August 15 Daily Devotional

Bible Reading

Devotional

If we meet someone who wants to know God, we should give her a Bible. Chances are, however, that she will expect essays about God in the Bible. So we'll need to explain that the Bible is not exactly a book that tells us all about God. Neither is it a book about people. Instead it is a book that deals with the relationship between God and people. They start out together (Gen. 1-2), they lose each other (Gen. 3), but at the end they are together again, forever and ever (Rev. 21).

Then we'll need to explain to our friend that the Bible has two main seetions: the Old Testament and the New. We can show her the big section that is called the Old Testament and the smaller section that follows called the New Testament.

The word testament means covenant. We can explain that these words stand for the same idea, because both have to do with pledges or promises.

The old covenant is the relationship between God and his people under the laws of Mount Sinai. And the new covenant is the relationship between God and his people through the blood and the Spirit of Jesus Christ.

By this time we may have lost our friend because of all the technical terms we have been using. But have you ever tried to explain baseball or soccer without the use of technical terms? Too bad there are more sports fans than Bible lovers.

Let's make sure our friend remembers that it is the word covenant that keeps the whole Bible together. It means that throughout history, God speaks and people must answer. God makes pledges and people must trust and obey. And God's last word comes in Jesus Christ.

Once we get to Christ, we can explain to our friend what the new covenant is. And we will not be able to explain that unless we ourselves know the value of the blood and the power of the Spirit.

REFLECTIONS

Try explaining in your own words how the word covenant holds the Bible together.

Andrew Kuyvenhoven's Daylight, a modern devotional classic, was originally published by Paideia Press in 1977. This updated edition is copyright 2009 by Faith Alive Christian Resources. You can order a copy of this revised version of the book directly from the publisher.

A man of many accomplishments, Andrew Kuyvenhoven is probably best known for his contributions to Today (formerly The Family Altar), a widely-used monthly devotional booklet associated with the Back to God Hour. Unless otherwise indicated, Scripture quotations for this updated edition of Daylight are from the Holy Bible: Today's New International Version copyright 2001, 2005 by the International Bible Society.