A few weeks ago we began going through basic Theology. We have gone through the most basic part (knowing God), and now we are going to embark on the Word of God (The Bible), but first a review.
We have seen that God is the greatest good in the entire universe, He is prefect, and good, and holy. His grace is sufficient and his love everlasting, and that we can come to the knowledge of Him through creation (Romans 1:18-22). But we have rejected the truth of God for a lie (Romans 1:15). Therefore we are all under the just condemnation of Hell, because of our offense against the eternal Being, with the heinous act of sin. It was stated that we can do nothing whatsoever to save ourselves from this condemnation.
However it has also been stated that although we can do nothing God can, and has. He has given us more than just the limited revelation of Himself in creation; He has given us His Word, and Himself. “God has provided special revelation designed to lead those who did not know God and did not want to know God to a saving knowledge of Him (James Boice).” There is the revelation of redemptive history, which is centered on the work of Jesus Christ, the revelation of writing, that is the Bible, and the application of these truths to the mind and the heart by the Holy Spirit.
It is in the Bible alone that we learn of God’s redemptive history. “He has designed from all eternity, and is infallibly forming with every event, a magnificent mosaic of redemptive history (John Piper).” The term redemptive history is the term used to refer to God’s acts that are recorded in the Bible, it is history viewed from the perspective of God’s redeeming purpose. In my mind this is the best way to read the Bible, with one eye on the text, and one eye on the cross. Then the text will come alive and you will be able to see redemption in everything, as well as many other attributes of God. For the sake of length I will use one example, The Flood account (Gen. 6-9).
In the flood account we read of a horror story in which the entire population of earth is killed in less than a year, save on man’s family, the family of Noah. They are saved because God told Noah to build an ark, and because Noah was faithful to God (Gen. 6:9, “…Noah was a just man, perfect in his generation. Noah walked with God.”) he did as instructed. It took him 120 years to finish the ark, showing the patience of God, He waited to allow more to be redeemed, but none did. Then the time came and floodwaters came and the earth was consumed by water, yet those on the ark survived. This is the abbreviated ark story. Now if we look at the cross we can see direct colorations between the ark and redemption.
The Ark was the only thing that saved; much like the death of Christ is the only thing that will save (John 14:6). The world is completely wicked and all are deserving of death (Romans 3:10-18). And man is helpless to do anything to save himself from death (Romans 3:23). God is being patient to return, much like He was patient in the days of Noah. Judgment is coming.
This is only one example, but the entire Bible is full of them, pointing to the work of Christ on the cross, to save us. That is the pinnacle of History. It is ugly and brutal to imagine, but that is where salvation was won, and that is where lives are saved, at the cross. Only by the blood of Jesus.
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