Bible Benefits
Robert Dawson
Psalm 19: 7-9
In Amazing Grace: A Vocabulary of Faith, Kathleen Norris recounts the story of a South Dakota rancher and his bride who received an expensive Bible as a wedding gift from his grandfather. They wrote a thank-you note and stored the Bible away on a closet shelf.
As time passed, the grandfather repeatedly asked the couple how they liked the Bible. The rancher was confused as to how to respond. Hadn’t he already expressed his appreciation? But the grandfather persisted. Eventually, the young man dug out the gift. As he leafed through it, $20 bills fluttered out, 66 in all—one at the beginning of Genesis and in each succeeding book.
?While the rancher had left a monetary treasure waiting to be discovered, he also left something even more valuable untouched between those pages: spiritual riches. All because he had not opened the Book.
In so many homes the Bible has taken on the status of an icon with little practical value.
A 2012 research study commissioned by the American Bible Society and conducted by Barna Research revealed some good news and bad news about Bible reading and biblical literacy in America.
First, here's the encouraging news:
85 percent of households own at least one Bible, with a household average of 4.3 Bibles.
69 percent of Americans believe the Bible provides answers on how to live a meaningful life.
But here's the bad news:
26 percent of Americans never read the Bible and 10 percent read it less than once a year.
79 percent of those surveyed believe they are knowledgeable about the Bible, but 54 percent were unable to identify the first five books of the Bible. ["American Bible Society, "The State of the Bible 2012"]
In a similar survey, when asked, "What book has most influenced your life?" in a recent Library of Congress survey, respondents awarded the Bible the top position. But only 34 percent of American Christians read God’s Word on their own during the week, and ...
Robert Dawson
Psalm 19: 7-9
In Amazing Grace: A Vocabulary of Faith, Kathleen Norris recounts the story of a South Dakota rancher and his bride who received an expensive Bible as a wedding gift from his grandfather. They wrote a thank-you note and stored the Bible away on a closet shelf.
As time passed, the grandfather repeatedly asked the couple how they liked the Bible. The rancher was confused as to how to respond. Hadn’t he already expressed his appreciation? But the grandfather persisted. Eventually, the young man dug out the gift. As he leafed through it, $20 bills fluttered out, 66 in all—one at the beginning of Genesis and in each succeeding book.
?While the rancher had left a monetary treasure waiting to be discovered, he also left something even more valuable untouched between those pages: spiritual riches. All because he had not opened the Book.
In so many homes the Bible has taken on the status of an icon with little practical value.
A 2012 research study commissioned by the American Bible Society and conducted by Barna Research revealed some good news and bad news about Bible reading and biblical literacy in America.
First, here's the encouraging news:
85 percent of households own at least one Bible, with a household average of 4.3 Bibles.
69 percent of Americans believe the Bible provides answers on how to live a meaningful life.
But here's the bad news:
26 percent of Americans never read the Bible and 10 percent read it less than once a year.
79 percent of those surveyed believe they are knowledgeable about the Bible, but 54 percent were unable to identify the first five books of the Bible. ["American Bible Society, "The State of the Bible 2012"]
In a similar survey, when asked, "What book has most influenced your life?" in a recent Library of Congress survey, respondents awarded the Bible the top position. But only 34 percent of American Christians read God’s Word on their own during the week, and ...
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