From The President’s Pen

Leslie D. Louis
Jul 1
3 min read

A Treasure to My Heart

This is my Bible

In it I learn

That Jesus loves me

That Jesus died for me

And Jesus rose for me

This is my Bible

In it I learn

That He’s coming back for me

So that we can live with Him

In a ceaseless and sinless eternity.

For years, I have used these lines as a vocal audience response in evangelistic messages shared in churches across the Carolinas. Together, we raise our Bibles, repeat these words, and pray for God to guide us in understanding His sacred pages.

In June, I was in Scotland with 40 fellow pastor colleagues and spouses from the Carolinas on a British Reformation Tour guided by Dr. Greg King, dean of the School of Religion at Southern Adventist University, and his wife, Mary. One of the greatest blessings of this trip was being reminded of the treasure I hold each time I pick up the sacred Book that carries God’s voice to my heart.

One morning in Scotland, as I stepped into the shower, I accidentally turned the hot water knob in the wrong direction and felt the sting of scalding water on my skin. As I quickly corrected it, I reflected on the sobering moments we experienced standing on the very sites where faithful men were burned for their commitment to the Bible as the foundation of faith. That painful instant reminded me—if only infinitesimally—of the agony of their martyrdom. They gave their lives so I could have the freedom to hold, read, and embrace the hope of salvation in Christ. I believe Jesus was with them in the flames, shielding them from pain as their bodies were consumed.

I was moved to tears as I bowed in prayer over the stone initials that mark the spot of the first Scottish Reformation martyr, Patrick Hamilton. Just 24 years old, Hamilton was burned at the stake in 1528. Influenced by Martin Luther’s teachings, Hamilton returned to Scotland and published Patrick’s Places, summarizing his conviction that justification was by faith in Christ alone. At the time, Scotland was staunchly Roman Catholic, and his convictions were considered heretical. Though meant as a warning, his execution ignited the Protestant Reformation in Scotland.

Not far from Hamilton’s site, I prayed again where George Wishart was martyred. By the seaside at St. Andrews, 18 years later, Wishart was sentenced to the flames in 1546 for translating and teaching the Bible in the language of the people. He was 33.

In The Great Controversy, Ellen White wrote:

“Then the blood of martyrs gave fresh impetus to the movement... Hamilton and Wishart, princely in character as in birth, with a long line of humbler disciples, yielded up their lives at the stake... But from the burning pile of Wishart there came one whom the flames were not to silence... John Knox had turned away from the traditions... to feed upon the truths of God’s Word...” (pp. 249-250).

John Knox courageously led the Scottish Reformation, transforming Christianity through his preaching and lifting the Bible as the foundation of faith. Years later, Knox’s son-in-law, John Welch, became a fervent Scottish preacher. He is remembered for his passionate plea, “Give me Scotland or I die,” reflecting his desperate prayer for God to bring salvation through the Bible to his nation.

I invite you to sing or meditate on the words of this hymn as you hold your Bible in your hands:

“Give me the Bible, all my steps enlighten,

Teach me the danger of these realms below;

That lamp of safety, o’er the gloom shall brighten,

That light alone the path of peace can show.

Give me the Bible, holy message shining,

Thy light shall guide me in the narrow way,

Precept and promise, law and love combining,

‘Till night shall vanish in eternal day.”