I Have Found the Book of the Law in The
The Bible is a timeless book that retains its living power and relevance to our lives, and it is essential to read it with a particular application to our circumstances.
F.B. Meyer emphasizes the significance of rediscovering the Book of the Law, believed to be the Book of Deuteronomy, during King Josiah's reign. The neglect of God's Word led to a moral decline among the people, and upon hearing its contents, Josiah was horrified by the evils associated with their apostasy. Meyer urges the congregation to read the Bible with a contemporary lens, recognizing its relevance to modern life and the unchanging nature of sin, humanity, and God. He asserts that the Bible remains a living document, as powerful and fresh today as it was when first written, and encourages daily engagement with it as a vital message from God.
Text
I have found the book of the law in the
house of the Lord. 2 Chon. xxxiv. 15, 18.
IT is supposed that this was the Book of Deuteronomy; though we have no sympathy whatever with a modern notion with respect to its discovery. In our judgment that book is rightly ascribed to Moses. Apparently, however, it had long been missing, and the young king was filled with horror when he heard the list of evils that were associated with apostasy. "He rent his clothes."
We should read the Bible with a particular application to the days in which we live. It is well enough to accept its statements as being generally true and credible; but it is better to realize their pertinence to ourselves and our circumstances. The book of the law had been sadly neglected in the years preceding Josiah's accession; and through the neglect of God's Word the people had become indifferent to his commands, and deaf to the appeals of his prophets. Josiah turned the lantern on the evils of his time, and saw how God was feeling with respect to them.
The Bible is a book for all time. What it said, it says. What it was, it is. You tell me it was written so many centuries ago; but I reply the ink is still wet on its immortal pages. They have been read and pondered by generations; but the light of its eye is not dim, nor its natural force abated. Sin is the same, man the same, God the same, in all ages. And the Bible's claim to be God's Word is substantiated by the fact that it is possessed of living power, and of the same perennial freshness as the sun, or the spring, or the ocean, or the faces of the little children. Would that we might daily read it as we read the newspaper, damp from the press, realizing that it is our Father's great message for the life of every day!
Sermon Outline
- The Discovery of the Book of the Law
- The Importance of Reading the Bible
- The Timelessness of the Bible
- The Bible's relevance to all ages
- The living power of the Bible
- The Bible's claim to be God's Word
Key Quotes
“You tell me it was written so many centuries ago; but I reply the ink is still wet on its immortal pages.” — F.B. Meyer
“Would that we might daily read it as we read the newspaper, damp from the press, realizing that it is our Father's great message for the life of every day!” — F.B. Meyer
“The Bible's claim to be God's Word is substantiated by the fact that it is possessed of living power, and of the same perennial freshness as the sun, or the spring, or the ocean, or the faces of the little children.” — F.B. Meyer
Application Points
- We should read the Bible with a particular application to our lives, realizing its pertinence to ourselves and our circumstances.
- Neglecting the Bible leads to indifference to God's commands and deafness to the appeals of his prophets.
- The Bible's claim to be God's Word is substantiated by its living power and perennial freshness.