Dear Friends of "Dial Daily Bread,"
Is the Bible as a book (composed of pages bound as a "biblos") destined to become out-dated and supplanted by computerized versions? Does our heavenly Father still regard the Bible (as a book) His message to the human race? We hear it said often that reading books is going out of date. "People just don't read anymore! They watch movies and videos."
The last words of John's Gospel speak of "books that should be written" about Jesus as the divine Son of God (21:25, KJV). He commended the practice of "searching the Scriptures," meaning the books or scrolls they possessed (5:39). He rebuked those who did not study and believe "the Scriptures," saying, "You ... err" (Matt. 22:29). On the day He was resurrected He gave a Bible study to two of His disciples, "beginning at Moses and all the prophets, He expounded to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself" (Luke 24:25-27). He upheld actual Bible study.
We have no reason to doubt that He has the same burden of heart for us today--that we read, study, learn, what His Holy Spirit has inspired prophets and apostles to write "for our admonition, on whom the ends of the ages have come" (1 Cor. 10:11, NKJV).
The vast proportion of inhabitants of the earth still are not computer or Internet literate. And of those who are, they still love real books. What you take to bed to read before you go to sleep is a book. What you take to church or Sabbath School is a literal Book (with exceptions among Internet buffs). The ease of finding things in the Bible through flipping pages cannot be bettered, and for sure the practice of marking salient passages for future reference is efficient. Your Bible becomes your own intimately personal "word of God." Fits you better than your shoes do. (Write in your margins dates and places where the Holy Spirit was very close to you!)
A prayer the Father loves to hear and answer is the request that the Holy Spirit "make known" His words to you (Prov. 1:23). Plead that He give you "a hunger and thirst for righteousness"(Matt. 5:6)--that's the way of "happiness" (which is what it means to be "blessed"). And you'll be surprised how often the Lord will open doors for you to share treasures of truth you have discovered in your personal reading of the Bible. One thing, please: be modest about them; don't drive sincere people away by being proud.
Copyright © 2009 by Robert J. Wieland.
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Daily Bread - Readings about life and the Word of God.
