You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me.” John 5:39
I love reading mystery books. The challenge is to try and solve the mystery and maybe find out who is the villain. However, some people cannot wait until the end of the book for answers, so they go to the last chapter and find what's happened. I never figured how they can go back to where they were reading knowing the ending.
The thought occurred to me that if Jesus's Disciples knew the end from the beginning, they would have better understood His teachings. They seemed to always be drawing the wrong conclusions. Jesus told them plainly about His suffering, death, and resurrection but they didn't get it. In fact, Jesus sternly rebuked Peter for his misunderstanding. Mark 8:33 Only AFTER Jesus's resurrection, did the disciples start to understand and put all the pieces together.
I think the church does a disservice to new converts by not telling them that the entire Bible teaches about Christ. From Genesis to Revelation, Christ is revealed. Theologians call this progressive revelation. As one read the Scriptures, more and more is revealed. It is like a photo of a large field with an object clear at the back. At first, you don't recognize what it is but the closer and get, you realize it is a human being. Only as you continue to get close, do you realize it is a man but you don't his identity. Finally, as you get closer can you know who it is.
By starting with Revelation (the back of the Bible) can we fully understand the Person of Christ and His ultimate mission of earth.
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