1 Corinthians 12:31b (NAS)

And I show you a still more excellent way.
1Corinthians 12:31b (NAS)

Saturday, October 29, 2011

The Only Book You Need to Read

My Granny Poole said that it's the only book you need to read.  I did not believe her at the time; I must have been maybe ten years old and thought her naive if she only read the Bible.  Now that I am as old as she was when she said it, I am inclined to agree with her.  I can still see her sitting there in her chair with her Bible opened in her lap, reading God's Holy Word.  She knew a secret then, that I have only since discovered - that is - everything I need to know is in God's Word.  Do you want to know what God is like?  The answer is in his Word.  Would you like to know what's going to happen in the future?  You can read about it in the Bible.  Need help with your marriage, your finances, raising your children?  The Scriptures will tell you what to do.  What about your health, your job, your in-laws, your leisure?  You name it, it's in his Word.  Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words shall not pass away.  Matthew 24:35.


But gaining knowledge and understanding are not the only thing that you receive when you read God's Word; God's Word has the power to change your behavior.  Whenever you read and study the Scriptures, you no longer sin or go astray; iniquity does not have dominion over you and you will not be ashamed.  You will be free from bondage to sin, putting your trust in God. In Isaiah 55:11 we read, So shall my Word be which goes forth from my mouth; It shall not return to me empty, without accomplishing what I desire, and without succeeding in the matter for which I sent it.


Little by little, verse by verse, precept upon precept God's Word will change your heart as you read it daily and apply it in your life.  Your heart will be cleansed and enlarged, increasing your capacity to love God and others.  You will have an upright heart with a bent to do good if you allow God's Word to change you from the inside out. 


No other book is like the Bible.  The Bible is unique because it's author is God himself.  Some say it's his love letter to us.  It contains everything that he wants us to know.  I find new things every time I open it's pages, even in passages that I have read before.  I never get tired of reading or studying it because it speaks directly to me and to my situation.  Sometimes when I read it, I am encouraged to persevere, to keep doing what I'm doing; other times I'm comforted, finding assurance that God is with me through every trial.  Some days it makes me joyful, happy, and excited to read about his promises to us his children.  Then there are also times when I read the Bible and I feel convicted or sorry because I realize I have not done the things I should.  Always though, I sense the mystery and majesty of the Scriptures; because I realize that my understanding is limited and his Word contains so much more than I will ever be able to know and understand.  I feel as though I could spend a lifetime reading and studying and still only scratch the surface of what it all means.  O how I love thy law!  It is my meditation all the day.  Psalm 119:97


What about you; have you read any good books lately?

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