For whatever reason, I usually find vacation a rather fertile time for
thinking. On my trip to NJ two weeks ago I was listening to someone else
preach. The Prevites had kindly lent me some sermons on the Ten Commandments
preached at Tenth Presbyterian Church. The preacher, Philip Ryken, pointed
out something from Deuteronomy 6. There Moses anticipates one of the
children asking his parents a question. ‘What is the meaning of the
testimonies and the statutes and the rules that the Lord our God has
commanded you?’ [Deuteronomy 6:20] Now that is a very important question.
‘What’s this Law of God all about?’ Now, I have a book that answers that
question. It’s something like three inches thick and filled with theological
jargon. But notice how Moses tells the people to answer this question. Moses
instructs them to tell the children a story. I dare say that none of us
would have thought to answer the question that way. But, think about it.
What is so much of the Bible? It’s a series of inter-connected stories. We’
ve just started working through the book of Genesis in the Tidioute Bible
study. The first three chapters of Genesis form the very foundation for the
Gospel. They describe where we’ve come from, what our problem is, that there
is a solution and what that solution will give back to us. But it’s not
communicated to us by some theological essay. It’s all conveyed in a story
about two people. The Gospel is a story. And we learn this Gospel by
listening to the series of stories in the Bible. Now, lest I be
misunderstood, let me say that there is some profound theological reflection
in the stories of the Bible. And there is a place for theological essays
like the letter to the Romans. We need these theological statements to guide
us in the right understanding of the story. But the Bible is a balanced mix
of story and essay. And the sad fact is that we are out of balance. So, let’
s look at our text and explore, with the Spirit’s help, this biblical theme
of the story.
The first thing that I want you to see is that in the story that Moses
tells, God is the main character. He is at the heart of the story. It is
what He is doing that demands our attention. The story of the Bible is the
story of the acts of God. It is the story about what God has done and why He
has done it. From our vantage point, this side of the New Testament, we can
be – and need to be – a little bit more precise. The main character of the
story is Jesus. The Bible is the story of the acts of Jesus. It’s the story
of what Jesus has done, starting with Adam.
Now, I want you to notice something in how Moses tells the story. ‘We were
Pharaoh's slaves in Egypt. And the Lord brought us out of Egypt with a
mighty hand.’ Did you notice that Moses speaks in the plural, ‘we’ and ‘us’.
Most of the people he was speaking to never lived in Egypt. They were born
after the Exodus in the wilderness. And yet, it’s ‘We were slaves…’ The
story is a corporate story. This is what Jesus did with us. This emphasis on
the ‘us-ness’ of the story is very important. We are far too focused, these
days, on ourselves as individuals. We neglect the ‘us-ness’ of the people of
God. But it’s everywhere in the Bible. Have you noticed that it isn’t ‘my
Father who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name…’? It’s ‘our Father… Give us
this day our daily bread … Forgive us our sins.’ In this we are being
reminded that Jesus deals with us as a group. And so, we here today can
answer Moses’ question in the same way that his original audience answered
it. ‘We were slaves in Egypt…’ The ‘us-ness’ of the people of God transcends
the different periods of history. So, what Jesus was doing in Egypt in Moses
’ day or in Babylon in Daniel’s day or in Europe in Luther’s day – all of
that is what Jesus was doing with ‘us’. The story of the Bible is the story
about Jesus’ dealings with us, all of us, the whole Church. That’s one
reason why it’s good to know the story within the pages of Scripture as well
as in the pages of Church history. It’s the story of what Jesus has done
with us.
Now, let me shift the focus a bit so that there is proper balance. Along
with emphasizing the ‘us’ we need to remember the ‘me’. This ‘me’ is
included in the ‘us’ of our text. Jesus’ dealings with the group include His
dealings with each individual of that group. So, along with and part of ‘our
’ story, there needs to be ‘my’ story. If you ever visit the Gardners’ home
you will see this plaque that Adiel made. On it is a verse. ‘Come and hear,
all you who fear God, and I will tell what he has done for my soul.’ [Psalm
66:16] After referring to some aspects of ‘our’ story as the people of God,
the Psalmist wants to declare his own story of how Jesus has dealt with him.
Along with the corporate story – what Jesus has done with us – there needs
to be the individual story, what He has done with me. Each Christian has his
own story. Each Christian has his own, personal dealings with Jesus. Each
can recount the different acts of Christ in his own life. And that story can
be told in terms of the big picture, from birth to death and beyond, or it
can be told with a very limited view, what Jesus did in my life this past
week. The corporate ‘us’ story includes and must be joined to the individual
‘me’ story of what Jesus has been doing. It cannot be otherwise. You must
have your own story of Jesus’ dealings with you.
This story in both its corporate and individual expressions forms the basis
of what we do as Christians. Without the story, so much is lost. Consider
worship. For so many people, Sunday worship is mostly a matter of punching a
time card. You punch in at the prescribed hour and do what you supposed to
do and then you punch out. There’s no story there. But what is worship
supposed to be? It’s supposed to be a response to the acts of Jesus which He
has done with the whole Church throughout history and individually in my own
life. The story of what Jesus has done with us and with me is the fuel that
powers worship. If there is no story, then worship becomes an empty ritual.
Worship is a response to what Jesus has done. Sunday worship is also the
response to what Jesus has done with us and with me this past week. And
though there are parts of the story that include profound and dynamic
events, there is lots of the story that is simply a matter of being loved
and cared for and guided a few more steps along the way. But whether or not
we see Jesus do any dramatic things any particular week, He has been doing
something. More of the story has been written, and there is more reason to
respond in worship. If there is no story then what is worship? A tip of the
hat to some distant, uninvolved deity? What is that?
Then there is the aspect of Christian community. Did you notice that the
verse from Psalm 66 is directed to other saints? ‘Come and hear, all you who
fear God, and I will tell what he has done for my soul.’ That lies at the
heart of Christian encouragement. Too much supposed ‘encouragement’ can be
described as ‘take two verses and call me in the morning’. It is seen as
merely conveying some facts from the Bible. That’s not right. You encourage
others out of your own story, your own experience of Jesus’ love and care.
Instead of, ‘Let me point you to some Bible truths that are supposed to fix
your problem’, say to those in need, ‘Let me tell you how Jesus dealt with
me in a similar situation.’ Christian encouragement is based on the story,
your individual story as well as the corporate story.
This also says something about the training of the children. Much Christian
education these days, especially in Reformed churches, is simply a matter of
passing on information. ‘Here are some Bible truths you should know.’ Now,
there are Bible truths that need to be known, but how would Moses have done
it? ‘Let me tell you ‘our’ story as the people of God and my own story of
the acts of Jesus in my life.’ That’s Christian education. That’s what
training the children is to be like.
Then there’s evangelism. We can no longer get away with thinking of
evangelism merely as communicating certain theological truths. Little
four-step booklets don’t cut it anymore. Evangelism is telling the story.
‘This is what Jesus has done with me. And my story is rooted in what Jesus
has done with us.’ Real evangelism isn’t limited to people who can explain
Bible truths really well. Real evangelism is simply telling your story of
the acts of Jesus. And so, evangelism is something that we all do in the
normal course of life.
Let me close with a question. What if you had that plaque with Psalm 66.16
on your front door? And what if someone saw it and asked you, ‘Okay, so tell
me. What has Jesus done for your soul? Tell me your story.’ What would you
say? What is your story? Do you have a story to tell? What is it? What would
you say?
