An Unfinished Story

I wonder sometimes if many of us have misunderstood the story Scripture is actually telling.

Ask the average Christian to summarize the Bible and the answer often sounds something like this:

God created the world.

Man sinned.

Jesus died for our sins.

Now we go to heaven when we die.

But what if that isn’t actually the story?

What if that is only one thread within a much larger narrative?

What if Scripture is not a collection of disconnected spiritual lessons…

but one continuous story moving toward a single predetermined end?

Think about how stories work.

Every great story has an introduction.

Background information the reader needs in order to understand what follows.

Perhaps Genesis 1–11 serves exactly that purpose.

Creation.
The Fall.
The Flood.
The nations scattered at Babel.

Everything we need to understand what has gone wrong.

The world God created is now fractured.

Humanity has rebelled.

Death has entered the story.

The nations have been scattered.

The stage is now set.

But the main narrative has not yet begun.

Then suddenly, in Genesis 12, everything narrows.

One man — Abraham

And with one covenant, the direction of the entire story changes.

A promise is made:

Land.
Seed (offspring).
Blessing.

Through one man, God begins unfolding a plan that will ultimately restore everything that has been lost.

The main narrative has now begun.

From that moment forward, history begins moving toward one great climactic event.

The Patriarchs (Abraham, Isaac, Jacob).
Slavery in Egypt.
Moses.
The Exodus.
Taking The Promised Land.
Samuel, the great transition figure.
The Great Kings: David. Solomon.
A glimpse of what the kingdom could have been.

Then the decline begins.

Division. Idolatry. Rebellion.
The Prophets cry out.
Warnings intensify.
Exile comes.
Everything appears lost.

And then, in the fullness of time, the promised King finally arrives.

The long-awaited Messiah.

The cross confronts the great enemy.
Sin is judged.
The resurrection follows.
Death itself is defeated.
Victory is secured.

It feels as though everything has reached its intended conclusion.

The King has won.
The enemy has been defeated.
The grave has been conquered.

The credits should begin rolling.

But something strange happens.

Christ ascends.

The disciples receive their commission.

And then…

they go fishing.

It feels strangely ordinary.

Almost anticlimactic.

As though the story has ended.

Fade to black.

But then…

Pentecost.

The arrival of the promised Helper.

The Holy Spirit.

And suddenly we realize something profound.

The resurrection was never the end of the story.

It was the end of one battle.

The story is entering its second great movement.

In the first movement, God brought forth a nation.

Israel.

Now the King is preparing a Bride for the world He is returning to establish.

The gospel moves outward.
The nations are gathered.
The Church is born.
Disciples are made.
Faith is tested.
Suffering refines.
Character is formed.
The Bride is being prepared.
The mission expands.

History once again begins moving toward its appointed climax.

The King will return.

Faith will become sight.

The kingdoms of this world will fall.

The rightful King will take His throne.

Creation itself will begin returning to proper order.

The promises will be fulfilled.

The Millennial Kingdom will come.

One final rebellion will expose the human heart one last time.

The White Throne will bring final judgment.

Death will be removed forever.

And then…

A New Heaven.
A New Earth.
God dwelling with man.
The family complete.
The Kingdom fully established.
The Bride finally home.

Perhaps we have been reading the Bible far too narrowly.

Perhaps Scripture is not primarily the story of how man gets to heaven.

Perhaps salvation was never the final destination of the story.

Perhaps salvation is how God prepares a people for the world He intended from the very beginning.

The story was never simply about surviving this world until the next.

It has always been about preparation.

The King is coming.

And He is preparing a Bride.