Introduction

The Bible is a unique book. It claims to be from the great Creator of the universe. It is not a fairy story, but deals with the realities of life.

This article considers some of the Bible's great themes from an unusual perspective. The Bible is organised into books, each divided into chapters and subdivided into verses. Here we explore the message from several books by looking at chapter 3 and verse 16 in each.

The Bible's authority

To start with, let's look at the Apostle Paul's great defence of the Bible itself:

2 Timothy 3

16 All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for doctrine, for reproof, for correction, for instruction in righteousness:

17 That the man of God may be perfect, throughly furnished unto all good works.

"Scripture" refers to the written word of God - the Bible. Inspiration means "God-breathed", that is, the words are from God himself, written down by individuals he specifically chose for the task. The resulting book is 'profitable', that is, worthwhile, for a great range of functions: to teach us, to direct us in the right way, to instruct us how to live. And all with the overall objective that we should be 'perfect', that is complete, mature, in the ways of God.

When we think carefully about the Bible, we can see it is not like any other book. The writings of great men like Shakespeare reveal the mind of their author, and can tell us something about ourselves. Yet the Bible does that, and so much more. It tells us about its Author, who is our Creator.

The reality of our need

It is a mistake to think of the Bible as a book removed from the realities of our experience. Rather, it is rooted in our everyday experience.

Reflect on what we find in the very first book of the Bible. Adam and Eve, placed in the Garden of Eden, disobey the only law they are given. God speaks of the consequence.

Genesis 3

16 Unto the woman he said, I will greatly multiply thy sorrow and thy conception; in sorrow thou shalt bring forth children; and thy desire shall be to thy husband, and he shall rule over thee.

17 And unto Adam he said, Because thou hast hearkened unto the voice of thy wife, and hast eaten of the tree, of which I commanded thee, saying, Thou shalt not eat of it: cursed is the ground for thy sake; in sorrow shalt thou eat of it all the days of thy life.

18 Thorns also and thistles shall it bring forth to thee; and thou shalt eat the herb of the field;

19 In the sweat of thy face shalt thou eat bread, till thou return unto the ground; for out of it wast thou taken: for dust thou art, and unto dust shalt thou return.
 

Disobedience resulted in death

The Bible reveals sin, disobedience of God's law, as the original cause of the world's problems. Death was imposed as the consequence of sin.

The first man and woman would become vividly aware of the curse God had imposed. Eve would find child-bearing a difficult and painful process. Adam, tilling the soil to produce food, would find all sorts of strange plants springing up and endangering his crops. Even to this day, we struggle with the same problems, although science may have helped us to limit their effect. And although we may delay the inevitable, sooner or later we know we all face the final reality: of oblivion in death. 

The book of Ecclesiastes, later in the Old Testament, reflects on the same truth.

Ecclesiastes 3

16 And moreover I saw under the sun the place of judgment, that wickedness was there; and the place of righteousness, that iniquity was there.

17 I said in mine heart, God shall judge the righteous and the wicked: for there is a time there for every purpose and for every work.

19 ... that which befalleth the sons of men befalleth beasts; even one thing befalleth them: as the one dieth, so dieth the other; yea, they have all one breath; so that a man hath no preeminence above a beast: for all is vanity.

20 All go unto one place; all are of the dust, and all turn to dust again.

Death is the end for humanity as it is for the animals

Human rulership and government is frequently blighted by injustice. But God knows all. And one day he will bring judgement and right so many of the world's wrongs.

But the writer also comments on the fate of man. Like the animals, his consciousness ends with his last breath. Death is the reality it appears. 

The way of Salvation

But the Bible also reveals a wonderful hope. Its core message is that although death is our natural end, there is a way out - through belief in God. Next comes probably the most famous verse of the entire Bible:

John 3

16 For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life.

17 For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved.

18 He that believeth on him is not condemned: but he that believeth not is condemned already, because he hath not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.
 

A tomb like that in which Jesus was buried

God sent Jesus as a means of saving humanity from certain death. But you note the key requirement: "whosoever believeth". Belief in what God has done in Jesus is the basic requirement for salvation. But it is our choice: if we do not believe, we condemn ourselves.

Belief is the first step putting ourselves on the road to God's salvation in Jesus. But the next step was taken by Jesus himself.

Matthew 3

13 Then cometh Jesus from Galilee to Jordan unto John, to be baptized of him.

14 But John forbad him, saying, I have need to be baptized of thee, and comest thou to me?

15 And Jesus answering said unto him, Suffer it to be so now: for thus it becometh us to fulfil all righteousness. Then he suffered him.

16 And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him:

17 And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased.

The river Jordan

So death is real. God provides hope of a way out of the grave. The key is belief and baptism.

Even Jesus needed to be baptized: it is fitting, he said, for 'us' to fulfil all righteousness. It reflects God's standard of right for us to be baptized. And Jesus set the example for us to do likewise.  And the result? God was pleased with him, as He will be with us, if we obey Him.

So baptism is a necessary act. But it is only the beginning.

In Galatians, Paul considers the hope of the some wonderful promises God had made to a man called Abraham (see Genesis 12-22). God spoke of the joys to come through one very special descendent, who we learn from the New Testament was the Lord Jesus Christ. Unless we could trace our family line back to Abraham, we would have no hope of those promises. But baptism is the way for us to become part of those promises.

Galatians 3

26 For ye are all the children of God by faith in Christ Jesus.

27 For as many of you as have been baptized into Christ have put on Christ.

28 There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus.

29 And if ye be Christ’s, then are ye Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.

Through baptism, we become children of God

Through belief and baptism, we become children of God. What is more, we become part of the Lord Jesus Christ: we have 'put on Christ'. National and cultural distinctions lose their significance.

Best of all, through faith and baptism into Christ, we inherit the promises to Abraham: eternal life in the Kingdom of God, here on earth.

Conclusion

The Bible is a remarkable book. But then so is its Author, our Creator. It is for all time, it is not out of date. It is about what God has done in the past, what He is doing now, and the wonderful things He will yet do in this earth.

We have looked at chapter 3 verse 16 in various books of the Bible and found a message of hope. God will transform it into a place of peace and beauty, where people will live free from the curse of death, and at one with Him.

Our last reference describes people who considered what God wanted, and how He thought of them:

Malachi 3

16 Then they that feared the LORD spake often one to another: and the LORD hearkened, and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before him for them that feared the LORD, and that thought upon his name.

17 And they shall be mine, saith the LORD of hosts, in that day when I make up my jewels.

Believers are God's special treasure

If we remember God in our lives, He will remember us as his special treasure when He sends the Lord Jesus Christ to establish His Kingdom. Now isn't that worth thinking about?

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Leamington Christadelphians, 2007