God’s grace, love and power – Day 16

The Bible is a special book that originated over a period of 1 500 years. About 40 people, from all kinds of worlds and time periods, wrote the Bible. The Bible has a wonderful unity. From Genesis to Revelation, there is one recurring theme: God loves people and wants to have a relationship with them.

The fact that the Bible was written by human authors, is not in conflict with the evidence that the Bible is the Word of God. God employed the authors of the Bible to write down his Word. In other words, the human authors of the Bible were guided by the Holy Spirit to write down what God wants to tell us.

Dare to pick up the Bible and read it! It will speak to you. You will hear God speak to you. If you do not have much experience of reading the Bible, start with the Gospels of Mark and John. And then read Genesis. Take a section to read each day. If you are praying, you will find that what you read is talking to you. Slowly, you will discover that the Bible is truly the Word of God.

Read the Bible with an openness – do not read it as if you already know it all. The young Samuel so eloquently said: “Speak, Lord, your servant is listening!” I would first like to hear what you say. Read the Bible with an expectation – look forward to what God may say to you. But, read it with an obedient attitude. People who absorb the Word of God will be blessed in what they do, writes James.

The Bible was not written in order to increase our knowledge (certainly, it does), but to change our lives.