I believe there are many notable works in the Apocrypha and Dead Sea Scrolls, written by various authors, which were not canonized into the Holy Bible. While I believe these can be insightful sources with regard to biblical history, I do not esteem them as the inspired Word of God. There is a distinct difference.
Therefore, I have not invested time in reading them, and I certainly have not studied them. I have no problem reading or studying them, should God lead me to do so, but He hasn’t. And if one should desire that study, I believe it should be strictly supplemental to the study of scripture, being filtered by scripture itself.
I do believe these works can add additional insight. Are they required texts? No, I don’t believe they are. One may well do without them, as many of us have. As for their canonization, I dare not question it. It’s not my place. I trust God in that matter. There are those who do, in fact, esteem these works as the inspired Word of God, who believe they should have been canonized, and I respect their belief, although I may disagree.
If any work outside the Holy Canon (the sixty-six books) should conflict with scripture, that is when it is refutable and loses credibility. The Holy Canon is our filter, and I believe one’s focus should always default to the purity of the God’s Word. I caution those who stray from that excessively out of curiosity. I believe that is where error can begin, even innocently. When we place too much emphasis on works outside the Canon, inevitable deception can occur, creating false beliefs, doubts, and questions that are contrary to God, leading us astray from Him. I emphasize scripture: that being the foundational sixty-six canonized books of the Holy Bible. All other work of man is purely supplemental, and should be regarded as such with great care.
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