If we don’t know the purpose of a tool, we’re in danger of misusing it. I heard the story of the Ethiopian King Menelik 2, who loved the Bible, but may not have fully understood it. The Bible says poetic things about how we need to devour and digest God’s Word. Jesus himself says, “Man does not live on bread alone but on every word that comes from the mouth of God.” So King Menelik the 2 had a habit of ripping a few pages out of his Bible and eating them when he felt sick. Unfortunately, he eventually died after attempting to eat the entire books of 1 and 2 Kings. So today, for the sake of your health, we’re going to look at what the Bible is.
But first, let’s talk about what the Bible isn’t.
What the Bible Isn’t
First, the Bible is not a rulebook. A few weeks ago, my son Judah was hanging out with his rowdy cousins, and afterward he came up to Rebekah and ma and said, “The Bible says not to jump on the furniture.” That’s how a lot of people treat the Bible, like it’s just a list of “thou shalts” and “thou shalt nots”. Thou shalt love more, thou shalt give more, thout shalt be more patient. Thou shalt not lie, thou shalt not steal, thou shalt not jump on the furniture. As if the basic message of the Bible was, “Be good because it’s good to be good, and it’s bad to be bad, so be good.” But that’s not it.
Second, the Bible is not a self-help manual. Some people treat the Bible like a compilation of “helpful hints for hurtful habits.” What should I do when I have doubts? Page 32. What’s the right belief about the end times? Page 17. How do I have a good marriage? Page 23. How do I fix my kid? Page 12 to page 942. But have you ever noticed that the Bible’s not really laid out like that? Now, the Bible does have great advice for us. Want to learn about leadership? Read Nehemiah. Want to learn about love? Read Ruth. Want to learn about family life? Read Ephesians. Want to learn about finances? Read Proverbs. Want to learn about justice? Read Deuteronomy. The Bible has lots of good advice. But the Bible isn’t just good advice, it’s good news. The Bible is basically a story, a narrative. Because Christianity is not just about ideas or doctrines; it’s about a person. So if the Bible isn’t a rulebook or a self-help manual, what is it?
What the Bible Is
Have you heard the story of the little boy in class at church. The teacher asked the class, “What’s gray, has a bushy tail, climbs trees, and likes to eat nuts?” The little boy raises his hand, “Teacher, I know the answer is supposed to be Jesus, but it sure sounds like a squirrel to me.” I think that kid has pretty good instincts, because the answer to pretty much any question you have is Jesus, and that’s the answer to our question too.
What is the Bible? Here it is: The Bible is a unified story which leads us to Jesus.
One old preacher says that the Bible is a “Himbook”, H-I-M. It’s all about Jesus. Every story whispers his name. Jesus himself taught this. In Luke 24. Jesus has just risen from the dead, but most people don’t know it yet. His followers are still grieving over the memory of his dead body dangling from the cross on Friday afternoon. A couple of Jesus’ followers are leaving Jerusalem and walking back to their hometown when a traveler comes up alongside them and asks if he can walk with them. They said, “Sure”, not knowing that the traveler beside them was the risen Jesus himself. Jesus says to them, ‘How foolish you are, and how slow to believe all that the prophets have spoken! Did not the Messiah have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?’ And beginning with Moses and the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself.” Did you catch that? Jesus just said that the whole Bible is talking about him.
The Bible is a unified story which leads us to Jesus. Let’s dissect that.
First, the Bible is a unified story. This is a picture that hangs in my office.
Each of the little gray or white sections at the bottom represents a book of the Bible. Each of the little bars is a chapter of the Bible, the longer the bar, the longer the chapter. In the middle is the longest chapter of the Bible, Psalm 119. Each of these lines is a cross-reference. In other words, every time one text references or riffs off of another text, they draw a line between the two. The colors denote the distance between chapters. So here it is, all 63,779 cross-references tied together. The Bible is a unified story.
Second, the Bible leads us to Jesus. Jesus got onto the religious leaders of his day who loved the Bible, but missed the point of letting the Bible lead them to Him. John 5:29-40, “You study the Scriptures diligently because you think that in them you have eternal life. These are the very Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life.” Our goal isn’t just to know the Bible, it is to know Jesus to whom the Bible leads us. In 2 Timothy 3:14-15, Paul says, “But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know from whom you have learned it, and how from infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.” The Bible itself won’t save you. But it will lead you to someone who will.
Conclusion
Perhaps the greatest theologian of the 20th century was a man named Karl Barth. Barth was once asked what the most amazing truth he had discovered was in all his years of study, in the thousands of pages he had read and written...Barth said the most amazing thing of all was this: “Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so.”
This book is about Jesus. Every verse in this book either predicts, prepares for, reflects on, or results from the work of Jesus. So read this book and let it lead you to Him.