The Appeal of Stories
The 1987 cinematic classic, The Princess Bride, opens with the sick grandson begrudgingly relenting to let Grandpa read him a storybook with “fencing, fighting, torture, revenge, giants, monsters, chases, escapes, true love, miracles.”[1] By movie’s end, the boy was riveted and left wanting more. As Grandpa leaves for the day, the boy says, “Maybe you can come over and read it again to me tomorrow.”
Who doesn’t love a good story? A well told story captivates our attention and captures our imagination. It draws us into the scene and invites us to relate to the characters.
In literate societies, children sit on their parents’ laps as the parents read them stories. As the children learn to read for themselves, they graduate from picture books to story books to chapter books. While young readers will eventually wander into the nonfiction section of the local library, it’s the narrative of story that continues to grab their attention through adulthood, whether in books, theater, or film.
In oral societies, children listen to the stories that have been passed down from generation to generation. The stories are told in a variety of cadences and constructs, whether myth or melody, epic or elegy. Stories provide cultural continuity and serve “to entertain, to inform, and to promulgate cultural traditions and values.”[2]
The Bible’s Stories
The Bible straddles both worlds, as “a complex interplay between oral and literate mentalities.”[3] On the one hand the Bible is a literary work, a veritable library of sixty-six books written in three distinct languages by dozens of authors spanning several millennia. On the other hand, the characters and composers of the Bible were immersed in a world of orality, such that many of the texts themselves were written to be recited or performed.
It’s no surprise, then, that the Bible contains a myriad of stories. Like The Princess Bride, its stories entail “fencing, fighting, torture, revenge, giants, monsters, chases, escapes, true love, miracles.” And it’s these stories that often first attract people to the Bible.
As you think about the contents of the Bible, hopefully you will spend some time considering the transcendence and immanence of God. It’s conceivable that you might contemplate the complexity of the Trinity. Perhaps you might ponder the power of the prophetic voices, the significance of surrender, or the gift of grace.
However, it is more likely that you would immediately recall its stories: the epic of Creation; Moses and the burning bush; the golden calf; Joshua and the battle of Jericho; Samson and Delilah; David and Bathsheba; Elijah against the prophets of Baal; Jesus calming the storm; the day of Pentecost; or Paul on the road to Damascus. It’s the stories that we tell our children to introduce them to Scripture and the lessons God has for us in Scripture.
The Moral of the Story
Unfortunately, it’s also the many stories that often distract us from the Bible’s one story. In 2019 Phil Vischer, the creator of the beloved VeggieTales enterprise, lamented that his focus on the moralism of biblical stories failed to draw children into that one story. “We haven’t explained to kids how they’re part of a bigger story. The gospel has been turned so often into just tips for a better marriage, or tips to get through college without becoming an atheist.”[4] In fact, the Bible is often used as a Holy Handbook, offering advice on anger and stress management,[5] business,[6] dating,[7] education,[8] gender roles,[9] health and diet,[10] politics[11] and more.[12] As Vischer notes, “It’s so much easier to teach morality. It’s so much easier to just tell a Bible story, pull a moral value out of it, and end with a Bible verse.”[13]
But that’s not how the Bible functions. In his seminal book on the authority of Scripture, N.T. Wright comments that “for the Bible to have the effect it seems to be designed to have it will be necessary for the church to hear it as it is, not to chop it up in an effort to make it into something else.”[14] So what is the effect it seems to be designed to have and how do we avoid chopping it up into a series of short stories of moral lessons?
On the first question, Peter Enns suggests that “the primary purpose of Scripture is for the church to eat and drink its contents in order to understand better who God is, what he has done, and what it means to be his people, redeemed in the crucified and risen son.”[15] On the second question, it’s imperative that we understand it as a unified story, rather than a collection of short stories or memory verses.
The Bible as Story
Admittedly, reading the Bible as one story does not come naturally for most of us. Not only have we been engrained with the notion that the Bible is a book of stories and “life verses”, but the nature of the Bible’s story can make it hard to follow for the casual reader. It often seems disjointed, with repetition, foreshadowing, historical intrusions, and seemingly unattached scenes.[16] But it’s precisely this disjointedness that makes knowing the story all the more important, as the Bible’s story is greater than the sum of its stories.
Knowing this larger story, though, isn’t just to help us make sense of the stories or provide us with a daily instruction guide. Rather, we are compelled to learn this story because it is the church’s story, and our story.
The Bible is the saga of Yahweh and Adam, the prodigal son and his ever gracious heavenly father; humanity in their rebellion and God in his grace. This narrative begins with Eden and does not conclude until the New Jerusalem is firmly in place. It is all one story. And if you are a believer, it is all your story.[17]
The Christian story doesn’t begin with Matthew and end with Revelation. Rather, it begins at creation and continues in and through the life of the church. And knowing our part in the story informs us as to how we are to participate in it. As Josh McNall so eloquently puts it, “if we are to act well, we must know the script—and the script is Scripture.”[18]
The Bible’s Story
The script begins with the word of God speaking the cosmos into existence and filling it with life: the fish of the sea, the birds of the air, the beasts of the field. God culminates his creative act by making humanity (‘adam) in the image of God, breathing into them the breath of life. As God’s image-bearers, ‘adam’s role was to represent God in the world as co-regents with God in this new divine province called earth. However, when ‘adam was given the choice between life and death, ‘adam chose death, by rebelling against God in hopes of becoming like God. This struggle of choice between life and death, blessing and curse, sets the stage for the rest of the story.
The relationship between God and ‘adam was broken. God’s remedy was to initiate a new type of relationship, called a covenant, first with Noah (Gen 9), and then Abraham (Gen 15), Isaac and Jacob (Exod 2:24), and Moses (Deuteronomy). Later God would make a covenant with the house of David (2 Sam 7), recontextualizing the covenant of Moses in light of the newly founded monarchy.
In simple terms a covenant is a contract or agreement between two parties. It was common for the two parties to cut an animal in half, walk between the two halves and swear an oath that if one of them would break the agreement they would be like the dead animal (Jer 34:18). The oath underscores the importance of expectations in covenant relationships. Obedience yields life; disobedience brings death.
In God’s covenant with Israel, the stipulations were clearly articulated: (1) obedience to God alone and (2) treating others as fellow image-bearers, what the Old Testament authors called justice and righteousness. The story of the Bible, then, is a story about this covenant relationship. Because of God’s steadfast love (ḥesed), God has committed to remain faithful to the covenant (Ps. 136), regardless of the fidelity of his covenant partners. For the people of God, commitment to this relationship requires investment, not merely conducting proper worship practices. Justice and righteousness involve engaging in the mission of God, being a light to the nations (Isa 49:1–6) and inviting the oppressed and outcast to participate in this mission as members of the faith community (Isa 56:1–8).
The story is one of God relentlessly pursuing a people bent on violating the covenant. Constantly and consistently, God raises up prophets who attempt to steer God’s people back to the covenant. Sages, psalmists, and poets rejoice in the wonder of God, reflect on the path of wisdom and the perils of folly, and ruminate over the seeming lack of justice and righteousness by God and his image-bearers. Every page of the story demands that we test whether the covenant community is measuring up to the stipulations of the covenant. Do they love the Lord with all their being? Are they practicing justice and righteousness toward their fellow image-bearers? More yet, the story demands that we ask those questions of ourselves.
The evidence is unmistakable. God’s covenant partners had failed miserably. They chose death rather than life. Instead of revoking the covenant, however, God revitalized it. He devised a new covenant, one that would be written on the hearts of his people (Jer 31:31–34). Under the New Covenant, the mediator isn’t a prophet or priest, but the last ‘adam (1 Cor 15:45); not an image-bearer of God (Gen 1:26–27), but the image of God (Col 1:15). True worship would not be accomplished through the blood of goats and rams but through the blood of a lamb (Heb 9:11–22). Under the New Covenant, the lamb of God soundly defeated Death (1 Cor 15:26), offering abundant, eternal life (John 10:10).
Nonetheless, the New Covenant is still a covenant. The New Covenant still stipulates full obedience (Luke 14:15–33). The New Covenant still stipulates justice and righteousness (Matt 25:31–46; Jas 2:14–17). The New Covenant still stipulates that God’s people be a light to the nations (Matt 5:14–16) and that they invite the oppressed and outcast to participate in this mission as members of the family of God (Matt 11:5).
As the Story Goes
As covenant partners with the eternally-faithful God, the church is now invited—exhorted—to participate in the mission of God by participating in the story of God. The story of the Bible “is the story of God’s mission. It is a coherent story with a universal claim. But it is also a story that affirms humanity in all its particular cultural variety. This is the universal story that gives a place in the sun to all the little stories,”[19] by imbuing them with meaning and purpose. The story of the Bible beckons us to be active readers, identifying not only where the stories fit into the story, but also where we fit into the story.
The Bible’s stories captivate our imaginations with interesting plots and important principles.
But it’s the Bible’s overarching story that needs to be told, re-told, performed, and engraved on our hearts. The Bible’s story invites God’s image-bearers into covenant relationship with the God who is forever faithful to it. As we encounter this story, we are challenged to check our motives, our intentions, and most importantly, our allegiance. As with ancient Israel, we are constantly faced with choices over which gods we will serve (Josh 24:15). Although death has been defeated, our commitment to this covenant relationship is measured each moment, whether we will be conformed to the attractions and alliances of the world, or whether we will submit ourselves as holy sacrifices to God (Rom 12:1–2).
Like Grandpa in The Princess Bride, maybe we should come back and read it again tomorrow.
Notes
[1] The Princess Bride, directed and produced by Rob Reiner (Twentieth Century Fox, 1987).
[2] “Storytelling and Cultural Traditions,” https://www.nationalgeographic.org/article/storytelling-and-cultural-traditions/.
[3] Susan Niditch, Oral World and Written Word: Ancient Israelite Literature, Libraries of Ancient Israel (Louisville, Westminster John Knox, 1996), 133.
[4] Kara Bettis, “Phil Vischer Wants More Gospel in the Veggies,” Christianity Today (9/9/2019), https://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2019/september-web-only/phil-vischer-wants-more-gospel-veggietales.html
[5] Wayne A. Mack, Anger and Stress Management, God’s Way (Phillipsburg, NJ: P&R Publishing, 2017).
[6] Larry Burkett, Business by the Book: The Complete Guide of Biblical Principles for the Workplace (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, 1988).
[7] Greg Laurie, God’s Design for Christian Dating (Kerygma, 2011).
[8] Glen Schultz, Kingdom Education: God’s Plan for Educating Future Generations, 2nd ed. (Nashville, Lifeway, 2013).
[9] John Piper and Wayne Grudem (eds), Recovering Biblical Manhood and Womanhood: A Response to Evangelical Feminism, Rev. Ed. (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2021).
[10] Rick Warren, Daniel Amen, and Mark Hymen, The Daniel Plan: 40 Days to a Healthier Life (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2013).
[11] Wayne Grudem, Politics According to the Bible: A Comprehensive Resource for Understanding Modern Political Issues in Light of Scripture (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2010).
[12] Charles R. Swindoll, The Owner’s Manual for Christians: The Essential Guide for a God-Honoring Life (Nashville, Thomas Nelson, 2011).
[13] Kara Bettis, “Phil Vischer Wants More Gospel in the Veggies.”
[14] N. T. Wright, Scripture and the Authority of God: How to Read the Bible Today (New York: HarperOne, 2005), 25.
[15] Peter Enns, Inspiration and Incarnation: Evangelicals and the Problem of the Old Testament (Grand Rapids, Baker Academic, 2005).
[16] Adding to the feeling of disjointedness are the unpronounceable names, genealogical records and census lists, as well as catalogues of outdated law codes.
[17] Sandra L. Richter, The Epic of Eden: A Christian Entry into the Old Testament (Downers Grove, IL: IVP, 2008), 15.
[18] Joshua McNall, Long Story Short: The Bible in Six Simple Movements (Franklin, TN: Seedbed, 2018), 9.
[19] Christopher J. H. Wright, The Mission of God: Unlocking the Bible’s Grand Narrative (Downers Grove, IL: IVP Academic, 2006), 47.
