It Is All According To Plan

“You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me, yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life.” (John 5:39-40 – ESV)

Reading the Bible as Christ as the center has caused me to ask more questions about the Bible. This makes Graeme Goldsworthy’s book According To Plan: the Unfolding Revelation of God in the Bible a good companion to reading the Bible. Goldsworthy’s objective of this book is to demonstrate that there is a story and a unity to the Bible. Reading the Bible and tackling the diversity and complexity of its pages is a daunting project for anyone.

Goldsworthy’s book addresses questions like: How do the Old and New Testament fit together? What is the point of biblical theology? What is the overall story of the Bible? If you are new Christian, or been one for a few years, and would like to deepen your understanding of the God’s word, I highly recommend this book. This book is a great introduction to a deeper biblical theology that most of us are NOT getting in our diets in most American churches. The book also includes dozens of charts, highlighted summaries, study questions and concise chapters that makes this book very useful with personal and/or small group Bible studies. This a typical Christian book that you will never find a Christian bookstore, so order it on Amazon.

There is no question that the Bible has doctrine and we should all be engaged in the study of true biblical doctrine. The tragedy is that many Christians see the Bible as a book of “timeless truths,” a list of morals, or good principles to make our personal lives better and happier instead of seeing it as an unfolding redemptive story. It is a story about Christ (John 5:39-40). Many of us in the American Religion climate read the Bible but don’t read it with Christ as the center. The Bible is the story of the fall of humanity and how God redeemed his people through the perfect obedience of Christ!

The most important reading project that a Christian could ever do is to read the Bible. This book by Goldsworthy will help you read the Bible as one story with Christ as the center. One of my goals is not only to read scripture more but also to read more Christian books to compensate for not being able to attend church regularly (because of work). Thanks to this book by Goldsworthy I am more able to read the Bible with Christ as the center.

Your Brother,

Timotheus