“Your word, O Lord, is eternal; it stands firm in the heavens. Your faithfulness continues through all generations; you established the earth, and it endures. Your laws endure to this day, for all things serve you. If your law had not been my delight, I would have perished in my affliction. I will never forget your precepts, for by them you have preserved my life.” Psalm 119:89-93
The Word of God! What does that phrase conjure up in your mind? To some, it is a book dictated word forward by God, and meant to be obeyed in a very literal way in order to avoid hellfire and damnation. To others, it is the record of God’s interaction with a particular human culture over many centuries, and even more than that, the book that teaches about the life and teachings of Jesus Christ, and therefore the sourcebook of the Christian religion. For many non-Christians, the Bible is simply a book of cultural history, poetry, and human religious belief. And for far too many ex-Christians, it is a book associated with heavy-handed and guilt-inducing teachings coming from a judgmental and arbitrary God whom they can no longer accept.
No matter what our opinion may be about the Holy Scripture, we cannot deny the tremendous impact it has had on our society. The Bible is a divine revelation and every single part of it is divine. Anything that comes from the divine could be no other way. Among all those ways the Lord comes to us, the Bible holds a special place. It is the inspired Word of God; it represents the distilled essence of the Lord’s message to us. And it is given to us in a stable, written form that we can always turn to, even when other ways of communicating with the Lord seem to have dried up.
We go to the Bible to learn how to live and care for each other. The Scripture does not only tell us about the past and lessons from it, it serves as the source of strength for today and a sure hope for the future. That is why Paul wrote to the Romans in chapter 15 verse 4 that “For everything that was written in the past was written to teach us, so that through the endurance taught in the Scriptures and the encouragement they provide we might have hope.”
Through the Holy Scriptures, we receive many divine blessings and most importantly the blessing of victory in all ramifications. In this world, we receive victory over the flesh, fear, sickness, powers and principalities and many more. And in the world to come, victory over death because ours is the hope of eternity with God.
However, before we can enjoy the power and the efficacy of the Scriptures, we must make out some time to reflect on the message as contained in the parable of the sower. Sometimes the seed falls on the path and is trampled underfoot, neglected in the busyness of our lives; other times it falls on rocky ground and grows quickly at first, but then withers in the sun of adversity because its spiritual roots are shallow; other times it grows, only to be choked out by the thorns of material concerns.
When we look to the Word of God from a good and honest heart, then its deeper meanings will grow in us and bear fruit. Only when our heart is filled with love for each other and for the Lord can the veils that hide the deeper meanings of the Bible from our sight be removed for us. This is the Bible that has been lost over the ages, but now can be found for each one of us if we approach it with a loving heart. The beauty of the church’s teaching about the Bible is that it opens up the deep and fertile soil of spiritual meaning within the Bible so that our inner roots can grow stronger and deeper with each passing year. We do not need to get drawn into arguments over the literal or historical accuracy of the Bible. We have available to us a much more precious treasure. It is the treasure of the seed of spiritual truth that can grow in our lives until we are strong and fruitful in the loving work of the Lord.
Beloved, we need to rediscover afresh the inerrancy, the wonder, the magnificence, the dynamic power of the word of God. We need a revival today, a rediscovery of faith in God’s word. James 1:25 says “But whoever looks intently into the perfect law that gives freedom, and continues in it—not forgetting what they have heard, but doing it—they will be blessed in what they do.”.
Have a joyful celebration as the Holy Scriptures lighten your paths and sharpen your focus for eternity!
Your brother, Vicar & Archdeacon
- Igein Isemede