The English word Bible comes from the Latin Biblia which
means book or books. The Bible is actually a library of books – 66 books to be
exact. There are 39 books in the Old Testament and 27 in the New Testament. The
timeline of all the books covers over 3500 years of human history. The Old
Testament covers the majority of this time frame, whereas the New Testament
covers about 100 years only. The first
book Genesis covers about 2200 years of human history – more than the other 65
books combined. The Bible was written over a period of about 1500 years written
by around 40 different authors.
Why was the Bible written?
The Bible was written as God’s personal revelation to
mankind. I think of it as a very large collection of love letters. God wanted
us to learn about and develop a relationship with Him based on love and
obedience. God decided of His own free will to use man as His instruments to
record His revelation. It is important to remember that the words man wrote are
not his own – they are God’s. Man is only the human author. God is the original
and divine author. The Bible could never exist if God did not supernaturally
communicate His revelation to man. The Bible tells us this in 2 Peter 1:21, “No
prophecy ever came by the will of man, but holy men of God as they were moved
by the Holy Spirit.”
In other words, the Biblical writers did not speak from God
unless they were commanded to. Anyone who claimed to speak for God and the
words they spoke did not come to pass was a false prophet. False prophets in
the Old Testament were put to death (Deuteronomy 13:1-5).
Who Is the Bible About?
The Bible is centered around one person – The Lord Jesus Christ. Jesus Himself said, ‘’The volume of the Book is written about me (Psalm 40:7; Luke 24:27,44). At its core, the entire Bible is a book of redemption. It clearly describes the hopelessness of man because of sin, and the supreme love of God who loves man so much that He (the Father) would send His perfect, sinless Son to die as a perfect sacrifice for mankind’s sins (John 3:16). Anyone who places their complete trust and life into the hands of Christ would be forgiven of all their sins and granted salvation and entrance into the kingdom of God and as a child of God. Anyone who does not believe in the completed work of Christ is condemned. If one dies in that condemnation, they will be eternally lost. Although there are many different religions and belief systems, none of them can save man but one Why? Jesus said John 14:6, “I am the Way the Truth and the Life. No man comes to the Father except by Me.” So, there is no need for confusion. Jesus said believe in Him for salvation. To reject Him is what the writer calls “eternal suicide” – meaning one will be lost for eternity.
When was the Bible written, who are some of its main characters?
The Bible describes the origins of the universe. The first
book of the Bible, the Book of Genesis 1:1 tell us in the beginning God created
the heavens and the earth. This insight of who created the universe should
settle the matter forever but sadly it has not. Many believe in evolution as
the cause for the creation of everything. Evolutionists believe the universe
was created by some process called the Big Bang Theory. Evolution can never
happen because that would mean the world was created by an effect with no
cause. That is impossible.
God is the creator of the human race. The first man and woman
ever created was Adam and Eve (Genesis 2:7; 20-23). They are parents of
everyone that will ever dwell on the earth.
Another key figure in the Bible was Noah. He was the
one God commanded to build the ark. God destroyed the old world with a flood
because man became too wicked on the earth (Genesis 6 &7). The only people
to survive the flood were Noah, his wife, his three sons Ham, Shem and
Japheth and their wives. Just eight people and some of the animals were in the
ark.
Abraham was the man that God called His friend. God promised Abraham that through
him all the nations of the earth would be blessed (Genesis 12:1-3). Abraham is known
for his great faith in God and His promises. He is known as the Father of the
faithful (Romans 4:16).
Jacob was the man that wrestled with God. God changed his name to Israel which
means one who wrestles with God (Genesis 32:28). The nation Israel that exists
today comes from him and his descendants. He is the father of the Jewish
people.
Moses was the one that led the Hebrew race out of slavery in Egypt. He was the
one that parted the Red Sea when the Hebrews were running from Pharoah and the
Egyptians. This occurred around 1446/1445 B.C. when Moses was 80 years old (Exodus
12). God through Moses wrote the first five books of the Bible: Genesis,
Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy. It is in Exodus 20 where we get the
famous Ten Commandments.
David was a shepherd boy from the town of Bethlehem. God made him a king around
1010 B.C. He conquered the ancient city of Jerusalem (city of peace) and made
it his capital. He was the one that killed the Philistine giant Goliath (1
Samuel 17:48-50; 2 Samuel 5:6-10). David was also a skilled musician, songwriter,
and singer. David wrote almost half the Psalms.
Daniel was a captive of Babylon during the sixth century B.C. He was a wise man in the kingdom of Nebuchadnezzar. He was a prophet and a gifted interpreter of dreams. God gave him the ability to predict future events with precise accuracy. Daniel interprets King Nebuchadnezzar’s dream in Daniel chapter two of a huge metallic statue.
Who are some New Testament Figures?
Peter was an Apostle of Christ. He is the author of 1 & 2 Peter. He denied
he knew Jesus three times after the Lord was arrested by the Roman authorities (Matthew
26:69-75). On the Day of Pentecost-the birth of Church, Peter preached the very
first Church sermon. About three thousand people were saved and baptized (Acts
2).
Paul was an Apostle of Christ. Before he was saved, he was part of religious
sect called the Pharisees. He was a member of a group called the Sanhedrin. An
elite group that served like a Jewish Supreme Court. Paul (who’s Hebrew name is
Saul) was an educated man. An expert in the law of Moses. Before he was saved,
he used to persecute the Church, but after Jesus saved him, he became the main
teacher/evangelist to the non-Jewish world in the first century. Paul wrote
almost half of the New Testament – thirteen books. They are:
· Romans
· 1
&2 Corinthians
· Galatians
· Ephesians
· Colossians
· Philippians
· 1
& 2 Thessalonians
· 1
& 2 Timothy
· Titus
· Philemon
John was an Apostle of Christ. John wrote 5 New Testament books. They are:
· The
Gospel of John
· 1st
John
· 2nd
John
· 3rd
John
· Revelation
John referred to himself as the disciple who Jesus loved (John 21:20). The book of Revelation deals with future events such as the Rapture of the Church, the Tribulation, the Second Coming of Christ, the Millennium Kingdom and the Great White Throne Judgement and the destruction of the devil. These are all end time events.
Jesus Christ
Jesus means God is Salvation. Christ is not Jesus’ last name.
Rather Christ is His title. Christ comes from the Greek Christos which
means anointed one. It is equivalent to Messiah. As mentioned earlier in the
article, all the books are about Christ. Jesus primary goal was to seek and
save that which is lost (Luke 19:10). Who or what is lost? Mankind. God the
Father sent the Son to save our souls from our sins (Matthew 1:21).
Jesus said to the religious leaders of His day, “Unless you
believe that I am He, you will die in your sins” (John 8:24). To die in sin means
that one died unforgiven because they rejected Jesus, the only way to
salvation.
The Bible teaches salvation through Jesus Christ and Him
alone.
Peter declared in Acts 4:12, “Neither is there salvation in
any other. For there is no other name under heaven given among men whereby we
must be saved.”
Finally, John the Baptist said, “He that has the Son has life.
He that does not have the Son does not have life, but the wrath of God abides
on him” (John 3:36).
Finish Line
Our God is a lover of mankind. He is long suffering, slow to
anger and abounding in mercy. He must punish sin because He is absolutely holy.
He also willing and ready to forgive the penitent sinner. He gave us His word
so that we could get to know Him personally. Whatever ideologies we face in
life, and there will be too many to count, always go to the Bible to get God’s
view on it. This is the way one begins to think and act Biblically. The
scriptures (writings) are wisdom from the Almighty. Read and study it. Trust
it. Understand it. Obey it and teach it. This will make one mature – thoroughly
furnished for every good work (2 Timothy 3:16).
