Scripture. Or where cost is a consideration, printing and distributing just a section of the Bible is better than none.

Exactly. There are Church Fathers who never had access to the whole Bible. That of course had its drawbacks but we don't know how blessed we are.

 

[NB3K]

I'm sure people can come to faith with just the OT too.

I whole-heartedly believe that. I can see the Gospel everywhere in the OT. It is there!!! The book of Romans is the revealation of the Gospel from the OT.

 

[Pergamum]

While that may be true, in a 10 minute discussion with someone and only limited space to carry something on my person, I would much rather talk about and give them a slender Gospel of John... That is why tract ministries came into being in the first place, because it is often impractical due to time and money and carriage restraints to hoof around 100 full bibles on your person while going through a city. It may actually be better to give a 2 page tract summarizing the entire Bible with your contact details and an oppenness to follow-up than the full bible itself for a preliminary first contact.

 

[Stargazer65]

These pocket NTs are just an extremely portable way of getting out some of God's word. I don't see it as any more dangerous than the Topical Memory System cards I keep in my pocket. I don't think any Christian, dispensational or not, intends them for use as a primary reference bible.

When you're on the street, a five shot revolver in your pocket is better than the Glock 17 sitting at home.