The Bible is Timeless

The first words of this glorious old tome were put to parchment over three thousand years ago by a man who spoke with God face to face. His name was Moses. “The Revelation”, which is considered, by many theologians to be the last canonical entry, was written by the Apostle John some twenty centuries ago. Yet today, the Bible remains one of the most printed books in the world.

 

Within its pages lie, not only the recorded history of the biblical ages, but also many of the experiences of our Christian lives in this present time. As Solomon puts it so eloquently, “There is nothing new under the sun”; in other words…there is nothing that we may face today that hasn’t already been witnessed by God’s people in ages past.

 

Let us take into account many of the incidents in our lives today and compare them with the struggles and triumphs of ages past.

 

Are we oft times left distraught over what we consider to be the “hopeless” battles we may be facing? To find strength during these moments of distress, let us travel back to the valley of Elah and look there for the youngest of Jesse. He is not hard to find, for there are only two images on this large open field, and one is dwarfed by the other.  A nine foot tall seasoned warrior of Gath towers over a young shepherd boy. This pagan giant daily curses the true and living God, causing King Saul and his army to cower with fear in their tents. But watch closely as this young man, who with no weapons of warfare in his hand, faces and destroys this Philistine Champion. Look and see as his entire army turns and flees for their lives. Let us listen closely to the words of David only seconds before the titan falls,

 “Then said David to the Philistine, Thou comest to me with a sword, and with a spear, and with a shield: but I come to thee in the name of the LORD of hosts, the God of the armies of Israel, whom thou hast defied”.

 

Have we ever felt that crushing sense of loneliness; of being completely isolated? We are not the first to have this impression. Go yonder and peer into the cave where Elijah has hid himself from the wicked Jezebel who is seeking to take his life. God speaks to Elisha and asks why he is there. Elisha tries to make the Lord aware that there is no one left in the land that will stand with him and that he is now alone. The Lord carries Elijah to the top of the mount and after many troubling sights and sounds, He begins to speak softly. Listen intently to what the Lord tells the old prophet?

“Yet I have left me seven thousand in Israel, all the knees which have not bowed unto Baal, and every mouth which hath not kissed him”.

 

Does it not often seem that we are overwhelmed by our enemies, with no help on the horizon?  Look to the city of Dothan as the Syrian Army surrounds it borders. They are sent to capture Elisha and bring him to stand in judgment before their king. Despair grips a young servant’s heart as he steps outside the house where he and Elisha have spent the night and looks upon this unsettling sight. As Elisha walks through the door, there is no concern in his eyes, nor dismay in his countenance. He prays a very simple prayer that is immediately answered. Let us listen to Elisha’s words,

 

“LORD, I pray thee, open his eyes, that he may see. And the LORD opened the eyes of the young man; and he saw: and, behold, the mountain was full of horses and chariots of fire round about Elisha”

 

How many of us experience the nagging fear of failure: that terrible feeling that we have let our Lord down. Again, we are not the first.  Let us make a trek back in time to a courtyard outside Pilate’s judgment hall where we find Simon Peter. This “bold” man,  who only hours earlier was so adamant about dying beside his Lord, is now shivering, not only from the cold, but from uncontrollable anxiety.  His fear is so great that we now we hear him cursing and swearing; lying about his acquaintance with the Jesus he loves so much. He has just turned his back on his best friend and is now sobbing with guilt…But wait, we cannot leave him there, let us fast forward a few weeks to the day of Pentecost and there peer into a house within the city where a crowd is gathered. This same Peter is now standing before these Jews of every nation, some of whom demanded the death of his Master. He is reminding them of their crimes against the Messiah. He does this with no concern for his own life or regard as to the status of those to whom he is speaking. Listen closely and we can find that fear is now turned to courage as Peter preaches the Gospel to those who crucified Jesus,

 “Ye men of Israel, hear these words; Jesus of Nazareth, a man approved of God among you by miracles and wonders and signs, which God did by him in the midst of you, as ye yourselves also know: Him, being delivered by the determinate counsel and foreknowledge of God, ye have taken, and by wicked hands have crucified and slain: Therefore let all the house of Israel know assuredly, that God hath made that same Jesus, whom ye have crucified, both Lord and Christ”.

 

Can we even number the times that we pout about whether or not our Lord still loves us? Let us rehearse the story once more, the narrative of the greatest relationship that has been for all time and shall be through the vastness of eternity; the story of Jesus Christ and His beautiful bride…Let us read of how He chose her, even before the world began. Even though He understood that she would not be faithful, He knew that He always would be.  Even though she would be unfit for marriage to the worst of men, much less to the Holy One of the Heavens, He would take her to himself. He would make her clean.

 

Yes, He chose her and loves her with everlasting, unconditional love; such love that no man can begin to fathom. He chose her while she yet dwelt in the wilderness of sin, and then to prove His love for her, He takes her sin upon Himself and dies for her iniquities upon a cruel Roman cross. Now she is chaste. She is washed pure and white in the blood of her precious Husband. She is the beautiful Church; spotless and undefiled. She is His Bride. She is His Love. She is His Choice.

 

In times of our distress, let us cling to the time honored scriptures, which are documented by a great cloud of witnesses. . Let us look back into their wondrous old accounts and see what lies ahead for us. There we will find the glorious hope that flows down to this world today. There we will find Love, yet indescribable by the human tongue; Love that can only be experienced, yet never put into words. There we can see our lives in events long past.