Jump Start # 3682

Acts 8:28 “and he was returning and sitting in his chariot, and was reading the prophet Isaiah.”

It’s Monday morning. Back to work. Back to school. Busy day. Doctor’s appointments. Errands to run. Get the dog to the vet. Get a hair cut. Run to the bank. Grocery shopping. Laundry. Catch a game on TV tonight.  And, through all of this haste and things to do, have we forgotten about yesterday, Sunday, the best day of the week?

Our verse today sets the tone that leads to the conversion of the treasurer from Ethiopia. He had been to Jerusalem to worship, which likely would have been a Sabbath day. Now he’s heading home. I expect with him were satchels of important papers. Business demands. Economic concerns. Building projects that he had to work into budgets. Meetings with various people. One doesn’t get to his position by being lazy and incompetent.

Yet, the Scriptures reveal to us that he is reading Isaiah. Worship is over and he is still reading. He is on his way home and he is reading God’s word. He didn’t toss his Bible in the back seat of the car and forget about it until the next week. How easily he could have checked off that worship was over and now it’s time to think about business, sports and fun.

Have you ever just listened to conversations that take place after Sunday worship? The final amen is said and multiple mini conversations take place. And, what are people talking about? Do you see anyone sitting down with Bibles opened and discussing the sermon that they just heard? No. Usually it’s about what team won the football game on Saturday. It’s about the ups and downs of a recent vacation. It’s about how do you fix a car. It’s about sharing recipes. And, I admit, that I’m right in the thick of those conversations. And, before the noon meal is finished, the sermon is forgotten, the songs can’t be recalled and worship has been reduced to a moment and the moment doesn’t last long.

Worship was over, and the Ethiopian was reading Isaiah. Amazing! How can I make Sunday impact, direct and color my Monday? How can I keep what I did, learned and loved on Sunday alive through the week? This is something we preachers think about. We want to say something so memorable that the audience will never forget it. But that won’t happen. And, that puts too much on us and not on the individual worshipper.

Here are some thoughts:

First, take thorough notes of worship. I was going through some old ledgers from the 1950s of a congregation. Recorded for every Sunday was the name of the song leader, the list of songs sung, the name of the preacher and the title of the sermon. You may not go to such detail, but take a look at your sermon notes Sunday evening and go over them again. Lay the sermon notes by your wallet, purse or car keys. In the morning as you busy day begins, there are the sermon notes. As you drive about, think about Sunday. Think about the people you saw. Say a prayer for them. Think about the songs you sang. Sing them again. Think about the sermon. Let those points simmer in your heart and mind.

Second, one thing we do at Charlestown Road is we have a Wednesday podcast that recaps what was preached on Sunday. We chase a few rabbits, lower the nets some, and consider the lesson in more detail. You can do that on your own without a podcast. Talk about the lesson over Sunday lunch. What stuck with you? What other verses could have been used? What did you learn? How did you see Jesus?

In our area we have some die hard Kentucky basketball fans. I know a family that has season tickets to the games. They’ll drive over, listening to the pregame on the radio. They’ll tail gate and talk the game with other fans. After the game is over, they will listen to the post game report on the way home. Then, once they get home, they watch the game again, that they recorded on TV. They thoroughly immerse themselves in that experience and game. Now, compare that to what we do on Sunday?

Third, the Ethiopian wanted to learn. God sent Philip to him because he had an honest and good heart. He just wasn’t reading, he was thinking. He wanted to know who Isaiah was talking about. His mind was in the word of God. And, when our mind is in worship, things will stick with us.

What happens on Sunday can make a difference on our Monday and Tuesday.

Roger

Jump Start # 1785

Acts 8:28 “and he was returning and sitting in his chariot, and was reading the prophet Isaiah.”

Our verse today comes from that powerful conversion account of the Ethiopian. He had been to Jerusalem to worship. On his trip back home he was reading Isaiah. God sent Philip the preacher to him. A conversation began with a simple question, “Do you understand what you are reading?” From that question, a discussion about Jesus, the Messiah took place. All of that resulted in the eunuch obeying Christ and being baptized. It was a glorious moment and it remains a trustworthy standard in our Bibles to look at.

A thought that is so easy to miss here, is the seeing the Ethiopian reading Isaiah in his chariot. The book of Isaiah is large and is thought to have taken three scrolls in length. For someone to have their own private copy was very special and unique. It is not out of hand to believe that on this trip to Jerusalem, the Ethiopian purchased his copy of Isaiah. This would have been the place to buy them. Ethiopia wouldn’t sell them in the market place. Most unlikely. To own your own copy would have cost a lot of money. I expect that Philip didn’t have his own copy.

All of this leads us to a thought about our own Bibles. Most of us have a few copies here and there in our homes. But there is probably one Bible that you carry with you on Sundays. Most preachers have what we call our “preaching Bibles.” They are suitable for use in teaching and preaching. I have a study Bible that I use in my office. I can’t preach out of it any longer because pages fall out and it’s a mess.

On any given Sunday we see all kinds of Bibles. More and more are carrying electronic Bibles, via their phones and tablets. I guess I’m old school, because I still like the book form of the Bible. I like the feel of the Bible and I like look of my Bible.

Our Bibles are more than God’s word. They are a tool for us to know God’s will and to understand the life that God wants us to live. That being the case, a person needs to make their Bible “user friendly” just for their own taste. Here are a few suggestions that can help you:

1. Underline phrases and circle words, especially repeated words in a text. It helps these words to jump out and you can see themes and what is important. For example, in that section of Hebrews 10 that leads up to “not forsaking our own assembling…”, three times the preceding verses all begin with the expression, “let us.” Let us begins verse 22, 23, and 24. Circled in your Bible, you see a minor theme there.

– when writing in your Bible, make sure you find a pen or a highlighter that doesn’t soak through to the other side. That will make reading the other page difficult if you are not careful.

2. At the back of your Bible are several “White pages.” Use those pages to write notes, lists of things that you want to remember, or even to tape some printed things that will help you. This is a great place to put a list of Biblical dates and events that you want to remember. I have a short highlight of a sermon that Harry Pickup, Jr preached about Philemon years ago. I typed up lesson and taped it in the back of my Bible. There was an occasion when I needed to deliver a quick invitation and I opened to that page and that was helpful.

3. Take care of your Bible. Books, Bibles included, will last a long time if you are careful with them. I have several books that are over 100 years old in my library. I have a few that are edging close to being 200 years old. A Bible can last many, many years if you are careful with it.

– don’t toss it or leave it in your trunk

– don’t use it for a coaster

– don’t leave it on the dashboard where the hot sun can cook it

– don’t jam so many papers in it that it breaks the binding

– before it falls apart completely, take care of it

The breaking of the binding is usually the greatest danger to your Bible. As the binding starts to separate, use some super glue and put it up and down the binding and then use rubber bands to hold your Bible tight. Don’t touch it for a few days. That ought to put a few more years into your Bible.

4. Replacing a favorite Bible is painful and hard. Sometimes you cannot find the exact Bible that you had. Then, even if you can, there is the transferring of all those notations, underlines, circled words and things you have written in the white pages. It can be done, but it’s a long process.

Most of us who have used the same Bible for several years, have a feel for where things are. You know a certain passage is on this side of the page. You can open to certain books of the Bible without having to look. Your Bible has become very familiar to your hands and eyes. That’s a wonderful feeling. That’s a good sign that you have spent a long time with that Bible.

5. Purchase a few less expensive Bibles in other versions. This is a great way to study a text. Get two or three Bibles opened, most Bible programs on-line allow you to do this very easily, and read from them. Good reliable translations will help you to see what a text is pointing to. It will help you.

6. Teach your children to take care of their Bibles. Starting early, and developing a deep respect for God’s word and learning to take care of your Bible is something that can stay with them for the rest of their lives. Having a Bible for little ones helps them. There are many, many children’s Bibles on the market. Get one that they will like. As they grow, so will the need for a Bible that fits their age. Bibles make great gifts for graduations, weddings and Christmas.

I have an old New Testament that belonged to a preacher long ago. He has since died. This little New Testament is clean. There are no words underlined and nothing is written on the “white pages.” I wish he had done that. I wish I knew all the places that he took this little Bible and where all he preached with it. I wonder what good came from this little Bible.

Give me the Bible…

Roger