What Makes the Bible So Unique?

There is no other book like the Bible. According to 1 Timothy 3:16 (ESV), “All Scripture is breathed out by God and is profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness.” Only the Word of God is “able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus” (1 Timothy 3:15 ESV).

I’ve been reading A.W. Pink’s The Divine Inspiration of the Bible, and thoroughly enjoying it. Chapter 2 is entitled “The Perennial Freshness of the Bible Bears Witness to Its Divine Inspirer.” Here Mr. Pink provides a wonderful explanation of how the Bible is an unlimited treasure chest of truth for the one who reads it.

Here is a paragraph that I found most encouraging:

“The contents of the Bible are never exhausted. Unlike all other books, the Bible never acquires a sameness, and never diminishes in its power of response to the needy soul which comes to it. Just as a fresh supply of manna was given each day to the Israelites in the wilderness, so the Spirit of God ever breaks anew the Bread of Life to them who hunger after righteousness; or just as the loaves and fishes in the hands of our Lord were more than enough to feed the famished multitude – a surplus still remaining – so the honey and milk of the Word are more than sufficient to satisfy the hunger of every human soul – the supply still remaining undiminished for new generations.”

Has this been your experience with the Word of God? (If so, please leave a comment below.)

As I reflect on my own Bible reading, while the degree to which the God satisfies my soul through His Word can vary from day to day, overall, during the past several years, what Mr. Pink says has happened to me. On a consistent basis, God’s Word is a source of unparalleled delight for me. Because of His grace and by the inner working of His Spirit, I can read the Word and find my spirit soaring into His presence. I read the Book and find myself repeatedly in awe of His greatness and goodness. And I am content, satiated with Him because I am meditating on His truth.

And this happens over and over, day after day, year after year. That is what Mr. Pink is stressing here. God’s provision of satisfaction in Him through His Word is “never exhausted.” Furthermore, what God is doing for me, He is doing for countless other believers all over the globe – and He has been doing this work in the hearts of His people for centuries!

Can you also testify to this amazing characteristic of Holy Scripture? (If so, you know what to do, below.)

Not only is the Bible “an inexhaustible mine of wealth,” is it also “a fountain of living water . . . a spring of water which never runs dry. No matter how many may drink from its life-giving stream, and no matter how often they may quench their thirst at its refreshing waters, its flow continues and never fails to satisfy the needs of all who come and take of its perennial springs.”

This is why God is crying out to all who have ears to hear:

“ ¹ Come, all you who are thirsty, come to the waters;
and you who have no money, come, buy and eat!
Come, buy wine and milk without money and without cost.
² Why spend money on what is not bread,
and your labor on what does not satisfy?
Listen, listen to me, and eat what is good,
and you will delight in the richest of fare.
³ Give ear and come to me; listen, that you may live.
Isaiah 55:1-3

What command is repeated three times in the passage above? “Listen, listen to me . . . listen.” The water of life is found by listening to the words of life as revealed in the Word of God. God has made available the one thing that can quench the spiritual thirst of our souls. When we read the Bible we are opening our minds to hear Him speak. His truth then fills our hearts and we find “delight in the richest of fare.” We receive life itself from the Source of Life.

This means that listening to the Word requires effort on our part. It doesn’t just happen. Self-discipline is needed, and Mr. Pink addresses that. “Like earthly treasures, the gems of God must be diligently sought if they are to be found. Potatoes lie near the surface of the ground, but diamonds require much laborious digging, so also the precious things of the Word are only revealed to the prayerful, patient and diligent student.”

Yes, the treasures of God’s Word are free for the taking, “without money and without cost.” Yet they are given only to those who are willing to spend the time and energy required to sit at the feet of Jesus and hear Him speak.

Will you come and listen? Never ending joy awaits you.

For a free PDF of A.W. Pink’s The Divine Inspiration of the Bible, or to read it online at no charge, visit:
https://www.ccel.org/ccel/pink/inspiration.html

The Kindle version of Pink’s book is available for 99 cents here:
https://www.amazon.com/Divine-Inspiration-Bible-Building-Classics-ebook/dp/B082MRGD6T