Jesus once said, “Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away” (Matthew 24:35). And, until recently, I thought that it was common sense what Jesus meant: His teaching would endure forever. But, because of a recent car accident in Tennessee, it may be a good time to review.
The headline read: “Bible undamaged after SUV bursts into flames on Tennessee highway.” Naturally, this raised questions. And many Christians cried, “miracle.” But did God save the Bible? Or is there some scientific reason why everything burned up except for the Bible?
So, the easy answer is “yes, it makes sense.” A Bible, with leather on either side doesn’t have surface area that burns easily; when it is closed, no air can enter; and gilded pages act as insulation. As such, burning a closed Bible is a little more difficult than you might imagine.
But going beyond the initial, rational answer, is there anything more going on here? I won’t limit God. I won’t say that He can’t save a Bible in order to start a discussion about His Word. But, when looking at the comments at the end of the article, it is clear that Christians focused too much on the status of the Book, rather than the words in it.
And the hostility with which non-believers reacted reminds us that we need to stick to the facts. Tell the words of Jesus and the Scripture inspired by The Holy Spirit only. No need to embellish; no need to presume. Speak the facts from His Word, not from your imagination.
Because, the promise we have from Jesus is that His Word will endure. God’s Word will not return void. It will accomplish what it is meant to do. And even if all the Bibles in the world were burned, His Word would still be just as valid, just as enduring.
So, is it a nice story that the Bible didn’t burn? Yes! But let’s not make more of it than we should. And, oh, by the way, the driver wasn’t injured…thank, God!
