His Unified Word

On a Sunday afternoon approximately two thousand years ago, two men were traveling to a small town called Emmaus, about seven miles outside Jerusalem. Another man joined them on their journey and asked them what they were discussing. They told him about the events that had recently occurred: a prophet named Jesus of Nazareth had taught among them and performed miraculous signs, but he had been arrested and executed just days earlier. That morning, the men explained, some women had found his tomb empty, but no one knew what to make of it. These two men did not realize that the stranger who walked with them was, in fact, the risen Jesus. Still unrecognized, Jesus responded, “‘How foolish you are, and how slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! Did not the Christ have to suffer these things and then enter his glory?’ And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning himself” (Luke 24:25-26). When they arrived at their destination, they suddenly recognized Jesus for who he was, and they returned to Jerusalem to tell his other followers what had happened.

This account in the final chapter of the gospel of Luke emphasizes the united storyline of the entire Bible. Jesus knew that everything in the Scriptures ultimately points to him. The Old Testament begins a story that culminates in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus of Nazareth. And according to these verses in Luke, the men should have known that! So how does the Bible work? What is it about? How does it tell a story that leads to Jesus? How do passages in the Old Testament point forward to the person and work of Jesus, and how do passages in the New Testament reflect him?

Christians believe that the sovereign, all-powerful, infinite, Triune God of the universe has chosen to speak to people through the Bible. Consisting of 66 books in the Old and New Testaments, the Word of God is living and active, sharper than a two-edged sword (Hebrews 4:12). It is God-breathed and useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting, and training in righteousness (II Timothy 3:16). It is how we can know God and his plan for the world. But sometimes, the Bible can be daunting in its size and scope. Many people who desire to read the Bible struggle with knowing where to start and how it all fits together. The purpose of this 40-day overview is to provide a tool to be in God’s Word consistently, reading key chapters throughout the Bible that highlight the overarching storyline of creation, rebellion, redemption, and restoration. The chapters are mostly in order in the Bible, but many are skipped in between. The accompanying commentary seeks to fill in the gaps between chapters, provide connections to key themes, and offer questions for reflection and application. The teachings that go along with this study are designed to deepen our understanding of how God’s Word all fits together. Ultimately, the goal of this study is for people to know God more through regular and thoughtful study of his unified Word and to see how the entire storyline of the Bible leads to Jesus.

This study is designed to be done over eight weeks. Each week consists of five days of Bible study, where you will read the specified chapters of the Bible and the accompanying commentary. (Reading the Bible itself is the most important part -- if you must skip something, skip the commentary!) You will also interact with the text in the space provided: summarizing what you have read, connecting it with bigger themes, and applying it to your own life. At the end of each week, you will also read a teaching section designed to highlight the big picture and deepen connections between passages.

Jesus explained to those two men on the road to Emmaus that all of Scripture told the story of a representative who passed through death and came out the other side for the sake of a redeemed humanity. May God work richly through the depths of his Word to reveal how every part of the Bible points to Jesus, and may you know him and love him more deeply through these 40 days.