GOD’S WORD FOR NOVEMBER 4 ~ ~ 1 John 2:14~ ~ “I have written to you, fathers, Because you have known Him who is from the beginning. I have written to you, young men, Because you are strong, and the word of God abides in you, And you have overcome the wicked one.”

From Michael Youssef’s book, How to Read the Bible as if Your Life Depended on it, (Because it does)

At least forty human writers wrote the sixty-six books of the Old and New Testaments across a span of sixteen centuries, yet it is one book telling one story about one person, Jesus the Messiah, and one Kingdom, the Kingdom of God. There is no more tested book than the Bible. It has been scrutinized up, down, and sideways, examined critically by countless authorities through the years – yet there it stands!

In May 1967, Egypt expelled United Nations peacekeepers from the Sinai Peninsula and closed the Straits of Tiran to Israeli ships, blockading Israel from the Red sea – a precursor to war. Egypt, Jordan, Syria and Lebanon mobilized their armies and moved to encircle Israel. The leaders of those nations spoke openly of erasing Israel from the map.

On June 4, Israeli Defense Minister Moshe Dayan gathered his senior officers, who thought they were being summoned to a council of war. Dayan surprised them by taking out a Bible and opening it to 1 Samuel 17. Without explanation, he began reading to them the account of David and Goliath.

David, a young Hebrew shepherd boy, had defeated a strong, heavily armored Philistine soldier by attacking the enemy’s weak points. David knew Goliath’s heavy armor would slow him down. Despite his armor, Goliath had a vulnerable spot – his unprotected face. So David whirled his sling at the exposed target. The stone struck Goliath in the forehead and he fell dead.

The officers shifted uncomfortably in their chairs. Israel was surrounded by enemies and facing annihilation. What was the point of this ancient story from the distant past?

Dayan closed the Bible and told his officers that the story had inspired a plan. Like Goliath, Israel’s modern-day enemies had a vulnerable spot – and that was where Israel would strike.

At 7:10 the next morning, June 5, Israeli fighter jets launched a raid on Egyptian airfields. Within hours, the Egyptian air force was destroyed.

After just 132 hours of fighting – later known as the Six-Day War – the tiny nation of Israel had defeated the combined armed forces of Egypt, Jordan, and Syria. When the dust settled, Israel controlled the Sinai and Gaza Strip (captured from Egypt), the West Bank and East Jerusalem (captured from Jordan), and the Golan Heights (Captured from Syria), enlarging Israel’s territory by an additional 26,000 square miles.

Historians agree that the war was really decided in those first few hours when the Israeli air force struck the enemy’s most vulnerable point and achieved command of the skies. And the plan for victory was inspired by an ancient story from the Bible.

The Word of God is as relevant today as it was when the ink was still wet on its parchment. The same ancient, divinely inspired wisdom that inspired Israel to fight and win is still ready to inspire you and me to live the victorious Christian life. We need to read and understand God’s Word as if our lives depend on it. Once we truly understand the Bible, it will become our sword and shield. It will show us how to defeat our spiritual enemy, satan, so that we can take territory for Christ and His Kingdom.

The Bible is truly a life-changing Book, because its Author is a life-changing God. Throughout history, people have either loved the Word of God or hated it. People have either believed it or rejected it, They have tried to change it, to edit out the parts that offended them, or tried to water down its message. Dictators and despots have sought to burn or banish the Bible – yet they are dead, and God’s Word lives.

Year after year, the Bible is the bestselling book in the world – yet most Bibles end up on a shelf, gathering dust. According to the American Bible Society and the Barna Group, just 18 percent of American adults spend any time reading the Bible. This means that 82 percent of adults allow their Bibles to sit unopened and unused, making the Bible the least-read bestseller of all time. This is undoubtedly one of the chief reasons for the oral and spiritual decline in our culture.

Why do so many Christians claim to love God while ignoring His Word? Why do so many Christians who claim to love Jesus spend hours with the eyes glued to TikTok, Instragram, or Netflix – yet have no time for God’s Word? Again and again, I hear people say, “I would love to read the Bible, but there’s just not enough time in my day.” If you have ever said similar words, then honestly examine your life and your priorities. Ask yourself, “Am I being honest with myself – and with God? Can I say I truly love Jesus if I neglect God’s Word?”

After more than half a century of walking with the Lord, I can confidently say that the Bible is the only spiritual food that will nourish your soul. Daily reading in the Word of God is the only power for living. It’s the only mirror that will reveal the truth about the real you. And it’s the only washing and cleansing agent that can truly purify you.

Tomorrow he’ll show us the four dimensions of God’s Word.

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“Ex. 23:22

…I will be an enemy unto thine enemies, and an adversary unto thine adversaries.

IIChronicles 16:9

“For the eyes of the Lord run to and fro throughout the whole earth, to show Himself strong in the behalf of them whose heart is toward Him.”

Romans 8:32

He that spared not His own Son, but delivered him up for us all, how shall He not with Him also freely give us all things?

I Cor. 10:13 …God is faithful, who will not let you be tried above what you are able but will….make a way that you will be able to bear it.

James 1:17

Every good gift and every perfect gift is from above, and comes down from the Father of lights, with whom there is no variation or shadow of turning.

2Corinthians 1:20

For all the promises of God in Him are yeah, and in Him Amen, unto

the Glory of God by us.

Romans 5:8

But God commended his love toward us, in that, while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.

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