What If I Disagree with Parts of the Bible?

This question is more common — and more biblical — than many people realise.

Many believers quietly assume that disagreement means:

• lack of faith

• rebellion

• spiritual danger

So instead of wrestling honestly, they suppress questions — or walk away entirely.

Scripture offers a wiser, braver path.

1. Wrestling Is Biblical

The Bible does not present faith as passive acceptance. 

It presents faith as engaged trust.

Examples fill the pages of Scripture:

• Abraham questions God’s justice:
  “Will not the Judge of all the earth do right?” — Genesis 18:25

• Moses argues with God repeatedly (Exodus 3–4; Numbers 11)

• Job protests God’s ways at length, and God calls him honest, not rebellious:
  “You have spoken of me what is right.” — Job 42:7

• The Psalms are full of disagreement, confusion, lament, and protest
  “How long, LORD? Will you forget me forever?” — Psalm 13:1

• Jacob is renamed Israel — meaning “one who wrestles with God” (Genesis 32:28)

God does not shame wrestling. 

He often meets people in it.

2. Disagreement Is Not the Same as Dismissal

There is a difference between:

• wrestling toward understanding, and

• rejecting Scripture outright

Faithful disagreement says:

“I take this seriously enough to struggle with it.”

Indifference says:

“This doesn’t matter.”

The Bible consistently honours the first posture.

The psalmists model this tension:

“Why, LORD, do you stand far off?” — Psalm 10:1

This is not dismissal — it is engagement.

3. Jesus Invites Engagement, Not Suppression

Jesus does not silence questions. 

He asks more of them.

He responds to:

• sincere seekers

• confused disciples

• fearful doubters

with patience, invitation, and teaching.

Even after the resurrection, Jesus meets Thomas’ doubt without condemnation:

“Put your finger here… stop doubting and believe.” — John 20:27

Notice:

Jesus does not say, “How dare you question?”   

He says, “Come closer.”

Jesus honours honest engagement far more than silent fear.

4. Disagreement Often Signals Deeper Formation

When parts of Scripture disturb us, it may be because:

• our cultural assumptions are being challenged

• our image of God needs refining

• we are encountering tension we cannot yet resolve

This tension is not a failure. 

It is often the birthplace of mature faith.

The disciples themselves misunderstood Jesus repeatedly (Mark 8–10).

Yet Jesus stayed with them, taught them, and shaped them through their confusion.

Growth frequently comes through unresolved questions carried patiently.

5. How to Disagree Faithfully

A healthy posture sounds like:

• “I don’t understand this yet.”

• “This troubles me — help me see more clearly.”

• “I’m willing to keep listening, even without resolution.”

An unhealthy posture closes the conversation:

• “This must be wrong because I don’t like it.”

• “This settles it — no more thinking needed.”

Faith holds humility on both sides.

Proverbs describes this humility:

“The way of fools seems right to them, but the wise listen to advice.” — Proverbs 12:15

Faithful disagreement is not stubbornness — it is openness.

6. Stay Anchored While You Wrestle

When disagreement arises, stay rooted in:

• the life and teaching of Jesus

• the larger story of Scripture

• trusted voices in the Christian tradition

• community, not isolation

The Bible was never meant to be read alone, in fragments, or without guidance.

“Plans fail for lack of counsel, but with many advisers they succeed.” — Proverbs 15:22

Wrestling becomes dangerous only when it becomes solitary.

A Crucial Reframe

Disagreement does not disqualify you from faith. 

Refusing to wrestle often does.

Faith that cannot tolerate tension becomes brittle. 

Faith that learns to live with mystery becomes resilient.

Paul describes this kind of maturity:

“Now we see only a reflection as in a mirror…” — 1 Corinthians 13:12

We see partially. 

We understand imperfectly. 

And God is patient with that.

A Gentle Invitation

If parts of the Bible unsettle you, do not rush to resolve them.

Stay. 

Ask. 

Listen. 

Wait.

God is not threatened by your questions.

And many people discover — over time — that the very passages they once resisted become places of unexpected depth, humility, and grace.