Bible Sunday 2018

Today is Bible Sunday. It’s a day when we give thanks for the Bible but a day when we must also challenge ourselves with the question, ‘What are we giving thanks for ?’ 

There’s a poem I came across when preparing for today which says  :

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, but from watching TV
So then back to the table side by side,
Lie the Holy Bible and the TV Guide. 

That poem is quite amusing but it’s also actually a really sad reminder of how we neglect the Bible and yet it is from there that we learn about God’s work in the world and his love for the world and every single person in it - including you and me.... 

In one of the more modern translations of the bible there is a preview which describes the book 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.’

Yes, we are invited to play a part in God’s plan for the world, not as watchers but as doers in all kinds of different ways... And our readings today help us in this challenge... 

In the reading from Isaiah (55:1-5) we are invited to come and experience God’s grace – we are to come, it says, all who are thirsty and who have no money – come, buy and eat. We are to come and accept the gifts of God, to accept his grace, his love, his mercy, and to find refreshment and renewal in his care.

As the reading goes on we are invited also to ‘buy’. It’s a language we can all understand – living in a consumer society we are used to paying for things, except for this gift there is no charge – we buy it for nothing ! We are not just to come but we are to accept our free gift, to move beyond the passive and to take out our gift to transform our lives and the lives of others.

The language of this reading describes this as eating – in other words we are to be doers. We are not to look at the gifts of God and admire them from afar. We are not just to take them and keep them for ourselves but we are to enjoy them and to use them in our own lives, and to seek to glorify God in all that we do, and that must include sharing this message that we read about in the Bible - a message of love, hope, peace, acceptance, forgiveness, grace and mercy... and so much else...

And then in the Reading from Paul’s letter to Timothy  (2 Tim 3:14-4:5) We read that ‘all scripture is inspired by God and is useful for teaching, for reproof, for correction and for training in righteousness, so that everyone who belongs to God may be proficient, equipped for every good work…’

Later Paul writes, “proclaim the message; be persistent whether the time is favourable or unfavourable” and also “Do the work of an evangelist, carry out your ministry fully”

Paul is emphasising the importance of the Bible for living and he is also reminding those who heard these words that each one of them had a part to play in ministry. Today we all have a part to play as well. Each of us is called by God to ministry. That ministry may be standing up leading worship or it may be offering prayer on a regular basis or it may be helping with flowers or cleaning the church or with the gift of music… Or a whole host of other things… But God calls us to serve...

And part of that service to which we are all called is to tell others about our faith and about our Saviour.... And we may sometimes feel inadequate to do that, but the Bible gives us confidence, the Bible gives us strength... but we must engage with the Bible and we’re challenged to ask ourselves when we really do that.... 

We have an enormous privilege in being called to serve God and to play a part in this incredible journey that we call life, and God gives us the tools to enjoy that life to the full and to share that enjoyment with others...

Eugene Peterson, who died earlier this week, translated a version of the Bible known as the message. Verse 17 of Chapter 3 of the 2nd letter to Timothy in that says, ‘...through the Word we are put together and shaped up for the tasks God has for us.’ 

Those words are a simple reminder of the fact that the Bible is both a powerful tool and weapon for every Christian - but we need to know it... We need to grapple with it, engage with it, pray with it....

The gospel (John 5: 36b-47) says, ‘you search the scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life... yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life... I know that you do not have the love of God within you.’

After stressing the importance of knowledge of the Bible and real time spent reading it, thinking about it and praying with it, there is here a little warning that words by themselves mean very little - we can know the bible backwards but not live by the words; we can discuss all kinds of things relating to the bible, but if we do not live by the command to love then we’re wasting our time... our knowledge of the bible has to be visible in our words and our actions...

A new Vicar moved into a 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..."

Genesis 3:10 reads: “I heard your voice in the garden, but I was naked, and I hid myself.”

One thing that this reminds us of is that the Bible can literally be used in all kinds of different ways and some times we hear it quoted on different sides of arguments but the measure has to be how we show our love for others....

The Bible gives us lessons, it gives us encouragement, it gives us guidance and hope and peace and it gives us promises from God that he will be with us, he’ll never leave us, he’ll provide for us a place in his heavenly Kingdom and he’ll love us when we do good things and he’ll love us even when we mess things up a bit... 

Ultimately the Bible reminds us of God’s constant invitation to draw closer to him - and so as we hear his Word may we have a burning desire to read more; as we are challenged by his Word, may we know his limitless love for us and as we share his Word with others, may we recognise his strength in us. AMEN