DT-READING X: ON GIVING: HOW, HOW MUCH AND WHY?

 Dear brothers and sisters,

This week’s lesson is exclusively on giving and honoring the Lord with our resources/wealth. We all know that some people are generous in giving for the Lord’s ministry and some are reluctant or feel uncomfortable even when we talk to them about giving. A few years ago I met a person who told me that one of the reasons he felt hesitant to go to church was because the church leaders often ask for money/offering/contribution from members. How unfortunate on both ends, right? And it is also true that certain people are regular in church worship, but when it comes to giving they are tightfisted and stingy. Maybe they don’t know how to give, or have not learned to give? But there are some people who are eager to give, some are cheerful givers, and some they give sacrificially and generously. As the disciples of Jesus (the disciples were called Christians in the Bible. see Acts 11:20-21), we must learn to give and honor the Lord with our wealth.

If you are one of those people who might be having doubts or questions about giving, I’d say that is a good thing too. We all need to ask, think, and understand why we do what we do.

We will briefly look at each of the listed themes/learning objectives below.

dt-reading 10: Learning objectives

1.     # How not to give?

2.     # How much to give?

3.     # How to give?

4.     # Four ways/areas of giving

5.     # Where to give?

6.     # Why give?

7.     # Some Bible passages on giving

 

How not to give?

For this lesson let us start with the negatives. So, how not to give or how shouldn’t we give as disciples of Jesus? Here are four ways how not to give because such giving is a waste and has no value in the sight of God as it doesn’t honor or glorify Him.

1.     # Don’t give grudgingly, or out of compulsion, or with a stingy heart (see. 2 Cor. 9:6, 7)

2.     # Don’t give what cost you noting (see 2 Samuel 24:24). Don’t give your torn notes, or coins, or anything that you cost you nothing. It doesn’t honor God, and maybe your given could be dishonoring Him.

3.     # Don’t give unwisely. Do not throw pearls to pigs (Matthew 7:6). Don’t give to false church and teachers. Don’t give your money/wealth to organizations/people who will use it for bad purposes (See. 2 Peter 2, 3; 1 Timothy 6:3-10).

4.     # Don’t give before you reconcile (see Matthew 5:23-24). For instance, if you are in a bitter conflict/bad relationship with your husband/wife/children/friend, it is wise to first reconcile. This principle applies to your relationship with God as well. To reconcile, we must change our minds, ask forgiveness or offer forgiveness and amend the relationship. Reconciliation should precede or come before giving.

 

How much to give?

Every good thing (life, health, forgiveness, family, joy, wealth, etc) is God’s gift and they come from above (see James 1:17), and in the words of Apostle John, “A person can receive only what is given them from heaven” (John 3:27). Every good thing we have belongs to God, all of them (see 1^st Chronicles 29:12-14). And therefore in giving and honoring the Lord (with our wealth), I believe it is not really 10 %, or 50 % of our income, but rather it is how much we trust God and His Words. Let me repeat this, giving it is rather how much do or can we trust and honor God with our life and wealth (also see Luke 21:1-4_ the Widow offering). 

So the question of how much do we give should be answered by each of us, that is why Apostle Paul said to the believers, “each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give” (2 Cor. 9:7). Thus, in giving and honoring the Lord with our wealth (weekly, monthly, yearly, or as and when the Holy Spirit moves him), some people may give 1% or 5%, some may give 10% or 20 %, and some may still give 50% or 90%, and each of them must give as they have decided in their heart.

NOTE: I think is good to remember what Scripture tells us on giving. Jesus said, “Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with the measure you use, it will be measured to you” (Luke 6:38).

How to give?

We have learned 4 ways how not to give and how much should we give. Now let us briefly look at how do we give and honor the Lord with our wealth/resources.  Below are the 7 Biblical principles on giving:

1.     # Give cheerfully/willingly ( 2 Cor. 9:7)

2.     # Give generously and sacrificially (2 Cor. 9:6, Hebrews 13:16, 2 Samuel 24:24)

3.     # Give secretly (Matthew 6:3-4)

4.     # Give as the Holy Spirit lead or prompt you (Romans 12:8; Galatians 5:25)

5.     # Give for the glory of God (1 Cor. 10:31)

6.     # Give out of love (1 Cor. 13:3)

7.     # Give in the name of Jesus, giving thanks to God (Colossians 3:17)

note: We know from the Scripture that everything belongs to God, therefore God does not need anything for us, that is why King David rightly prayed, “Wealth and honor come from you; you are the ruler of everything… But who am I, and who are my people that we should be able to give as generously as this? Everything comes from you, and we have given you only what comes from your hand” (1^st Chronicles 29:12-14). So you may ask, then why do give? The answer is giving exists in principle as an expression of faith in God and in His words, and giving exists in principle for God’s glory. We shall see later some of the reasons why we give.

Four ways/areas to give and honor the Lord with our wealth

1.     # Give to honor and express gratitude to God (thanksgiving) (Proverbs 3:9; 2 Cor. 9:11)

2.     # Give to engage in mission/ministry (1 Cor. 16:1-2; Matthew 10:10; 1 Timothy 5:17-18). There are at least three ways to engage in ministry and mission: Going, giving, praying.

3.     # Give to encourage and bless people who serve/lead/help you (Romans 12:13; Matthew 10:10; 1 Timothy 5:17-18).

4.     # Give (Alms-giving) to meet the needs of the needy (Matthew 6:2-4, Matthew 5:42, 1 John 3:17)

NOTE: I would like to once again remind us to give with a clear conscience and that our giving should be based on Biblical principles. For example, as I noted earlier, when you give, give it in the name of Jesus, give to honor the Lord, give as an act of worship. Do not give in your own name or make and honor your own name. Do not give to make your family name great. Such giving may be good in the sight of people and they may praise you (that is your reward), but in the sight of God, such giving has no value.

 

Where to give?

The next logical question is where to give? Two specific places you and I can give are:

1.     # Our own local church (1 Cor. 16:1-2; Acts 4:32-37). The church/fellowship where we attend and are part of, the church/fellowship where we are nourished spiritually. Every Biblical church will have various ministries and missions. When we give and honor the Lord with our wealth by giving it to our local churches, the leaders of our churches can and will use our giving wisely in various ministries and missions for the glory of God.

2.     # Whenever you see genuine needs and the Holy Spirit leads you to give. It could be to some mission works, to needy people, to sponsor a child education, to God’s servants, to an orphanage home, etc. Pray and give wisely (read. Matthew 25:31-40)

 

Why GIVE?

The question WHY is an important one to be considered. You may ask, why give and honor the Lord with our wealth? We will briefly look at 4 reasons why we give.

1.     # God tells us to give (Proverbs 3:9; Luke 6:38). We may not know all the reasons why God tells us, commanded us, and counseled us to give. But I believe these 4 reasons are momentously significant. And should I say that the returns of our giving are infinitely good too?

2.     #  It is an act of loving and honoring God (Proverbs 3:9; Luke 10:27). Wealth/money basically represents our strength, ability, and our responsibility as well. By working our strength and sweat are exchanged/converted into wealth. Some people inherit wealth from their parents. In giving, our mind, soul, heart, and strength are involved. Giving to the Lord then is an act of love and honoring God.

3.     #. It is for our own good as well. “A generous person will prosper; whoever refreshes others will be refreshed” (Proverbs 11:25) also see Matthew 6:3-4; Luke 6:38; 2 Cor. 9:6)

4.     It glorifies God (1 Cor. 10:31; Isaiah 43:7; 2 Cor. 9:12-13; Matthew 5:16). Here is one example of how God is gloried in our giving, “This service that you perform is not only supplying the needs of the Lord’s people but is also overflowing in many expressions of thanks to God. Because of the service by which you have proved yourselves, others will praise God…” (2 Cor. 9:12-13)

 

Some Bible passages on giving

1.     ## Each of you should give what you have decided in your heart to give, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver (2 Corinthians 9:7)

2.     ## A generous person will prosper; whoever refreshes others will be refreshed (Proverbs 18:16)

3.     ## But who am I, and who are my people, that we should be able to give as generously as this? Everything comes from you, and we have given you only what comes from your hand (1 Chronicle 29:14)

4.     ## For if the willingness is there, the gift is acceptable according to what one has, not according to what one does not have (2 Cor. 8:12)

5.     ## Give, and it will be given to you. A good measure, pressed down, shaken together, and running over, will be poured into your lap. For with what measure you use, it will be measured to you (Luke 6:38)

6.     ## Honor the Lord with your wealth, with the first fruits of all your crops (Proverbs 3:9)

7.     ## God is able to bless you abundantly, so that in all things at all times, having all you need, you will abound in every good work (2 Cor. 9:8)

8.     ## When you give to the needy, do not announce it with trumpets, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and on the streets to be honored by others, Truly I tell you, they have received their reward in full. But when you give to the needy, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your giving may be secret. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret will reward you (Matthew 6:2-4)

9.     ## If I give all I possess to the poor and give over my body to hardship that I may boast, but do not have love, I gain nothing (1 Cor. 13:3)

 

God bless you! 

DT READING IX: FAITH AND WORK

 Dear brothers and sisters,

The Bible tells us that without faith it is impossible to please God (Hebrews 11:6). We might ask then, what does it mean without faith? And are we supposed to do everything by faith? Furthermore, the Bible also tells us that salvation is by faith, healing is by faith, and relationship with God is by faith, etc. So why is faith central to our existence as disciples of Jesus? Another important theme that people sometimes get puzzled about is the relation between faith and work. They asked: how do faith and work go together? This week, we will briefly look at these important questions.

READING IX learning objectives

-          Biblical faith

-          Faith is absolutely necessary

-          Faith and evidence

-          Salvation: Faith and Work (A clarification) 

-          Healing: Faith in action

Biblical Faith

We need to make a distinction between Biblical faith and faith in other things (or gods/people). As one servant of God rightly said, Biblical faith is solely based on the word of God. It means having faith in what God says and His Words recorded in the Scripture.

Any kind of faith that is not based on the Word of God is not Biblical faith. For example, Muslims have faith in their prophet or Allah, or Hindus have faith in their holy books, or their gods/goddesses, or someone might say, I have faith in doctors, etc. these are also a valid way of using the word faith, but such faith is not Biblical faith.

Faith is based on reality or truth that a person believes or trusts (put his or her confidence), and it is in such an act of faith a person acknowledges the reality or truth that he or she believes to be the case. So when Christians, for example, have faith in Jesus, it means they are putting their confidence/trust in Jesus, and in such confidence or confession they acknowledge Jesus as the reality or the truth.  

One of the distinctions between Biblical faith and faith in other things (other gods, doctors, or machines) is the role of faith. In Biblical faith, faith is indispensable or absolutely necessary. Without faith there is no salvation, there is no forgiveness, or there is no healing. The Bible tells us that without faith it is impossible to please God.

On the other hand, a person’s faith in other things (other gods, doctors, or a machine) can be irrelevant in the outworking of a reality he or she professes faith. For example, a person may never have faith in a surgeon to remove a stone in his or her kidney, yet a surgeon can certainly remove a stone in a person’s kidney. In this case, a person’s faith in a doctor can be irrelevant. Furthermore, even if a doctor is a murderer, or an adulterer, or abuses children and has no faith in anyone, he still can do his job successfully. However, Biblical faith is entirely different. Biblical faith is a response to God and His Word; it is an act of obedience and therefore a person’s participation (having faith) is absolutely necessary for the working of God.

Another important thing to understand is that Biblical faith is holistic. It includes the entirety of one’s life. Our behaviors, characters, thought life, relationship with God and people, attitudes, etc. all these aspects in one’s life matter. A person cannot live nor do anything he or she wants (adultery, addiction to drugs, loss of character, corruption, disobeying God’s word, etc.) and claim to have faith in God, for such faith is not genuine faith. A person who has faith (Biblical faith) will live a life of obedience to God and his or her life will be a demonstration of God’s love, characters, and words.

Biblical faith is based on the Word of God; to have faith is to believe God, to seek and obey God’s Word.

“And without faith, it is impossible to please God because anyone who comes to him must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who earnestly seek him” (Hebrews 6:11).

Faith and evidence

One of the criticisms/clichés atheists often throw at Christians goes something like this: “You Christians believe in God without evidence (scientific evidence?); your faith is blind faith.” This I believe is a faulty charge and a huge theme in itself requiring a lengthy discussion. One may also ask questions like; do we need evidence to have faith? Do we followers of Jesus have good evidence for our faith? Is our faith really blind as theists claim (or accuse)?

Like I mentioned above, a lengthy discussion can be done on such charges/criticisms/questions, but we will look at just one example of evidence for our faith that Apostle Paul pointed out in his letter to Romans. To the men of unrighteousness, ungodliness, who suppress the truth, Paul wrote, “For what can be known about God is plain to them because God has shown to them. For God’s invisible attributes, namely his eternal power and divine attributes have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse (Romans 1:18-20).

The evidence of our faith in God that Paul stated in Romans 1 is the creation of the world, the universe, and the things God has made. The air we breathe; the skies above us; the sea below us; all that God made in the universe and in our world are the evidence of God whom we believe. From nothing comes nothing! The universe exists, our beautiful world came into existence, and they didn’t come out of nothing, but God who is the only self-existing, eternal, and perfect being made them all.

Salvation: Faith and work (A clarification)

One of the roles of faith as we learned is to receive salvation which is given to us by God’s grace. Apostle Paul stated this truth clearly in Ephesians 2, that salvation is by grace through faith, and salvation is a free gift of God, and not by our own works. On the other hand, James wrote to his readers that faith without work is death (James 2:14f).

Many have claimed that Paul and James differed in the question of faith versus works (and that they are contradicting each other), however, in reality, the spiritual fruit that James talks about simply demonstrates the true faith that Paul wrote as such their writing are complementary and not contradictory.

For more discussion on faith and work (on justification), please click this link to read… (Faith and Work, an essay by Thomas Schreiner) https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/essay/faith-and-works/

Healing: Faith and prayer

Another role of faith is receiving healing from God. We learn from the Bible that God is a healer and we can read numerous examples of God’s healing various people of all kinds of sicknesses.

In the Gospel, Luke tells us a story of Jesus healing a leper wrote, “While he (Jesus) was in one of the cities, there came a man full of leprosy. And when he saw Jesus, he fell on his face and begged him, “Lord if you will, you can make me clean.” And Jesus stretched his hand and touched him, saying, “I will, be clean.” And immediately leprosy left him. (Luke 5:12,13).

Now, suppose the leper never came to Jesus or ask Jesus to heal his leprosy, will the leper receive healing? I don’t think so. A person claims to have faith, but if he or she never prayed or if someone never prayed on his behalf (asking and trusting God for healing/ coming to God in faith) he will not receive healing. Prayer is faith in action. We believe in God so we pray.

Conclusion

As disciples of Jesus, faith is absolutely necessary. The Bible tells us without faith it is impossible to please God. From this week’s lesson, we have learned what faith is and the need to know the distinction between Biblical faith and faith on other things. As we continue our walk with Jesus, may we continue to gladly read, study, and learn His words to obey Him, and may we continue to listen and hear His Word as faith comes from hearing His Word (see Romans 10:17).

God bless you!      

 

DT Reading VIII: Jesus Christ: His Life, His Works, and His Teachings

  "If Jesus Christ be God and died for me, then no sacrifice can be too great for me to make for

Him," C. T. Studd 

Greetings everyone! 

This week’s lesson/reading is something about the person who changed the course of human history and turned the world upside. The person is our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ! We will briefly look at some of the powerful and unique aspects of Jesus’ life, works, and teaching.

Week VIII learning objectives:

- The life of Jesus
- The work of Jesus
- The teaching of teaching

NO ROOM FOR THE BOOKS

Apostle John wrote the Gospel of Jesus and concluded with a statement, “Jesus did many other things as well. If every one of them were written down, I suppose that even the whole world would not have room for the books that would be written” (John 21:25). This of course is one of the ways of writing to make a point that the works of Jesus are indeed are innumerable.

I like visiting libraries and Christian books stores even if I don’t get time to sit and read in libraries or buy books at times, and I have been to several. As I reflect, I am thinking of those huge libraries and book stores having thousands upon thousands of books on various subjects that center on Jesus.

Jesus didn’t write a single book or a letter with His own hands, but millions of books have been written about Him. His life, works, and teachings have been studied and written by countless people throughout history and it will continue till the end of this world.

HIS LIFE

The birth of Jesus was foretold 1000s of years ahead by prophets. His birth was announced by the angles, and upon His birth, the hearts of many were stirred. At His birth some rejoiced and celebrated that the savior was born, some feared and their hearts shook that a new king was born (Matthew 2), and still others wondered who the child was (Luke 1).

The life of Jesus revealed a mystery that God took the form of a man. No one has seen God but Jesus and He revealed who God is, thus seeing Him, people saw God (John 14:9). Jesus is the exact representation of God (Colossians 1:15). He is the Word that was in the beginning and that Word became flesh (John 1).  

His life represents perfection. There was not a single action, word, attitude, or behavior that was sinful in Jesus. He was blameless and he committed no sin. Before the laws of Moses, he was guiltless, and when judged by the teachers of laws, they could not find him a fault (John 18).  

Jesus is the son of God, and yet He chooses to live a life of humility, servitude, and complete obedience to His Father, even to the point of death on the Cross (Philippians 2). He is the perfect example of truthfulness, holiness, righteousness, love, etc. He is the one and only perfect model for us.

HIS WORKS

The works of Christ are innumerable. His works center on truth, grace, and sacrifice base on agape, the love of God. He gave himself to His Father’s Will, in the mission of redeeming the fallen creation. His works on earth were for the redemption of humanity; to reconcile the broken fellowship between God and his creation. The recreation of what was lost and broken. In Him, we receive life, and we become New Creations (2 Cor. 5:17).

Marked by love and selflessness, yet fulfilled the justice of God. He died that we may live. He paid the price to free us from sins and condemnation.

“Surely He took on our infirmities and carried our sorrows; yet we considered Him stricken by God, struck down and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds, we are healed” (Isaiah 53:4,5).

He came to serve, to save, to love, to guide, to heal, to forgive, and all his works were demonstrations of God’s great love.

 HIS TEACHING

Someone rightly said, upon reading the Gospel if a person is not astonished at the teaching of Jesus, he or she hasn’t really understood the Gospel. As Jesus began his earthly ministry, his first sermon, his teaching, the beatitudes (Matthew 6, 7) shocked people. He said,

-       “Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you and say all kinds of evil things about you falsely on the account of me.”

-       “And whoever insults a brother will be brought before the council, and whoever says, “Fool” will be sent to fiery hell.”

-       “But I say to you that whoever looks at a woman to desire her has already committed adultery with her in his heart.”

-       “But I say to you, love your enemy and pray for those who persecute you.”

-       “But if you don’t forgive others, your Father will not forgive you your sins”

The teachings of Jesus were counter-culture in many ways and His teachings were beyond the traditions of humans. He spoke and taught the truth with love, authority, and perfect courage. He feared no threats from the human agency; no pressure, rejection, and persecution from people could hold Him. And to his last breath, he taught the truth and he died for the truth (John 18, 19).

He taught about His heavenly Father and told his disciples to call God our Father; He taught about heaven, a dwelling place of God; He taught about hell, a place of torment, a place prepared for the devil, demons, and all those who reject God. Someone said, Jesus taught about Hell or mentioned Hell more than any other subject. “And if your eye causes you to stumble, pluck it out. It is better for you to enter the kingdom of God with one eye than to have two eyes and be thrown into hell, where ‘their worm never dies, and the fire is never quenched.” (Mark 9:47-48). This warning of Jesus shows the severity of hell.

Jesus thought about several other things that are needed for us on this journey of life, love, sins, forgiveness, demons, money, salvation, mission, his second coming, and so on.

WHAT NOW?

As disciples of Jesus, or students of Jesus, we follow his life meaning we live as he lived. We live in humility and we live a life of obedience to God. As disciples of Jesus, we do the works he did. He came not to be served, but to serve (Matthew 20:28) and so shall we be. And we teach what he taught.

Someone has rightly said, salvation is a free gift of God and we receive it by faith, but discipleship will cost our life. At this point perhaps some may be thinking, well to be a disciple of Jesus is difficult and perhaps I am not ready or fit to be a disciple. I will also tell you that such thinking is true as well because the truth is none of us on our own merit can become disciples of Jesus.

The call to become a disciple of Jesus is a call of God’s grace. It is upon the realization of our inability; we will also know what the grace of God is. We are only qualified to be His disciple because of the grace of God and upon trusting in Him. By grace, we are called. By grace, we are saved. And by grace, we can and are his disciples.

“And yet one understands that to contemplate, write and learn His life, His works, and His teaching will require thousands upon thousands years, and to live as He had lived is only possible through the grace of God.”

DT Reading VII: The Bible and It's Authority

Dear brothers and sisters,

This week’s lesson/reading I believe is the foundation on which everything else will either stand or fall apart. Just like all buildings and bridges are built on foundations, our lives as disciples of Jesus are built on a foundation. The foundation is the Bible and its authority. If we fail to build our beliefs and lives on this foundation, we will fall apart like a foolish man who built his house on sand, but if we build on this foundation, we will stand like a wise man who built his house on the rock (Matthew 7:24-27).

As you go through and contemplate this week’s reading, I would also like to ask you to get your Bible, open it, and read it with much joy. 

WEEK VII: LEARNING OBJECTIVES

-          The Bible
-          The Authority of the Bible
-          The Bible has withstood the Test of Time
-          Life Journey Map
-          Read and Live

THE BIBLE

First, let us look at the meaning of the word Bible. The word “Bible” is from Late Medieval Latin biblia "the Bible", derives from the Greek word Biblia, meaning “books.” So the Bible basically means the Books. The same Greek word also means “scroll” or “parchment.” The first words of the scripture would have been written on parchments, and then copied to scrolls and distributed, and so on. When the movable printing press was invented by Johannes Gutenberg, he completed printing the Bible about 1455 working at Mainz, Germany.

Like every book has an author (s), who wrote his or her thoughts, what in his mind, his views, and so on, the Bible also has an author who is God. However, God used various people (his servants) to write the Bible. God inspired his servants to write the Bible. The servants of God received God’s words and instructions in various ways and wrote the Bible. Some of them heard the voice of God, some were shown vision, and some through their inner voice and experience, and still others were given revelation. God inspired his servants to write the Bible in their own styles, using their own languages (Hebrews, Aramaic/Greek), and in different situations, places, and histories.

 “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work” (2 Timothy 3:16).

The books of the Bible were written at different times by different authors over a period of approximately 1,500 years. About 40 servants of God wrote the Bible.

 THE AUTHORITY OF THE BIBLE

The next vital truth we need to know as disciples of Jesus is the authority of the Bible. Without fully trusting, acknowledging, and relying on the authority of the Bible we cannot stand our ground in our walk and journey of faith.

I have read some books in the past that I don’t know the authors well. I am also not sure what they have written was based on rigorous studies and researches and universal truth. I am not even certain what was written in those books were reliable, trustworthy, or flawless? The Bible on the other hand is entirely different. The God of the universe is the author of the Bible, and He did it by using his servants to write His Words. The omniscient (knowing everything), the omnipotent (all-powerful), and the omnipresent God (present everywhere at the same time) is the source of the Bible; consequently, every word in the Bible is true, perfect, and flawless.

“Every word of God is flawless; he is a shield to those who take refuge in him” (Proverbs 30:5); “the words of the Lord are flawless, like silver purified in a crucible like gold refined seven times” (Psalm 12:6).  “All scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness” (2 Timothy 3:16).

Authority comes from the author and the author of the Bible is God therefore the authority of the Bible comes from God himself. Behind every word and command in the Bible is the mind of God. The Bible is God’s Words and God’s Thoughts. The Bible reveals God’s Will and Ways and they are flawless, reliable, and universal.

As disciples of Jesus, we rest our lives on the authority of the Bible

WITHSTOOD THE TEST OF TIME

The Bible is the bestselling book of all time. It is the only book that has changed and completely transformed countless lives down history, and it will remain the same in the age to come. “Heaven and earth will pass away, but my words will never pass away” (Matthew 24:35). But at the same time, countless people have been killed because of the Bible, and so in that sense, the Bible is also the most hated book that has ever been written. Satan and demons hate the Bible, and the people of this world (those who love the world, those who follow the works of Satan) hate the Bible.

We learned from history that many people have tried their best to destroy the Bible. Many have burned the Bible, many have tried to distort the Bible, many have spoken against and tried to disprove the reliability of the Bible, and still many are trying their best to destroy the Bible in various ways even today in and around the world. However, the Bible has withstood the test of time.

Many who have tried to destroy the Bible are dead and gone, but the Bible is still available and alive. I know a certain atheist (a person who doesn’t believe in God or the Bible), a well-known British thinker- Christopher Hitchens. I have listened to his talks and debates with Christians a few times and have bought and read a little bit of his famous book, God is not great. It was a bitter book I should say. He insults God; he laughs and mocks at the thing of God and the Bible. He did his best to destroy the credibility of the Bible, but he didn’t succeed. I know also several people like Hitchens who are trying their best to destroy the Bible. Hitchens died in 2011. He is dead and gone, but the Bible is still credible, and it is still the bestselling book in the world. “The scripture cannot be broken” (John 10:35).

THE JOURNEY MAP OF LIFE

I assume some of you might have read the famous allegorical book, “The Pilgrim Progress” by John Bunyan. If you haven’t read that book, I highly recommend you to read it, not one time, but several times. In his book, Bunyan tells a story of a man named Christian, living in a city of destruction with his wife, children, and friends, and he later journeyed his way from the city of destruction to the celestial city.

Life is indeed a journey. We are all pilgrims, and we are traveling in this world toward a destination, either to hell, a place of God’s wrath or to heaven where God dwells. In this life’s journey, God has given all of us a map to read and follow. For example, we are instructed to follow the narrow path; we are counseled to run away from lust and sexual immorality and flee from idolatry (Matthew 7:13; 1 Cor. 10:14). We are to be careful in all our ways as we travel. The map of life God has given us is the Bible, His Word.

“Beloved, I beg you as sojourners and pilgrims abstain from fleshly lusts which war against the soul” (1 Peter 2:11); “For our citizenship is in heaven, from which we also eagerly wait for the Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body that it may be conformed to His glorious body, according to the working by which he is able even to subdue all things to himself” (Philippians 3:20-21).

READ AND LIVE

If the God of the Universe is the author of the Bible; if the Bible is supremely authoritative; if the Bible has changed and transformed the lives of countless people; if the Bible has withstood the test of time; and if the Bible is the map of life that God has given to us, then we are the most fortunate people alive on earth to have the Bible in our hands and homes today. On the other hand, we are the most pitied or unwise people if we don’t take it, read it, or live accordingly knowing that the Bible is God’s Eternal Word.

As the disciples of Jesus, we have no other books but the Bible; we have no other authority but the authority of God’s Word; we have no other map of life but the Bible. Let us read the Bible, apply our minds, humble before the Lord, and may God in His grace come and make us understand His word, so that we may live as his true disciples here on earth. Amen.

Prayer points:

1.      Give thanks to God for the Bible in our hands and homes
2.      Prayer of commitment to reading the Bible