All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. – 2 Timothy 3:16-17
I love reading. I face one of my biggest temptations when I step through the doors of a bookshop. “Wow! I want to buy this, this and this. But this seems so interesting! Let’s buy it too!” Before long, I find myself faced with 2 problems of catastrophic proportions. First, I have no time to finish reading every single book that I bought. Second, I have no place to store all my books. But I do know that there is one book that stands out amongst all books. Paul’s description of the Bible in 2 Timothy answers three questions about the Bible: What is it?g What can it be used for? What does it make us?
It is perhaps no surprise that John Wesley, even though he was known to be very well-read and have owned an extensive library, he nevertheless declared,
O give me that book! At any price, give me the book of God! I have it: here is knowledge enough for me. Let me be homo unius libri.h Here then I am, far from the busy ways of men. I sit down alone; only God is here. In His presence I open, I read His book; for this end, to find the way to heaven. 58
Wesley wanted his followers to know the whole Bible, reading from both Testaments each day. He also believed that “one should carefully apply and immediately put into practice what was read.”59
圣经都是上帝所默示的，于教训、督责、使人归正、教导人学义都是有益的，叫属上帝的人得以完全，预备行各样的善事。《提摩太后书》3：16-17 和合本修订版
我喜欢阅读。当我踏入书店的大门时，我就面临的一个最大的诱惑。 “哇！我想买这本，这本和这本。但是这本似乎也很有趣！我们也买吧！” 不久，我发现自己面临着两个灾难性的问题。首先，我没有时间阅读我购买的每一本书。其次，我没有地方存放我的所有书籍。但我知道有一本书在所有书中脱颖而出。保罗在《提摩太后书》中回答了关于圣经的三个问题：它是什么书？它可以用来做什么？它能什么使我们成为怎样的人？
尽管约翰.卫斯理是一个博览群书并且拥有一个巨大图书馆的人，但他这样声明恐怕也并不奇怪。
“哦，给我那本书！不惜任何代价，给我上帝的书！我拥有它：这里有我足够的知识。让我成为唯有此书不可无的人。在这里，我远离人们繁忙的生活方式。我独自坐下，只有上帝在这里，在他同在中，翻开，读他的书; 为此目的：找到通往天堂的道路。 ”
约翰.卫斯理希望他的追随者能明白整本圣经，每天读新约和旧约。他还认为，“应该谨慎地应用并立即付诸实践”。
反思
这是约翰.卫斯理在每天的班会小组聚会中问的两个问题，
“圣经今天有在我心里吗？” “我每天有花时间让圣经对我说话吗？”
Reflection
These two questions were asked at John Wesley’s daily class group meetings: (1) “Did the Bible live in me today?”60 (2) “Do I give it time to speak to me everyday?”61