Have you ever seen those viral videos claiming that "lost" books of the Bible—hidden away in the mountains of Ethiopia or suppressed by a 4th-century Roman cover-up—contain the real secret teachings of Jesus?

Last week, a few members of our class sent me two different videos making these exact claims. The videos suggest that what we have in our standard New Testament is only half the story, and that "dangerous" truths were scrubbed from history to keep us in the dark.It’s a compelling narrative. It taps into our natural fascination with forbidden knowledge. But as we dig into the historical "receipts," the truth is actually far more fascinating (and less conspiratorial) than a YouTube thumbnail suggests.

In Session 4 of our study, 'How God Communicates With Us', we pull back the curtain on:

‍The 81-Book Canon: Why does the Ethiopian Bible have so many more books than ours, and was there really a "secret" reason for it?
‍The Book of Enoch: The apostles clearly read it—they even quoted it—but does that mean it belongs in your Bible? We’ll discuss the critical difference between being influenced by a book and being inspired by God.
‍The "40-Day" Mystery: What was Jesus actually teaching his disciples for those 40 days between the Resurrection and the Ascension? (Hint: It wasn't a "simulation theory" or a script for The Matrix).
‍The Gnostic Trap: How modern narrators are conflating ancient church traditions with "hidden" gospels to create sensationalism for clicks.

Is God a communicator who hides the essential path to salvation for 2,000 years, or is the Gospel a "shout from the rooftops" meant for everyone?

Knowing the distinction between so-called hidden secrets and the open truth helps us when we study His Word.