IN EARTHEN VESSELS
  • Home
  • About
  • I Believe
  • The Big Picture
  • Reach Out
We have this treasure in earthen vessels
2 Corinthians 4:7

A Story Worth Sharing

3/25/2018

0 Comments

 
Picture
+ WATCH “Experience the Book” from the Museum of the Bible

+ PRAY for open hearts and minds, especially yours.

+ READ 1 Peter 1:10-12, 22-25; 2 Peter 1:16-21; 3:14-18 (ESV)

+ REFLECT
As we talk about the Big Picture of the Bible, you’ll hopefully see just what this book means to God’s people. After all, this is where we find out who we are, where we came from, and why we’re here. The Bible is the book that tells us the story of Jesus. Now that might not seem very Earth-shattering. But if you remember what we said before about Jesus, and how “in him all things hold together,” then that story’s not just any story. It’s about HIM and since it’s about HIM, it’s the untold story, the secret history of the whole world. And now we know it.

You see, when I talk about the Bible, I’m sharing a story that didn’t start with me; someone else told it to me. And that someone at some time learned it from yet another person, and so on. And because it wasn’t theirs, no one got to make it up or add their own spin to it. They took what they heard and passed it on. In fact, for thousands of years, billions of people around the world have come to know it. That history is no longer a secret, and once you know it everything else begins to make sense. Here’s how one persecutor-turned-preacher described it:
Now to him who is able to strengthen you according to my gospel and the preaching of Jesus Christ, according to the revelation of the mystery that was kept secret for long ages but has now been disclosed and through the prophetic writings has been made known to all nations, according to the command of the eternal God, to bring about the obedience of faith—to the only wise God be glory forevermore through Jesus Christ! Amen. (Romans 16:25-27)
That story was a secret because only God saw it all happening in real-time, but this story is now good news because God has opened it up for all to see. Paul uses a variety of words, but this is what makes this story so special: God has spoken; it’s HIS story. This isn’t just any book; it’s the Biblia, the Book of Books. The God who exists from eternity has spoken his Word so you can know his power, wisdom, and glory—so that you can trust and obey him.

Sadly, for many the Bible simply remains a mystery. Sure, it might seem like everyone on this side of the Atlantic has one, and most people know at least something about it. Even those who deny what it teaches can’t help but be moved by its beauty and depth of meaning. But few people really understand what they hold in their hands. The Bible is the most-read, most-translated, and most-influential book in human history. There are more handwritten copies of the Bible than any other body of ancient literature, and because of that we can trust that what we hold today speaks the same truths God’s Spirit gave to his spokesmen through the ages.

And the more evidence we find—caves filled with hidden manuscripts, cities buried under centuries of dirt, or even the mapping of the human genome—the more we exult in God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. The evidence confirms what Christians already know by faith: that God exists and that he has spoken. For many, that’s still a mystery, but because of Jesus that’s a story worth sharing. So, where do we start? How about here: “In the beginning…”

+ ASK Three Big Questions
  1. How is God revealing himself?
  2. How does this make sense of us?
  3. Where do I stand in this story?

+ DIG DEEPER with slides for group discussion.
02 A Story Worth Sharing.key
File Size: 5281 kb
File Type: key
Download File

02 A Story Worth Sharing.pptx
File Size: 4443 kb
File Type: pptx
Download File

0 Comments



Leave a Reply.

    View my profile on LinkedIn

    RSS Feed

    Categories

    All
    Academic
    Ancient Words
    Books
    Community
    Creation
    Hosea
    Isaiah
    Life In The Word
    Revelation
    The Body Of Christ

    Archives

    September 2020
    April 2020
    March 2020
    February 2020
    January 2020
    December 2019
    November 2019
    October 2019
    September 2019
    August 2019
    September 2018
    August 2018
    July 2018
    June 2018
    April 2018
    March 2018
    January 2018
    December 2017
    November 2017
    September 2017
    August 2017
    July 2017
    June 2017
    May 2017
    April 2017
    February 2017
    January 2017
    December 2016
    November 2016
    October 2016
    September 2016
    August 2016
    July 2016
    June 2016
    May 2016
    April 2016
    March 2016
    February 2016
    January 2016
    December 2015
    November 2015
    October 2015
    September 2015
    August 2015
    July 2015
    June 2015
    May 2015
    April 2015
    March 2015
    February 2015
    January 2015
    December 2014
    November 2014
    October 2014
    September 2014
    July 2014
    June 2014
    May 2014
    April 2014
    March 2014
    February 2014
    December 2013
    November 2013

Picture
Photos used under Creative Commons from Sharon & Nikki McCutcheon, lungstruck, Rubén Díaz Caviedes, YoungLadAustin
  • Home
  • About
  • I Believe
  • The Big Picture
  • Reach Out