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I have a lovely Bible, King James translation,
leather-bound with gold leaf. It is the Canterbury Emerald Teacher's
Bible and, aside from the main text and central references, it incorporates
"The Bible Reader's Manual" at the back. It is an early version of what
we would recognise today as a study Bible. The colour plates are especially
striking, keeping their vivid tints some one hundred years or more after
publication. It is a presentation Bible and the inscription reads:
Presented to Kate Couzens, being the District
Prize for obtaining more candidates than any other juvenile member in
Berks, Bucks and Oxon District of the Independent Order of Rechabites
during the year 1906 by
R Percy
Henley-on-Thames
Easter Monday 1907
Number of members being introduced 51 being the largest number ever
obtained in this district by one member in one year
The Rechabites came into being in the early 19thC as part of the abstinence
movement popular at that time and they took their name from Jeremiah
35:5-6:
And I set before the sons of the house
of the Rechabites pots full of wine, and cups, and I said unto them,
Drink ye wine.
But they said, We will drink no wine: for Jonadab the son of Rechab
our father commanded us saying. Ye shall drink no wine, neither ye,
nor your sons for ever.
The Bible fascinates me. Who was Kate Couzens? Who were the people she
introduced and how did she introduce the equivalent of one every week
during 1906? Did she go on with the Lord? Did they?
The Bible also challenges me. The Rechabites were part of a great movement
that was a response to the widespread drinking problems prevalent in
the 19thC. 'Signing the Pledge' was, for many, part of the process of
becoming a Christian and at the beginning of the 21stC we are seeing
widespread social problems because of excessive alcohol consumption.
Am I as aware of the problems of my times as they were of theirs? And
am I prepared to do the modern equivalent of signing the pledge, to
be part of the solution and show Jesus as the only true foundation for
life?
The young Kate Couzens saw the Christian movement of which she was a
member as so worthwhile that she unashamedly, and wonderfully, shared
her convictions with her friends. If 51 people were introduced I wonder
how may she invited? In a world that is drifting aimlessly towards a
lost eternity how many of my friends know about my enthusiasm for Jesus?
The Independent Order of Rechabites thought her faithfulness and efforts
deserving of the greatest reward they could give - the Bible. Work for
the kingdom and be rewarded with a greater knowledge of the kingdom!
We live in an age where Bible study resources are more widely available
than when this excellent study Bible was published. Modern translations
have made God's Word more accessible and study aids have made understanding
clearer. It has been observed that half the books of the Bible can be
read in 10 to 45 minutes each, and many of them can be read in less
than 20. The entire Old and New Testaments can be read aloud slowly
and with expression in less than 71 hours. Yet while Christians make
a great fuss and noise about 'hearing from God' regular Bible reading
is shamefully neglected. Do I regard 'the Good Book' as a treasure,
a wonderful gift a reward?
These things don't just happen. I must understand the world in which
I live and respond to it appropriately. I must decide that the gospel
is not just a good idea but good news and tell the good news wherever
I can. I must learn to value the Bible for what it is, God's Word to
me today, 'quick and powerful' (KJV), not 'dead and powerless' and order
my life according to what God has to say to me in his living Word. If
the Word of God is dead and powerless it is because we do not allow
its life and power into our lives.
I pray we can this week begin to take up the challenge of Kate Couzens
and the Rechabites of 1906, understand the world we live in, love the
Lord who saved us, and value the power and life of his Word.
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