The Bible In Six Acts

Over the next seven days, you will get a big-picture view of the full story of God—from Genesis to Revelation. The Bible is filled with different characters, settings, wars, plagues, history-changing events, and countless stories. It covers thousands of years of recorded history. How does it all fit together? Jesus. Jesus is the common thread that ties God’s story together.

When Paul wrote his letter to the church in Colossae—what we know as the New Testament book of Colossians—he wrote to young Christians during a time of unrest. Colossae was a city along a significant trade route that had suffered from a major earthquake around AD 60-61. The church was young, rebuilding, and battling deceptive “philosophies” that threatened to leave it as fractured as a house built on a fault line (Colossians 2:8 NIV).

What does Paul write to these new believers during this critical time? He reminds them who Jesus is: the image of God (Colossians 1:15 NIV), the creator of all things (verse 16), powerful enough to hold all things together (verse 17), the head of the church (verse 18), that God’s fullness dwells in him (verse 19), and through his death on the cross all things will be reconciled to God (verse 20). Over the next seven days, we’ll examine the story of God in six acts—Beginnings, Revolt, People, Savior, Church, and Forever. We’ll uncover the truth of Paul’s words to the shaken believers: Jesus holds all things together.

We will also seek to answer the question: What does God’s story have to do with me? You will discover that your story connects with God’s by design. You have a role to play. Your life is treasured by your creator and of great significance for his work in the world.

Reflection

• Do you think of your life as something that matters to God? Why or why not?
• This week, will you open yourself to the idea that God has a role for you to play in his story?

Prayer

Dear God, thank you for all that today’s verses reveal about Jesus. Thank you, God, for revealing yourself through him, and for reconciling my sin through his death. This week, help me to see how my life connects with your story. Open my heart to your Spirit’s leading. Amen.