Yesterday, Today, and Forever
Bible Reading: 1 Peter 1:21-25
The grass withers, and the flowers fall away. But the word of the Lord will last forever. 1 Peter 1:24-25
YOU’RE A contestant on TV’s newest game show, Answer These Dumb Questions and Win a Dumb Prize. Answer this question right and you win something really big. Well, not really. But can you number the following items in order of newest to oldest (1 being newest, 9 being oldest)? Ready? Go!
- The pyramids of Gaza
- Your grandfather’s first car
- Your math teacher
- Mount Everest
- The first Star Wars movie
- Noah’s ark
- Your mom’s hair style
- God’s Word
- Sputnik, the first orbiting satellite
If you picked God’s Word for anything but number nine-oldest of the old-kiss your prize bye-bye. The Bible says, “In the beginning the Word already existed” (John 1:1). God’s Word was here before anything. True, God’s written Word as we know it has only been around since the Bible appeared on scrolls several millennia ago. But God’s living Word has always existed, because Jesus Christ-“the Word” has always existed. Nothing comes before God and his Word, because they have no beginning.
Now look at the list of nine items again and circle the one you think will be here the longest. Sure, Mount Everest should hang tight for a long time. But if you didn’t circle God’s Word, you probably skipped over today’s verse: “The word of the Lord will last forever” (1 Peter 1:25). Like God himself, his Word is eternal. It has no beginning and no end. You might pass your Bible on to your grandchildren someday. That book will eventually fall apart and turn to dust, but the Good News about Christ written in those pages will stick around beyond the end of time.
Bottom line: God’s Word was changing lives and healing hearts for thousands of years before you were born, and it will be here long after you leave planet Earth. It’s the right answer for all the big questions of life.
REFLECT: God loves you so much that he made sure you would have his Word. How should you respond to that?
PRAY: Thank God now that his Word lasts forever.