Hva handler egentlig Bibelen om? Apg 8:35

Speaker: 00:00:01

Bibelglimt med mediepastor

i P7, Ingvald Korve.

2

: 00:00:14

8, verse 35.

3

: 00:00:14

Then Philip took the word.

4

: 00:00:17

He began with this scripture, and

proclaimed the gospel of Jesus to him.

5

: 00:00:27

At the beginning of a new

year, many people come up

6

: 00:00:31

with a new Bible reading plan.

7

: 00:00:32

Maybe they've made a decision

that this year they're going

8

: 00:00:35

to set some specific goals.

9

: 00:00:37

It could be to read the

whole Bible in one year.

10

: 00:00:40

It could be that I'll spend a lot

of time on some parts of the Bible.

11

: 00:00:45

I don't know what your Bible

reading routine is, and what you're

12

: 00:00:48

thinking about this new year,

and where you can read the most.

13

: 00:00:55

But I think a lot of people

can get into this experience.

14

: 00:00:59

Especially if you start spending

more time on parts of the Bible that

15

: 00:01:03

have previously been little read.

16

: 00:01:05

That you don't have a

lot of knowledge about.

17

: 00:01:08

Then it can be pretty heavy.

18

: 00:01:10

Today's text is a text that is about

someone named Laz in the Bible.

19

: 00:01:15

There was an Ethiopian hoffman.

20

: 00:01:17

He had been to Jerusalem to offer.

21

: 00:01:18

He clearly believed in God.

22

: 00:01:20

And now he's in his wagon, on his

way back to Ethiopia, reading.

23

: 00:01:25

And he's reading from Isaiah, chapter 53.

24

: 00:01:27

He's reading as if he's being led

to slaughter, like a lamb that's

25

: 00:01:31

being cut when it's being cut.

26

: 00:01:33

And then Philip comes up to Sio.

27

: 00:01:36

On the side of the wagon, he asks, Do

you understand what you're reading?

28

: 00:01:40

And this Ethiopian shepherd

replies, How can I read that,

29

: 00:01:44

when no one is teaching me?

30

: 00:01:46

He needed help.

31

: 00:01:47

He needed some keys that

could unlock the text for him.

32

: 00:01:51

And so it's like today's Bible verse.

33

: 00:01:54

There is a Bible verse about exactly

that key that Philip puts into the lock,

34

: 00:02:00

and that he is given, so that the Bible

becomes open to the Ethiopian prince.

35

: 00:02:06

If we read the New Testament, we

can see that the New Testament is

36

: 00:02:12

full of Old Testament references.

37

: 00:02:14

Side up and side down.

38

: 00:02:16

There can be references

to specific quotes.

39

: 00:02:19

There can be allusions, so that

it's a bit below the surface.

40

: 00:02:23

And then there can be something

that's called echo, where you just

41

: 00:02:28

faintly, faintly, faintly hear

a dissonance of something that

42

: 00:02:31

was written in the Old Testament.

43

: 00:02:35

Yes, the New Testament is a

copy of the Old Testament.

44

: 00:02:39

And at the same time, there is another

thing that the New Testament is a copy of.

45

: 00:02:46

And that is the apostles conviction

that Jesus is the one that the

46

: 00:02:51

Old Testament points towards.

47

: 00:02:52

He is the goal of this story.

48

: 00:02:55

He is, in many ways, the light

that lights up the whole story.

49

: 00:03:00

Have you ever gone back and seen a

movie, or read a book, a second time?

50

: 00:03:06

The first time you read a story, or watch

a movie, or a TV series, or whatever it

51

: 00:03:12

might be, then it might be that you have

some thoughts about where things are going

52

: 00:03:17

to happen, who are the good guys, who are

the bad guys, and you have these thoughts

53

: 00:03:23

about where things are going to end.

54

: 00:03:26

But then, it's not always that your

thoughts become As the series progresses.

55

: 00:03:30

Then you come to the conclusion,

and the bag is crumpled together,

56

: 00:03:34

and you get an accurate answer

that this is what it's all about.

57

: 00:03:39

My point is, if you then go back to

the same story, to the same book, to

58

: 00:03:45

the same movie, to the same series,

and then you have with you in your

59

: 00:03:50

backpack that you know where everything

ends, you know where this story is

60

: 00:03:54

going, you know where it's going.

61

: 00:03:57

Yes, I'll give you something with which

you can read and understand everything

62

: 00:04:02

that happens before the solution comes.

63

: 00:04:05

My point is, we know where the story ends.

64

: 00:04:08

If you start in 1st Moses

chapter 1, chapter 2, chapter 3.

65

: 00:04:12

If you read the lamentations in

Isaiah, in the book of Psalms

66

: 00:04:17

or the Psalms of Solomon.

67

: 00:04:19

No matter where you read in the Bible, we

know what is the great story in the Bible.

68

: 00:04:25

Amen.

69

: 00:04:26

Namely, the story of God who created

this world, and who sent his Son,

70

: 00:04:31

Jesus Christ, to save man from our sin.

71

: 00:04:35

Our sin, which we ourselves are guilty of.

72

: 00:04:39

It is the story of God's plan

of salvation, which he plans,

73

: 00:04:44

which he fulfills, and which he,

in glory and in eternity, will

74

: 00:04:49

let spring forth in full bloom.

75

: 00:04:52

It is the story of God's

salvation in Jesus.

76

: 00:04:56

And that is my second point,

connected to the New Testament.

77

: 00:05:01

Yes, there is a part of the Old

Testament, but there is also

78

: 00:05:07

a part of the consciousness

that Jesus is the main person.

79

: 00:05:11

He is, as Christians throughout

history have called, the core of

80

: 00:05:16

Scripture, and the star of Scripture.

81

: 00:05:19

The point is,

82

: 00:05:22

When Philip now stands face to face

with an Ethiopian priest, it is in that

83

: 00:05:26

direction that Philip will draw his gaze.

84

: 00:05:29

He will help him to see that

when he stood in Isaiah 53, it

85

: 00:05:34

was not primarily about Isaiah.

86

: 00:05:36

It was not just an isolated

story about something that

87

: 00:05:40

happened a long, long time ago.

88

: 00:05:42

No, it was a part of God's great

story that was not in the good news.

89

: 00:05:49

Jesus Christ.

90

: 00:05:50

This is the big story

line for you as well.

91

: 00:05:53

You who read the Bible.

92

: 00:05:55

There can be a lot that is

difficult to understand.

93

: 00:05:59

There can be many texts that

we have questions about.

94

: 00:06:03

What does this mean?

95

: 00:06:04

What did the authors really mean?

96

: 00:06:06

But it can often be of great help

to have the big picture with you.

97

: 00:06:12

Look at the text you have in

front of you, which is a puzzle

98

: 00:06:20

game, in the great puzzle game,

which puzzles Jesus Christ for us.

99

: 00:06:26

Let him be the one that all Bible

texts have been waiting for.

100

: 00:06:33

For he is the core and

star of the scripture.

101

: 00:06:38

Han er den store.

102

: 00:06:41

Which has come, and which

we believe will come again.

103

: 00:06:47

Let's read the verse one more time.

104

: 00:06:51

Acts chapter 8, verse 35.

105

: 00:06:54

Then Philip took the word.

106

: 00:06:58

He began with this scripture, and

proclaimed the gospel of Jesus for him.