American clergyman and author, Phillips Brooks, who served as the Bishop of Massachusetts in the Episcopal Church during the late 1800s is known to have said the following about the Bible. “The Bible is like a telescope. If a man looks through his telescope, then he sees the worlds beyond; but if he looks at his telescope, then he does not see anything but that. The Bible is a thing to be looked through, to see that which is beyond; but most people only look at it; and so they see only the dead letter.” Dr. J. Vernon McGee in his radio ministry “Thru the Bible” exposited chapter by chapter and verse by verse with the mission of proclaiming the whole Word to the whole world. Brooks and Dr. McGee had the right perspective. The Bible is to be looked through.
From the page that begins with “In the beginning” to the final words which ends with “the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all”, it is a revelation of God’s great love story. In the beginning was the Word (John 1:1) a.k.a., the Word that became flesh and dwelt among man in the person of Jesus Christ (John 1:14) and the Word was with God and was God (John 1:1). Note how in the beginning, there is no mention of anyone other than the Godhead – God the Father, His Son Jesus Christ (the Word) and the Spirit of God (Genesis 1:1-2). We were not there in the beginning, but the good news is that all who believe in Jesus Christ will be there in the end. The final word in the Bible is the word “all” as the Bible ends with “the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ be with you all”, penultimate in position, only to affirm that so be it (Amen). The grace of our Lord Jesus Christ does not exclude anyone and is all inclusive. It is freely available to all; from the penitent sinner to the practicing saint.
When we look at the Bible, we merely see a dead letter of God to man. But when we look through the Bible, we see not only God’s story, but we see THE GRACE story. In other words, we see Jesus Christ revealed in the pages of the Bible.
Point(s) to ponder:
1. When you read the Bible, who do you see?
2. Someone said your life may be the only Bible someone may read. If this is true, if someone see through our lives, will they see Jesus Christ or are we about showcasing ourselves that people don’t see through us but at us and find our lives to be a dead letter?
