A Walking New Testament
One of the big struggles for Haralan Popov during his time in prison was that he had no Bible. And one day he prayed that God would provide a Bible for him, and soon after his cellmate came to him with something in his hands – a New Testament!
The Priceless Value of God's Word: Lessons from a Pastor in Prison
Popov was overjoyed, and tears began to stream down his face – he hadn’t seen a portion of Scripture for over five years. But his cellmate said “you can’t have it – I’m using it!” He was using it to roll cigarettes.
Popov pleaded with him and said he would give him all the money he had saved for the book – at this point they were each allowed to get some money from outside to buy food at the prison canteen. And his cellmate saw the desperation in his friend’s eyes and said “Pastor, if you want it that bad, take it! No charge!” And so Popov finally had the Word of God in his hands again.
He began to memorize it, because he knew that if the prison guards saw it, they would take it away. And before long he had memorized 47 whole chapters, and he became known as a “walking New Testament”.
Popov wrote this: “What an indescribable loss it is to be without a Bible or Testament! During my whole time in prison I felt an emptiness and sharp, almost physical pain at being denied the Word of God.”
Much later when he was released from prison, the Bible was still an illegal document in Bulgaria, and so the Christians around used to each buy a few blank pieces of paper – not too much at once of course, or the authorities would get suspicious – and drop it off at a man who had a typewriter in his basement, so that he could type out God’s Word and distribute it among the Christians.
I read of this desperate need and hunger for the Word of God, and I frankly felt a little ashamed. Here we are with many Bibles on our shelves, our phones, our computers, and yet sometimes we are tempted to treat God’s Word as if it is dispensable. As if we don’t really need it for the Christian life on a daily basis.
Embracing the Power of God's Word: Living a Scripture-Soaked Life
This is such a dangerous way of thinking! In fact a few weeks ago I preached a sermon about living “A Scripture-Soaked Life” because God’s Word is so powerful, so transformative, so essential in our quest to live a Christlike life!
Popov wept with joy as he found a Bible. Friends, be grateful for the word of God! And I implore you: make God’s Word your daily companion. Your daily bread. Your daily joy. Read it deeply and consistently, and re-read it and memorize it and talk about it with others.
Hearing a sermon on a Sunday and a little devotion like this can help your faith, but these things are no substitutes for a daily diet of God’s Word to nourish your soul!
Perhaps we too can become “Walking New Testaments” because daily we soak our lives in the precious Word of God, for which others sacrificed so much to read.
