Time has a way of making things become obsolete. Think back to 1844 when Samuel Morse invented the telegraph. This invention, back then, was a quantum leap in communications. Today, it is basically a relic of the past; with cell phones and the internet making this once amazing invention virtually obsolete. And many contend that the Bible, 2,000 years ago may have been relevant, but today it is just out of step with our modern technological space-age society. Let’s examine the evidence.
While it is true that back when the Bible was written people basically lived in an agrarian economy that doesn’t mean the farming analogies used in biblical times are not useful for today. Remember that the authors of Scripture used the times and culture to communicate and these analogies were powerful tools to make people understand the biblical messages that God wanted to communicate. Today it is a simple matter to use more cultural and time sensitive ways of viewing things to convey biblical truths to our modern readers. Even the Apostle Paul used this technique and shared the gospel in different ways depending on the culture he was dealing with.
So many of our common sayings today can trace their roots back to the Bible, particularly the King James Version, translated into English in 1611. These phrases are as relevant today as they were 400 years ago; as well as in biblical times. For example, “escaping by the skin of their teeth” (Job 19:20), “a house divided against itself cannot stand” (Mark 3:25), “a drop in the bucket” (Isaiah 40:15), and “a leopard can’t change his spots” (Jeremiah 13:23) all find there origination in the King James Version of the Bible. These phrases as well as the hundreds of proverbs that King Solomon wrote in the Scriptures may be ancient, but they are still wise wisdom 3,000 years after they were penned.
Science has made amazing advances since biblical times but if you have been following my blog for any length of time you will realize that many of our greatest advances in this field have been made by men who were strong believers in the Bible. These men believed that because of the orderly nature of our universe, God’s laws could be applied to make their discoveries. Not only that but many of the things that man has discovered over the last 500 years in the field of science were already discussed and known in the Scriptures. In essence all man has done is to confirm much of the scientific knowledge already stated in the Bible. There are numerous books and websites that speak about this. I challenge you to do a google search on science and the Bible to unearth some amazing scientific facts that were only discovered by man; in some cases, two or three thousand years after the Scriptures stated them.
One final area where the Bible is totally relevant today is in the area of human nature. Since God created man, He knows more about our nature than we do. Not only that but His book, the Bible, is our basic instructions before leaving earth. The Bible has more to say about how do live a joyful, peaceful, and purposeful life than any other book ever written. Man is still searching for meaning and happiness but the Bible tells him that until he gets right with God, through repentance of sin and accepting Jesus as his Lord and Savior, he will never find the meaning he is looking for.
Far from being out of date and irrelevant for today, the Bible has the answers to life’s most challenging and important questions that man is still trying to find. Questions such as, “how did I get here,” “where do I go when I die,” and “what is my purpose in life,” are the same questions man has had in every age and every culture. Books come and go, societies form but die out, and philosophies of life can never give us the real answers to these age old questions. But thank God that there is a book that has all the answers to these questions – our old friend (and totally relevant) the Bible!
I think God’s Word is very relevant, because, (as you know) Curt, when I woke up from brain surgery, my rt, eye was pointed to the far right. Later I prayed, asking God to straighten it, & heal it, because Jesus healed everyone He touched when He walked the earth, & He is the same yesterday, today, and forever, Hebrews 13:8…and…Yes! He DID straighten and heal it.
Now, that’s relevance!