Anthology 1 Structure
2 Timothy 2:15
Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a workman who does not need to be ashamed and who correctly handles the word of truth.
2 Timothy 3:16-17
All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, 17 so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.
Structure-What is it?
Def-“A System of parts”
- A system or organization made up of interrelated parts functioning as a whole.
The Bible is a whole group of parts interrelated that function as a whole.
Look at a car and it all looks real simple. Just jump in and away it goes.
You turn on the radio and it goes, you turn on the air con and it goes.
If it doesn’t go you can ask a mechanic to have a look at it and get it fixed.
But do you ever sit back and wonder how it all works, how it all fits together.
You can get others to fix it for you like you can get others to interpret the Bible for you but with a little wisdom and knowledge you can start to get an understanding of the Bible, its themes, its promises and then you’ll be able to have the tools to fix yourself.
Same as a car it all fits together to function as one.
Radio is connected to wires that connect to the fuse box-wires-battery-generator-engine-chassis.
Chassis that holds it all together.
A Building looks big on the outside and we can marvel at it and it can seem unbelievable how it all stays standing.
Buildings have a super structure designed to hold it up and together.
In the same way the Bible has a structure that holds it all together.
When we break it down it gets a whole lot easier to understand.
When we know where to go and why it saves a whole lot of mucking around and just throwing in the towel because we are lost.
Story of Charles Steinmetz 1900
Electrical engineer who was top of his field and had retired.
Asked by a major appliance factory to find a problem that they were unable for time, expertise and money to find.
He looked around the plant, tested a few pieces of machinery and finally placed a chalk mark on a piece of machinery and said that’s where the problem was.
They took it apart and sure enough that’s where it was.
He sent them the bill for $10,000 which they protested and asked for a break down. He sent back the itemised bill. Chalk mark $1-knowing where to make it $9,999.
Today that would be $26 chalk and $260,000 for knowing where to put it.
When you come to reading the Bible if you know where to put the chalk mark it will save you a lot of wandering around.
We can go straight to the concordance and look up a word like “Faith”
Turn to some readings in Hebrews and read that “By faith” so many heroes are listed-“By faith”
- By faith Abel brought God a better offering than Cain did.
- By faith Noah built an ark
- By faith Abraham, when called to go to a place he would later receive as his inheritance, obeyed and went, even though he did not know where he was going.
- By faith Moses’ parents hid him for three months after he was born, because they saw he was no ordinary child, and they were not afraid of the king’s edict.
- By faith the people passed through the Red Sea
- By faith the walls of Jericho fell
Double Faith…..What does it mean?
What was happening for those people?
What was happening for the people around them?
What was God thinking at that time?
How did God respond?
Ask the same question of yourself-
What is happening to me?
What is happening to people around me?
How does God feel about it?
How would the God of the Bible-Your God respond?
Reading the Bible cover to cover can seem a task like climbing a mountain. Great starting off but as energy levels fall and you hit a few outcrops it’s easy to turn back. But if you have a few benchmarks to aim for and why they are there you have a goal to aim for.
Goal for this year is Start with the basics and get deeper.
Structure
Two major divisions
- Old Testament
- New Testament
A “Testament” is a document that the author has sworn to be true.
OT is an old covenant. Sworn to be true
NT is a new covenant. Swore to be true. All scripture is God breathed
Like God wrote out His will for the people in the OT
He updated His will in the NT
Old Testament spans approximately 4,000 years
Starts with Creation and is the story of the Jewish people up to the time of Christ.
39 books-Written by 28 authors.
New Testament is covering only around 100 years
It’s the Record of Jesus birth, life & ministry.
It’s about the Ministry of His disciples and the early church.
27 books-Written by 9 authors. Total is 66.
Old Testament is the story of God, and the Hebrew people, their poets and prophets.
Old Testament is broken down into three different kinds of books
- Historical Books 17 tell the History of Israel
- Poetical/Wisdom Books 5 tell the poetry of Israel
- Prophetical 17 tell the prophecy of Israel
These are rough outlines as there are pieces of all three mixed into the others.
People make the mistake that the OT is one long story -which it is not.
New Testament
New Testament is the story of Jesus, The Church He founded and its growth under the leadership of His Apostles after His death.
Also broken down into three kids of books
- Historical Books-5 (4 Gospels & Acts)
- Pauline Epistles-13 Written by Paul
- General Epistles-9 various writers
Epistles are letters in book form.
Primary function of the Epistles is Christian Doctrine and lifestyle.
Written to churches and individuals
History of the entire New Testament (100yrs)
- Matthew, Mark, Luke, John, Acts
Pauline Epistles (Letters) to Churches
- Romans, 1 Corinthians, 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1 Thessalonians, 2 Thessalonians,
Pauline Epistles (letters) to individuals
- 1 Timothy, 2 Timothy, Titus, and Philemon.
General Epistles
- Hebrews, James, 1 Peter, 2 Peter, 1,2,3 John, Jude, Revelation
- Written by James, Peter, John and Jude
66 Books make up the Bible, 39 in the OT, 27 in the NT
People say “why do we need the Old Testament?”
- The OT predicts the NT and the NT explains the OT.
It’s like any book-miss the first half and you loose the plot for the second.
Without the OT we wouldn’t understand-
- Why the Jews were looking for a Messiah. The saviour King.
- Why was his “Messiah” was coming
- OT prophesy’s His birthplace (Micah 5:2); His manner of death (Psalm 22, especially vv. 1, 7-8, 14-18; Psalm 69:21), His resurrection (Psalm 16:10), and many more details of His ministry (Isaiah 52:19, 9:2).
Book of Hebrews Ch 8-9 explains the Old and the New Covenants
The OT is a covenant made through Moses. It’s the Mosaic Covenant
The NT is a covenant made through the Messiah. The Messianic Covenant
Benefits of the New Covenant-The Upgrade made possible by Christ.
1.OT- Gifts and sacrifices by those guilty of sin.
NT One sacrifice by a sinless Christ
- Jesus died for us to pay the price, He was the sacrifice
2. OT Focused on the physical building where you went to worship.
NT Focused on the reign of Jesus in believers hearts
- Immanuel God with us not God of the tent or temple
3.OT A Shadow
NT A Reality
- Not temporal, but eternal
4.OT Limited Promises
NT Limitless Promises
- All Gods promises are yes and amen through Christ Jesus
5. OT Failed Covenant by the people
NT Faithful Covenant by Christ
- Jesus has kept the agreement where we couldn’t.
6.OC External rules and standards LAWS
Internal standards written on a new regenerated heart
- We are directly accountable to God not a list of rules
7.OC Limited access to God. Only the priest
NC Unlimited access to God. All a royal priesthood
- God is now personally available to us.
8. OC Legal Cleansing
NC Personal Cleansing
- Jesus cleansing is enough to cleans us completely
9.OC Continual Sacrifice
NC Conclusive and final sacrifice
- Jesus was the perfect, spotless and final sacrifice
10. OT Forgiveness earned
NT Forgiveness freely given
- Jesus paid the sacrificial price. Forgiveness is a free gift
11. OT Available to some. Jews
NT Available to all. Jews or Greek, Slave or free
- New Covenant is available to you.
