The Story of Jesus

by Dr. Paul Chappell

“Ought not Christ to have suffered these things, and to enter into his glory? And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself.”

Luke 24:26–27

The Bible is completely accurate in all its historical, scientific, and geographical information, but that is not its primary purpose. The Bible is not just a collection of ancient stories, fables, and folk wisdom. It is the inspired Word of God. When we approach it, we need to be looking for more than just information—we need to be looking for Jesus. For ultimately the Bible is the story of the Son of God. Every part of Scripture is about Him. Someone wrote:

I find my LORD in the Bible
Wherever I chance to look,
He is the theme of the Bible
The center and heart of the Book;
He is the Rose of Sharon,
He is the Lily fair,
Wherever I open my Bible
The LORD of the Book is there.

The Ram upon Mt. Moriah,
The Ladder from earth to sky,
The Scarlet Cord in the window,
And the Serpent lifted high,
The Smitten Rock in the desert,
The Shepherd with staff and crook,
The face of my Lord I discover
Wherever I open the Book.

Jesus is both the theme and source of the Bible. John 1:1 says, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.” When we speak of knowing the Lord on a deeply personal and intimate level, there is only one possible avenue of success. We must immerse ourselves in the Scriptures. Jesus said, “Search the scriptures; for in them ye think ye have eternal life: and they are they which testify of me” (John 5:39). We will never know Him unless we know the Bible, for that is the only book that was inspired by God to tell us about Jesus.

Today’s Growth Principle: 

There is no way for us to truly know Jesus apart from finding Him in the pages of the Bible.