History records examples of kings coming with conquering armies and authoritarian governments to obliterate God’s word, the Bible, from the face of the earth to direct worship to themselves and have absolute power over people.
Despotic rulers such as the Seleucid King Antiochus IV Epiphanes (215-164 B.C.) and Roman Emperor Diocletian (A.D. 284-305) were unable to utterly destroy the word of God, and they died like men, bringing their boasts of divinity to naught. But threats to the Scriptures have not always come from systematic efforts to suppress or extinguish them, but from civilizational collapse.
Maewyn Succat (commonly known as Saint Patrick) was born at the end of Roman rule in Britain, starting in the late fourth century. While the exact dates of his birth and death are uncertain and subject to debate by historians, it is believed through his writings that his work as a Christian missionary and bishop in Ireland took place in the fifth century.
Succat was the son of Calpurnius, a senator, tax collector and deacon at the local church in a Roman British city, and grandson of Potitus, a priest from Bannavem Taburniae. According to “The Confession of Saint Patrick” (5th century), he described himself as not being an active believer, though he grew up in a Christian home. That changed when, at the age of 16, he was captured by a group of Irish pirates near his home and taken to Ireland, where he was a slave for six years.
During his captivity, Succat worked as a shepherd, and his relationship with God was strengthened through prayer. It was at this time that he truly came to faith in Jesus Christ. He was introduced to Irish culture and developed a love for the people.
After six years, Succat heard a voice telling him to return home and that his ship would be ready. He escaped his master and traveled to a port 200 miles away. There, after Succat prayed, the ship captain was eventually persuaded to transport him back home.
His parents were overjoyed to receive their son back and did not want him to go anywhere else away from them, but God’s calling on his life remained. Reminiscent of the vision the apostle Paul received to go to the people of Macedonia to preach the Gospel to them (Acts 16:9-12), the Lord revealed to Succat in a dream that he should return to Ireland to preach that same Gospel.
Succat traveled to France to study in Auxerre and was eventually ordained to the priesthood and commissioned to go to Ireland as a Christian missionary. He faced hardship, danger and many other challenges, but God used his experience as a captive to bring him to genuine faith in Christ and to equip him for his mission.
Bishop Patrick’s work brought Christianity to Ireland, helped to safeguard the written word (especially the Bible), established centers of learning through the many monasteries that were founded and helped set the pattern of missionary service leading to the promotion of the Gospel far beyond Ireland. He can rightly be considered not only the patron saint of Ireland but also of archivists, librarians and other information professionals who are tasked with preserving knowledge and making it accessible for the building of society.
Just as an external computer hard drive preserves critical programs and files from the primary computer in the event it suffers a catastrophic breakdown of its operating system, God used the ministry of Bishop Patrick and his successors to transform Ireland into an “external hard drive” as Europe, the “primary computer,” entered the Dark Ages (about A.D. 500-1000) that followed the fall of the Roman Empire. The knowledge preserved eventually spread back to Europe through the preaching of the Gospel and helped to restart its civilization, paving the way for the Renaissance (14th-17th centuries).
David expressed his confidence in the power of God to preserve His word:
“The words of the LORD are pure words, like silver tried in a furnace of earth, purified seven times. You shall keep them, O LORD, You shall preserve them from this generation forever.” (Psalm 12:6-7)
God, speaking through the prophet Isaiah, stated that His word would stand forever (Isaiah 40:8) and that it would never fail to fulfill His purpose on earth (Isaiah 55:10-11). Jesus said, “Heaven and earth will pass away, but My words will not pass away” (Matthew 24:35). The apostle Paul spoke of the word of God not being bound (2 Timothy 2:8-9).
No other book in history has been so attacked or attempts made to extinguish it as the Bible, yet like a mighty anvil, it has worn out the many hammers wielded against it by devils and men, despotic rulers and governments, false prophets and religions, natural and man-made cataclysms and civilizational collapse.
Historical accounts such as the Maccabean Revolt (167-160 B.C.), the Great Persecution of Diocletian (A.D. 297-305) and Bishop Patrick’s evangelism of Ireland in the fifth century illustrate God’s gift of His word to humanity and His providential hand, sometimes using the unlikeliest means and people, in maintaining its existence and integrity through the centuries, an important reason to believe what it says and teaches.
God has preserved His word for us, especially the Gospel message, which will not fail to accomplish His purpose of bringing forgiveness of sin, reconciliation with God and eternal salvation to all who believe in Jesus Christ (1 Corinthians 15:3-4).
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