Knowing God Through His Word in Scripture

Sep 27, 2026

Devotional

Day 1: God Speaks Mohawk in the Back of a Closet

A Mohawk chief’s declaration after reading Scripture in his heart language reveals how God’s voice bypasses cultural barriers. Like Lucy discovering Narnia through a wardrobe, the Bible becomes a portal to divine encounter when read in the language that resonates deepest. This truth challenges assumptions about “proper” spiritual language, inviting wonder at God’s determination to be understood. The struggle for Bible translation across 219 years for the Mohawk people mirrors our own need to hear God’s voice without filters. [42:12]

“Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.”
(Psalm 119:105, ESV)

Reflection: When has Scripture felt like a foreign language versus a “heart language” to you? What practical step could help you hear God’s voice more intimately this week?

Day 2: Cloth Merchants and Secret Panels

Humphrey Monmouth’s clandestine support for Tyndale’s Bible translation—hiding Scriptures in fabric shipments—exposes the sacred rebellion behind accessing God’s Word. Like the movable panel in Lucy’s cupboard, Bible distribution has always required ordinary people creating backdoor pathways to truth. This legacy questions modern complacency about Scripture’s availability, urging believers to become “contemporary Monmouths” for those still waiting. [50:25]

“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, ESV)

Reflection: Where do you see “closed cupboards” in today’s world where God’s Word needs hidden passageways? How could your skills or resources become part of such holy smuggling?

Day 3: White Hair Promises in a Falling World

The speaker’s reliance on Isaiah 46:4—“I will carry you until your hair is white”—anchors hope in God’s lifelong faithfulness. This image of divine endurance counters cultural fears of aging and obsolescence. Just as the Mohawk translation survived centuries of delay, God’s promises outlast personal and societal unraveling. The challenge becomes trusting the slow, often invisible work of eternal purposes. [01:02:00]

“Even to your old age and gray hairs I am he, I am he who will sustain you. I have made you and I will carry you; I will sustain you and I will rescue you.”
(Isaiah 46:4, ESV)

Reflection: What fading part of your life or community needs Isaiah’s “white hair promise”? How might Scripture reframe your view of endurance?

Day 4: Bibles in Six-Lane Highways

Contrasting Toronto’s frantic highways with rural roads, the sermon hints at how modern chaos drowns Scripture’s voice. Yet Bible societies still distribute Scriptures in 91 languages across Canada—a quiet counterattack against digital overload. Like the hidden panel in the wardrobe, God’s Word remains accessible to those willing to step off congested life-paths. The question becomes creating space to open the “cupboard door.” [39:19]

“These are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.”
(John 20:31, ESV)

Reflection: What “six-lane highway” in your life competes with Scripture’s voice? What one change could create space for wardrobe-like encounters with God’s Word?

Day 5: When Dreams Demand a Book

Muslim converts seeking Bibles after visions reveal Scripture’s irreplaceable role in defining divine encounters. Dreams spark hunger, but the Bible sustains revelation—like Lucy needing Narnia’s full story beyond the wardrobe’s initial wonder. This mirrors our temptation to prioritize spiritual experiences over Scripture’s clarifying light. The challenge is letting the Bible interpret life’s mysteries rather than vice versa. [55:46]

“And this is eternal life: that they know you, the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom you have sent.”
(John 17:3, ESV)

Reflection: When has a spiritual experience left you needing Scripture’s grounding? How could you let the Bible interpret your life’s “visions” this month?

Sermon Summary

The Bible Society’s long history in Canada shows why Scripture still matters. From the Gospel of John translated into Mohawk in 1804 to the completed Mohawk Bible 219 years later, the work of translation declares something deeply personal: God speaks Mohawk. The Bible in a person’s heart language is not merely readable information. It becomes the voice of God meeting people where they actually live.

The unfinished work remains enormous. Thousands of languages still have no Scripture, and millions of people must try to know God through a second, third, or fourth language. The Bible’s survival has also never been guaranteed. Humphrey Monmouth risked his safety, wealth, and eventually his life so that William Tyndale’s English Bible could reach ordinary people. The same costly hunger for God’s Word still appears in places where possessing a Bible is dangerous.

The Bible itself makes claims that no ordinary book can make. Scripture is God-breathed, given not simply to fill minds with information but to form people who reflect God’s character. John’s Gospel says that these things are written so that people may believe Jesus is the Messiah and have life in his name. The Bible points from Genesis to Revelation toward God’s plan to redeem and restore all creation through Christ.

The written Word also gives light for daily life, endurance for suffering, comfort for the weary, and equipment for every good work. Scripture tells the whole story: creation, the fall, redemption, and restoration. God declares the end from the beginning, and his purpose will stand. The Bible is therefore more than a rule book, more than ancient history, and more than a road map to heaven. Its primary purpose is to make God known.

The living Word, Jesus Christ, is encountered through the written Word. Dreams, visions, and creation may awaken people to God, but Scripture reveals who this God is. The Bible shows the Creator speaking worlds into existence, the Redeemer reclaiming what sin has warped, Jesus healing those on the margins, and the Judge confronting injustice and evil. God is not an abstract idea. God is personal, active, holy, loving, and present in history.

The Bible is like Lucy’s doorway through the back of the cupboard into Narnia. The pages open a door into God’s kingdom and introduce Christ the King. Scripture calls readers not to approach it with the mind only, but with heart and imagination, asking, “Who is this God that we worship?” God meets that question with his own self-revelation.

Key Takeaways

1. God speaks every heart language. Scripture in a heart language carries more than convenience or cultural familiarity. It lets people hear God without the distance created by borrowed words and partial understanding. The unfinished work of translation therefore belongs to the church’s witness that God desires to be known by every people. [42:12]
2. The Bible reveals God himself. Scripture does not merely supply religious facts, moral rules, or comfort for difficult days. Its deepest purpose is to reveal God’s character, works, holiness, love, and plan for humanity. The written Word brings people into knowledge of the living God revealed in Christ. [54:52]
3. Scripture centers everything on Christ. The Bible’s many books, histories, laws, songs, prophecies, and letters are gathered into one redeeming purpose. Jesus is not an add-on to the Bible’s story but its center. Life in his name is the end toward which Scripture presses. [52:10]
4. Read with heart and imagination. Familiarity can make Scripture feel predictable, as though the reader already knows the passage before opening it. The Bible calls for more than mental recognition because God’s mysterious ways require humble attention. God opens a new world when readers come expecting to encounter him.

## [62:21]

Youtube Chapters

[00:00] - Welcome
[38:41] - Introduction and Canadian Bible Society
[39:40] - The Mohawk Bible Translation Story
[42:12] - God Speaks in Heart Languages
[43:46] - Why Bible Translation Still Matters
[45:16] - What Is the Big Deal About the Bible?
[47:30] - The Bible’s Impact on the World
[48:39] - Risking Everything for Scripture
[51:21] - What the Bible Claims About Itself
[54:32] - The Bible Makes God Known
[56:15] - Knowing the Living Word
[57:42] - The Bible as a Doorway
[58:45] - Encountering God in Scripture
[62:21] - Read with Heart and Imagination
[63:27] - Prayer for Hunger for God’s Word

Bible Study Guide

Bible Reading

2 Timothy 3:16-17
“All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.” [51:41]

John 20:31
“but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.” [52:10]

Psalm 119:105
“Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path.” [52:43]

Observation questions

In 2 Timothy 3:16–17, what are the four ways Scripture is described as being useful, and what is the intended result in the life of God’s servant? [51:41]
According to John 20:31, what two purposes does John give for writing his Gospel?
In Psalm 119:105, what images describe God’s Word, and what areas of life do those images address?
What did the Mohawk chief’s response to the completed Mohawk Bible show about the difference a heart language can make? [42:00]

Interpretation questions

If Scripture is God-breathed and meant to equip believers for every good work, why is it not enough to treat the Bible mainly as a source of information or a list of rules? [51:53]
John says his Gospel was written so that people would believe in Jesus and have life in his name. What does this suggest about how every part of the Bible should lead readers toward Christ? [52:20]
Psalm 119 calls God’s Word a lamp for the feet and a light for the path. Why might the image be a lamp for the next steps rather than a spotlight showing every detail of the future? [52:43]
The Bible reveals God as Creator, Redeemer, Judge, and King. How does seeing these different aspects of God’s character help a person avoid reducing God to only what feels comforting or familiar? [59:29]

Application questions

When you open the Bible, do you usually come mainly looking for answers, encouragement, or instructions? How might asking, “Who is this God that we worship?” change the way you read this week? [58:30]
Is there an area of your relationships, work, decisions, or habits where you need God’s Word to be a lamp for your next step? What passage or biblical truth could help guide you there?
Many people around the world do not have Scripture in a language they understand well, while many of us have several Bibles and Bible apps available. What would it look like to respond to that privilege with greater gratitude and more faithful use of Scripture? [01:03:32]
Think of a time when a Bible passage gave you comfort, endurance, or hope during hardship. What did that passage show you about God?
Familiar passages can sometimes feel predictable. What practical change could help you read with your heart and imagination—not just your mind—such as slowing down, reading aloud, journaling, or sitting with one question? [01:02:21]
Jesus is the center of God’s plan to redeem and restore creation. Where do you most need to remember that real life is found in him rather than in achievement, security, comfort, or approval? [52:10]

Sermon Clips

33s

#ReadWithYourHeart

“So the next time you open your Bible like Lucy, step into an exciting new world and encounter the creator God who has revealed himself in Jesus. Don't just read it with your mind. If you do that after you've read it for the third or fourth time, you'll kinda go, yeah, I know what this passage is before I read it. That's not the way to read the bible. Don't read it with your mind only. Read it with your heart. Read it with your imagination.”

41s

#GodsUnconditionalLove

“In the pages of the Bible, I saw God's unconditional love woven throughout the entire narrative of scripture. In Isaiah and the gospel, I see God's heart as he seeks to reclaim, redeem, and restore all of creation that is broken and warped. I see Jesus in the gospels healing and providing, needs of people and affirming those who, who are in despair and on the margins of society. This is what God is like. You wanna get to know who God is like? Look at the life of Jesus.”

37s

#BibleRevealsGod

“So the the bible is more than just a book of faith. It tells us it yes, it does tell us what to believe about God and his creation. It is more than a road map on how to get to heaven. It actually reveals who God is. Its primary purpose is to make God known. His character, his works, his holiness, his love, and his plan for humanity without, and his plan for humanity. Without the bible, it is impossible to know who god is.”

38s

#CreationFallRedemption

“The Bible reveals the heart of God. He wants people who act, to act with justice, compassion, and integrity. The Bible equips them for that task. And finally, did you ever wonder why there is so much evil in the world and why it seems that God is doing nothing? The Bible reveals the beginning of time, what went wrong, how God is dealing with evil, and where everything is headed. Creation, the fall, redemption, and restoration.”

31s

#BibleForEveryLanguage

“There are about 7,000 languages across the world. 3,000 languages still have no scripture. They're small languages, but they have no scripture. And I often wonder how does one do ministry? How does one do evangelism? How does one do church planting? How does one do discipleship ministries if you don't have the bible in your heart language? So there's still a lot of work to be done, as we look to the future.”

36s

#ScriptureInEveryLanguage

“Father, thank you for your word, your eternal word which is manifest in Christ, and your written word which is given to us so that we may believe and we may know and encounter you. Thank you that we have it available in a language we can read and understand in our own heart languages, but we also remember the thousands and millions who don't have it in their heart language and struggle to understand it in a second or a third or a fourth language.”

36s

#GodsJustice

“As I read about his anger at the Pharisees and the wealthy for cheating and manipulating to get rich and stay in power, I realize that God hates injustice and will hold people accountable. In the Old Testament and Revelation, I see that God does not play games. There is right and there is wrong. There is good and there is evil, and there is no place for compromise. God will judge, and he will bring to justice for those who do evil.”

40s

#BibleTranslation

“There are similar stories from China, North Korea, Iran, Eritrea, where people have risked their lives, so that their communities could have at least one bible. Bible societies across the world are trying are trying to be like Henry Monmouth by supporting translators and ensuring that everyone has the word of God in their heart language. But the unfinished task of Bible translation is so vast, like I mentioned, over 3,000 languages, that we need many more Henry Monmouths to come alongside and to get the job done.”

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