#49 The Positive Power of ONE Book (02/11/02)

By Dr. Robert H. Schuller

Our community is excited these days because some of us here are Angel fans and our baseball team, the Angels, are at the top and have a very good chance at becoming the champions this year. Gene Autry, who owned the Angels team, was a dear friend of mine. I always received an invitation to sit with him in his box and watch any Angel game, free, and enjoy his hospitality.

I was alone with him the night that the team was only one out from winning the pennant and we were ready to celebrate. Then at the bottom of the 9th inning, with only one out away from the pennant, there came the surprise hit and the team lost. Do you know how Gene Autry reacted to that big disappointment? At the left of his chair was his famous cane. He said nothing, but he leaned down and reached for his cane. I just sat still to watch his reaction. Then he leaned down for his hat, put it on his head, and stood up. Looking at me, Gene Autry said, "Well, Bob, we're still in the major leagues!"

I think that's one of the most positive reactions to one of the most negative experiences in Gene Autry's celebrated life.

Yes, we are Positive Thinkers and the message for today is "The Positive Power of One Book." There is one book, more than any other single book, that has shaped the world at its best and helped us through its worst for the past 2000 years, the Bible!

The Byblos, an amazing book.

As the psalmist states in Psalm 119,

"Your word, O Lord, is eternal... open my eyes that I may see wonderful things in Your law... O how I love Your word. I meditate on it all day long. Your commandments have made me wise... Your word is a lamp unto my feet and a light unto my path."
(Psalm 119:18, 97, 105)

Wow! The awesome positive power of ONE book - the Bible!

I entered the ministry in the 1950's after completing my undergraduate work at a great university. And there were at that time, in the middle of the century, many skeptics and yes, religious clerics, who threw doubt about the Bible, suggesting that it was not very intelligent to believe in it any more, et cetera. There was a real wave of anti-Biblical thinking. So I then began to collect sayings about the Bible to bolster my awareness of its value, such as Abraham Lincoln who said:

"I believe the Bible is the best gift God has ever given to man. All the good from the Savior of the world is communicated to us through this book."

George Washington:
"It is impossible to rightly govern the world without God and the Bible."

Daniel Webster:
"If there is anything in my thoughts or styles to commend, the credit is due to my parents for instilling in me the early love of the scriptures."

My list of believers was a long one, and I became convinced that the Bible was a book recognized more than any other book ...and it has achieved such a maximum following and affirmative support.

The Bible - more than any other one book - established the values for the American Republic, 1776, the Declaration of Independence, the Bill of Rights, the dignity of the person, and the belief in God. This book is history. The good news is, it's never going to die. Critics have never succeeded in abandoning it. The Bible survives!

The awesome positive power of one book - the Bible!

Many years ago, a very brilliant young student in China received an opportunity to come to America to study at MIT - Massachusetts Institute of Technology. This was years ago when there was no relationship between China and America. The Cold War between Communism, Christianity and freedom was at its peak. But the Chinese government let him come to MIT to study - he was a bright, brilliant, young atheist. But he had no money.

Then he heard that there was this one family, a wonderful family, whose home welcomed foreign students at the school. And he heard that if he connected with them, he would get some free food. So he established a relationship with them. But with their hospitality and free food, they also gave him a Bible because they were Christians; however, he didn't want a Bible. It was very upsetting. However, there is awesome power in this one book - the Bible - and after a time he opened it. Reading it, the Living, Eternal God came to him through this book. That's when Bob Lee became a Christian. That was 30 years ago.

Then Bob Lee began watching the Hour of Power and that's how we met. When he earned his Ph.D. in higher mathematics from Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Dr. Bob Lee was assigned to teach at the University of California at Irvine near our church. So Dr. Lee began attending this church that he'd seen on television, and became one of our most respected and supportive members, and an elder of the church. He married Betty, a wonderful friend. The Lees have one daughter who is a professional in Christian education, and today they have two grandchildren. When you attend the Crystal Cathedral worship services, you can meet them and you will know that these people are real and the stories I tell are true.

The positive power of one book. Wow! All of us who've lived in America for the past 50 years have known of the best-selling book entitled "The Power of Positive Thinking," written by Norman Vincent Peale. I read that book and I began to dream of building a church. Norman Peale belonged to the same denomination that I do, the Reformed Church in America. And so, he and I became dear friends and he helped us through the early years of building this church. His book has sold 30 million copies in 45 languages and it has brought faith to thousands of people because the book is really based on the teachings of the Holy Bible.
Many multiplied millions of people have never been introduced to the Bible, the most positive power book ever written. The Bible is God's Word and it's the one and only time when God, through His Sovereign Providence, put together the truth through different persons and different groups - through thousands of years - until one remarkable book was formed.
What makes the Bible so awesome is that it deals with the two most fundamental questions anyone could ask:

1) Does God exist?

Is there really a God Who exists? We have to have an answer and it can't just be the opinion of a particular philosopher, psychologist, atheist or believer. We want to receive an answer that's reliable, dependable, honest and true. This book is God's answer. Not just by one author, but by so many authors over such a long period of time. If you want to say that God does not exist, then you have to discard the entire book and say that everybody whose life's story is in the Bible is a lie. You cannot read the Bible honestly, intelligently, critically and constructively and disregard the stories of Moses, Noah, David, the prophets and, finally, Jesus. They are all included in this one book. You cannot say that those stories are not true, that some author made it all up, that it is fiction. That is most unintelligent. I cannot - not - believe the stories in the Bible!

2) If God exists, does He know me? Does God care about me?

In the great musical about George Washington entitled "1776," an actor walks on stage, looks up to the sky and says, "Is anybody up there? Does anybody care?" These are the very questions each one of us asks at some time in life. "Is anybody up there? Does HE care?" This book, the Bible, gives the answers.

3) Does God know me?

No matter what emotional state you find yourself, read the Bible and God will speak to you. Guilty? He speaks to you and assures you that He can forgive you of your sins. Fearful about today or tomorrow? Life and death? Perhaps you were told you do not have long to live? Is that it? Whatever your situation, open the book called the Bible and God will speak to you.

"...Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil; for You are with me. Your rod and Your staff comfort me." (Psalm 23:4)

Hallelujah!

Guilty? Fearful? Anxious? Troubled? Problems in relationships? The answers are in the Bible. That's why everybody needs the Bible! Everybody needs God. The positive power of this one book. When you face death, is there life beyond? Or is that a fantasy? We have a book - the Bible - that gives the answers. Can you trust it? Yes, it's been proven through the fire. It's been carried through the flood. It has survived the emotional earthquakes of life, no matter what your troubles are, or have been.

The awesome positive power of one book - the Bible.

Today people are troubled financially. And this month, income has really dropped seriously in our ministry. A friend of mine told me this week, "My total life's savings for my retirement was $385,000, and now I am already 70 years old, but my stock is only worth $1,036 today. That's not enough to live on." We are praying that many who rely on our positive messages will respond and send us a donation to help keep us on the air.

When we began our Hour of Power television ministry 32 years ago, we knew it would cost a lot of money. We didn't have that, and we had to trust God. And we had to make sure that every dollar would be accurately accounted for and wisely used for ministry. We hired an accountant, a financial expert, named Lou Stivers. I still remember the morning when he called me with the bad news. Lou needed open heart surgery, which was very rare 30 years ago. It was often fatal, and the cost was prohibitive - $9,000. (That doesn't sound like much today as that cost would be more than $100,000.)

Our ministry had insurance which would cover 80% of it. That meant that Lou would have to pay the remaining $1,800. He didn't know where he'd get that kind of money. A few days later, Lou, with tears in his eyes, told me what happened. He told the doctor, "I don't know where I'm going to get the other 20%." And the doctor said, "Well, we cannot finance it." And Lou replied, "I thought maybe if you'd let me pay it back over 12 months I could do it. That would be about a hundred and fifty dollars a month." The doctor said, "Well...I can't promise that, but I will take it to the board but I'll need a financial statement from you."

So, Lou gave him his personal, financial statement. The doctor showed it to the board and his team of doctors. Under the expenditures of Lou's financial statement was listed:

Budget: #1 - $140/month - tithe.

(The most important expenditure was Lou's tithe.)

Budget: #2 - $240/month - house payment.

The doctors looked at that and said, "$140 a month for tithe? What is that? What does that word mean?" On the board was a doctor who was also a Christian and a church member who said, "A tithe? Well, most Christians believe the Bible where God says, 'Take the first 10% of your income and give it to Me. I need money, too, to do what I must do.'" So the doctor told the board, that's what Lou Stivers gives to his church, to God.

The doctors raised their eyebrows, and shook their heads; they'd never heard of that. "Well," they said, "that would be just enough. If we take the tithe in 12 months, his bill of $1,800 would be paid. That's wonderful!" Then another doctor said, "You know, I don't practice a religion or go to a church, but if that man thinks enough of God, and of his church, to put that $140 first, even before he'll use it to save his life with an operation, or for a place to live, I'd suggest forgetting about the 20%. Let's just accept the 80%." And they all voted yes! Amazing! Lou Stivers believed in the Bible's answer to his financial problems, and when he committed his tithe faithfully, year after year, God blessed him mightily.

I can tell many true stories like those of Bob Lee and Lou Stivers. The Bible has the answers to all of life's problems.

Do you have the courage to believe the Bible?

It will change your life and destiny because the Bible is the Word of Christ. It leads to Jesus. And Jesus changes everything. Jesus Christ is our Lord! Jesus Christ is our Savior! Jesus Christ is our best friend!

Prayer: Thank You, Jesus. This is the only book that's been put together to make sure that Your teaching, Your life story, and Your death and resurrection would never be forgotten. I can believe in You and I am deciding to follow You now! Amen.