For you have been born again, not of perishable seed, but of imperishable,
through the living and enduring word of God. For, “All people are like grass,
and all their glory is like the flowers of the field; the grass withers and the
flowers fall, but the word of the Lord endures forever.” (1 Peter 1:23-25a, NIV)
Brother Andrew continues his teaching on Satan’s strategic attacks:
The second prong of Satan’s attack is on the written word of God. He has
historically tried to prevent Christians from having access to the Bible.
Satan understands the power of the Word of God. At the temptation of Jesus,
he even made a sly attempt to use Scripture (actually misapplying it) to deflect
Jesus from His true mission (Luke 4:1-3). Twisting Scripture is still a favorite tactic of Satan, and we
believers need to know the Word so we can respond, just as Jesus did, with a
well-applied “It is written…”
Peter recognized the significant role the Word has in our salvation. In his
epistle to Christians passing through “fiery trials” he gives the words of
encouragement in today’s scripture above.
Now you can understand my life’s passion to distribute the Bible, even in
places where its importation or distribution is prohibited. Because I’ve gone
around the world preaching that message, many people assume that I must have
been the first “God’s smuggler.” Nothing could be further from the truth.
I personally believe that the first Bible smuggler probably was Timothy, the
man Paul looked upon as his son in the gospel. This young man of delicate
health, but of great spirituality and loyalty, was converted in Paul’s first
campaign at Lystra. At the end of his life, when Paul was in prison in Rome, he
looked to Timothy for comfort. In a letter to him, Paul asked his friend to
bring his books to the prison the next time he visited.
In 2 Timothy 4:13 it
becomes clear Paul was requesting that scrolls of Old Testament Scriptures be
brought to him for further study. But how could Timothy get them into Rome and
into the jail when, by that time, Christians has already become an outlawed
sect? The only possible way would have been to smuggle them in with other
items.
Billy Graham, in his book Hoofbeats, suggests that John the apostle
had to write his Revelation secretly, while closely guarded by the Romans. The
parchment manuscript pages would have been smuggled off the island of Patmos and
Christian volunteers copy them for the churches…
This world is an enemy-occupied territory filled with souls to whom Christ
holds rightful claim. Under Christ’s command, we invade countries by any means
that will help us to get in with the Word of God…
Today I want others to have what makes me grow spiritually—the Bible.
RESPONSE: Today I will make every effort to ensure that the Bible is
available to everyone to read and practice.
PRAYER: Pray for many believers around the world still waiting for their
first personal Bible.
Holy Bible, New International Version®, NIV® Copyright ©1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by Biblica, Inc.® Used by permission. All rights reserved worldwide.
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