For All People, in All Times
The Word my dad could read
A schoolchild can open a Bible and begin learning about God. So can someone whose education ended before most of us had learned very much at all.
My dad got to the second grade.
He spelled lawn mower “lawn more.” You knew what he meant, and getting the spelling right was hardly the most important thing about the man. God knew him. His education presented no obstacle to the relationship they shared.
I believe God taught my dad to read His Word.
That matters to me when I consider what God has preserved across the generations. Here was a man with very little schooling, opening the Scriptures and coming to know the One who had given them. Whatever difficulties he might have encountered with words on a page, God could reach him there.
I think about that when I look at the writings I am sharing.
I have acknowledged the work of Dr. Michael S. Heiser because it helped me notice things and ask questions that became important to this journey. I am grateful for that help. I also appreciate that people study languages, examine ancient manuscripts, and prepare maps that help us understand the places and events we encounter in Scripture.
My dad could still open his Bible.
He did not have to wait until he had acquired someone else’s education before beginning a relationship with God. The Word was within his reach, and the God who knew his limitations also knew how to teach him.
Paul reminds Timothy of the sacred writings he had known from childhood, writings able to make him wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. (2 Timothy 3:14–17) There is something wonderful about considering that wisdom arriving within the life of a child. The learning can begin long before the person has an impressive account of what he knows.
The Psalmist speaks of God’s words giving light and understanding to the simple. (Psalm 119:130) I think of my dad when I read that. A man could struggle with spelling and still receive something that would guide his life, shape his home, and reach into the lives of his children.
What kind of education shall we call that?
I look at someone like Elon Musk and consider the extraordinary intellect involved in the things he undertakes. Yet the same Scriptures my dad read are there for him, too. He can bring all that ability to the page and still approach God with something to learn. The invitation reaches both men, and each has a will of his own to surrender.
Jesus thanked the Father for revealing to little children things hidden from the wise and understanding. (Matthew 11:25–26) That makes me consider the importance of the heart with which we approach Him. Knowledge can give us useful tools. Humility makes room for being taught.
I would not have wanted my dad to believe that his schooling disqualified him from understanding what God desired to show him. Nor would I want someone of great intellect to imagine that his understanding had already reached beyond anything God could teach him.
There is room before Him for both.
As I consider what makes a life good, I find myself thinking that my dad had a better life than a man could purchase with extraordinary wealth. That is my own judgment about the blessing I see in his life. All his children are in the Kingdom. When I consider what endures, that means more to me than a measure of possessions or accomplishments could express.
John wrote of his joy in hearing that his children were walking in the truth. (3 John 1:4) I understand something of the weight of that joy when I look at my family.
My dad’s life helps explain why I believe so strongly in the Word God has preserved. Across millennia, people have opened these writings and found their own needs coming into view: fear, pride, grief, longing, failure, love, and the desire to be known. The circumstances of daily life change, yet we continue encountering questions that reach us personally.
A man can repair a lawn more, raise his children, and learn to walk with God. Another can work toward sending a rocket to Mars and discover that he, too, needs the One who spoke creation into existence.
The Word reaches into both lives.
Isaiah speaks of the grass withering and the flower fading while the Word of our God stands forever. (Isaiah 40:8) I consider my dad, then the generations before him, and then the children who will open a Bible after we are gone. What God has preserved continues placing His invitation before them.
That is why I want to encourage you to begin where you are. Bring the education you have, the questions you carry, and a willingness to be taught. There is no need to pretend you understand what you do not understand. You can open His Word and begin speaking with Him.
My dad did.
For all people, in all times—and for you, here, today.