The Book

The Bible has been called a story, a map, and an instruction manual. When God inspired the Bible, He didn’t do it in the form of a textbook. Instead, it’s more like a series of journals, truths, and stories from people learning to walk with God. The Bible is the inspired word of God told by others.

You may have heard that many countries still find the Bible illegal. “Illegal” may not be strictly true, but it might as well be in most of these places. The Voice of the Martyrs map categorizes countries where bibles are (1) difficult/dangerous to obtain, (2) illegal or highly restricted, and (3) strictly illegal and only available through covert smuggling.

Hard to believe that leaders of a country would be so frightened and intimidated by a book that they would ban the owning and reading of that book. But as Christians we know, it isn’t just a book. It is the word of God.

Joe Carter of the Gospel Coalition even lists the 10 most dangerous countries to be a Christian. In North Korea and Afghanistan you will be killed. Intimidation and harassment in Somalia and Libya. In Yemen and Iran you are a criminal. Christians in those countries pursue God faithfully and sneak Bible texts in for study despite persecution. Yet here in America we let our Bibles collect dust and leave them only partially read. People say casually that they are Christian without ever practicing their faith.

The Bible is not a book it is the book and we are privileged in this country to have a copy in our homes, on our desk, on our phones, and even in every hotel room. Billy Graham said:

Today, many people keep the Bible a closed book. One reason is because we don’t realize how much we need it. If I suggested that you stop eating for a few months, you’d ignore me—and rightly so. We need food in order to survive, and without food we’ll grow weak and eventually die.Yet many Christians are spiritually starved and weak because they ignore the spiritual “food” God has provided in the Bible. The Bible is not an option; it is a necessity. You cannot grow spiritually strong without it.

I say…. Amen!