Studying the Bible -- The Whole Bible Story

Tonight we are engaging in a study of the whole Bible in one sitting. Although it may seem a formidable task, it is a necessary one. After my statement last Sunday morning, many brethren told me that though they grew up in Bible classes, they did not conceive of the Bible as one complete story until they were older. It should be no surprise since most of us grew up in churches where the teacher randomly selected class material out of a bookstore catalog a few weeks before the class sessions were to begin. Often an age group would study roughly the same topics in a short period if the teacher did not ask was taught in previous classes. We would jump from Old Testament to New Testament, sometimes focusing more on application than the stories themselves. It is no surprise, then, that many never saw the Bible as a complete story.

When I was in school, we often had to do book reports in English classes. The teacher would remind us to include the theme of the book (the central idea), the setting (the time in history, the geographical location of the story, the nationalities of the people, if relevant), the major and minor characters, and a summary of the book. One could consult Cliff’s Notes, a summary of major works of literature, and gather the main points and answers to these questions, but the smarter teachers would ask questions that they knew were not addressed in Cliff’s Notes to see if you really read the book.

Likewise, we will gather much information about the Bible from sermons and classes. However, nothing will replace time spent alone with the word of God to understand the Bible story. Bible teachers and preachers will not be able to address every topic or passage in the Bible. Also, three times a week (at best) of this Bible study is not sufficient to make us strong in the Scriptures and feed us richly with the Bread of Life. These opportunities do help us add to our knowledge and open up areas that we may not have considered, but they are a poor substitute for personal Bible study.

I hope that this evening’s overview will help us understand the big picture so that as we study we will understand how the Bible events connect to one another and be encouraged as we contemplate God’s great plan for salvation.

The Theme: God’s plan for redeeming mankind.

The Setting of the Story: From the beginning of time until the late first century A.D.

Main Characters: