The Beautiful Sounds of Truth
by Tim Nichols

    Gary Petty recently told of a friend whose mother had a very old music box that no longer worked. His friend thought that it would be nice to have it repaired for Mom. The box had been in the family for generations. Maybe it would bring back old memories as she listened to the sounds that she had not heard since her childhood. A skillful man was found who could obtain the parts and repair the old machine.

    After the box was repaired it was presented to the mother. It sounded very lovely. But Gary's friend was surprised to discover that Mom was hearing the lovely tunes for the very first time! She had never heard it actually play before. Neither had her mother. The last person to have heard it before its restoration would have been her grandmother!

    Most of our families have old Bibles. Some have been in the family for generations. Not all of our families have paid a great deal of attention to them. Some have passed along faulty notions about what it teaches. Some have mingled the truth of the Bible with ideas that did not originate with Christ and His apostles. Maybe the clear and simple truths of the Bible have not been heard for generations in some cases.

    Although the word of God is very old, none of the parts have been lost! It can be heard just as clearly today as it was heard by those who heard it for the very first time. It is, in fact, the only thing that you may have that will never pass away. It was designed to be heard by all men and women of every generation exactly as it was heard by the first to hear it.

    The old music box probably does not compare with the "new-fangled", modern machines that are able to produce beautiful music. It has been replaced by record players, cassettes, and CD players. But maybe these do not possess the charm of the old music box.

    Too many, in our world, have looked upon the Bible as many would the old box. New ideas are available to us, in the modern world, that have replaced the truths of God's word. Science, philosophy, psychology, and other fields have provided us with plenty to think about. Much of it is very valuable in a temporary sort of way. But none of them tell us who we are, from whence we have come, or where we are going. None of them are from the hand of God. None will last beyond the grave. Let's resolve to "fine tune" our understanding of the Bible. If we rely too heavily upon what has been passed along to us by previous generations we may be hearing a garbled message. Well-meaning ancestors may have attempted to improve upon God's "music box" by replacing some of the parts with denominational doctrines. Human creeds have effectively replaced it in the minds of some. Some in our own generation are tampering with it by removing "culturally inappropriate" truths and replacing them with up to date interpretations. But no one can improve upon the sound. God delivered it for all men and women of every age. Those who are willing to take the time and make the effort to understand its message will be rewarded with the crystal clear sound of God-breathed truth.

    Maybe there is someone you know who has an old Bible but has not heard its truths. Maybe they have not been heard for generations. It's time to dust them off and hear them again. Maybe you can help.

This item originally appeared at My Two Cents Worth