The Bible
Course 1 of 6

About The Bible

The Bible is the most widely read book in human history and rightly so for in it are the truths as God has revealed them unto mankind. There are several things to note about the Bible as we begin this series of Bible Correspondence courses.

The word “bible” comes from the Greek word “biblia” meaning “books.” The Bible is a collection of 66 books, written over a 1500 year period by some 40 different authors. Each author wrote in a specific time about certain circumstances going on then and thus the revelation of God to mankind was slow in coming. This has led many well-meaning folks to read the Bible yet come away more perplexed than before. Many have shrunk back from trying to completely understand sacred scripture because they could not see the whole picture.

Think of the Bible as a puzzle for a moment. We do not know what a puzzle picture is going to look like until all the pieces are assembled. Just holding one piece of the puzzle does not show us the entire picture. Likewise, just reading one book or one chapter of the Bible is not going to show us the entire picture. Yet each chapter and book are essential components to the entire picture and to profit from the Bible, the reader must be able to work the individual parts as well as see the overall theme and purpose of the book. We can understand the Bible and gain deeper and more meaningful insights in the bargain.

The Bible is Inspired By God

The Bible is a revealing of God to humankind. We must remember that the Bible came from the inspiration of God, as we read from the pen of the Apostle Paul, “All scripture is inspired by God…” (2 Timothy 3:16.) We must always remember that the Bible came from God although men were used to do the writing.

Paul also tells us, “But I make known to you brethren, that the gospel which was preached by me is not according to man. For I neither received it from man, neither was I taught it, but by the revelation of Jesus Christ.” (Galatians 1:11-12.) Here Paul tells us how it works. The Bible was not something invented by man and then handed down as legend or tradition. God moved people to write by inspiration of the Holy Spirit. IT IS GOD’S BOOK not ours and we should have the most profound respect for it. Scripture is inspired by God and did not come by human wisdom or impulse (2 Peter 1:20-21.) We can understand the Bible (Ephesians 3:4) properly and correctly, and without being divided over it as the religious world is today.

A REVEALING

The Bible’s use of the word’s “reveal” or “revelation” help us see the need for God revealing himself to us. Study the following verses carefully— Matthew 11:27; Philippians 3:15; 1 Peter 1:12; and Ephesians 3:5. All of these verses mention a “revealing” of some sort. To reveal something is to “uncover, lay bare, or unveil.” God created us and there are limits to our understanding of God. “For as the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts” (Isaiah 55:9.) The contrast between God and mankind is stark and remarkable. Notice:

Nature teaches us that there is a designer or higher power (Romans 1:20) but unless that designer revealed Himself, we could not fully know Him. Thus God inspired certain ones to write the things He wanted us to know about Him and the result is the Bible.

Both Testaments in the Bible are inspired (2 Peter 1:21) and it is all God’s revealing of Himself. Our job is to take His word, study it (2 Timothy 2:15) to learn how to be approved of God. We can’t make God in our image. Let’s let Him tell us about Himself and be content to follow that.

GOD DEMANDS RESPECT FOR HIS WORD

In our daily living, we are surrounded by authority. While driving down the road we have traffic laws to obey. While buying groceries, we have certain prices to pay and can’t generally pay what we want. When we watch our favorite sports team, we note that there are certain rules that the game is played by. Authority is everywhere we look.

However, “Christianity” seems exempt from authority. Religious folk go by many names, have differing views about worship, give different ways to be saved, and organize themselves differently. Could it be there is a general lack of respect for God’s authority today? The Bible teaches that God demands (not requests or asks for) respect for His word. Notice:

• Adam and Eve were told not to eat of the fruit but they did and paid a price (Genesis 3.)
• Moses was told to speak to the rock but he struck it and could not enter the promised land (Numbers 20:7-12)
• David knew adultery and murder were wrong but still did it (2 Samuel 11 & 12.)
• Uzzah knew not to touch the ark of the covenant but he did and died (2 Samuel 6:3-11)
• Ananias and Sapphira lied to the Holy Spirit and died (Acts 5: 1-11.)

Many examples could be cited to show how people paid a price for not respecting what God said. God revealed His truth in the Bible and it is wholly unified not divided. There will be no modern day revelations because the “faith ... was once for all delivered to the saints” (Jude 3.)

A BIBLICAL TOUR

Genesis begins with the creation of the universe. “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth” (Genesis 1:1.) The Bible does not begin with any philosophic arguments for the existence of God. Faith is required from the very beginning of reading the Bible and will be needed throughout.

The crowning part of creation was the creation of man and woman. Made in the image of God, they had dominion over all the physical creation (Genesis 1:26.) But Adam and Eve sinned, resulting in spiritual death and separation from God. This is seen in their being driven from paradise. God has told us that “the wages of sin is death…” (Romans 6:23.) Adam and Eve were the first sinners and since then, “all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God” (Romans 3:23.) All have separated themselves from God by sin.

God had a plan for sin for He does not want anyone to be lost (2 Peter 3:9.) Thus the balance of the Old Testament looks forward to the fulfillment of that plan. In the course of time, God called Abraham and promised that through his seed “all nations would be blessed” (Genesis 12:1-3.) The Old Testament follows the descendants of Abraham who became known as the children of Israel, the Hebrews, or the Jews. God took these people and set them apart, giving them a law to follow. This law, called the law of Moses, contained codes on how the Jews should conduct themselves and called for the blood of a lamb to deal with sin. As the Jews lived in Canaan, they frequently violated the law and worshipped other gods. God would punish them and they would repent They also had books of poetry that gave life lessons to them (Job—Song of Solomon.) The prophets (Isaiah—Malachi) taught them to return to God and prophesied of the coming Christ. The Old Testament system was intended to bring the people to Christ (Galatians 3:24) and could not forgive sin (Hebrews 10:4.)

In the New Testament, Christ indeed came. Matthew Mark, Luke and John give accounts of the life of Jesus Christ including His death, burial, and resurrection from the dead. They show Jesus as the fulfillment of the Old Testament prophecies and promises. The book of Acts shows the establishment and early history of the church Jesus said He would build (Matthew 16:18.) The rest of the New Testament (Romans—Revelation) contain epistles (meaning letters) written to saints to further instruct them in the ways of Christ. The New Testament show that salvation is in Christ by believing and obeying Him (Hebrews 5:8-9.)

All of the Bible either points to or is about Jesus Christ. By studying God’s word, we can put the pieces of the puzzle together to see a complete unit and how WE can have freedom in Christ. The Bible is all we need!