seed is a promise. We will hear the promise stated later as it is delivered in timely fashion. The goal is that the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of God. The goal is both massive and magnificent. Buck Hatch says that the goal is fulfilled through God working in his people, a people who both love God and one another. Can you imagine millions, even billions, of people truly loving the God of the universe? Can you imagine those same people loving their brothers and sisters in Christ, loving their neighbors as themselves, and loving even their enemies? Only God, through his Holy Spirit, can make this happen on a world-wide scale. The light of God will shine in the darkness, but it will take time. Progress in God’s plan is sure to occur, though sometimes in the most unlikely scenarios. The goal is still being reached and we are part of it!
The Unity of Scripture
The simplest definition of unity is “the state of being one.” Unity means oneness. A piece of chalk is one. Any part of it can be used to draw on a chalk board (remember those?) or on driveway pavement. Chalk is chalk! It has organic (or essential) unity in its nature as chalk. But consider an ink pen. There is unity in an ink pen, but that unity is due to the functional aspects of the ink pen. It has functional unity. The ink pen needs ink, a chamber to hold the ink, a ball bearing (or ballpoint tip) that rolls the ink out on paper, and a plastic barrel encasing the chamber, normally accompanied by a cap for the pen (and possibly a pen grip). The pen has unity only in its functional parts. It normally could not be used unless it has all the essential parts in working order. United properly together, the parts become an ink pen that functions correctly. This unity demonstrates the unity of the Bible.
The Scriptures are very diverse and yet they function with one purpose—to proclaim the living God’s plan to glorify himself. The diversity of Scripture is seen in the types of literature found in these books—books of history, law, poetry, prophecy, and gospel. There are genres (or categories) of Scripture: parables, symbolism, narrative, wisdom, and apocalyptic (end times) literature. There are extensive writings of theology and doctrine, as well as letters (or epistles) written to both individuals and groups of people. The Bible is comprised of sixty-six books. The books were written by forty different authors over a period of fifteen hundred years, in three different languages (mostly Hebrew and Greek) and thirteen different countries. To take a major piece of literature as diverse as the Bible and make it functional requires the touch (or authorship) of God, who is himself the “three in one”! The oneness of diversity is seen in our own humanity. As people, we are both body and soul, yet we function as one being. In marriage, we find male united to female; they are different, i.e., diverse, yet become one in flesh. In the church, the Apostle Paul reminds the churches at Ephesus (chapter 4) and Corinth (chapter 12) that although they have various members with diverse gifts, they are united as one in Christ. How amazing is unity in diversity? Buck Hatch says, “All the books of the Bible come together without collusion (planning between parties) or collision (contradiction).”
The unity of Scripture is based on this one key principle: God initiates his plan. God is at work in his world; he is not passive. God deals with men and women here on the earth! When we speak of the unity of Scripture, we are dealing with history because biblical history demonstrates that God is present and working. When I was a campus minister at the University of Florida, each year during both the summer and winter campus breaks, I received training from my campus ministry, Reformed University Fellowship, and its founder, Reverend Mr. Mark Lowrey. As a fledgling campus ministry for our denomination, we all had much to learn. Thankfully, in Mark Lowrey, we had a campus ministry genius training us. He taught so many concepts and so much philosophy of ministry that we could not keep up with him. But he was very helpful to all who would listen. And there was one concept that he reiterated time and time again at every staff training session. You could not miss it. He constantly reminded us of this one reality, a truth that we sometimes forgot or simply did not believe as we labored. Mark would always remind us of this: “God is at work!” “God is at work” is what we heard year after year, especially as we wondered if he really was at work, particularly among us campus ministers who were travailing in difficult soil. This is the idea that brings unity to Scripture—God is acting; God is working. He is the author of history and is actively taking initiative upon the earth. Buck Hatch submits that although the Bible is divided into the Old Testament and the New Testament, we should actually think of the Scriptures as being divided into two historical eras. God raises up his church among the people of Israel and then adds the Gentiles to the story. Simply stated, the Bible is an unfolding drama, a story that can be followed. The historical material of the Bible, by definition, is “that infallible record of what God initiates to do with mankind on earth.” History is a record of God’s acting and working among us! God’s historical record is observed as a linear timeline that has a beginning, proceeds forward, and will one day be completed. History is “the great operation of God!”
Speaking and Acting
When we read the Scriptures, we discover that God communicates to his people in two possible ways. As noted above, he acts in this world. He makes history. But, we also find large portions of Scripture (sometimes whole books) in which God delivers extensive messages—quite simply, he speaks. The book of Nehemiah is historical in nature. Psalms are written discourse. The books of Isaiah and Matthew include both speaking and acting (or doing). God speaks and he acts. We see this combination in various texts:
• Numbers 23:19, “God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind. Has he said, and will he not do it? Or has he spoken, and will he not fulfill it?”
• Amos 3:7, “For the Lord God does nothing without revealing his secret to his servants the prophets.”
• Matthew 11:2–4, “Now when John heard in prison about the deeds of the Christ, he sent word by his disciples and said to him, ‘Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?’ And Jesus answered them, ‘Go and tell John what you hear and see.’”
• Acts 1:1, “In the first book, O Theophilus, I have dealt with all that Jesus began to do and teach . . .” (Italics mine, for emphasis)
When we consider the “God who speaks,” we think of concepts such as prophecy, gospel, discourse, the Sermon on the Mount, messages in the book of Acts by Peter, Stephen, and Paul, etc. We also think about the word “revelation.” God reveals himself by condescending and speaking to us through his chosen messengers. The speaking sections of the Bible may be greater in proportion than the historical sections, but when we read the historical sections, we realize that the unity of the Bible consists in God acting! The actions of God are very significant. We read about how God intervenes on behalf of his people, particularly in his saving acts. We see God’s miracles and view them with awe. We see him sending his Son as the savior of the world and can hardly believe it. Buck Hatch says that Jesus’s death is more important than anything Christ says. Surely, sending his Son into the world, sacrificing him on the cross, and raising him from the dead is the greatest act that God the Father has ever done! History is not a record of what God says; it is a record of what God does. In what does the unity of the Bible consist? That unity is derived from God’s historical revelation, which is culminated in the coming of Christ.
Progress
As we walk through God’s unfolding plan of redemption, we will find ourselves asking the essential question, “Is this progress?” That is, we hope to discover whether we are moving forward and advancing toward the grand goal that God has set forth. Progress in our context will describe the fact that God is moving forward, that he is making positive things happen in regard to his plan and in his world. We will also wonder about how he is moving forward. The reality is that God does not operate or think as we do—his definition of progress might very well differ from ours. As Isaiah writes, “For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways, declares the Lord” (Isa 55:8). His thinking and his ways (acts) are radically different
