Posted by Word Alive–Fr. Bel San Luis, SVD January 30, 2022/National Bible Sunday
Today, National Bible Sunday, culminates the National Bible Week. The week reminds us of the all-important Word of God as our guide and instruction in life. As somebody puts it, BIBLE is the acronym for: “Basic Instructions Before Leaving Earth.”
* * *
A man once bragged that he read the Bible from cover to cover several times. But someone remarked, “People who read the Bible from cover to cover, know only the cover.”
Just reading the Bible is not enough. What’s most important is to ponder God’s teachings and apply it in everyday life.
* * *
It’s inspiring to know that more and more Catholics are doing the Biblarasal. They meet regularly, read passages in the Scriptures from which they seek the will of God, then apply its message in everyday life. The message could be the gospel values of honesty, forgiveness, justice, caring for the needy, like what the Good Samaritan did.
* * *
People around them notice a remarkable transformation for the better. Whereas before those lukewarm Christians led selfish and vice-ridden lives; now they have become active and exemplary church members. Let us remember that the teachings of God as contained in the Bible are there not as a burden or restriction of our freedom but rather serve to guide us and work for our own personal good and, collectively, for the country.
* * *
Take, for instance, God’s command of fidelity to one’s spouse. Some men may feel restricted of their freedom to enjoy the company of other women or worse, grossly disregarding the vows they professed in marriage. Infidelity, however, inflicts deep emotional wounds, bitter quarrels, which leads to a broken family.
* * *
Moreover, God’s command, “You shall not steal,” is imposed not only to curb greed or shun graft and corruption but also the unabated violation of the command leads to the country’s economic poverty and eventual perdition.
* * *
When you think about it, there’s no other choice but to follow God’s will since it shows us the path to eternal salvation and true happiness. Not following His will is like an atheist or non-believer who, when he dies, is all dressed up in the coffin but nowhere to go!
* * *
When Jesus’ countrymen turned their backs on a hard teaching about giving his Body and Blood as spiritual food and drink, the Lord said to his apostles, “Do you also want to go?” Peter answered, “Lord, to whom do we go, you have the words of eternal life and we have come to believe in you.” Jesus said: “Heaven and earth will pass away but my words will never pass away” (Mt. 24,35).
* * *
THE LIGHTER SIDE. A small boy asked a friend why his 80-year old grandma was always reading the Bible. He replied: “Because she’s cramming for her Final Exam!”
Note: The Bible should not be read only when one is in the “pre-departure area” but be constantly guided by it.
* * *
Somebody said: “When you carry the Bible, Satan has a headache. When you open it, he collapses. When he sees you reading it, he faints. Let’s read the Bible every day so he keeps on fainting. Maybe one day he’ll have a stroke and never wake up.”
* * *
A man and his wife were arguing about who should brew the coffee each morning. The husband said, “You are in charge of the cooking, so you should do it. The wife said, “You should do it, because you get up first.” “Besides,” the wife added, “even the Bible says the man should do the coffee.” Husband replies, “I can’t believe that, show me.” She fetches the Bible, opens it and shows at the top of several pages…”HEBREWS”!
One comment