God's Big Picture

They warn of the danger of squeezing all parts of the Bible into a mould rather than letting them speak individually in their rich variety. That is an important warning that must be heard. Any unifying theme that is used to help us to see how the Bible fits together must arise out of Scripture itself, rather than being imposed upon it; and it must

The gospel promises are in danger of failing almost as soon as they have been made. Abraham decides it is time to take matters into his own hands, and sleeps with Sarah’s maid, Hagar, who gives birth to a son, Ishmael. But God makes it clear that his people will not arise from Ishmael. Abraham has to learn that, if the gospel is to be fulfilled, on

Just as the Lord Jesus was both fully human and fully divine, so the Bible is both a human and a divine book. It is God’s Word: he is the ultimate author.

Bible study Revelation 21:1–8; 21:22 – 22:5 21:1–8 What images are used to describe the perfected kingdom? How do they build on previous passages in the Bible? What are the features of life in the new creation? Who will enjoy its benefits? What does it mean to be ‘thirsty’? What does it mean to ‘overcome’? 21:22 – 22:5 How is the perfected kingdom

This attitude to the material world is very different from that of many philosophies and religions, which are really concerned only with the spiritual and the soul. Everything else is regarded, at best, as of secondary importance, and, at worst, as evil. Their understanding of salvation involves the soul being released from the prison of the body t

The Bible does not just tell the story of God’s work of salvation; at the same time it reveals God’s character. He is its hero from beginning to end. Sometimes we miss the point by asking too quickly, ‘What is it saying to me?’ A good first question to ask whenever we look at a passage is, ‘What does this tell me about God?’ Very often the applicat

Bible study Luke 1:39–80; 2:25–32 What do the words of Mary, Zechariah and Simeon teach us about the salvation Jesus brings? How do they point to the fulfilment of the following Old Testament passages? Genesis 12:1–3 2 Samuel 7:11–16 Isaiah 9:2–7 Isaiah 42:5–7 Isaiah 49:5–7 Jeremiah 31:31–34 Malachi 3:1 How should we respond?

We tend to have a negative attitude to authority and assume that it must always be oppressive. But there is nothing negative about being under God’s authority. In the Bible, to be under God’s rule is to enjoy God’s blessing. When Adam and Eve obeyed God’s command not to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, they knew life at its best

The kingdom of God God’s people God’s place God’s rule and blessing The pattern of the kingdom Adam and Eve The garden God’s word; perfect relationships The perished kingdom No-one Banished Disobedience and curse The promised kingdom Abraham’s descendants Canaan Blessing to Israel and the nations The partial kingdom The Israelites Canaan (and Jerus