World's All-Time Best Seller

What would you list as the top 10 most read books of all time? Would you list contemporary best-sellers like the Harry Potter series, The Da Vinci Code, The Purpose Driven Life, or older titles like The Lord of The Rings, The Lord of the Flies, or the Adventures of Huckleberry Finn or maybe classics from Tolstoy, Hemingway, or Shakespeare? You are probably not surprise by the fact the Bible is the best-selling book of all-time at over 6 billion, most read, and most translated book in history, but do you know what many consider as the second most printed, read and disseminated book of all-time? Pilgrim’s Progress by John Bunyan, written in 1678.

Surprised? You may have heard of Pilgrim’s Progress and be familiar with its general story line, but this work has inspired millions for the past 300 years by its allegorical account of the struggles, joys and challenges of the everyman to begin and progress in the journey of life as a believer in Christ. Bunyan’s colorful, insightful and animated narrative was THE story for over 200 years and greatly influenced American colonial life. Everyone knew of the characters, places and Biblical principles found in Pilgrim’s Progress, and even today the re-telling of the story is found in movies, animations, picture books, and dramatic audio books.

It is not a great literary work by style, poetic prose or intellectual crafting, but by its insightful illustration of everyone’s story in their walk in faith. It was written for the common man…the working class family, those poor in spirit, and to those who lived the real struggles of life. Bunyan gave us the allegory that each one of us can relate to whether we lived in 17th Century London, 18th Century Boston or 21st Century Portland.

As I reflect upon Bunyan’s life and his influence as a writer, I come back to the foundation of Bunyan’s inspiration, The Bible, specifically the stories and the parables of Jesus. Jesus is the master storyteller, with short stories he gave us divine insight into all our lives. He challenged others directly as he confronted the Pharisees in the prophetic and tragic parable of the Wicked Vinedressers, and he also revealed God’s compassion, love and longing for us in the Lost Sheep, the Lost Coin and the Prodigal Son. Jesus would often leave a jewel of divine wisdom in his everyday life encounters, such as with Zacchaeus, the Chief Tax Collector, he stated:

Today salvation has come to this house, because he also is a son of Abraham; for the Son of Man has come to seek and to save that which was lost. – Luke 19:9-10

The power and influence of God’s Word will stand the test of any best-seller’s list in any century. The only book that is active, living and true, as the infallible, God-inspired revelation of God’s story of love extended to his beloved creation. Pilgrim’s Progress is a must read for all, young and old, those of faith and certainly those who seek answers, but it leads us to THE book of all-time, the greatest story for humanity of all generations, all nations, all people…it is a vital and critical must read on everyone’s list, The Bible.