The HOME is a Place for the Bible

The home is a place for the Bible. The Bible belongs in the home because it contains God’s blueprint for building and maintaining a stable home. God cares about the home. Psalm 127:1 states, “Unless the Lord builds the house, they labor in vain who build it.” This verse assures us that God is willing to roll up His divine sleeves and help us build homes that are strong.

The home is important to God for several reasons.

First, the home is important to God because it’s the setting where children learn their value as human beings. As children interact with others in the home they develop either a positive or negative view of themselves. The Bible gives family members important guidelines concerning how they should relate to one another.

Second, the home is important to God because it’s the setting in which children learn to relate to those in authority. Their experiences at home usually determine the manner in which they relate to those in authority outside the home and ultimately to God.

Finally, the home is important to God because it’s the place where children develop their values. As children observe what their parents hold important they too make determinations about what is important. In particular, if your children do not see the importance of the Bible in your life, they will likely not place much importance on the Bible.

The home was very important in ancient Israel. That is why in Deuteronomy 6:4-9 God charged parents with the responsibility of providing spiritual instruction in the home. Parents were to teach their children how to put their confidence in God, to not forget the works of God, and to live in obedience to God (Ps. 78:5-8). The children, in turn, were to teach these same lessons to their children.

The home is the basis of a strong nation. When homes are strong the nation is strong. And, when homes are weak the nation is correspondingly weak. According to Ezekiel 22:7, the breakdown of the home contributed to the spiritual and moral decline and eventual captivity of Israel. Many other ancient civilizations also fell because of the disintegration of the home.

We can not expect to provide spiritual instruction in the home apart from God’s Word. And, if we fail to teach our children how to put their confidence in God, to not forget the works of God, and to live in obedience to God, we will raise a spiritually and morally confused generation that will further weaken the moral fiber of our nation. The Bible must have a central place in our homes.

The HAND is a Good Place for the Bible

The Bible must also have a place in our hands.

I met Dr. David Fite during my seminary years. Dr. Fite was imprisoned by Castro for a number of years. He was not allowed to have a Bible while he was in prison. Dr. Fite could not bear the thought of being without a Bible, so he asked a friend to get him a copy of the Greek New Testament. When the guards examined the book, they were told it was a book of great literature and history written in Greek. That New Testament became a great source of strength and comfort to him during those difficult years.

Years ago I visited the home of Corrie ten Boom in Haarlem, Holland — just outside the city of Amsterdam. Her family’s story is recorded in the book entitled, “The Hiding Place.” Corrie and her family were Christians who helped hide Jews from the Nazis during the dark days of World War 2. Her family was betrayed and consequently arrested and sent to concentration camps. Corrie ten Boom kept a Bible hidden on her person during her imprisonment. It was a constant source of strength to her.

A Bible in our hands is available for reading. It is important for us to spend quiet moments with God when He can specifically speak to us about our lives. We should have a Bible in our hands for the purpose of reading at least once a day. Doing so will make a great difference in our lives.

A Bible in our hands is also available for reference. The Bible addresses all the issues that touch our lives and can give us the counsel to make right decisions.

A Bible is our hands is also available as a resource in times of confusion, danger, difficulties, distress, doubt, fear, loneliness, pain, pressures, and trials. Whenever I find myself in one of those difficult seasons in life, I do not hesitate to look to the Bible in my hand as a resource that will comfort and guide me.

What about you? Does the Bible in your home find its way to your hand at least once a day? The Bible in your home will not make a difference in your life if it never ends up in your hand.

The HEAD is a Better Place for the Bible

The home is a place for the Bible and the hand is a good place for the Bible. But the head is a better place for the Bible.

To have the Bible in our head means that we should strive to master the Word of God. In other words, we should seek to increase our knowledge and understanding of the Word of God — a task that will take a lifetime.

Someone wisely stated that no one ever graduates from Bible Study until he meets the Author face to face. Paul told his young friend Timothy, “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, handling accurately the word of truth” (2 Tim. 2:15).

A friend in high school gave me a copy of the New Testament. That New Testament did not have a concordance. I did not know that there was such a thing as a concordance at the back of most Bibles. A concordance is a handy tool for finding verses in the Bible. But, as I read and studied this little New Testament every day, I began to put together my own concordance. All of the pages at the front and back of this New Testament are filled with my notes about where to find verses on certain topics. That was only the beginning of a Bible Study journey that continues through this day and will continue until the day I meet the Author face to face.

To have the Bible in our head also means that we should meditate on the Word of God. To meditate means to reflect on God’s Word … to turn it over in our minds … to think it through. The Psalmist said (quote Ps. 1:1-3).

Ezra is one of my favorite Bible characters. Ezra 7:10 states, “For Ezra had set his heart to study the law of the Lord, and to practice it, and to teach His statutes in Israel.”

Many scholars believe that Ezra is the author of Psalm 119 — the most magnificent Psalm on the beauty of the Word of God. Psalm 119:97 states, “O how I love Thy law! It is my meditation all the day.”

Like the righteous man of Psalm 1 and Ezra, we too should meditate on God’s Word throughout the day.

To have the Bible in our head also means that we should memorize the Word of God. Every believer should make it a point to memorize Scripture. Begin by memorizing familiar and favorite verses.

I enjoy memorizing Scripture. By memorizing Scripture I am able to meditate on it throughout the day. My favorite book of the Bible is Psalms. The Psalms not only speak to me, they also speak for me. They are a daily source of comfort and inspiration to me. I enjoy reflecting on their meaning as I go about my day. These are among my favorites.

The Bible in your home must find a place in your hands if it is ever going to end up in your head.

The HEART is the Best Place for the Bible

The home is a place for the Bible. The hand is a good place for the Bible. The head is a better place for the Bible. But the heart is the best place for the Bible.

The Psalmist declared, “Thy word I have treasured in my heart, That I may not sin against Thee” (Ps. 119:11). The Apostle Paul said, “Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you…” (Col. 3:16).

We memorize God’s Word in our heads but we treasure it in our hearts.

In other words, the truths, principles, and precepts of God’s Word are what we treasure in our hearts. When God’s truths richly dwell in our hearts they can help govern our decisions, our actions, and help us live our lives in a way that pleases God.

Someone wisely said about the Bible: “This book will keep you from sin or sin will keep you from this book.”

Let me illustrate what I mean. Psalm 139 is in my head. It is recorded on the pages of my memory. That has allowed to meditate on its truths as I go about my day.

Psalm 139:1-6 states “O Lord, Thou hast searched me…”
The truth that is treasured in my heart is this: The fact that God watches everything I do should be an incentive to holy living. I can never do anything behind God’s back.

Psalm 139:7-12 states “Where can I go from Thy Spirit…”
The truth that is treasured in my heart is this: I can never escape the presence of God. I am never alone no matter where I go or how fast I try to go. I can count on God’s presence all the time. I am never alone.

Psalm 139:13-16 states “For Thou didst form my inward parts…”
The truth that is treasured in my heart is this: I am special to God. He has known me since I was in my mother’s womb. I am a person of value and significance.

Psalm 139:17-18 states “How precious also are Thy thoughts…”
The truth that is treasured in my heart is this: God thinks about me all the time. Even when I am asleep, God is thinking about me. And when I wake up in the morning He is still thinking about me. Nobody thinks about me as much as God.

Psalm 139:19-22 states “O that Thou wouldst slay…”
The truth that is treasured in my heart is this: I should hate the things God hates. I should avoid the things that would cause my love for Him to grow cold.

Psalm 139:23-24 states “Search me, O God…”
The truth that is treasured in my heart is this: God can make my heart clean. He can calm anxious thoughts and correct hurtful ways.

And so, the Bible in your home must find its way in to your hands in order to find a place in your head and ultimately end up in your heart.

Conclusion

I want to challenge you to think seriously about what you believe concerning God’s Word, the implications of that belief, and the place that God’s Word actually holds in your life.

How frequently does the Bible in your home find its way into your hand?

How much time do you actually spend engaging your head with the Bible in your hand?

How much of what you learn in your head actually ends up finding a place in your heart?

We cannot expect to intelligently speak to the various competing ideologies and worldviews in our post-modern culture apart from a strong Biblical worldview?

I hope you will allow God’s Word to richly dwell within you.

Please spend time in God’s Word every day.

Proverbs 13:13 is a one-verse commentary on why God’s Word deserves a special place in each of our lives: “Despise God’s Word and find yourself in trouble. Obey it and succeed.”