What's in Your Bible?

In the pages of the Scriptures, we can discover more about God, the life He offers to us, and an
incredible story in which each of us is actually a character. Psalm 19 states:
7 The law of the Lord is perfect, converting the soul; The testimony of the Lord is sure, making wise the simple;
8 The statutes of the Lord are right, rejoicing the heart; The commandment of the Lord is pure, enlightening the eyes;
9 The fear of the Lord is clean, enduring forever; The judgments of the Lord are true and righteous altogether.
10 More to be desired are they than gold, Yea, than much fine gold; Sweeter also than honey and the honeycomb.

We can appropriate God's Word and recognize that our minds can be purified and we can gain wisdom through what He has to say to us.  Our hearts can rejoice and our eyes can be open to His truth.  We can develop a healthy fear and reverence for our God as we spend time in the pages of the Bible, allowing Him to speak to us and to govern our lives.  The Bible provides a wonderful narrative and we can personalize what it has to say and recognize this is what God has done in redemption and what He wants to do in sanctification.

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There has been some reporting about Bibles in the news today, against the backdrop of a tragedy in
East Alabama. And, in the pages of that Word lie the words of comfort and hope that people need. 2nd Timothy 3 states:
16 All Scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness,
17 that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.

We are continuing to stand with the families of the 23 people who perished in the deadly tornadoes in Lee County less than two weeks ago; there is much physical repair that is needed, as well as spiritual comfort and restoration.  The road back will be long and difficult, but God is faithful.  There is a strong faith community there, and God has been at work in powerful ways.

Late last week, the President of the United States made a trip to Lee County.  He mourned with the victims and brought hope and comfort, letting the people there know that the highest office in the land stood with them.  But, the media took this overall charitable gesture and twisted it around.  The big story from the Presidential visit (and this is sad)?  The President signed people's Bibles.

Why was this even news?  I think it has to do with a media that is documented to give overwhelmingly negative coverage to the President and that believes that, for some reason, he should have nothing to do with people of faith, and vice versa.  I believe the treatment was a huge distraction from the purpose of the visit and from the people of Lee County.

And, the idea of a President signing a Bible doesn't seem to be that far-fetched.  A Baptist Press article on the visit quoted Bill Leonard, described as "a Baptist historian and founding dean at the Wake Forest University School of Divinity." The article says he "told the Associated Press Bible signing is a Southern tradition. He elaborated on the importance of that tradition to BP:"

"I was kind of grateful" when AP called about Trump, Leonard said, "because I thought probably this generation of Baptists and others didn't know about the tradition of people having others sign their Bibles. That was a kind of historical qualification ... I thought would be worth talking about."

The Blaze ran a story with some responses, including comments from Leonard. It also quoted Kevin Cassiday-Maloney, a pastor from Fargo, North Dakota, who had, according to the article, told the AP that Trump's signature does not belong anywhere near a Bible — let alone on the front cover. He said,
"It just felt like hubris," adding, "It almost felt like a desecration of the holy book to put his signature on the front writ large, literally."

The pastor of the church where the Bible-signing occurred, Rusty Sowell of Beauregard's Providence Baptist Church is quoted in the Baptist Press article; it states:

In the South, signatures in a person's Bible "bring back great memories of relationships and friendships and moments in our life," said Rusty Sowell, pastor of Providence Baptist Church in Opelika, Ala., where Trump signed tornado victims' Bibles March 8.

The article goes on to say:

Sowell said he "didn't think anything about it" when Trump began signing Bibles. The pastor noted signatures in his own Bible of friends and other significant people dating back to the mid-1970s.

Baptist Press also stated: "Among presidents to sign Bibles in the past were Franklin Roosevelt, Harry Truman, Jimmy Carter, Bill Clinton and Ronald Reagan, according to media reports."

Former Arkansas Governor and ordained minister Mike Huckabee tweeted out:

Most of the ppl outraged about @realDonaldTrump "SIGNING A BIBLE!" don't read one or believe in it so why do they care other than it's @POTUS who did it. I've been asked to sign thousands of Bibles over the yrs-because person asked. I never claimed to be the author! Get a grip!

A few minutes later, Huckabee tweeted:

As Governor, I walked through tornado sites w/ Pres Bill Clinton and he graciously posed for photos, signed Bibles and other things as ppl asked him to. No FAKE NEWS stories about it. @realDonaldTrump does it and media freaks out. Get a life, media-and a real job just reporting.

A story from the Inquisitr web site highlights more aspects of the Bible-signing frenzy.  It quotes a Wheaton College professor who thought it was "blasphemous," but another person cited thought it was nothing unusual.  The article says:

Peter Manseau, the Smithsonian’s curator of religion, tells The Washington Post that other presidents have signed Bibles, too. Specifically, says Manseau, Barack Obama signed one or more Bibles during his time in office, as did George W. Bush and Ronald Reagan. Manseau did not, however, say when or where those Bible signings took place.

The article goes on to say:

Also known to have signed a Bible in his career is Supreme Court Chief Justice John Roberts.

And though at least one evangelical was appalled by the signing of Bibles, it seems that others in the evangelical community are less put off by signing Bibles. Tim Tebow has been known to sign them, for example, and late evangelist Billy Graham signed a Bible in 2005 for a very special friend of his: that friend was Donald Trump.

I don't know what may be written on the cover or inside cover of your Bible.  It may be clear of any signatures or notes or may contain words that document valued memories.  And, let's go a little further - do you take notes that are written in the margins of your Bible?  Or perhaps you have allowed God's Word to inspire you to be a bit artistic and actually create pictures or doodles.  We can ask, "What's in your Bible?"  That tradition of keeping valuable information in the Bible does appear to be a longstanding tradition, especially in the South.  And, these memories that we keep can certainly inspire us and, as we revisit them, can help us to appreciate the life that God has given to us and the people with whom we have interacted.

But, inside the pages of our Bible may be not only our own writings or the documentation of others, consistent with our own personal story.  But, we know that the Bible itself tells a story that we are all part of: a story of a God who loves us, the maker of heaven and earth, who created a man and woman in a garden, of people who rejected Him, but whom He continued to love.  It's a story of redemption, of a Savior who came to earth and died for us and rose again so that we might come to know Him - that story is our story, and it's written in the pages of our Bible, bringing life as we read and study what God has to say to us.