Unity of the Bible: Between the Old and New Testaments: Think of the questions and expectations raised in the Old Testament that are merely left in limbo if we do not take the New Testament with it.

How was the serpent’s head bruised by a descendant of Eve? Nothing is ever even mentioned about that again in the Old Testament. How were all nations blessed through Abraham’s seed? Who was the prophet like unto Moses (Deut. 18:5)?

Where is the redemption promised to Israel or Jacob and to the Gentiles (Isa. 49:6)? Where is the child to be born, the prince of peace (Isa. 9:6-7)? Where is the kingdom God would establish in the days of the fourth world empire from Daniel’s day (Dan. 2:44)? Whatever happened to the new covenant promised in Jeremiah 31:31-34?

All of these prophecies and many more are perfectly, beautifully fulfilled in Christ. Without Him they are the greatest of enigmas, wild shots in the dark that miss the target because there is no target.

The difficulty of maintaining unity in the Bible. The Bible was written by about forty different writers. That writing occupied around 1500 years. These writers were separated by time and circumstances, yet the story told is one story.

The portrayal of God is consistent throughout. The nature of the story is that of an unfolding such as only an omniscient mind could have foreseen. The myriad themes and sub- themes introduced, developed, and carried through to completion are beyond human ability to invent.

The more one studies the New Testament and the Old Testament, the more one is impressed with this unity. We could furnish many examples of this unity, but will limit ourselves to two.

The first is the consistent emphasis on the sincere and spiritual service God requires of men. Jesus said, “They that worship Him must worship in spirit and truth” (John 4:24).

From the beginning of God’s people, He held before them a great challenge: “Now therefore, if ye will obey my voice indeed, and keep my covenant, then ye shall be mine own possession from among all peoples: for all the earth is mine: and ye shall be unto me a kingdom of priests, and a holy nation” (Exod. 19:5-6).

God wanted more than people merely keeping rituals and going through prescribed motions. In Leviticus, again and again, God says, “Ye shall be holy; for I am holy” (Lev. 11:44-45; 19:2). You are to be special because I am your God.

Samuel explained to Saul that God was not primarily interested in sacrifices. Saul had the idea that God did not care what you did or how you acted if you will toss Him a sacrifice now and then.

Samuel said, “Hath the Lord as great delight in burnt-offerings and sacrifices, as in obeying the voice of the Lord? Behold, to obey is better than sacrifice, and to hearken than the fat of rams” (1 Sam. 15:22).

In the fiftieth Psalm, God protests that He does not require the sacrifices of men to meet His own needs. “I will take no bullock out of thy house, nor he-goats out of thy folds. For every beast of the forest is mine, and the cattle upon a thousand hills. I know all the birds of the mountains; and the wild beasts of the field are mine. If I were hungry, I would not tell thee; for the world is mine, and the fulness thereof. Will I eat the flesh of bulls, or drink the blood of goats? Offer unto God the sacrifice of thanksgiving; and pay thy vows unto the most high” (Ps. 50:9-14).

Micah raises the question: “Wherewith shall I come before the Lord, and bow down myself before the high God? Shall I come before Him with burnt offerings, with calves a year old? Will the Lord be pleased with thousands of rams, or with ten thousands of rivers of oil? Shall I give my firstborn for my transgression, the fruit of my body for the sin of my soul? He hath showed thee, o man, what is good; and what doth the Lord require of thee, but to do justly, and to love kindness, and to walk humbly with thy God?” (Mic. 6:6-8).

To these could be added many more. God’s call is for a spiritual people who shall be partakers of His own divine nature (2 Pet. 1:4). Never once is this grand theme lost.

In fact, the theme of the Bible is God’s revelation of Himself in all His moral and spiritual perfection and glory with the view that man should become partaker of that divine nature. In the Old Testament, that character, that divine nature is revealed in God’s statutes and ordinances.

But with the New Testament, the Word, the revelation of God’s character, becomes flesh and we behold the glory of God in His only begotten Son (John 1:14). In human form and life God manifested Himself, not only furnishing us with the perfect demonstration of the divine nature, but also providing us with the salvation from sin which would separate us from God (Is. 59:1-2).

Another example of this wonderful unity is the covenant of God with man. From Genesis through Revelation, the basic relationship between God and men remains the same. In many passages from Exodus 19:5-6 through Revelation 21:3, that basic relationship is “obey my voice and I will be your God and you will be my people.”

Conclusion: In my opinion the more convincing reasons to believe the Bible are the more subtle ones, requiring greater study and meditation. They are also the more difficult ones to present to one who knows nothing about the Bible. Many other reasons could be presented but these are sufficient.

Men have sought the Word of God because it answers their deepest needs. The Bible furnishes moral and spiritual guidance in a world that is morally and spiritually bankrupt. When man lifts his face to the heavens and asks, “Why do I exist? What am I?” the Bible answers: you are made in the image of God. God loves you. He wants you to be His in a special way.

Not only does the Bible show us the portal to heaven, it shines the divine light in our lives in this world: In the heavenly communion we share with dearly beloved brethren. In the enjoyment of all the warmest, tenderest, and most heart filling emotions know to men, in the home and in the family.

Yes, it is reasonable to believe in the Bible. It cannot be successfully gainsaid that the best life is the genuine life of the Christian. Only in the way of Christ is there hope beyond the darkness of death.

If the atheist is right, then there is no purpose, and, in human terms, no future, only darkness and the void. If the Bible is right, then, to those who believe, there is life and hope.