Make Waves VBS

The Bible is a big book that consists of many topics, diverse literature, and spans centuries. Yet, the Bible, despite being written by multiple authors and addressing various subjects, is one grand story whose central message is about what our triune Creator-covenant God planned in eternity, executed in time, to glorify himself by the redemption of his people, the judgment of sin, and making all things new in Christ Jesus (Rom. 11:33-36; Eph. 1:9-10; Col. 1:15-20).

From Genesis to Revelation, the Bible’s message is first and foremost about the triune God. It’s centered in his name and glory, and how he has graciously chosen to share himself with us—although perfectly complete and satisfied in himself—which results to the praise of his glorious grace and our eternal good (Eph. 2:1-10).

We can outline the Bible’s long and layered story like this. We can capture it and God’s desire for a relationship with us in terms of four big moments: creation, fall, redemption, and new creation.

The Bible’s Story and Message through its Unfolding Plot Movements

By thinking through the Bible’s moments, we can grasp the broadest contours of the Bible’s story and message and think about the Bible’s unique worldview against other views. Thinking through the Bible’s moments also helps us answer the questions that every person asks and must answer: Where did we come from? What went wrong? What is the solution to our problem? Where is history going?

Personal: Am I valuable? Why do I do wrong things? Why do wrong things happen to me? How will things ever be made right? What does my future look like? Is there hope? Justice?

Creation

Where did everything come from? Am I valuable Genesis 1-2 gives us the account of God’s creation of all things, including us, his creatures, and image-bearers? Although this section of the Bible is short, it’s extremely important, significant, and foundational to everything that follows, setting the stage for the rest of the Bible’s unfolding drama.

Here we meet several key characters and first grasp the setting for Scripture’s story. Also, in creation, various patterns are established, that in the story will reach their fulfillment in Jesus Christ and his relationships with humanity

We hear God declare that all of mankind was created in His Image … and that each one of us holds a unique place of love.

Gen 1:27 So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them.

Eph 1:3 Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who has blessed us in Christ with every spiritual blessing in the heavenly places, 4 even as he chose us in him before the foundation of the world, that we should be holy and blameless before him. In love 5 he predestined us for adoption to himself as sons through Jesus Christ, according to the purpose of his will,

God created each of us because of His love for us … He created each of us as unique individuals, and loves each of us … the parents who adopt … they choose

And in Genesis 1:31 “And God saw everything that he had made, and behold, it was very good....”

God’s creation was very good … it was perfect … there was no brokenness, no sin, no separation ....

But it didn’t stay that way

Fall

What went wrong? In Genesis 3, everything changed in God’s good world. Adam, the first man, forever changed the direction of history with his choice to rebel against God. When tempted by the serpent, Adam disobeyed God and plunged all humanity into sin, death, and condemnation. The Fall establishes the terrible problem that the rest of Scripture is written to address.

Gen. 3:3 Now the serpent was more crafty than any other beast of the field that the Lord God had made. He said to the woman, “Did God actually say, ‘You shall not eat of any tree in the garden’?” 2 And the woman said to the serpent, “We may eat of the fruit of the trees in the garden, 3 but God said, ‘You shall not eat of the fruit of the tree that is in the midst of the garden, neither shall you touch it, lest you die.’ ” 4 But the serpent said to the woman, “You will not surely die. 5 For God knows that when you eat of it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.” 6 So when the woman saw that the tree was good for food, and that it was a delight to the eyes, and that the tree was to be desired to make one wise, she took of its fruit and ate, and she also gave some to her husband who was with her, and he ate. 7 Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked.

And the story continues that because they had broken themselves and God’s perfect creation through their sin … they get sent out of the garden … and God sets into motion His plan … a plan of Redemption and ultimate Restoration …

Apart from Genesis 3, we cannot make sense of God’s plan of redemption and how we, as humans, can stand justified before our holy God, given our sin. Because of Adam’s sin and our banishment from God’s presence, our only hope is found in God’s gracious initiative to redeem and to reverse the effects of sin and death caused by Adam.

Redemption

Where do we find hope? In Genesis 3, God promises that a son—the “seed” of the woman—will one day defeat the serpent and reverse what Adam did. Although humans merit death for their sin (Rom. 6:23),

Rom 6:23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

death will not have the last word.

In truth, the rest of the Bible, with all of its stories and details—the people, the sacrificial system, its saving events—tells us how this will happen by slowly unfolding this “good news” promise, which ultimately leads us to Christ.

the whole OT is God showing the world that even under the best/worst circumstance … best/worst relationships, best/worst political leaders, best worst religious leaders, best/worst economic situations, best/worst health situations … mankind shows its brokenness, sinfulness, its own choosing to break in their relationship with God Himself

And at the end of the OT … there is a quiet period … 400 yrs where many came to believe that God had abandoned, gone silent, forgotten, maybe even never existed in the first place

And that is the scene upon which Jesus burst forth … Christmas, baby, virgin birth, shepherds, angels, wise men … And that baby grows up to be a man … a perfect man who does miraculous things … feeds thousands, heals sick, raises dead, water into wine, confronts injustice, loves the unlovely & sinful … he tells story after story after story of pursuing the things that are lost … he befriends the broken and dirty, he eats with them, walks with them, lives with them … He loves those sinners

And the religious leaders, political leaders, economic leaders … they hate him for it. Because He was showing the people that what they really needed was redemption … they need their insides cleaned so that they could be in relationship with a holy God.

So those leaders plotted and eventually murder Jesus … on a cross, hanging with criminals … and they thought they had won.

But on the third day, Jesus rose … burst forth from the ground … in light and power and perfection … the one who had walked this earth in holiness proved that God accepted his payment for our sins … the sins of the whole world

As history unfolds, Jesus has come—God’s own Son—and by his life, death, and resurrection, the Father creates a new humanity, the church, who enjoy the full forgiveness of sins, new hearts, and access to the Father by the Spirit. In Christ, what the triune God originally intended for his creatures, crippled by the Fall, is now beginning to be restored.

New Creation

Where is history going? The direction of history is toward the new creation, the goal and end of God’s redeeming promise. The present order is the old creation in Adam, but Christ will bring a new creation. The OT prophets describe this new creation as arriving in the coming of God’s King and Messiah. Through his life and cross-work, Jesus brings the new creation. In his return, the new creation is consummated, as beautifully portrayed in Revelation 21-22. But even now, some of what John envisioned is present in Christ’s people, who are a new creation, a colony of the future age, although we still await the fullness of it when Christ returns.

The Beauty of this story … is that it’s true … is that we are living in the middle of it … and that God invites you into it today.

In fact, it is why we are here … Jesus' best friend … a guy named John wrote this:

1 John 5:13 I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life.

How can I know, how can you know?

A) Admit that we are sinners … admit that the fall affected us, that we do wrong things and that a Holy God is separated from all things that are sinful.

B) Believe that Jesus alone saves … believe that the only way for us to be redeemed was the death, burial and resurrection of Jesus, that it created a bridge for us to cross … and that crossing that bridge means we approach God through Jesus death, what God sees is that we are those washed clean by His sacrifice

C) Confess this is true … the Bible says this in:

Romans 10:9 because, if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.

I invite if you have never done so to ask Jesus to be your Lord and savior … the picture that someone was told me to help me understand what was happening

Transfer your trust … sit down, take your weight off your feet, you can’t save yourself … ask Jesus to hold you and all of your eternity today!