God's Big Picture: A Bible Overview

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Believe the good news = recognising that he has paid in full for anyone to enter and remain in his Kingdom Having now read it, I’d expand this summary to - God longs to enjoy intimate relationship with humanity… in His presence… willingly and gladly living under His good, loving rule, which is where we enjoy life as He designed it. Israel’s history takes a downward turn as the people continue to disobey. They are exiled from the promised land, they become a scattered fragmented people and are left facing God’s judgment rather than blessing. But in his grace God sends prophets to speak his word to his people and enforce his covenant. Can one enter the kingdom of God without the water and Spirit as mentioned by Jesus to Nicodemus? (John 3:5)

In this short little book, Vaughan Roberts gives a wonderful overview of the Bible that helps you to take in the over-arching story of the Bible. What I really like about the book is its clarity and warmth. This is not a technical book, this is a book written to help the ordinary Christian to understand how Exodus fits with Matthew, what on earth is going on in the book of Amos, and how Revelation should give them hope for the future. Instead of trying us trying to earn our way up into His Kingdom, the King brings his Kingdom down to us.A disastrous line of idolatrous kings, the catastrophic destruction of God's kingdom, and amidst the rubble, new shoots of hope... Repent = a desire to change life-direction after being compelled by the beauty and goodness of Jesus and his Kingdom, and realising that I have contributed to the problem of sin that He came to fix. A million lives lost in the desert, the farewell speech of a dying man, and then battles, chaos and coronations... (Numbers - 2 Chronicles)

When did the invisible church, the body of Christ begins? At the New Testament Pentecost or during Adam's time after the fall? If it was the latter, how can the OT believers be incorporated to the body of Christ without the indwelling of the Holy Spirit? In God's Big Picture, Vaughn Roberts attempts to build a framework upon which to view the entirety of the Bible. He would do well to view God's Word as the ultimate authority in this endeavor. Unfortunately, he does not. As Roberts writes in his preface, his aim is "to provide all Christians, from the new convert to the mature believer, with an overview of the whole Bible that will help them see how the different parts fit together." He does that by using the framework of the kingdom of God, using a definition of the kingdom as "God's people in God's place under God's rule and blessing". And, as Edmund Clowney and Graeme Goldsworthy (and others) have opined, Roberts states, "The Bible must be understood and read as one book with one ultimate author, God, and one ultimate subject, God's plan of salvation through his Son Jesus." God's people, in God's place, under his rule and blessing- that's how it all starts... (Genesis 1-2)

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I can't wait to see Jesus with my own eyes. But, until then, I'll see Him in Scripture, described with the loving clarity that only a Father could express. Too bad Roberts doubts the complete reliability of God's Word as he builds his big picture. For example, in Chapter 1, when describing creation, he states "Whether [God] completed the job in six literal twenty-four-hour days or over a longer period does not really matter..." Yes, it does. Read Exodus 20:8-11, or Romans 5:12. If creation was not completed during literal 24-hour days, then how long is the Sabbath rest? Weeks? Months? Thousands of years? If a day was a much longer period of time, what of death entering God's creation only after the fall? Next, in the second chapter when describing the fall of Adam and Eve, Roberts wonders if the snake literally spoke as the Bible records. He states, "My own view, for what it's worth, is that Genesis 3 describes an actual event but uses some symbolism as it does so." Of course, God's Word does contain passages that are not literal history. You will find prophesy, the parables of Jesus, the Proverbs, and songs of praise and worship, but these are clearly identified as such. What Roberts does is dismiss passages that are presented as historical (up until the wisdom of man distorted our interpretation of the Bible). In doing so, Roberts sets aside foundational truths and challenges the reader to wonder "If God's Word isn't literal here, if there is symbolism and allegory here, then perhaps even more of the Bible is symbolic and allegorical." This is a dangerous road to follow and one that leads many to select those portions of Scripture they agree with and dismiss the rest as nice stories or symbolism, certainly not worth building a life around. Worse, non-believers are left to scoff at a book that even self-described Christians admit is filled with symbolism and stories that should not be taken literally. The course is taught by Vaughan Roberts, author of the best selling bookof the same name and is a must for anyone wanting to dig deeper into the Bible and comes in an accessible format with Vaughan as a helpful guide.

The premise of this book is that the Bible is one unified story, and the main character is Jesus Christ. Even though we aren't formally introduced to Him until the Gospel of Matthew, everything up to that point foreshadows Him and points to Him. Good introductory level book which is based on kingdom theology framework for beginners to understand how the bible unfolds as one unified story. This is a book that I will recommend to anybody, especially in an environment where I'm required to be much more "neutral" in my theological stance. This is a book where most denominations will be able to find common ground to stand on. This perseverance of the saints depends, not upon their own free will, but upon the immutability of the decree of election, flowing from the free and unchangeable love of God the Father; upon the efficacy of the merit and intercession of Jesus Christ; the abiding of the Spirit and of the seed of God within them; and the nature of the covenant of grace; from all which ariseth also the certainty and infallibility thereof. If union of Christ through the Spirit is necessary to receive all the spiritual blessings such as justification by faith, regeneration to overcome total depravity, and perseverance of the saints, then are these necessary for the Old Testament believers too? Can one under the OT have faith and repentance without the indwelling of the HS? Are the Ordo Salutis of the OT believers different from NT believers? When I was younger and I first began to read the Bible in earnest, I learned to read passages in little chunks, deconstructing each sentence so that I could fully understand the meaning of each word in its context before moving on to the next bit. I would sometimes spend days meditating on a particular verse, especially if it presented a list of virtues to consider (e.g. Galatians 5:22-23). I would dedicate a day to each virtue, meditating on how I could cultivate each of these virtues in my life.Does TULIP applies to the Old Testament believers? Are Old Testament believers saved through the "Arminian" way or the "Calvinist" way? Roberts defines the kingdom of God as "God's people in God's place under God's rule and blessing" (21). Roberts's definition of the kingdom of God is significantly important for the entire book. Throughout the book, he chronologically traces the kingdom of God following this definition. Each chapter provides the reader with a chart helping them understand where God's people, place and rule were within particular areas of history. In addition to this chart, there was another chart, which showed the progression from creation, fall, history of Israel, Christ and the new creation (157). The final chart presented the line of Israel beginning with Abraham progressing to the Northern and Southern split, the Southern exile and release, Jesus and the last days (158). This book was an excellent, clearly-written summary of a topic that ought to be too big to be contained in such a small tome. But Roberts did an excellent job of making his point without belaboring it. After reading it, I wanted to know more about how all of creation, from the time of its genesis, was waiting for Jesus to come and redeem it. And, now that we have seen Him revealed, those of us who believe are waiting for Him to return in glory. But, as we wait, we have the Word of God to remind us to wait with joy for what is surely coming.