In John Bunyan’s classic book, Pilgrim’s Progress, Christian was on a journey to that Celestial City. As believers, we’re all on a journey with the Lord Jesus Christ. He’s our constant companion. Along this journey, the Lord wants to teach us. How does He teach us? He teaches us by His Spirit and through His Word. God reveals Himself on pages of Holy Scripture.
The Inspiration of Every Word
Do you have a favorite book in the Bible? My favorite is the Book of Philippians. But in reality, “all Scripture is given by inspiration of God and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness: that the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works” (2 Timothy 3:16). In other words, we need it all. That’s why the Apostle Paul said that “he had not shunned to declare the whole counsel of God” (Acts 20:27). In the words of our Lord, “man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God” (Matthew 4:4).
- Every word of Scripture is inspired by God.
- Every word of Scripture is preserved for us by God.
- Every word of Scripture has a definite purpose from God.
God intends for every word of Scripture to be used by the Holy Spirit to illuminate the Lord’s truth to us. But that only happens when we give attention to all the counsel of God. Most of us give great attention to certain portions of Scripture, but other portions are lesser known. Yet, the Book of Habakkuk is no less God’s Word than the Gospel of John. The great message in Zechariah is just as needed in our day as the message of Titus. We must get back to knowing all of Scripture.
The Chronological View
Obviously, we can’t take the time on this journey to look at every verse or even every chapter – there are 1,189 chapters in the Bible. You can read them for yourself. In fact, you should! Many of our resources give you a bird’s eye view and practical application of the Word of God. You can look at the Bible in time. For example, you can break the Word of God down into about 6,000 years of history:
- There are 2,000 years of human history given from Genesis 1-11.
- There are roughly 2,000 years of Hebrew history beginning in Genesis 12, with God’s call of Abraham through the rest of the Old Testament (Malachi and the 400 silent years).
- There are roughly 2,000 years of Church History, from the Gospel according to Matthew all the way to our present-day – living on the edge of eternity. We are living on the verge of the Revelation of Jesus Christ.
The Developmental View
You can see the Bible in development. It was written by nearly 40 human penmen. However, it all has one divine Author. These men were led by the Holy Spirit of God. They were used over a time span of 1,600 years. Only God could accomplish that! Scripture spans thousands of years of human history.
The New Testament builds on the foundation of the Old Testament, because the Word of God is a progressive revelation.
In the months ahead, we will continue to study each one of the sixty-six books. I want to give you a key Scripture from each book of the Bible and a general overview of that book. Then, I want to make an application to your life. One of the great disconnects is that people study the Word of God for information. Remember, knowledge puffeth up (1 Corinthians 8:1). If all we’re doing is gathering facts to quote or recite, we’re missing the point. The Bible is God’s revelation of Himself. It was not written to reveal things, it was written to reveal God.
Find Christ in Every Book of the Bible
You can study the entirety of Scripture and see Christ in every book of the Bible. There are over 300 prophecies of Christ alone in the Old Testament. In everything, Christ is revealed. (Read the article below for a wonderful poem about finding Christ in all of Scripture.)
As we journey through Scripture, it’s not just to see the written Word. In Scripture, we meet the Living Word, the Lord Jesus Christ. May God help us to meet Jesus along this journey.
Resource: Search the Scriptures Course
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