February 2 - Examining the Scriptures

Acts 17:11- "Now the Bereans were of more noble character than the Thessalonians, for they received the message with great eagerness. They examined the sacred writings every day to see if what Paul said was true."

        Blind Willie Johnson, a poor Christian blues-style acoustic guitartst, sang in the 1920s, "Nobody's Fault But Mine". The first verse states:

I got a Bible in my home

I got a Bible in my home

If I don't read it, and my soul's lost

It's nobody's fault but mine.

         

Do you have a Bible in your home? If not, I would suggest procuring one, and reading it, especially the New Testament, as it explains the mysteries of the "sacred writings" that Paul was explaining to the Bereans in the Acts 17 passage above. They didn't just take his word at its face value; they cross-referenced it with what they already knew from the accepted writings of the Old Testament, the Jewish scriptures. They were able then to mesh the two together in coherent understanding.

        If you have a copy of any faith's sacred writings, and don't take the time to read them, seeking for the truth in this world, then it's nobody's fault but your own, if you never find it. Further on in verse 27 of Acts 17, we are told that "perhaps men would reach out for God and find him...he is not far from each one of us."  Deuteronomy 4:29 also gives us a promise about finding God: "If....you seek Yahweh your God, you will find him, if you look for him with all your heart and with all your soul."

        Let's not neglect reading God's book when it is right in front of us.