The Most Important Thing in the World is to know that you have eternal life. This plan of salvation is revealed and proclaimed in the Bible. God has so ensured it’s availability to every generation and to all peoples that it is possible for anyone in any language and in any part of the world to find this wonderful book and discover this plan of salvation. It’s not complicated. It can be read just as it’s written from any translation and sufficiently understood so that by simply accepting it and believing it as God’s promise, this wonderful free gift of salvation and eternal life can be received by anyone anywhere at any time.
In Luke 16 when Jesus told the story of Dives[1], the rich man at whose steps a beggar named Lazarus begged daily for food, we have an interesting statement regarding the importance of reading and being aware of the message of the Bible. Jesus tells us how Abraham responded to Dives request that someone be sent to warn his family lest they also find themselves in the place of torment in which he found himself. Abraham’s response was this,
‘“They have Moses and the prophets; let them hear them”.’ Luke 16:29.
This is at once very solemn and very liberating because first it places a responsibility upon each of us to be aware of what the Bible has to say about things, particularly about eternal life and salvation. Second, it tells us that the place to go to find out about these most important things is the Bible, the Word of God. Thirdly, it clearly gives divine endorsement to the writings of Moses and the prophets and that within them are clear teachings about God’s plan of salvation and how to be sure of eternal life. On many other occasions the Lord Jesus gave witness to the authority of the writings of the Pentateuch and the prophets and nearly all the books of the Bible contained in what we refer to as the Old Testament. His own words may also be added that list. He clearly stated,
‘”Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears My word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life.’ John 5:24 NKJ
Those to whom He spoke were very familiar with the writings of Moses and the prophets because they were pretty much all Israelites. However, they read them without realizing that they pointed to Him and that He was the fulfillment of all that they spoke about. He stated that very clearly a little after the passage mentioned above,
‘You search the Scriptures, for in them you think you have eternal life; and these are they which testify of Me.’ John 5:39 NKJ
It is not that the scriptures don’t contain the knowledge of eternal life, they do, but they failed to realise that they pointed to Him and that eternal life is found only in Him.
John put it this way, ‘In Him [Jesus] was life, and the life was the light of men.’ John 1:4 NKJ
Jesus explained it in these wonderful words,
‘And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life. 16 For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. 17 For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. 18 He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.’ John 3:15-18 NKJ
The implication is clear, we need to be reading and meditating in and upon all of those writings which contain the message of salvation and eternal life that God has made so wonderfully available to every human being alive on the planet. That is, all 66 books to be found in that collection of writings we call the Bible[2].
Can we understand this message from God? Yes, most certainly. It is written to be understood by all people, everywhere, regardless of language or ethnicity. It is my conviction that God in His great grace and providence has so caused His Word to come down to us and each generation of men and women on Planet Earth, that it may be read and understood, in all essential respects, by anyone with a normal ability to read, and/or listen and comprehend. Does it become complicated? Yes, sadly, often. Usually this happens when we, human beings, get our hands on it and start to add extra bits and pieces to fit our own particular agendas. Nevertheless, by simply reading the Bible, the Word of God, it is possible to know all that is necessary to be sure of eternal life and to enjoy deep, personal and abiding fellowship with the author of the book, God Himself.
Read it, think about it, ponder it, ask the Lord to make what you read clear to you and put its lessons and teachings into practice in your daily life. By all means read what others have said and written, however, never accept what others say about the Bible, including this writer, go back to it and read and ponder it for yourself. Only believe and accept what you see clearly written in the Bible. If it is not clear, and requires a complicated explanation by another human being, it is likely not important. What is important is what is clear and easy to understand. This you may ‘bet your life on’. The most important thing in the world is to know that you have eternal life. This, the consistent message of all 66 books in the Bible, the Bible is very clear about. It’s easy to understand and can be grasped by young children and aged adults. The simple and the 
highly intelligent can all understand exactly how to be sure of eternal life. This is the most important thing in the world. Nothing else gets close. Don’t live another moment without reading the words and sayings of Jesus and believing them with all your heart, mind and soul. You can trust Him. His words are true and utterly reliable. They have stood the test of time.
His hearers said of Him,
“No man ever spoke like this man” John 7:46.
Simon Peter said,
“Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.’ John 6:68
He got it right. There is no one else to go to. He alone, has the words of eternal life.
To read more visit www.jbc.gen.nz/important/biblehelps.htm…
[1] The name Dives does not appear in the text. It is often used as the name of the rich man in the parable because in the Latin Vulgate translation the word for ‘rich man’ is ‘dives’. The parable has had many interpretations over the centuries; however it is probably fair to say that the broad thrust of most Christian understanding tends towards a literal reading and accepting of the story just as it is read in Luke, the only gospel in which it appears. A good summary, well referenced, of the various approaches may be read on Wikipedia at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rich_man_and_Lazarus.
[2] The word Bible comes from the Greek word for the papyrus plant the Egyptians used to make paper. From this came the adoption of the plural Greek word biblia meaning scrolls or ‘little books’ and by the end of the 2nd Century Greek Christians had begun using this word for the writings they believed to be inspired. From this came the English word, Bible. It is often translated in the Bible as ‘book’ from ‘biblos’ as in Matthew 1:1 and Luke 3:4, Mark 12:26, etc. See also, http://concordances.org/greek/976.htm, and also the interesting article at: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Byblos.
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In New Zealand the issue of same sex marriages has been discussed with a view to changing the law to recognise two people of the same sex as being ‘married’. In this article my friend Rod Bent discusses the redefinition of the word ‘marriage’ in the light of this and shares his conclusions. Words do change their meanings over time. In some cases this is a neutral and understandable phenomenon, at other times the motive may be something we should reflect on and consider carefully -particularly when it affects issues we may feel have deep moral significance for ourselves, our society and our nation. Thank you Rod, for sharing this helpful article.
