Have you ever asked the question: “What is the Bible all about?” or “What’s the big idea behind it all?” You may be tempted to just say: “Jesus!” but do you really know how? How does Genesis connect to Joel and how does Deuteronomy connect to 1 Corinthians? We believe the Bible is a unified work of God through men but how exactly can we trace the storyline of the Bible from beginning to end? All great questions. Questions that Vaughan Roberts takes on in his book: God’s Big Picture.
If you have ever wanted a better understanding of how the Bible works together from Genesis to Revelation then you must get this book. If you want to help your own Bible study and if you want to seek the mind of God more, get this book. Roberts takes you through from Genesis to Revelation tracing what he claims to be the main theme of the Bible: The Kingdom of God.
His book reminds me a lot of BibleProject’s, a source I use often and definitely recommend, mission statement: “Our mission is to help people experience the Bible as a unified story that leads to Jesus’’ I emphasize with the bolding because that is a concept I never really grew up learning. Sunday after Sunday after Wednesdays I sat through messages in my church but never did they touch on the reality that the Bible is a unified work from beginning to end. Roberts takes us to this elementary reality and shows what God’s “big picture” has been since Genesis 1.
He breaks the Bible down, with helpful alliteration, into the following phases:
- The Pattern of the Kingdom
- The Perished Kingdom
- The Promised Kingdom
- The Partial Kingdom – People & Blessing
- The Partial Kingdom – Land & King
- The Prophesied Kingdom
- The Present Kingdom
- The Proclaimed Kingdom
- The Perfected Kingdom
Of course I won’t go into these in detail nor will I tell you what books and chapters he divides them into because I want you to go get the book and find out for yourself. But, for me, even reading that list helps my brain understand that the Bible is a unified story that ultimately leads to Jesus: the King of the Kingdom.
That’s it for me though. The book is a massive bestseller and is sold pretty much anywhere so go get it! I guarantee it will be a blessing to your soul and leave you ready and thirsty to jump into the Bible and meditate on its goodness day and night.