Nearly 3,500 years ago, on a lonely mountain in Arabia, Moses the man of God, “received the lively oracles to give unto us” He was given a revelation of all that had taken place in the two and a half millennia prior to his time, from the Creation to the Exodus Nearly 1,600 years later, on a lonely island in the Aegean Sea, the last of the prophets received a revelation of what was to come to pass in the two and a half millennia subsequent to his time Between these two points in history stretch the “sundry times” wherein, “in divers manners”, God spake unto the fathers by the prophets; finally issuing His word through His Son.
Thus the Old and New Testaments were completed, 39 books in the Old, 27 in the New, 66 in all No more has been added The many books have become one. Although written by forty different men in different ages, (Moses and John were separated by such a period of time as separated, say (Constantine from Churchill, Nero from Napoleon, Caesar from Shakespare), the Word has a unity of thought and continuity of purpose that could only come from one Author, one mind — from God Himself.
Now it is a recognized fact that the Bible is the best seller among books It is also a recognized fact that it is the least read best seller Yet it was meant to be read — to be read constantly and diligently It was not a book for periodic consultation, nor for experts only, but for all the people of God — the men, the women and the children of God’s people. And these words shall be in thine heart; and thou shalt teach them diligently unto thy children, and shalt talk of them . . . and thou shalt bind them for a sign upon thine hand . . .” (Deut. 6:6-9).
So in the last book we read of the blessedness ascribed to those who read the book: “Blessed is he that readeth and they that hear the words of this prophecy and keep the things which are written therein . . . ” Thus Moses and John. A similar parallel concerns the insistence on accepting the whole of God’s revelation. In Deut. 4:2 we have the warning: “Ye shall not add unto the word which I command you, neither shall ye diminish ought from it . . .” This finds an echo in Rev. 22:18.19, with added words of judgement on those who either add to, or take away from, the things written in the book.
This insistence on the importance of reading God’s Word, that occurs at the beginning and end of the Divine revelation, is also consistently expressed throughout the Word. But the mere mechanics of reading is not enough. Always the purpose is that men may “keep the things which are written therein”. For the Holy Scriptures “are able to make thee wise unto salvation,” and are “profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: that the man of God may be perfect, thoroughly furnished unto all good works” (2 Tim. 3:15, 16). It follows then that if we wish to equip ourselves properly for God’s service we must seek to do so in the way God has provided.
This applies of course to every aspect of our service, but especially if we desire to serve in some part of the mission field, where frequently we cannot be dependent on others. We often do not realize that God will only grant success to the man who reads and meditates on His Word day and night. Thus the tremendous burden placed on the shoulders of Joshua, Moses’ successor, could only be carried if he was strengthened by God’s law. “This book of the law shall not depart out of thy mouth; but thou shalt meditate therein day and night that thou mayest observe to do according to all that is written therein: for then thou shalt make thy way prosperous, and then thou shalt have good success.” (Joshua 1:8).
One of the beauties of the Word is the way it is built upon itself — the later parts often quoting from, or alluding to, the earlier. One example of this is in the words just quoted from Joshua, which the Psalmist takes up in the first Psalm when he speaks of the godly man whose “delight is in the law of the Lord, and in his law doth he meditate day and night.” Here again the principle is laid down. Only the man who delights in God’s law can escape from the counsel of the ungodly (verse 1), and find the kind of prosperity reserved for the upright, for “he shall be like a tree planted by the rivers of waters . . . and whatsoever he doeth shall prosper” (verse 3).
Echoes of this Psalm can be found in Jer. 15:16, 17, where the prophet eats God’s words, finds joy in the midst of suffering, and sits not among the mockers; while in 17:7, 8 he takes up the other words of Psalm 1 about the prosperity of the godly man. Note how reading, living, and prosperity on the spiritual plane, are inseparable.
Probably the greatest institution in our community is the Bible Companion, by which we may read the whole of the Scripture in a year, leaving no part out. For over one hundred years this has been the means whereby we have become familiar with the Word. We do not often realize it was the the product of a teenager (Brother Roberts was about seventeen when he devised the plan), in days of little leisure, grinding poverty and much illiteracy. This reading plan was the means whereby our forefathers were able to read God’s Word and meditate therein, and be sure they would in course of time become familiar with “the whole counsel of God.” Faithful following of daily Bible reading would quickly give them a working knowledge of God’s Word, and eventually enable them to find their way about the Bible with an ease which is one of the greatest assets of the preacher. And remember that this earlier generation was largely uneducated, but it produced great preachers of the Word. Though few of them left the shores of their homeland, they were nonetheless imbued with a great missionary spirit because the fire of God’s Word did for them what it did for Jeremiah, and they “could not stay.”
Now this is not intended as a special plea to follow the Bible Companion way of Bible reading, to the exclusion of other methods, but it is submitted that this plan does provide a good sound basis, and gives an overall picture of the revealed will of God. By it no part of God’s Word is left out of our consideration, and upon it we can build our special studies of whole books, where these are short enough to read at one sitting, or our sectional studies where books are longer (e.g. Isaiah) and lend themselves to themes, like the ‘suffering Servant’ section of Isaiah.
But it must ever be remembered that the Bible is one book, and it has themes. Great themes — like the themes of God’s promises — in Eden, to Noah, Abraham, David, fulfilled and yet to be fulfilled through Jesus. Another theme is that of the glory of God, commencing with the Lord swearing by His own existence that the earth shall be filled with His glory (Num. 14:21). Isaiah has a slight variation when there is the promise that the earth shall be filled iwth the knowledge of the Lord (Isa. 11:19), while Habakkuk brings together the knowledge and the glory (2:14). Ezekiel has a vision of the time when the earth will shine with God’s glory (43:2), and a similar vision to John on Patmos speaks of the final apocalypse of our Lord as an angel with great power coming down from heaven, when the earth will become lightened with His glory (Rev. 18:1).
Themes like these can only be seen if we have an overall picture of the Word, which comes from systematic reading and reverent meditation. The above examples are of those themes which provide useful matter for extempore speaking, more easily remembered perhaps. But there are others more hidden and in a way more profound, which will only come to the preacher who delights in the law of the Lord and meditates therein day and night.
Finally, a brief word about a subject that is reserved for another article: prayer. Prayer involves us in a two-way system of communication — not only our speaking to God, but God speaking to us: and we can only hear Him in His Word. Thus when we read and meditate on the Word, God speaks to us. This helps us to understand the stern words from the book of Proverbs: “He that turneth away his ear from hearing the law, even his prayer shall become an abomination” (Prov. 28:9).
The Origin of the Organic World – Part One