Bible Reading Marathon:
How Scripture Shapes Lives and the Nation
May 8, 2025
Host: Dr. Isaac Crockett
Guests: Dr. Gary Dull, Dave Kistler
Note: This transcript is taken from a Stand in the Gap Today program aired on 5/9/25. To listen to the podcast, click HERE.
Disclaimer: While reasonable efforts have been made to provide an accurate transcription, the following is a representation of a mechanical transcription and as such, may not be a word for word transcript. Please listen to the audio version for any questions concerning the following dialogue.
Isaac Crockett:
Well, welcome to this Friday edition of Stand In the Gap Today, and we’re about to hear a couple of very familiar voices, a pastor and an evangelist that you will recognize right away. I’m Isaac Crockett and I have joining me today, Dr. Gary Dull, the pastor of First Baptist Church or the Faith Baptist Church, sorry, and Altoona, Pennsylvania. Sorry about that. Gary and Dr. Dave Kistler, evangelist extraordinaire, and both of these men have multiple ministries that they’re working with and multiple things they’re juggling. So I’m so thankful to have you with us on this program today as we talk about the Bible, the word of God, there’s so many things going on right now in the news. We have the new Pope that was just elected on Thursday and interest in religion and things. We have of course think back at the Protestant Reformation where Sola Sura, the Bible alone was one of these dividing things between some of the teachings of the church.
But even in the last few months, we have seen an increase in Bible sales. In fact, in 2024, a big news event was that the Bible, the printed version of the Bible, was selling more than normal. In October of 2024, our friends over answers and Genesis and some other groups did programs about it, but in the first 10 months of last year, Bible sales were up about 22%. I think they sold almost 14 million copies of the Bible from January to October. Just this week a Bible app you version, a very popular Bible app that many of you have, if you have a smartphone. More than likely I’ve been using it for years. They just announced that they think by the end of this year, 2025, they will have more than 1 billion, 1 billion with the B downloads. So the Bible’s getting a lot of attention. And Gary and Dave, you both just wrapped up some exciting ministry outreaches that have to do with the Bible, something known as the Bible Reading Marathon. Gary, I’m just going to go right to you. I think you’ve been involved in the last couple of weeks with two different marathons. So if you could maybe talk a little bit about this, maybe some of the information of what it is and what you were able to do.
Gary Dull:
Yes, Isaac, thanks. And it’s good to debate back on the program once again. And I’m very, very thankful for the Bible Reading Marathon. I’ve had the opportunity of being involved with it for a number of years. I suppose it’s been 15 years ago that I first got started being involved with the Bible Reading Marathon in Washington DC and there was an individual down there who sort of led that for many, many years. And over a period of time I think that they sort of felt as though they wanted to pass that on to someone else. And they passed it on to Seed Line International, Keith Davis and Keith Davidson leading Seed Line International. And I know that his name is familiar to many of our listeners because he’s been on the program before. And so Keith Davidson and Seed Line have been running the Bible Reading Marathon in Washington DC now for the past four or five years.
It’s just a blessing to be able to be there, to be a part of that. What it is, is that they will begin on a Saturday afternoon to read the word of God from cover to cover from Genesis 1:1 through Revelation 22:21, and it’s about a 90-hour procedure. And what they attempt to do, Isaac, is to get about 360. Well, there’s 360, 15-minute slots between Genesis 1:1 and Revelation 22:21, and they try to get as many people as they can to come in and read 15 minutes, 30 minutes, two minutes, whatever the case may be. And normally what happens is that they bring people in from, well, many, many different backgrounds, many different countries, even many different religions and many walks of life. They just stand there and read the Bible in Washington DC They’ve been doing it on the west side of the United States Capitol now for a number of years.
And it’s always been a blessing to be involved with it. And I know Brother Dave’s been involved with it as well. Several years ago, Keith came to me and said that they would like to begin to see these Bible reading marathons taken to the various local state capitals. And when he said that to me, why my eyes and ears lit up and I thought, well, we need to bring it here to Pennsylvania. And so we did, and just this past week we celebrated the fourth event of the Bible Reading Marathon here in Pennsylvania. As a matter of fact, our team is not yet back the Way of Truth Ministries, of course that I founded several years ago is the co-sponsor for the Bible Reading Marathon here in Pennsylvania. And our team is not yet back. They probably won’t get back until tomorrow because they’re taking some time off, but they just set up there in the, once again the west side of the Pennsylvania Capitol building and read the word of God from cover to cover.
And it’s a great blessing because from time to time a legislator or a senator will come out and read the word of God. And again, that takes place as well in Washington where a senator or a congressman will come out and read the word of God. And it’s always a time of blessing to be able to hear the word of God read. And I’m very thankful for the opportunity that I have had over the last number of years to be involved with it. It’s a fruitful ministry and it has a very positive effect upon people who hear it. Isaiah 55 11 tells us that God’s word will not return unto him void. And we may not always see the results of the reading and the proclamation of the word of God, but God will be honored and God will be glorified through it. And I think that’s what takes place during these Bible reading marathons.
Isaac Crockett:
Wow. Amen. Dave, let’s go to you and just get your side of how things, what it seems, what the atmosphere is like in Washington DC of all places here you are reading the Bible cover to cover right there in front of the Capitol building. What is the atmosphere like when you do that? What are the reactions of people as you see them in the crowd while the Bible reading is going on?
Dave Kistler:
Well, Isaac, it’s a great question. It’s a wonderful thing. And when you step behind that pulpit, which has traditionally been placed right at the spot where every president has been inaugurated since the days of Dwight d Eisenhower in your facing west on the capitol there this year, they positioned the pulpit a little bit differently, but typically it’s positioned facing West, looking down toward the Washington Monument, which is one mile away, one mile beyond that is the Lincoln Memorial. But something comes over you when you step behind that pulpit and you start reading the scriptures out loud. And the first time I did it, I thought, well, it’s an awareness that I’m standing in the very spot where presidents have been inaugurated. I’m standing on the famed West Plaza of the United States Capitol most powerful nation, most powerful city in the world, but it’s more than that Isaac.
I think it’s really the Holy Spirit’s power coming over you as you start reading and your voice carrying down across a portion of the National Mall. It’s absolutely amazing. You have every kind of person walk by. We’ve had Bella Carlucci walk by who was the coach for Nadia Comaneci, the first Olympic gymnast to get a perfect 10 back in 1972. You have people from other countries come by and I could tell you a myriad of stories that would take up the entire hour if I started, but it’s just an amazing place and an amazing opportunity to be a very vibrant witness for Jesus Christ. Just reading the scripture. Sure.
Isaac Crockett:
Well, amen. And how important it’s to have the word of God being read full display in front of capital building with all those extra things you’re talking about, the connection there to the power. This is the real power, the real power for our nation come from God come from his word. We’re going to take a brief time out and then I want to talk to Gary and Dave more about the Bible Reading Marathon as well as other opportunities of getting the word of God out to our nation. The word of God will change us as individuals and the word of God will change our nation. We want to be talking about that. We’re going to come back, talk a little bit more about this Bible reading marathon and then even a rooftop prayer meeting that Dave was a part of that he held and all kinds of other neat opportunities going on right now in our country.
We’ll be right back. Welcome back to our program, and I’m talking with two very familiar voices to the original co-host of our program, and that’s Dr. Gary Dull and Dr. Dave Kistler. We’re talking about the Bible Reading Marathon that they were both a part of in Washington DC and then also that Gary has been a part of starting in Pennsylvania and that’s been going on for several years now too. We’re looking at how scripture shapes our lives as individuals and as a nation, and I think that’s seen especially in Washington dc. Gary, I’d just love to get maybe one or two stories from you that things that you remember from the last couple of weeks, either in DC or both DC and Harrisburg, maybe just experiences you’d like to share from the Bible Reading Marathon With all of us.
Gary Dull:
Well down the years Isaac, there have been a number of experiences that I could share with you. And I think one good thing that is neat to recognize, and I know that Brother Dave can attest to this, is that it’s been told to us by the Capitol Hill police in Washington DC that during the period of time that the word of God is being read there at the National Bible Reading Marathon, that crime around the Capitol Hill is not nearly as high as what it normally is. The crime rate is lower than what it is normally the rest of the year. So much so that a lot of the Capitol police will take their vacations during that period of time. And of course, I think that shows us in all reality the power and the effect of the word of God. And I think that that’s something that no doubt can be attested to, but it’s just been interesting down through the years to see how the word of God, how it’s been a blessing to be a part of that marathon.
I can remember a situation being told how that a number of years ago in Washington DC there is a truck driver who was a tractor trailer driver who was delivering some product to someplace down along the mall there in Washington D which of course as many people know is the area that goes from the capitol building to the Lincoln Memorial with the Washington Monument in between. And in those days when we had the Bible Reading Marathon, we were allowed to use a PA system 24 hours a day. That’s not allowed anymore. But back in those days, we were able to use that PA system and I remember a report that that truck driver pulled into the mall to make his delivery, and of course he could not get into where he had to make the delivery until the morning. So he just parked his truck there and had his window down listening to the word of God being read, and it came to the saving knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ.
And I’m reminded of the word of God that tells us that faith cometh by hearing and hearing by the word of God. So we know that the word of God has its effect down through the years. Like I said, we’ve been involved with it many, many times. We’ve taken van loads of our people from Faith Baptist Church down to Washington DC as well as to Harrisburg these days to read the word of God. And everybody is blessed. It’s a tedious time. I mean, you’re talking about standing up there and reading the Bible 24 hours a day and for the team that leads that particular marathon, it’s tedious. Sometimes you get cold, sometimes you get hot, sometimes you get wet, you can imagine. But there’s always the blessing in the reading of the word of God, and I’m always thankful for the opportunity that I have to be able to be involved with it.
This year in Washington DC my own congressman John Joyce went out and read from the Book of Luke and I saw the video of him actually doing that reading, and of course he’s just one of a number of congressmen and senators who no doubt dropped by to read the word of God, but after he did his reading, he sent me a text. He says, if there’s anything that Washington DC needs more of today, it’s the word of God and he’s absolutely true. And so you never know what the ultimate effect of that will be. When God’s word is read, we know that he’ll be glorified, he’ll be honored when his word is spoken forth as it is during these marathons.
Isaac Crockett:
Amen. That is so true, and I know we’ve had several famous people, the actor Tim Allen, for example, the last few months has been giving updates that he started reading through the Bible and how it’s been, he describes it really as life-changing, Dave. It is life-changing when the Bible gets ahold of us when God’s word is used, but there’s also prayer as a part of this, and you’ve had some exciting opportunities. Of course, you’re working in the heart of DC on a regular basis with your ministry hope to the Hill as well as preaching all over the world, but could you tell us about the rooftop prayer meeting that you held in Washington DC as well as the visit to congressional members, all of this kind of coinciding with the reading of scripture?
Dave Kistler:
Well, sure, Isaac delighted to do that. Of course, the Bible reading marathon is always set up the week that corresponds with the National Day of Prayer, which was Thursday of last week. And so typically the Bible reading will start, as Gary said earlier on, Saturday goes all the way to Wednesday. And then of course you have the National Day of Prayer on Thursday, well Tuesday of last week, and it’s been something that we’ve been doing now for a number of years. We do what’s called a rooftop prayer encounter. There’s a wonderful restaurant, four star, five star restaurant at the bottom of Capitol Hill that has been incredibly kind and gracious to allow us to use the rooftop terrace of that restaurant. In fact, the man who was the owner of the restaurant said, what are you wanting to do up here when we ask if we could use it?
And we said, well, we want to just pray over the city of Washington DC What would you charge us to use that terrace? He said, well, prayer’s free. I won’t charge you a penny. And so he’s allowed us to do that for about an hour and a half, typically on the Tuesday before the National Day of Prayer on Thursday this past week, last week we did it on a Tuesday and it was wonderful prayer leaders from all over the country headed up by a rooftop international. My dear friend John Whaley is the guy that is the tip of the spear with respect to all of this. And then of course Gary is typically there. I’m their hope to the Hill. Our ministry is there, other National Day of prayer leaders that are part the official National Day of Prayer are participants as well. And it’s just an opportunity to stand, look out over the city of Washington DC and literally ask God to give us a vision of what he not only sees in that city, but what he desires for that city and ultimately for our nation.
And a lot of amazing things over the last several years have come out of those prayer times this year, God spoke to my heart very specifically about something that I won’t go into here on the air, but it was dramatic and life-changing, ministry changing in a lot of ways as well. But those prayer times are beyond powerful. And then of course, in between times of reading the word of God, which were a little more sparse for me this year because I was making visits to members of Congress just nonstop all day long. And last the week, the week of the Bible reading was also called Markup Week, where they’re marking up this big beautiful bill that President Trump keeps referring to. There’s a lot of components to that. And so markup is when the Democrats, Republicans go back and forth and what’s going to be put in, what’s going to be taken out and there’s some compromises made to make all that happen.
And so it’s a very, very, very busy week. In fact, probably the least effective time to try to procure a meeting with a member of Congress. But it was amazing, every person I called and scheduled a meeting to go in and pray with granted the meeting. We also presented a beautiful new challenge coin done in honor of our son Nathan, who passed away July 26th and our daughter-in-law as well of last year. And these members of Congress knew and loved them dearly and love hope to the hill, the ministry God’s given us on the hill. So not one of them turned us down and we went in and spent in some situations, almost an hour with these members of Congress praying with them and praying for them at this strategic time in our nation’s capital. And I will say this one final thing, Isaac God’s people need to be greatly encouraged. There is a different feel in Washington DC than I personally have ever experienced, and I’ve been involved up there for well over 20 years. God is opening doors and God is doing things in our national leadership that is absolutely beyond exciting. God has been welcomed back into not only the White House but into the Capitol building in a grand way, and I’ll word it that way and it’s amazing what God is doing, and so I praise God for it.
Isaac Crockett:
That is just so awesome to hear these stories and like you said, such a busy time, but such an important time and I want to get into that more throughout the rest of this program, getting into some of these stories and some of the events that were going on. But Gary, let me just ask you, we don’t have long, but there are people who maybe are saying, you know what? I want to start reading the Bible. We’re seeing young people ages 19 to 29 are really, really curious. I’m hearing all kinds of pastor friends telling me that the greatest number of people come to their church are in that age group, 19 to 20. A lot of young men are buying up these Bibles and reading them. They’re curious, they’re searching, and if there’s somebody listening to us right now, no matter what age they are, maybe they’ve read the Bible before and they haven’t in a long time, they say, you know what? I want to pick up the Bible. I want to start reading God’s word. Do you have any advice, any recommendations, where to start, what to do in any encouragement from you?
Gary Dull:
I always encourage people either after they’ve just trusted Christ as Savior or if they are interested in reading the Bible to follow this particular practice. Number one, read the Gospel of John because that speaks concerning the great salvation that we have through the Lord Jesus Christ. Then the book of James, because James is the book of practical Christianity in the sense that it teaches us how to face the trials of life. Then go to the book of Ephesians because Ephesians teaches concerning our position and practice in Christ. Then go to the book of Romans because the book of Romans is a great book teaching on the doctrine and the sovereignty of God. And then go to one John because one John speaks a lot concerning the assurance of the salvation that we have in Jesus Christ. And then I encourage people after they’ve gone through those five books of the Bible to go ahead and read the New Testament as well as them, the Old Testament, until they get through the scriptures. But many people don’t know where to begin. So I’ve been using that pattern down through the years, the Gospel of John James, Ephesians, Romans, and one John, and many people have told me that when they followed that procedure that it’s been a blessing of their hearts.
Isaac Crockett:
Well, I like that, Gary. That is a good starting place to go with the gospel of John and end up with the first epistle of John and starting with those first five and then reading through it, what a great idea. And it’s just so exciting. And that’s one of the things that’s neat to see some of these celebrities and different people podcasters and such discovering the Bible for the first time to see that it hasn’t changed and that it is true. And sometimes people say, oh, well that’s not working, that’s not effective. It is. It’s a two-edged sword and it works and it’s effective whether other people believe it or not. And so it’s such a powerful tool that we have of so thankful for the God’s word, and I’m so thankful for the ministries that you both have had, reading God’s word in public, in the capital of our country and of Pennsylvania.
When we come back, I want to talk and I really want to follow up on something Dave said about the atmosphere in Washington DC I want to look at that. I want to look at something that President Trump has been doing, something that dates back to 1607, a reaffirming of a covenant, so to speak, that we just saw and several other things. Well, welcome back to the program. I’m Isaac Crockett and I’m talking with a couple of the original co-host of this program in the public schools where I used to teach, sometimes they would refer to OGs or original gangsters for the guys who are the leaders or the ones who started their gangs. And I feel like Dave and Gary that you guys are the OGs of our program today. So I’m with Dr. Gary Dull and Dr. Dave Kistler. We’re talking about the word of God, and as you heard during the break, if you were listening to our partners we’re really focusing on memorizing scripture on the importance of scripture, taking some of these verses and memorizing them as Gary was explaining, reading the Bible, starting in the Epistle of John or the Gospel of John and really taking it to heart.
In our last segment, Dave was mentioning some of the change in the atmosphere that’s been happening in Washington dc. Gary, you’ve been in Washington and now you’ve also been in Harrisburg, the capital of your state, Pennsylvania, the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. What are you seeing? Maybe you could tell us a little bit. You mentioned about way of truth ministries partnering, being one of the sponsors for the Bible Reading Marathon in Pennsylvania, but could you tell us also about something you were a part of handing out some very special Bibles to some very special people. Maybe tell us a little bit about that and what you’ve been seeing in the atmosphere even in Pennsylvania.
Gary Dull:
Yes, I’d be happy to do so, Isaac. We were involved on this past Wednesday with distributing what is referred to as the First American Bible to all of the legislators here in the commonwealth of Pennsylvania where I live as you mentioned. And this was a Bible that was put together back in 1782 by a fellow by the name of Robert Aiken. And it’s the only Bible approved by Congress. The only Bible recommended to Americans to read in those days. It was the first King James Bible made in America the first English Bible made for schools printed only six years after the Declaration of Independence. That would be, it was printed in 1782, and that would mean that it was printed five years before our Constitution that it was at the very foundation of our nation and our ministry was involved in taking a replica of that Bible.
Not that Bible actually, as you can imagine, but a replica of that Bible. And on Wednesday afternoon, we distribute it to all 350 legislatures here in the commonwealth of Pennsylvania. And what excited me about that Isaac and Dave is not just that we had the opportunity of doing this, but in light of what Dave said a bit ago, the openness that seems to be in Washington DC was what I found here, the Capitol building in Pennsylvania. I’ve been in that capitol building many times doing various forms of ministry, but every person we handed these bibles to received it graciously. Some of them thanked us for it, some of them said, would you pray for me? And so I was thankful not only in having the opportunity of placing this Bible in their hands, and by the way, the reason we did this, Isaac, was to remind our Pennsylvania state legislators that the United States of America was founded on biblical principles.
In fact, I believe that as you read through the United States Constitution, you can find biblical principles there right throughout that entire document. And so the giving of this Bible to our state legislators reminded them that our country was founded upon biblical principles. And in fact, this particular Bible when it was first printed back in 1782 was actually printed here in Pennsylvania. So in essence, we can say that from Pennsylvania went the word of God throughout our whole nation. But I was really excited to see the way that we were received in Harrisburg on Wednesday and God’s good and God’s doing a lot of great things these days to get his word of God out to people who will hear it.
Isaac Crockett:
That is so exciting and so interesting to hear that full circle like that from 1782. And Dave, I want to go back to your commenting on Washington dc, a place that is kind of like a second home for you, and you’ve been involved with so much ministry there, this atmosphere that you’re talking about. When Joe Biden became president, there was some mixed emotions and different things, but one thing about Joe Biden is that many people claim that he was a very devout religious person, devout Catholic, and there was a part of me that hoped maybe there would be more openness to the Bible and to a biblical worldview, and yet it seemed to be for me from where I’m at, it seemed opposite of that. I’m curious what you have seen going from Trump to Biden back to Trump, and especially Trump 2.0, what direction we’re going, what doors of opportunity you’re seeing as you are at the tip of the spear of what’s going on in dc?
Dave Kistler:
Well, Isaac, let me say this. The first Trump term was an incredibly faith friendly time. We were involved in some things there within the vice president’s office, Bible studies and so on, which were just amazing. So it was an incredibly faith friendly time like you because President Biden claimed to be a very religious man. We hope that that faith friendliness would continue. But unfortunately, Isaac not trying to be political here at all. I’m just stating the facts. The Biden administration was one of the least faith friendly administrations I’ve ever seen in my decades, two decades of being involved in ministry on Capitol Hill. Then in comes President Trump’s second term, or as you refer to Trump 2.0 and Isaac, it’s like he has thrown the door wide open to evangelical Christianity. Many folks are aware of the proclamation he issued for Palm Sunday, which was nothing short of just almost a clear gospel presentation of what the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus Christ is all about.
What that time of the year, what Palm Sunday represented the period of time from Palm Sunday to Good Friday, all of that was just included in that proclamation, the most thorough of any president that in my lifetime or in yours. And Reagan was fairly thorough when he would issue those proclamations at Eastern at Christmas time, but this exceeded any of that. Then there was the two days following that there was a worship service in the White House. And then on the heels of that, I’m going to share something that many Americans are not even aware happened. But last week during the Bible Reading Week and during the National Day of Prayer week, president Trump on Wednesday the day before National Day of Prayer, he reaffirmed what is called the 1607 Covenant. The 1607 covenant was something that came about as a result of the first permanent English settlement that came to the shores of the United States of America, settled in Jamestown, Virginia in 1607, and that group had a pastor on board.
The ships that came, his name was Robert Hunt, and when they landed in the shores of Virginia, they brought with them a seven foot tall cross that they implanted in the ground, a wooden CME cross that they planted in the ground the minute they hit the beaches of Virginia. And then this prayer was prayed and it was turned into a covenant that was made by the 1607 group with what ultimately became known as the United States of America. And here is the prayer and the covenant as it was prayed that day in 1607, we do hereby dedicate this land and ourselves to reach the people within these shores with the gospel of Jesus Christ and to raise up godly generations after us and with these generations take the kingdom of God to all the earth. May this covenant of dedication remain to all generations as long as this earth remains and may this land along with England be evangelists to the world, may all who see this cross, remember what we have done here, and may those who come here to inhabit join us in this covenant and in this most noble work that the holy scriptures may be fulfilled.
Wow, what a statement. And President Trump last Wednesday reaffirmed that 1607 covenant and said, that’s exactly what I want for the United States of America. Isaac, this is an amazing time that we’re living in.
Isaac Crockett:
Well, Dave, what you’re saying goes right along with Gary, what you’ve been saying, and that’s that this is not something new. We’ve been told for so long separation of church and state separation of church and state. And some people are saying, oh, what is Trump doing basically inviting these evangelicals in or however they want to twist it. But Dave, what would you say? How would you push back on those? Because what Trump is doing here I think is brilliant. This is going back to 1607. I mean, this is not something new. How does help prove that we were founded on the Bible?
Dave Kistler:
Well, Isaac, the second permanent English settlement that came to the Shores of America came 13 years after the 1607 group, and they settled in Plymouth, Massachusetts. What many people don’t know is they intended to settle in Virginia. They were given a charter from the king of England to settle in Virginia, but God entered the picture in his sovereignty and a storm blew them way north. He ended up not settling in Virginia, but instead settling in Plymouth, Massachusetts, which meant the charter they were given from the King of England to settle in Virginia was not no longer valid. So they wrote their own charter before they exited a ship called the Mayflower, and they called that charter the Mayflower Compact. And just like the 1607 group, they said, and I’m quoting from the Mayflower Compact, they said that they came here for the advancement of the Christian faith and the propagation of the gospel. So they reiterated exactly what the 1607 group did, so to say that America was not founded upon the Christian religion is wholly inaccurate, and all President Trump is doing is not starting something new. This is not something novel. This is not something unique. He is just returning this country back to its original founding and to its original moorings and doing that in a way that I believe is bringing and going to continue to bring the blessing of God even in revival blessing on this nation.
Isaac Crockett:
Amen. I am praying as well that we would see a revival. And when you stand on the border down in Texas and look over the Rio Grande and you travel throughout Mexico and Central America into South America, and you see the difference between those countries that were founded even before 1607, supposedly religious, but they weren’t founded really on the word of God. Lake England had this love for the word of God. Those countries have not been blessed the same way that America has been blessed. America is a strong and a leading light, and I pray that we can see this light grow brighter in these dark days. We have more to discuss about this. We’re going to wrap things up and talk to Gary, Dave, get some final thoughts as we discussed this, but looking at the importance of the word of God for our lives individually, but exciting to see also how important it is for our life as a nation.
We’ll be right back. We’ll welcome back to our Friday edition of the program and Dr. Gary Dull. Let me just go to you to get your thoughts as we’re wrapping things up. We’ve been talking about the Bible Reading Marathon that you’ve just come off of in Harrisburg as well as the one before that in Washington DC and just thoughts about how as a pastor, there are people out there, and it’s been going on for a couple hundred years at least, liberals trying to deny the efficacy of the word of God, deny that it’s really God’s word, denying the Bible is God’s word. But when you see what you and Dave have been talking about on this program, when you see the things that you see on a regular basis happening in your church, in your life, what are just some of your thoughts maybe that you could use to encourage Christians who get discouraged when they hear the news, your thoughts on the relevancy of the Bible in this day and age in 2025, and really how it’s opposite of all the divisiveness that’s going on in social media and on the media, we come back and we find our true hope and our true meaning in the word of God.
Gary Dull:
Well, Isaac, I’ve often said that the Bible is as up to date as tomorrow morning as de newspaper. And the question is, is the Bible relevant? Yes, indeed. It has always been since it’s been written and it always will be. And we see that from a number of passages of scripture. For instance, two Timothy three 16 says, all scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable. It is relevant, it’s profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, and for instruction and righteousness. And so is the Bible relevant? Absolutely it is Isaiah 55 11 is where God says that his word will not return unto him void. One Thessalonians two 13 says that the word of God works effectively in the lines of those who believe it. Psalm 1 19, 1 0 5 says, thy word is a lamp under my feet and a light under my path. So it is the word of God that gives guidance and direction throughout life, and it does so because it’s the word of God who reveals to us who God is, what God expects and how God operates.
And so we don’t need, by the way, just to read a verse of the scripture, to be reminded how relevant the word of God is. All we need to do is to see the effect that it has upon the lives of those who believe it. And I firmly believe that the United States of America became the nation that it became simply because of the fact that in the early days of our country, many people respected the word of God. It was read, it was promoted, it was preached, it was proclaimed. Unfortunately, since about 1962 and 63, the reading of the word of God has not been allowed in our public schools, which is a very, very sad thing to take into consideration. But the word of God does change the lives of those who believe it. It is very relevant, and when it’s portrayed, God will take it and use it for his glory.
And I think that as we draw closer to the return of the Lord Jesus Christ, you and I as believers must do everything that we can to proclaim the word of God more and more because it is a life-changing entity. It brings people to faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. And it brings people to spiritual growth and development in Christ. And that will change the lives of the person individually, the life of the church, the life of the family, the life of the city, and the life of the nation. God’s word truly is relevant. It has the testimony that has been experienced by many, many people.
Isaac Crockett:
That’s so good. And Dave, I want to ask you the of God’s word. It is able to change anybody and it’s able to change any nation. Many of us are just kind of sitting at home and we’re seeing things come up on the TV screen or on our social media feeds. And a lot of times it’s negative news and a lot of times it’s meant to be very divisive, but you are actually in different churches on a regular basis, all over the country, all over the world, really, as well as involved with what’s going on in DC through Hope to the Hill. What are you seeing through these things? We’re talking about the word of God in particular, but also what do we need to see to see a revival in our land, in our churches and in the nation of America?
Dave Kistler:
Well, Isaac, I’m going to try to cram a lot into a very brief amount of time. Let me just share with you where my life has been, and I have been over the last just two and a half weeks, I’ve been down on the southern border of the United States and actually stepped across the Rio Grande River. It’s very dry and area down there now, and there’s a spot where you can walk actually across where water’s not flowing and you can jump over puddles. And actually, I stood in Mexico and shot a couple of videos there, but the part of Mexico where I was and the part of the border where my wife and I were is about a 350 to 500 foot cliff straight up. And on the other side of that cliff on the Mexican side is about a hundred miles of pure desert. So nobody’s coming that a hundred miles.
And then trying to scale down that cliff to get into the United States there it was very, very safe area. But while we were there, I felt like God had led us all the way there for no other reason than one man. Kind of like God led Philip from Samaria down to the desert of Gaza for one Ethiopian eunuch. There was a man there that needed the gospel, and the gospel was presented to him. He called on the Lord, entrusted Christ as Savior, totally coincidental from our standpoint, but orchestrated by God from his vantage point. And then from there all the way to Washington, DC where we were part of the Bible reading marathon, visiting members of Congress. I’ll tell you this, Isaac, the word of God is not bound right now. It never is bound. And the word of God is having free course in our country like never before.
It is powerful, quick and powerful, quick means alive, sharper than any two edged sword, pierces to the dividing the son of soul and spirit joints and morals, a discerner, as the scripture says in Hebrews of the thoughts and the intents of the heart and what America needs right now like we’ve never needed it before, is just a turning back to God into his truth. And of all places where the word of God is being most welcomed right now, ironically, is in our nation’s capital. The offices I walked into, Isaac were amazing. There was light there. And I’m not talking about the decor, I’m not talking about the windows and sunlight coming through. I’m talking about spiritual light now is exuding from more places on Capitol Hill than it has in a long time. And that is not hyperbole, that is fact. And the American people need to be encouraged by that. And those of us that name the name of Christ need to be praying like never before that this will continue and erupt into that which we have prayed for so often, and that is a coast to coast, third, great awakening, a revival of epic proportions in the United States of America. And my firm belief is this. We sit on the very precipice of that very thing, and I would sure love to see it become a full scale reality.
Isaac Crockett:
Amen. I hope that that will encourage all of us to be praying from the rooftops like you were in Washington, dc both of you to our living room floors, to everywhere, just praying for our churches, for God’s people to be that light and to be evangelists, to see others come to know that. As we talk about that, Gary, I’d just like to turn it over to you for any final thoughts you have. And then if you take time to close our program in prayer,
Gary Dull:
Well, I’m just thankful Isaac and Brother Dave to agree with you, man, that the word of God is alive and well. And of course we know that as we draw closer to the return of the Lord Jesus Christ, there will be people turning away from God. There’s no doubt about that. The Bible teaches that very clearly. But I do believe that God can bring a revival to a person’s heart, to a church, to a state, to a city, and to a nation. And I believe that it’s important that if we humble ourselves and pray and seek God’s face and turn from our wicked way, that we will seek God work. And if there’s anything that we should do as Christians in the United States of America today is to pray that God will bring a revival to our country as well as to other countries. And I know that we’ve got listers in various other nations around the world.
When people of God humble themselves and pray and seek God’s word and his way, God will bless and God you never know, might just bring a great revival to that church or to that nation. And I think that that should be our prayer. Father in heaven, as we come to you today, we thank you and praise you once again for the great God that you are. We thank you for loving us and for providing salvation for us through the Lord Jesus Christ. I thank you for the way that you are opening doors to get your word into the hearts and the minds of people, whether it’s on the street of any city or in the honors of some great capital building, whether it’s the state or the federal government here in the United States of America, we know that your word will not return under your void. We know it has an effect and that it will bring people to Christ and enable people to grow in Christ. And to that end, we pray, in Jesus name, I ask it. Amen.
Isaac Crockett:
Amen. Amen. Thank you so much, Gary. Dave Kistler, thank you for being with us. Just so glad to have you guys and all the work you’re doing. So thankful for the folks behind the scenes, our producer, Tim Schneider, many others, but for you for listening, thank you for listening. I hope that this will be an encouragement to you. Please pray for all that’s going on at the American Pastors Network and stand in the gap media. Please share this with other people. Pray for our nation, pray for our work here. And until next time, stand in the gap.
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