A
new Vicar moved into town and went out one Saturday to visit his parishioners.
All went well until he came to one house. It was obvious that someone was home,
but no one came to the door even after he had knocked several times. Finally,
he took out his card, wrote on the back "Revelation 3:20" and stuck
it in the door.
The
next day, as he was counting the offering he found his card in the collection
plate. Below his message was a note just saying, "Genesis 3:10."
Revelation
3:20 reads:
"Behold, I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice, and
opens the door, I will come in, and will dine with them, and they with
me."
Genesis
3:10 reads:
"And he said, I heard your voice in the garden, but I was naked, and I hid
myself."
One
thing that this joke reminds us of is that the Bible can literally be used in
all kinds of different ways
I
don’t want, and I suspect you want even less, for this to sound like a second
sermon but as it’s Bible Sunday today I just wanted to offer a few thoughts
about the Bible.
As you probably know the Bible is the best selling book of all
time and it’s apparently also the most shoplifted book of all time.
And
yet, in spite of all the copies that are around it tends to be read rarely.
It’s a book often taken for granted in places where it is freely available and
yet in places where it is difficult to obtain people are prepared to risk their
lives to get it !
And
we often forget that it is a book written to change our lives. It’s interesting
as history, it’s often enjoyable as poetry, it contains verses which many
people know but don’t even realise are from the bible – but it’s most important
feature is that it is a book written for us collectively and individually.
It is a book that deserves to be read, a book that we need to
read. As an example of the relevance of the Bible, there’s a true story of an
American Soldier who was on one of the South Sea Islands in the 2nd
world war – the friendly host, trying to assure the soldier that they had many
things in common brought a copy of the bible out of his hut, and he said, ‘This
is my most prized possession.’
Dismissively the soldier replied, ‘We’ve outgrown that sort
of thing in our country.’
The islander who belonged to a tribe that had until recently,
practised cannibalism was unimpressed by this lack of courtesy as well as the
lack of faith, and he replied, ‘It’s a good thing we haven’t outgrown it here –
if we had you would have been a meal as soon as we saw you.’
The
bible is history, the bible is a guide for our lives and the bible is God’s
living word – it isn’t a book about yesterday and for yesterday – the bible is a book about
today and tomorrow and for today and tomorrow.
In one of the more modern translations of the bible there is
a preview which describes it as ‘pages that contain stories on an epic scale –
thrillers, adventures, family sagas and more – taut with emotion and spanning
the whole of history.
Yet a single current – one of love, sadness, betrayal and
forgiveness – flows through. It points to a Father who offered his only Son so
that we can go free….
A cast of thousands crowds the pages – people living in
different times and different places… But the casting isn’t closed. In the
continuing drama, each one of us is invited to play a part.’
May
we play our part in the continuing drama that is the story of humanity – and
may we constantly use the bible to see God’s way and God’s will.
I’ll
finish with a short poem :-
They lie on
the table side by side
The Holy
Bible and the TV Guide.
One is well
worn and cherished with pride--
Not the Bible, but the TV Guide.
One is used
daily to help folks decide.
No, not the Bible, but the TV Guide.
As the pages
are turned, what shall they see?
Oh, what does it matter, turn on the TV.
So they open
the book in which they confide.
No, not the Bible, but the TV Guide.
The Word of
God is seldom read.
Maybe a verse before they fall into bed.
Exhausted and
sleepy and tired as can be.
Not from
reading the Bible, from watching TV
So then back
to the table side by side,
Lie the Holy Bible and the TV Guide.
No time for
prayer, no time for the Word,
The plan of Salvation is seldom heard.
But
forgiveness of sin, so full and free,
Is found in the Bible, not on TV.
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