“And the Lord answered me, and said, ‘Write the vision, and make it plain upon the tables, that he may run that readeth it.'” Habakkuk 2:2
Dear Ones:
When the Apostle John was exiled to the island of Patmos for his faith and testimony, he received the the revelation of the glorified Christ. Though the vision of the person of Christ was paramount, other things were revealed. The Lord showed him things that were, are, and were to come. These things the Lord instructed him to write down. “Write the things which thou hast seen, and the things which are, and the things which shall be hereafter.” (Rev. 1:19) As was the case in the life of Moses, so in Habakkuk and that of John, and other apostles. The commandment came for them to WRITE down what they saw and heard, as a testimony to those who would follow, and who would have need to see, or see again, that which was TRUE from God’s perspective. This is one reason why the written word of God, the Bible, is of such great importance. If we were to place all the books of the world, from antiquity to this very day, beside the Bible, the weight/worth of the Bible would exceed them ALL. Why? It is simply because of the factor of LIFE. “…The word of God is quick (LIVING), and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword.” (Heb. 4:12) God has made the Bible unique, in that He has preserved it for us to this very day, revealing His truth, according to which man can KNOW his Creator and Redeemer. It is a living book because He is the Author and essence of it. Jesus Christ is the absolute TRUTH, and His Life by the Spirit, is communicated to us through the truths of the word of God.
When the book of the Law was found in the temple of God in the days of Josiah, the reading of the book before the king was the beginning of a massive revival in Israel. When the reformers of the Protestant Reformation began to read and study the Scriptures, the face of Europe and indeed, the world, would be changed. Why? The objective truth of Scripture is intertwined with the very Spirit of Life, and power. God moves and works in individual hearts, and in nations, according to the revealed truth of God in the Bible.
What about us, and “writing it down?” If must first be clear that, only the word of God itself is inspired to the point of being worthy of our total trust, for God has preserved it for this purpose. However, God does speak through its pages and texts, specifically through its truth. If our perspective is that we see the Bible for what it is, the living word of God, and that God speaks through that word, we will make it to be the primary object of our study…that we may KNOW Him, according to the truth revealed in it. It is as we do this that we are to WRITE DOWN what the Lord is revealing to us, what he is teaching. By remembering the truths of His ways, and believing Him according to those truths, we increasingly come to know Him.
Dear Father, give us an ever-increasing appreciation of Thy word. Enable us to study it well, in order to show ourselves approved unto Thee, and not unto men. Open our eyes to see, and remember, “wondrous things out of Thy law.” Then we shall be led, and inspired by Thee in our walk with, and service to Thee. In Jesus’ name, Amen.
Love, Dad