The Most Stolen Book of All Time

Jono brought us the first of a new series today with a look at how the Bible was brought together. Things to consider-

1/ it is the highest selling book of all time
2/ it is the most stolen book of all time
3/ it is the most frequently banned book of all time

How many of us know the story of the Bible? The disciples did not believe in Jesus because of the Bible, it had not been written. They believed in Jesus because of a lived experience of life changing events they witnessed.

The Bible as we know it was put together in the 4th century AD following a series of councils, most notably the first council of Nicea in AD 325 presided over by the Roman emperor Constantine the Great. Jesus did not write the Bible but he is the reason for the Bible.

The disciple Luke, a doctor who wrote the Gospel named after him, wrote-

Luke 1:1-3

 Many have undertaken to draw up an account of the things that have been fulfilled[a] among us, 2 just as they were handed down to us by those who from the first were eyewitnesses and servants of the word. 

“Many” who are the many? They are the eyewitnesses concerning to what happened to Jesus and what he said and did. “eyewitnesses?” who? Mathew, Mark, Luke and John wrote the gospels named after them.

John says this in his Gospel:

John 20:30-31

30 Jesus performed many other signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. 31 But these are written that you may believe[b] that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.

John is saying here, if this account is all you have, then this is all you need. He writes the most known Bible verse in John 3:16-

16 For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. 17 For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.

John wants people to believe in Jesus and not a book he is writing.

The Roman emperor Diolcletian , ruled 284-305 AD, demanded that all Christian books be destroyed however, under the later emperor Constantine, ruled 306-337 AD, Christianity was allowed and the Bible as we know started to be put together.

Written by Ian Jannaway