I don't believe in religion at all. My opinion is that it has spawned from Mans fear of death, and also as Asp said, from ancient Politics, like the rules and commandments. They are a fable made up by powerful aristocrats to control large populations of mostly poor people. And the fear of Death one is obvious even now most of us don't want to die, we don't want to age, and so people will try anything to prolong their life, even if it means believing they'll live on after they're dead and buried.
And as for all the lies and contradictions in the Bible, we'd need to write another Bible just to note the contradictions and lies. And Asp you made a great point about chariots and the like of that. You hit the nail on the head, it is what the limits of the human imagination could invision. And that itself is almost proof that the stories are merely novels
One thing I will say in favour of the Bible, is that it's really a work of Art. The literature, poetry & metaphors are absolutely timeless, and even people studying it now almost over 2000 years later, are still finding hidden meanings in it. For that reason it's a great masterpiece of creativity. But to live your life by it, is to waste your life.