The Bible: You're doing it wrong!

Among many other Memes on the internet, "You're Doing It Wrong," has become quite popular.  And because I am a Star Wars nerd, here is another good one.

In John 5:39-40, Jesus tells a crowd of people, "The Bible: You're doing it Wrong".  Take a look.



"You diligently study the Scriptures because you think that by them you possess eternal life.  These are the Scriptures that testify about me, yet you refuse to come to me to have life." - John 5:39-40

Jesus tells the crowd of people that they are reading the Bible wrong.  At that point, the Bible only consisted of the Old Testament.  Jesus tells them that its not just enough to read the Bible.  Its not just enough to study the Bible.  You need to read the Bible and connect the dots to Jesus.

Do you remember the Road to Emmaus?  In Luke 24, we find an interesting story.  Jesus has already died and risen from the dead.  While the resurrected Jesus was still making appearances, two men are walking along a road.  They are talking about a man named Jesus that they heard about who worked miracles and was killed.  Jesus walks up and joins in on the conversation, but He doesn't tell them who He is!  I find that hilarious!  Could you imagine being those guys in heaven?  "Hey, remember that time Jesus pulled a fast one on you?"

Anyway, they tell the stranger (Jesus) that they were really hoping that this Jesus guy was going to be the Messiah, but He probably wasn't cause He got killed.  At that point, Jesus does something interesting.

And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, He explained to them what was said in all the Scriptures concerning Himself.  - Luke 24:27

In the above verse, Moses refers to the Pentateuch or Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy.  This is because Moses was the author of those books.  The Prophets refers to the books of the Bible you would normally think of as written by prophets like Isaiah and Jonah.  However, it also refers to books like Joshua and many of the Psalms of David because those men were also seen as prophets in Jewish tradition.

In John, Jesus tells us that we have failed at studying the Bible if we don't see Him in it when we read.  In Luke, Jesus shows us that even books like Genesis and Numbers are about Him!  When we read the Bible, we are doing it wrong if we don't see Jesus all over the place.  Whether you are reading Genesis, Philemon, Proverbs, or even Song of Solomon, it all points to Jesus and His Gospel.

The Tower of Babel is related to Jesus?  Yep!  How?  The men pridefully thought they could work their way up to God but God had to stoop down and come to them.  Their unity was divided among the diverse nations and languages.  Ring a bell?  We are prideful if we think we can work our way up to God, instead Jesus needs to come down to us and He will one day restore the unity of all peoples, nations, and tongues when we join together under one King.

That's just one example.  Last week I showed you how the entire Exodus story and Passover are all connected to Jesus and His Gospel.  The laws in the Bible describe the perfect, sinless man which is Jesus.  The prophets foretell His arrival.  Even the stories point to Him.  Abraham's faith was tested with the almost slaying of Isaac.  He didn't have to sacrifice his son on that day, but the day came when God did offer up His only Son.  It all points to Him.

So, when you read the Bible, do you see Jesus and His Gospel everywhere?  Its easy in the New Testament.  Do you see Him in the Old?  If not, you need to work a little harder and change your perspective.  Start looking for characters that model the character and actions of Jesus like the shepherd-king David.  Start looking for themes of forgiveness or payment for sin.  It takes practice, but make the effort to look for Jesus and His Gospel every time you open the Word and you will be blown away with what you find.  That's how we were meant to read the Bible.