The B-I-B-L-E
Jerry Vines
Psalm 119:129-133
10/23/05The Bible has been a part of my life as long as I can remember. I was brought up in a Christian home and so it was not uncommon to see copies of the Bible laid around.
One of my earliest memories is to see my mother’s Bible, and in that Bible a devotional book. Every day my mom would read that devotional, Open Windows, a Southern Baptist publication, and she would read her Bible.
We would go to church on Sunday and we would take a copy of the Bible with us. In those days in Sunday School we had what was known as the “six point record system.” When you came to Sunday School you would check that you were present, that you were on time, and also on that record system there was a place to check that you had brought your Bible. I was taught at an early age to bring a copy of the Bible.
I remember as a boy going into the services where our pastor would preach. He would preach from the Bible.
I remember on Sunday nights how the building used to be filled. I recall on one particular time that he was preaching through the book of Acts. We brought our Bible and he would turn to the book of Acts, and we would turn in our Bibles and we would follow along with him.
One of the most exciting things that ever happened when I was in elementary school is when the Gideon’s came. The Gideon’s gave every one of us a little pocket New Testament if we would make the promise that we would read through that pocket New Testament. I can remember as if it were yesterday leaving school that day with my brand-new copy of the New Testament.
All through these years as a boy the Bible was a very, very special book to me.
I remember at Vacation Bible School we would have the opening assembly and we would have the pledge of allegiance to the flag of the United States. We would also have the pledge of allegiance to the Christian flag. Then we would also have a pledge to the Bible. Then we would sing, “The B-I-B-L-E, yes, that’s the book for me. I stand alone on the Word of God, the B-I-B-l-E.” The Bible has been a part of all my life.
I believe that it is absolutely essential if you are going to be the kind of Christian you want to be to have a right relationship with the Bible, the Word of God.
Think with me as I lay before you what I believe is the reason God has given us the Bible. We believe that there is a God. We believe that there is a God who is the Creator of the universe and that this God, who is the Creator of the universe, is also the Savior of the world, that He loves us so very much though He knew we would sin, He determined to send His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, to be our Savior.
If there is a God, and there is, and if He loves us, and He does, and if He sent His Son Jesus to die on the cross for our sins, and He did, is it not reasonable to suppose that this kind of God would make an effort to communicate this information to you and to me? That’s the reason …
