The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly: A Closer Look at the Weird and Wild Parts of the BibleSample

Jesus Is King and Context Is Everything

Before we dive headfirst into some of the more challenging Bible stories, we’re going to look at the two most important principles to keep in mind when it comes to reading the Bible: Jesus is King and context is everything.

Learning this idea is like learning your ABCs and 123s. Before you can string words and sentences together, you’ve got to know the alphabet. And before you start doing long division or multiplying fractions, you’ve got to be able to count to ten. These two ideas are the foundation, the slab of concrete, that every other Bible-reading skill will get built on. So, let’s become better Bible readers by learning the basics.

We begin with the understanding that Jesus is King. The Bible is one unified story, written by people and inspired by God, that leads to Jesus and teaches us how to live like Jesus. In other words, it’s all about Jesus. Yesterday, we introduced the idea that what we believe about the Bible is almost entirely based on what we believe about the God of the Bible.

So, if you want to read the Bible truly, then we need to start with a true understanding of who God is and what He is like. And the best way to do that is by looking at Jesus.

The Son is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. Colossians 1:15 NIV

The Son is the radiance of God’s glory and the exact representation of his being … Hebrews 1:3 NIV

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God … The Word became flesh and made his dwelling among us. We have seen his glory, the glory of the one and only Son, who came from the Father, full of grace and truth. John 1:1, 14 NIV

If you want to know what God is like, then look at Jesus. Jesus is the visible image of our invisible God. He is the perfect representation of God’s being. He is one with God, and He came full of grace and truth.

Whenever we read the Bible, we remember who Jesus is and what He is like. But that’s not all. As followers of Jesus, we want to read the Bible the same way He read the Bible. And this is a big one. Because Jesus didn’t believe the Bible was simply the work of human hands. He believed it contained the very words of God and was inspired by the Holy Spirit.

In Mark 12:36, Jesus prefaces His quotation of Psalm 110 by saying, “David himself, speaking by the Holy Spirit, declared …”

We believe the Bible was written by people and inspired by God because that’s what Jesus believed. And we believe it contains the authoritative words of God because Jesus did, too.

Jesus replied, “And why do you break the command of God for the sake of your tradition? For God said, ‘Honor your father and mother’ and ‘Anyone who curses their father or mother is to be put to death.’” Matthew 15:3-4 NIV

When Jesus quotes this Old Testament command, He doesn’t credit Moses; He credits God—because Jesus believed the Bible contained the authoritative words of God.

When we read the Bible, we start by remembering that Jesus is King. He’s the one it’s all about. And because He came full of grace and truth as the perfect representation of God, we can trust that everything we read flows from His goodness and paints a picture of His grace and truth at work in our broken world.

So, whenever you come to a tricky passage of Scripture, the best thing you can do is to look for the answers to these two questions:

1. How does this lead to Jesus?
2. How does this teach me to live more like Jesus?

If you want to read the Bible wisely, start by remembering that Jesus is King. That’s the first big idea. The second thing to remember is:

Context is everything. The context is the information that gives meaning to what we’re reading. And, when it comes to the tricky parts of the Bible, the clues to what is really going on and what we’re supposed to be learning can almost always be found in the context. We start by reading the immediate context—the verses and paragraphs in the chapter we’re reading—before we zoom out and explore more distant layers of context, like other chapters and books of the Bible.

In addition to looking at the biblical context, it can be really helpful to dig into the historical context because the Bible was written by and to people who lived thousands of years ago, spoke a different language, and inhabited a wildly different culture than the one we exist in today.

So, here are two questions to ask that will help you learn the context of what you’re reading:

1. What else is happening in this chapter/book of the Bible that gives meaning to what I’m reading?
2. What else was happening at this point in history that gives meaning to what I’m reading?

If you want to read the Bible wisely, remember: Jesus is King and context is everything.

This is why, in today’s reading, we’re going to look at a few passages of Scripture that show us how the Bible leads to Jesus and teaches us to become like Jesus. If there are any parts that you still don’t understand after asking the questions we listed above, then pray this prayer:

God, help me see what You’re trying to show me in these Scriptures. I want to learn the language of the Bible so I can know You better and love others well. Teach me. Guide me. Lead me. In Jesus’ name, amen.