Can the bible be taken literally?

 Often, I have questioned at various stages in my life whether I can take the bible literally? I am still asking myself that loaded question, even at this advanced age. I can say without hesitation that some books and passages of the bible I don't question at all, but other passages like the great flood and Noah's Ark, or the book of Job still cause me to question "Can the bible be taken literally?" Does that mean that I am NOT a Christian? I know I am a Christian simply because, I believe to my core that Jesus Christ is and was who he claimed to be, period. I haven't always believed that to the level I do now, and I attribute this deeper assurance to God's grace and the gift of faith. I've never truly abandoned Christ,  the gospel my faith in the last seven years, and unlike previous stages in my life after learning of the true meaning of Christ' sacrifice on the cross, at least NOW I'd never consider throwing my faith away as I had done in the past, backsliding, and I know friends, and relatives who have discarded the bible, Christ, the gospel, and no longer "believe" I don't blame them. Believing in the bible MUST be accompanied by "faith" instilled in us by God through the Holy Spirit, and in order to be connected in spirit to God, Christ, we must meet God halfway in humility and reverence. 

The bible is an interesting collection of books. The Old Testament has accounts of God guiding his people, the Jews through their various encounters and although the bible is defined as books written by men, inspired by God, the shift and tone of the books takes on a new energy once the birth of Christ occurs as documented in the New Testament in the gospels, and we see the fulfillment of the prophecies about the great messiah, Christ. Seems so simple, right? Why would anyone question the validity of these books? 

I believe it's okay and actually one SHOULD question passages like the great flood, the book of Job, the exodus from Egypt, and other seemingly outlandish accounts, but again, does that mean one is NOT a believing Christian if they don't? I believe God works with those who seek him, and he guides their lives like a conductor does his symphony. It's the relationship we have to God once we believe in him that makes "questioning" not so lethal to one's faith. I don't believe a man could have loaded all the animals, selected living things of the earth and stuffed them in a big ark and sailed around while the rest of the world got submerged and drowned because of a forty-day storm, so am I "not" a Christian? Quite the contrary. I believe that "God" is fully capable of taking into account my selected disbelief because he "knows" me in an X-Ray penetrating kind of way, and he doesn't sweat the small stuff. If I don't believe Satan, and God brokered an agreement to test Job's faith and put him through an intense array of hoops to jump to show his commitment to God, again, does that mean "I'm not a Christian?" Same answer as before. Rinse and repeat. So why read the bible at all if there are passages, whole books, I can't get into OR simply don't believe? 

I believe the key is in the taking away from the bible, with some books we can't wrap our brains around, the moral message underneath the text. In some of the more historical accounts like the book of Acts, or the gospels, other than the parables from Christ, the documentation is pretty straight forward, but in the aforementioned account of the great flood with Noah I believe it's the revealing of man's sinful rebellious nature that caused so much disappointment in God, and the wrath of God (fictionalized or not) shown in a flood that wiped out all but those in the ark. I get the moral meaning of the biblical account, but I don't believe, again, that all these living things were saved in the ark and we humans were ALL repopulated from them, but there was a time "these doubts" caused me to abandon the whole thing, my faith. How does this make sense? Shouldn't I be all in or all out? If the flood is referenced in the New Testament by Jesus himself doesn't that mean "it" happened and if I "don't believe it" doesn't that mean I am NOT a Christian? Again, give it to God, he knows me, he's guiding me, rinse and repeat. 

If I can impart any words of advice on how to correctly and truthfully interpret the bible, it's this: Know the context of the books and do a little research as to who's saying what, when, to whom, etc. For example, in the book of Acts and subsequently post resurrection of Christ you have Roman rule and the earliest group of followers attempting to spread the gospel, often at their peril, and competing cults, and sects vying for followers and twisting the gospel message. You have the martyrdom of the apostles as they followed Christ's orders before his ascension to "spread the good news." So, books by Paul as the early church is emerging on how to avoid certain practices and not to push older "Jewish Mosaic" customs like circumcision make more sense, thus illuminating scripture. Even looking at the first book of Genesis and focusing on the seeming absurdity of a serpent talking, etc. or man and woman as the original married couple isn't going resonate with us modern highly rational thinking humans, but if we buy into the meaning that we all were created as spiritual beings connected to God and sin entered the world due to our rebellion (which would have happened anyway) due to temptation to be "like God" then the account makes more sense. 

At the base of all this you have a God who's not masquerading his identity. God has and IS consistently trying to get us "back into fellowship" with him, through Jesus in some very simple, important ways, and more importantly he doesn't not understand our nature but he's like a video creator who's created this thing we are and are in and he's not removed from "the game" but rather he's fully invested in it, us, and all he asks is that we seek him, trust, and believe to whatever extent we can. If we do ALL that the bible will unfold in the deepest way possible to us but it has to begin with humility and faith.