The Bible is Not a Self-Help Book
We recently had problems with our stove. I googled our model of stove, found what seemed to be the most likely cause of the problem, found a step-by-step guide for fixing it, ordered some replacement parts on eBay, and confidently told my wife, “We don’t need a new one. I can fix it.” And I did, although I breathed a big sigh of relief when it actually worked.
If only fixing every problem in life was that easy? Google the problem and follow a series if simple steps to fix it. A lot of people have made money by writing self-help books on this basic premise. Now if you’ve read other things I’ve written, you’re probably expecting me to say that we should turn to the bible to find the solutions to life’s problems. But I’m not, because the bible is not a self-help book. The bible is, if anything, realistic, and there are no easy steps to a better life.
What we find in the bible is actually a story, the story of God’s relationship with his people as he journeys alongside them in the good times and the bad. First and foremost, it shows us what God is like. At a funeral the other day I read from Lamentations 3:22-25, which spoke of “the Lord’s great love,” his “never failing compassion,” his “great faithfulness,” and his “goodness to those whose hope is in him…” Second, the experiences of God’s people in this story are a mirror in which we can see ourselves. And third, there is a promise. God’s promise to us that he cannot be anything other than what he has always been. He will journey alongside us through the good times and the bad. Jesus said, “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world” (John 16:33).
Neil Percival
If only fixing every problem in life was that easy? Google the problem and follow a series if simple steps to fix it. A lot of people have made money by writing self-help books on this basic premise. Now if you’ve read other things I’ve written, you’re probably expecting me to say that we should turn to the bible to find the solutions to life’s problems. But I’m not, because the bible is not a self-help book. The bible is, if anything, realistic, and there are no easy steps to a better life.
What we find in the bible is actually a story, the story of God’s relationship with his people as he journeys alongside them in the good times and the bad. First and foremost, it shows us what God is like. At a funeral the other day I read from Lamentations 3:22-25, which spoke of “the Lord’s great love,” his “never failing compassion,” his “great faithfulness,” and his “goodness to those whose hope is in him…” Second, the experiences of God’s people in this story are a mirror in which we can see ourselves. And third, there is a promise. God’s promise to us that he cannot be anything other than what he has always been. He will journey alongside us through the good times and the bad. Jesus said, “In this world you will have trouble. But take heart! I have overcome the world” (John 16:33).
Neil Percival