The following is a fictional conversation, but the questions and answers are very real.

As they walked out of the café, John stopped beside his old pickup.

“Hang on a minute, Fred. I’ve got something for you.”

He reached into the cab and pulled out a brand-new Bible.

“This is for you.”

Fred looked surprised.

“I can’t take your Bible.”

John smiled.

“It isn’t mine. I bought it for whoever God put in my path next. Looks like it was meant for you.”

Fred slowly took it into his hands.

“I slipped a bookmark in there for you.”

“You did?”

“It’s in the Gospel of John. I think that’s the best place to begin. Don’t worry about reading the whole Bible right now. Just read John. Take your time. As you read, ask yourself one question.”

“What question?”

“Who is this Man?”

Fred looked down at the Bible.

“And if I have questions?”

John chuckled.

“You’ve already proven you know where to find me.”

Fred smiled.

“I guess I have.”

John closed the truck door.

“One more thing.”

“What’s that?”

“Don’t read it looking for reasons not to believe. Read it asking God to show you the truth. If you’re honestly seeking Him, He won’t disappoint you.”

Fred nodded.

“I’ll do that.”

The two men shook hands and climbed into their pickups.

As Fred drove home, the Bible rested on the seat beside him. More than once he glanced over at it, thinking about everything John had said.

Late that afternoon, Fred walked into the house and laid the Bible on the kitchen table.

For a long moment he simply stood there.

He had owned a Bible before, but he had never really read one.

Finally, he picked it up and carried it to his favorite chair.

The bookmark was right where John had said it would be.

Fred opened to the first chapter of John’s Gospel and began to read.

“In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”

He stopped.

He read the verse again.

“The Word... was God?”

He frowned.

“Who’s the Word?”

Curious now, he kept reading.

A few verses later he came to these words:

“And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us...” (John 1:14)

Fred leaned back in his chair.

“So... John’s talking about Jesus.”

For the first time in his life, he wasn’t reading the Bible to find fault with it.

He was reading it to understand.

He turned another page.

Jesus wasn’t speaking like the religious leaders Fred had expected.

He spoke with authority.

He spoke with compassion.

He spoke as if He knew every person He met.

Somehow, as Fred read, it felt as though Jesus knew him too.

The house was silent.

Fred looked around the room, then back at the open Bible resting in his lap.

Softly, almost under his breath, he whispered,

“Who are You?”

He didn’t hear a voice.

He didn’t see a vision.

All he had was an open Bible.

For the first time in his life, he realized that was enough.

He turned the page and kept reading.

Part four tomorrow…