I can clearly remember a time when I read through the scriptures of the Bible, with the primary purpose of trying to find out what I needed to do in order to become a better person, and to become more acceptable in Gods sight, by doing stuff.
According to Jewish tradition, in the Old Testament alone there are about 613 commandments, 365 in the negative (things we shouldnt be doing) and 248 in the positive (good things we should be doing). I now understand that I am not saved by works, and that Christs grace and mercy are sufficient. In fact, he is our Sabbath Rest, and just as God rested from works on the seventh day of the creation account, we too find our rest from works in Christ. There remains, then, a Sabbath-rest for the people of God; for anyone who enters Gods rest also rests from his own work, just as God did from his (Hebrews 4:9-10, emphasis mine throughout).
So if the Bible wasnt written in order to tell us what we should be doing (works), is there any point in reading it, and if so, what is its purpose?
One of his disciples spelled out very clearly the main reason why the Bible was written, and why we should come to know its central character more deeply: Jesus did many other miraculous signs in the presence of his disciples, which are not recorded in this book. But these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name (John 20:30-31).
Central Theme
Like any good book, the Bible has a central theme (Gods love for us) and a central Character, Jesus Christ. That is why both Christ and the scriptures are referred to as The Word.
Writing to Timothy, Paul says: All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work (2 Timothy 3:16-17).
Some may comment that surely this scripture tells us that there are other reasons as to why scripture was given to us?
Firstly, we are told that scripture is God-breathed. This means that God inspired the writers of the Bible to record what they did. Why would He do this? He obviously had a really special message that He wanted to reveal to us, his sons and daughters. And what message could be more important than the Good News of His Son, our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ?
Paul then goes on to tell us that this inspired message from God is useful to us in several areas:
Teaching; The Greek word (didaskalia*) simply means the passing on of information. The Scriptures teach us and tell us more about Christ.
Rebuking; Here the Greek word elegchos is sometimes translated reproof, but also means to provide proof, conviction or evidence, in this case of no other but Christ.
Correcting; This Greek word (epanorthosis) is derived from two other words; epi (which means on or towards) and anorthoo (to straighten). Scripture is there to help us refocus and straighten our direction towards Christ or to become attached more firmly onto Him.
Training in righteousness; Tutorage, education or training in righteousness from the root word dikaios which implies innocence and Holiness. We know of ourselves we have no righteousness, but by discovering more about him, we can learn from the only one who is righteous, Jesus.
Old Testament all about Jesus
Obviously, the New Testament is all about Christ and His disciples, but did you know that even the Old Testament was all about Jesus? Lets take a look at two occasions where Christ himself refers to the scriptures (remember that when he was alive, the books of the New Testament had not yet been written) and see what he has to say about them.
On the first occasion he is talking to the Scribes and Pharisees. These were men who had spent their entire lives studying the scriptures and who could recite most of the Old Testament scriptures by heart. Because they were familiar with all the dos and donts, and were keeping most of them, they thought they were pretty high up on the righteousness ladder. They thought they knew what the scriptures were all about, but Christ shocks them by saying You diligently study the Scriptures because you think that by them you possess eternal life. These are the Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life (John 5:39-40). What Christ is saying here is that we cannot be saved by knowing the scriptures, but by coming to know him, we can receive life. The purpose of all scripture is to point and direct us to him.
On the second occasion, he is talking to his disciples while appearing to them after his resurrection. He said to them, This is what I told you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms. Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures (Luke 24:44-45).
If Christ needed to open their minds so that they could understand the Old Testament, there is obviously more to it than first meets the eye. If even the disciples didnt get it, is it then a pointless exercise for us to try to understand these scriptures?
No! Christ left us with the Holy Spirit who guides us into truth (John 14:16). Christ is the Way and the Truth and the Life. As we read and study the Bible we need to allow the Holy Spirit to work in our hearts and minds and reveal Christ to us through the pages of the Bible. There is no greater purpose in reading the word of God than to become more intimately acquainted with the Word, who gave up his heavenly rights to become flesh and dwell among us.
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