The Library of Congress in Washington, D.C. was established in 1800 by an act of Congress. At that time $5000 was provided for the purchase of books to be used by Congress. By 1814 the library’s collection included about 3000 volumes and 150 maps and charts. That same year the library was destroyed by fire, and the entire collection was lost. Congress began immediately to build a new library. Thomas Jefferson’s collection of 6000 volumes formed the core around which the Library of Congress was rebuilt.
Again in 1851 fire damaged the library, destroying 35,000 of the 55,000 volumes in the collection. The library then began receiving regular funds from Congress and has grown rapidly ever since. It moved to its present location east of the Capitol in 1938. It now has 36 acres of floor space containing more than 72 million items. This includes over 16 million books, 31 million manuscripts, 3.3 million items of music, 1.2 million braille volumes and 2.7 million containers of talking books on records. The collection is housed on approximately 320 miles of bookshelves!
It is not just the fact that there are a great number of books, but the quality of them is also impressive. The library has a perfect copy of the Gutenberg Bible, the first important book printed using movable metal type. It houses Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address and the largest collection in the United States of books printed before 1501 (5600 volumes). There are also two volumes of every publication that has ever been copyrighted in the United States.
However, there are some very important books missing from the Library of Congress collection. They are God’s books. Did you know that your name is written in one or more of God’s books? In His books He writes down everything you say and do and think. Also, God has a special book called the Lamb’s Book of Life. In it He has written the name of every person who has accepted the Lord Jesus Christ (the Lamb) as his or her Saviour. It is God’s perfect record of who will spend eternity in His presence in heaven.
Some of the Library of Congress books have been accidentally destroyed, but God’s books containing the record of your life cannot be lost. The Bible tells us just how God will use His books. It says, “The dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire.” Rev. 20:12,1512And I saw the dead, small and great, stand before God; and the books were opened: and another book was opened, which is the book of life: and the dead were judged out of those things which were written in the books, according to their works. (Revelation 20:12)
15And whosoever was not found written in the book of life was cast into the lake of fire. (Revelation 20:15). Is your name in the Lamb’s book of life?
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