All Scripture quotations are taken from the New American Standard Bible 1995 Ed. (NASB95), published by The Lockman Foundation

In my last article, I laid down the basic principles for effective learning of the Scriptures. As western believers in the Lord Jesus, we have all the resources we need to access, understand, and apply the truths of Scripture. And yet most of us fall miserably short of the ideal character and growth that is described, exemplified, and commanded in the New Testament. We identified the main reasons for this being that we 1) don’t give adequate diligence to our learning of Scripture, 2) are too individualistic in our learning, and 3) are too reliant on the teaching of others, especially our favorite Bible teachers. In response, I outlined the most important truths and principles that are required to be a believer who is growing in Bible knowledge, understanding, and application.

Now, I’d like to begin to expand on the principles for Scripture learning that I described. The first principle I listed consisted of the content of instruction in the Scriptures. I emphasized that the burden of our study of Scripture is the narration of God’s work of redemption in the lives of His people. It’s by studying, understanding, and applying this story that we increase in our knowledge of God’s character, and of our responsibilities to Him. Just as with any good story, the key to understanding its purposes for us is to identify its theme, or main idea. After understanding this main idea, we’ll be able to understand how each part of the story fits together, and how we can use those parts to relate them to ourselves.

Since we believers in the Lord Jesus recognize that Scripture is direct revelation from our God to us, we start with the preunderstanding that the Bible is both the story of our God’s interaction with us, as well as our interaction with Him. Thus, the main idea of the storyline of Scripture must have something to do directly with us. Most Christians also recognize that the main idea of Scripture has something to do with the way in which God has been working in history to reconcile rebels to Himself, in the process of rescuing the world from its present corrupted, and decaying condition. This is because we all believe the gospel of the Lord Jesus, which promises that we have peace with God through His life, death, and resurrection. But far fewer Christians have a strong grasp of the main facets of this main theme of Scripture.

Therefore, starting from the agreement that the gospel is the key to understanding all of Scripture, we’ll look at how the basic elements of this message reveal to us the overarching storyline of Scripture. This we’ll gain by examining the ways in which Paul the apostle, and other apostles, describe the main message of Jesus and His apostles, and how it relates to our study, understanding, and application of the whole of Scripture.

Jesus, the Message, Messiah, and Son of God

We begin our analysis of the main message of the apostles, and thus the New Testament, by affirming the fact that the only way we can know the full character of God is by understanding who Jesus is. This is due to the fact that Jesus, while being completely human, is also completely God in His nature. The author of Hebrews describes this incomprehensible reality when he says of Jesus, God’s Son,

“. . . He is the radiance of His [God’s] glory and the exact representation of His nature . . .” (Heb. 1:3a)

Similarly, John the apostle begins his Gospel of Jesus by explicitly declaring,

“In the beginning was the Word [or Message], and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” (Jn. 1:1)

As both God and man, only Jesus is able to both show and tell us exactly what God is like. And it’s only by knowing Him personally that we come to know God increasingly.

Starting this basis, we already recognize that the key to learning what Scripture says about God is understanding what it says about Jesus. And as believers in Him, we come to Scripture with a basic understanding of what it teaches about Him. As the true God who became a man, He lived the perfect life; proved that He was the perfect God-man; gave up Himself to the suffering of God’s wrath and punishment in the place of sinners; rose from the dead; and went into heaven as our Ruler and Mediator of God’s peace and forgiveness. But this good news is part of the larger context of the Bible’s story of redemption. And it’s as a part of God’s marvelous work in the universe that the authors of the New Testament describe and detail the gospel.

The Harmonization and Renewal of Everything in the Messiah’s Nature and Work

Rather than merely proclaiming Jesus as the Savior and Lord of individuals, and even of groups of people, the apostles in the New Testament set Jesus’s work of redemption in the context of God’s grand design for the entire universe. One of the greatest examples of this is Paul’s declaration in his letter to the Ephesians which says,

“He [God] made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His kind intention which He purposed in Him[self] with a view to an administration [of] the fullness of the times, [which is] the summing up of all things in Christ, things in the heavens and things on the earth.” (Eph. 1:9-10)

Paul starts this passage by describing God’s revelation of “the mystery of His will.” The term, “mystery,” is one of the most important terms for truth in the New Testament, and literally means “secret.” Throughout the Gospels and the Epistles, it refers to truth that was vaguely or obscurely described in the Old Testament, but is clearly unveiled through Jesus and His apostles. And the mystery that Paul describes in this passage is the secret of God’s “will.” The rest of the descriptions define what he means by God’s will here. But he begins by originating God’s will in “His kind intention,” or as the KJV puts it, “His good pleasure” (v. 9). That is, God’s execution of His will is ultimately motivated by the pleasure that it will bring to Him. This is further confirmed by the truth that He purposed His will to be carried out “in Him[self],” without any consultation of any of His created beings.

Secondly, this will of God is described in its place in history. Paul writes that God purposed to carry out His will “with a view to an administration [of] the fullness of the times” (v. 10). So, we now see that God’s will is to “administrate,” or “rule,” His universe in a certain way. And He began to do this at “the fullness of the times.” In other words, whatever this work of God is, it began to take place when all the “times,” or “eras,” of history were literally “filled up,” or made complete. The Lord Jesus Himself referred to this fullness of time when He began preaching His gospel like this:

“. . . saying, ‘The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God is at hand; repent and believe in the gospel.’” (Mk. 1:15)

As we see here, one of the things it means for the time of history to be “fulfilled” is that God’s kingdom “is at hand,” or is so close to us that we can touch it. Hence, one of God’s works of “administrations” that Paul is explaining in Ephesians is His establishment of His kingdom.

But what does it mean for God to bring His kingdom through Jesus? Paul tells us when he concisely describes God’s administration for the fullness of times as “the summing up of all things in Christ, things in the heavens and things on the earth” (v. 10). The Greek word translated “summing up” literally means “gathering together under one head,” or the “uniting together.” And what is God gathering together “in Christ,” or through Christ? Everything, whether they be “in the heavens” or “on the earth.”

But from what condition is God gathering the universe together in Christ? Evidently, as Christians, we understand that there’s a major problem in this universe. The problem is “evil,” both in behavior and in troubles and suffering. And as any basically taught believer knows, all this evil came from Adam’s disobedience to God, and the curse that God imposed on people and the world in response. It’s from this curse — this fallenness — which manifests itself in the corruption, decay, evil, and sin of this world, that God is gathering the universe. In other words, this gathering isn’t simply a movement from place to place, but a renewal of the universe from its corrupted condition, to a perfected, and harmonious condition.

What’s important in understanding how Jesus is the One who’s bringing this about is the fact that Paul refers to Him as “Christ,” which is the Greek equivalent of “Messiah.” Both terms literally mean “anointed one,” and is one of the most important concepts found in the Old Testament (OT). In the Old Testament, the term is often used to describe a man whom God has set apart from the rest of His people to serve in a special role in the nation. The fact that he’s ”anointed” alludes to the fact that, in the Old Testament, he has an “anointment,” or pouring over, of oil, to signify his separateness, and to represent the special power that God has given him through the Holy Spirit. Throughout the OT, we see the three main positions filled by “anointed ones” being the prophet, the priest, and the king. As the Messiah, Jesus is the ultimate prophet, priest, and king of mankind. Therefore, it’s as the revealer of God, the atoning sacrifice of God, and the ruler of God that Jesus is gathering together all things to Himself as the Head.

The question is, how exactly has Jesus begun to renew all things in Himself? Paul elaborates on this in a very similar part of his letter to the Colossians, explaining,

“. . . it was the Father’s good pleasure for all the fullness [of His nature] to dwell in Him [God’s Son], and through Him to reconcile all things to Himself, having made peace through the blood of His cross; through Him . . . [the] things on earth or things in heaven.” (Col. 1:19-20)

To start this passage, Paul notes that Jesus has the ability to accomplish what He is because all of God’s “fullness,” or divinity, dwells in Him. In other words, Jesus is the perfect representative of God, and possesses the power and authority of God. Based on the union of His divine and human natures in Himself, God is using Him “to reconcile all things to Himself.”

Notice that Paul doesn’t say that God is reconciling all people to Himself, but all things. He goes on to encompass these things as existing “on earth” and “in heaven.” Just as in Ephesians 1:9-10, he is describing the renewal of all things in the universe through Messiah, the divine Son of God. But if he’s not speaking only of the reconciliation of people, why is it necessary for God to reconcile all things, whether they be persons or objects? Because the fall, and curse, of the world, corrupted and “evilized” not only people, but the whole created order. As Paul says in 2 Corinthians 4, Satan is “the god of this world,” or “age” (2 Cor. 4:4). As such, not only are natural people hostile toward God’s glory, but also the order of the universe, and its corrupted aspects, are opposed to God fully manifesting Himself. As an example, think of the chaos, suffering, and disharmony of the world. Such disorder and corruption isn’t a reflection of God’s character, but of the devil’s. Thus, not only must sinners be reconciled to God, but this whole disordered world must be reconciled to Him in order, goodness, and fruitfulness.

Despite the fact that it’s all things that are being reconciled to God, the instrument that He has used to accomplish this is the “peace through the blood of His cross.” Therefore, the reconciliation of the universe starts with the reconciliation of sinners to God through the peace with Him that was made by the suffering of Jesus. By reconciling sinners to God, Jesus is renewing the future caretakers and rulers of the new earth that God will eventually create in the place of this present hostile one. This is why Paul can say that through the redemption initiated by Jesus’s death, God has begun the process of reconciling the whole universe to Himself.

Paul further describes this reconciliation in relation to the world of humanity. In his second letter to the Corinthians, he details his apostolic service as being as extension of God’s service of humanity in His reconciliation accomplished in Christ. He calls this service “the ministry of reconciliation, defines it as the truth that,

“. . . God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not counting their trespasses against them . . .” (2 Cor. 5:19a)

As we saw in Colossians, here again Paul speaks of God’s reconciling act in Christ as already being finished. Accordingly, the reconciliation of all the people whom God has chosen to become part of His people is as good as done. However, this reconciliation is only manifested in the lives of sinners as God saves them in their personal lives. Nevertheless, Paul can proclaim that even those people who had yet to be saved had reconciliation, since God had already decided not to count “their trespasses against them.” This is how Jesus’s death on the cross brings peace with God to those who were once His enemies. Since He suffered God’s punishment due to all those who would ever be saved, their guilt is removed, justice is satisfied, and now God can forgive all their sins and trespasses against Him.

The New Creation Reign of Jesus through His Death and Resurrection

The Lord’s work of redeeming the world to God the Father requires more than His death for our sins. His death is primary, since the hostility of, and curse on, the world must be abolished by first satisfying God’s wrath and justice against it. But it was necessary for Jesus to also rise from the dead, and ascend into heaven, so He could receive the authority of the Father to wield as the perfect man, and representative of a new humanity.

Ever since God cursed mankind by causing them to die, there’s been a growing hope in the fact that, someday, He would raise everyone from the dead. This is seen throughout the Old Testament, although very infrequently and indistinctly. One clear example of the hope of resurrection is found in the Book of Daniel, where an angel relates this promise to him:

“’Many of those who sleep in the dust of the ground will awake, these to everlasting life, but the others to disgrace and everlasting contempt.’” (Dan. 12:2)

So, the resurrection of the dead was a firm hope for many Old Testament Jews, especially toward the time of Jesus. But why the necessity of the resurrection? Because God promised throughout the Old Testament that He would not only save a people for Himself, but that He would also renew the universe (as clearly promised in the Book of Isaiah). And a new universe requires new bodies to live in it.

Therefore, it was essential, as the perfect representative man of the new creation, that Jesus be raised from the dead. Paul explains this reality in his detailed description of the significance of Jesus’s resurrection in 1 Corinthians 15:20-23:

“But now Christ has been raised from the dead, the first fruits of those who are asleep. For since by a man came death, by a man also came the resurrection from the dead. For as in Adam all die, so also in Christ all will be made alive. But each in his own order: Christ the first fruits, after that those who are Christ’s at His coming . . .”

When Paul refers to Jesus as “the first fruits of those who are asleep,” he’s using farming terminology that means the first of the crop that guarantees that more fruit will follow. As such, the Lord’s resurrection is the guarantee that everyone who dies (or “sleeps”) will rise from the dead. Paul argues this based on mankind’s relationship to our two main representatives in our relationship with God.

Our first representative is Adam. As Paul explains in Roman 5:12-18, when Adam sinned, everyone sinned. So, when he died, we died with him. This is because God treated Adam as the representative of all his descendants. This is what Paul means by saying that all die “in Adam.” Thus, the death that he died spread to everyone after him.

Likewise, those who are “in Christ,” or one with him in relationship to God, “will be made alive” (v. 22). In other words, anyone who’s united to Him through faith will share in the same resurrection life that He received from God. Thus, He is the prototype of the resurrection to eternal life.

But we must remember that this resurrection isn’t simply the reception of a body fit for this creation, but for the new creation. Paul goes on to emphasize this later in verses 42-45, writing,

“So also is the resurrection from the dead. It is sown a perishable body, it is raised an imperishable body; it is sown in dishonor, it is raised in glory; it is sown in weakness, it is raised in power; it is sown a natural body, it is raised a spiritual body. If there is a natural body, there is also a spiritual body. So also it is written, ‘The first MAN, Adam, BECAME A LIVING SOUL.’ The last Adam became a life-giving spirit.”

In this passage, Paul makes a sharp contrast between the nature of the bodies that we currently live in, and the one in which Jesus lives. He calls Jesus’s body “a spiritual body,” meaning it consists of something different from mortal flesh and blood. Although it is physical, it’s also spiritual, and therefore immortal.

And as the representative of all who are in Him, Christ shares this resurrection life with such people. That’s why Paul calls Him “the last Adam,” and “a life-giving spirit.” As the last Adam, Jesus is the beginning of a new creation, just as Adam was the beginning of this present creation. So, not only is Jesus the first of the resurrection, but His likeness to Adam also means being the beginning of the new creation, composed of the new universe. As such, when someone is united to Him, they not only have the hope of resurrection, but they also receive the life of the new creation. This is exactly what Paul is saying when he announces in 2 Corinthians 5:17 that, “. . . if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come.”

But Jesus’s resurrection has more significance than being the source of new and eternal life for believers. As the last Adam, and new representative of mankind, He’s also the ruler and most important man of the new creation. Paul makes this connection in Colossians 1:18, terming Jesus as “. . . the beginning, the firstborn from the dead, so that He Himself will come to have first place in everything.”

By calling Jesus “the beginning,” Paul is again referring to His primacy as the Bestower of the new creation. But then he uses the title of “the firstborn from the dead.” This is an allusion to the Old Testament practice of giving the firstborn son of a family the highest honor among the sons, as well as the inheritance of the father, and the responsibility of carrying on the family business and legacy. Applied to Jesus, His identity as the firstborn means that He’s the most important resurrected man, as well as the main inheritor of the Father’s blessings, and the ruler of those blessings. These blessings consist in the enjoyment of the perfect, authoritative, reign over the new creation on the Father’s behalf. Therefore, Jesus isn’t only the Beginner of the new creation, but the Lord and Ruler of the new creation. This is why Paul says the purpose of Jesus being the firstborn son of God in His resurrection is so that He will “come to have first place in everything.” In other words, Jesus will be worshiped and served as the Ruler of the new universe.

But there’s more reason to why Jesus had to rise from the dead to be the Lord. Paul explains this in Ephesians 1:20-21, in which he says that God has used His infinite creative power that He “brought about in Christ, when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and every name that is named, not only in this age but also in the one to come.” In this narration, we see that Jesus’s resurrection led to His ascension to the seat “at [God’s] right hand in the heavenly places” (v. 20). In ancient times, the “right hand” of a king referred to the place of honor, where someone whom the king respected and relied on would sit. In the same way, Jesus is at God’s right hand as the One God has honored with the authority of ruling the entire universe.

Paul makes this point when he says that God has positioned Jesus “far above all rule and authority and power and dominion” (v. 21). In other words, Jesus has control over every holder of power in the universe. In the next verse, this is put positively in that God “put all things in subjection under His feet” (v. 22).

This connection between Jesus’s resurrection, and His lordship, or rulership, is highlighted back in 1 Corinthians 15:24-25, where Paul follows his affirmation of Christ’s resurrection by continuing,

“. . . then comes the end, when He hands over the kingdom to the God and Father, when He has abolished all rule and all authority and power. For He must reign until He has put all His enemies under His feet.”

Remember that this immediately follows Paul’s statement that Christ is the “first fruits” of the resurrection, and then that His people will rise “at His coming.” At His coming, He will hand over His kingdom to “the God and Father,” since all “rule,” “authority,” and “power” will be abolished. And how will they be abolished? Through Jesus’s “reign,” which will be exercised “until He has put all His enemies under His feet” (v. 25).

The immediacy, and current exercise, of Jesus’s reign, is made clear by His own words in the beginning of the mission decree for His apostles in Matthew 28:18-19:

“And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, ‘All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations . . .”

Note that He spoke these words immediately after His resurrection. So, along with His resurrection, and because of His resurrection, God gave Him “all authority . . . in heaven and on earth.” This is authority over God’s kingdom and rule over the universe. But how does He rule over this kingdom? One main way is through the disciple-making, and converting, of the nations through His people. We can determine this from the fact that the basis of His right to send His apostles to disciple the nations is that He has all authority in the universe to do so – the authority from the Father.

So, we’re back to where we began with God’s work of redemption through Jesus. God is not only renewing the universe through Jesus’s redemption of sinners through His death and resurrection. He’s also bringing this reconciliation, renewal, and ingathering through Jesus’s reign as the Ruler of the universe, and of His kingdom. And the main way that Jesus is increasing His reign in the world is through the making of disciples through the effective preaching of the gospel, and the instruction of disciples, or Christians, in becoming more obedient to Him.

The Mystery of the Messiah Indwelling the Nations

To summarize what we’ve looked at thus far, we can turn to Paul’s summary of his gospel message found in Colossians 1:26-28:

“. . . the mystery which has been hidden from the past ages and generations, but has now been manifested to His saints, to whom God willed to make known what is the riches of the glory of this mystery among the Gentiles, which is Christ in you, the hope of glory. We proclaim Him . . .”

In this key passage, we return once again to the concept of “mystery” or “secret.” To repeat, a mystery in the NT is a truth that was only faintly described in the OT, but has now been revealed through Jesus or His apostles. Note that Paul says this mystery was “hidden” from the generations before the generation of the apostles. But now it’s been revealed to God’s “saints,” or “holy ones.”

And what is this mystery? First, it’s been made known “among the Gentiles,” or non-Jews. This was the group of people to which most of the Colossians belonged. Second, the mystery consists of “Christ in you, the hope of glory.” Remember, he’s speaking to Gentiles, so he’s saying that one of the main elements of his preaching of the gospel was that Christ would live in them. Through this indwelling through the Holy Spirit, they received “the hope of glory,” or the certainty that they would enjoy, and share in, the glory of Jesus on the new earth.

Why is it important that Paul emphasizes salvation going to the Gentiles specifically? Because the Old Testament shows us that it was the Jews who primary claims on the promise of the Messiah, His indwelling of them, and the hope of glory. After all, all the promises of redemption, salvation, and God’s kingdom, were made directly to Jews (excluding Abraham, who was a pagan when God revealed Himself to him). However, what the Jews – including the first disciples – had failed to see, was that the Old Testament prophets had repeatedly promised that the Messiah’s salvation would go to all the nations. This is why Paul says that this “mystery” was being revealed to the saints through trust in the Messiah, and the reception of the Holy Spirit, by the Gentiles.

Finally, Paul concludes this passage by saying that he and the other apostles proclaimed “Him,” the Messiah. Thus, the message of all the apostles and missionaries in the New Testament is the Messiah, who has come to establish God’s kingdom, to redeem God’s people, and initiate the new creation in God’s people through repentance for the forgiveness of sins, and the spiritual life of the Holy Spirit.

Interpretive Principles from the Basic Message of the Apostles

  1. Understanding the Gospels: We should understand the Gospels as the record of the beginning and preparation for the gathering together of all things in Christ. The Lord’s earthly life was clearly a necessary precursor to His redemption of the world through His death, resurrection, and ascension. And yet we must understand that it wasn’t merely preliminary, but the beginning. It’s clear from the Lord’s definition of “the time” being “fulfilled,” and Paul’s description of God sending His Son at “the fullness of the time” (Gal. 4:4), that the kingdom of God, the “last days” (Heb. 1), and the “ends of the ages” began in actuality when Jesus began His public service after His baptism.
  2. Understanding the Book of Acts: We should understand the Book of Acts as the record of the effective establishment of the Lord’s kingdom on earth, and of its spread to “all the nations.” In this expansion of His reign, God transfers His enemies “from the domain of darkness to the kingdom of His Son” (Col. 1:13). This is effected by the life-giving power of the Holy Spirit from the ascended Lord, which motivates and guides the disciples and missionaries to make more disciples in obedience to the Great Commission. In this work, the Lord’s spiritual enemies (1 Cor. 15:24-25) are being defeated through the salvation of the Gentiles (or “nations”), resulting in their addition into the Messiah’s people and new creation.
  3. Understanding the Epistles/Letters:

We should understand the Epistles as the divine record of the teaching of the apostles. This teaching consists in the authoritative confirmation, description, explanation, and application of God’s work of redemption in the Lord Jesus, and through the Holy Spirit. In the letters, the Lord’s work and teaching in Himself, and through His Spirit in the early church, is explained and related to the lives of Christians. In other words, they explain how Christ’s work affects believers in Him, and their responsibilities are to Him.

4. Understanding The Book of the Revelation:

We should understand Revelation as a description of the ongoing expansion of God’s kingdom on earth, and of its final conclusion. Since Christians already live in “the last days,” Revelation shouldn’t be seen as a disclosure of exclusively future events, but mostly as a narration of the Lord’s present work of using His saints as witnesses in a hostile world. Of course, the main event in Revelation is the return of Jesus to judge everyone, and to create the new heavens and new earth, bringing to a close the entire story of Scripture.

5. Understanding the Old Testament:    

Since all of God’s redemptive activity comes to its climax in the life and work of the Lord Jesus, any events before that time ought to be seen as preparatory and promissory in nature. In the Old Testament, we see the background of the story, the main persons involved, the main conflict, and most importantly, foreshadowing of the goal of all history – the redemption of humanity and the universe through the work of the Messiah.

In addition to being preparatory for Jesus and the new creation, the Old Testament is also the best description that we have of the present creation, world, and age. That’s why the Old Testament is abounding in everyday, practical, principles for wise living according to the nature of the present age. And yet we can only apply these principles to our eternal benefit if they’re practiced as part of a life of love and obedience toward the Lord Jesus, resulting in imitation of Him and His apostles.

6. Understanding our Identity and Work as Christians:

If we understand the scope and magnitude of what God has done for us and to us through the Lord Jesus, then we’ll be able to see ourselves rightly, and be more motivated to please the Lord with our lives. God has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus, in order that we would know Him, receive eternal life, and be heirs of the glory of the new creation. So, while we live in this “present evil age,” we are experiencing the glorious and joyful life of “the age to come” (Gal. 1). As such, we are already subjects and joint-rulers of the Lord’s kingdom, and have the privilege of expanding this kingdom through the Holy Spirit in our spiritual growth in godliness, and our development of people into followers and disciples of Jesus through God’s Word. Moreover, we have the certain hope of perfect life on the new earth with the Lord, enjoying peace, love, and joy in God’s glory. In the meantime, as God renews all things continually, we ourselves are being “renewed in the spirit of [our] minds,” and being “transformed into the [Lord’s] image from glory to glory,” as we learn more about God through the Lord in our lives, and in the Scriptures (Eph. 4:23; 2 Cor. 3:18).