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We live in a world full of contrasts, with good and evil all around us, shaping our experiences. When a close friend suddenly passes away, it can turn our world upside down, leaving us feeling helpless. It’s natural to wonder whether this is how God meant things to be.
If we are to make sense of the world around us, with all its absurdity and evil, we need to see the big picture—a picture that enables us to make sense of life. Here is where the Bible becomes so vital. As God’s revelation to us, it offers a unique perspective on our world, a perspective that cannot be known through philosophy or science.
A unique collection of God-inspired writings, the Bible explains the root of our struggles and points us to the only lasting solution that can bring us true peace amid the chaos around us. The Bible tells a grand story that starts with the creation of our current world and looks forward to a new world to come. Most important, the inhabitants of this future world are those who, having lived through this present life, are redeemed by God to enjoy life in all its fullness in His glorious presence.
To grasp this big picture, we need to start with the creation of our present world. The opening chapter of Genesis highlights how God formed humans and honored them by giving them authority to rule the earth and all its creatures on His behalf. This authority was not a free pass to do as they pleased; it came from God, and humans were meant to act as His earthly representatives, establishing His rule over the entire planet. As humanity expanded in number, God intended that the whole world should become a sacred space, where He would live in harmony with those who love and serve Him.
God’s creation project faced a startling challenge. As described in Genesis 3, Adam and Eve made a heartbreaking mistake by trusting a mysterious serpent who cleverly tricked them into ignoring God’s instructions. Sadly, they betrayed the trust that God had placed in them to rule over other earthly creatures. Rather than ruling over the serpent, they listened to its subtle insinuations and were trapped by it. The human couple became its servants. No longer could they rule as God’s representatives on the earth. As a result, the serpent gained control of this world.
There is much that we do not know about this mysterious serpent. By gaining control over Adam and Eve, however, the serpent, later identified as “the devil and Satan” (Rev. 12:9; 20:2), became “the ruler of this world” (John 12:31; 14:30; 16:11). Because he exercised control over “all the kingdoms of the world,” he could offer them to Jesus as a bribe, hoping that, like Adam and Eve, Jesus would serve him (Matt. 4:8–9; Luke 4:5–7). Strikingly, whereas Adam and Eve yielded to the “serpent” in a garden abounding in food that God had lavishly provided, Jesus was tempted by the devil in a desolate wilderness where He had gone without food for forty days. Given the circumstances of the devil’s temptations, Jesus’ willingness to remain loyal to God is all the more noteworthy.
Despite being betrayed, God did not abandon Adam and Eve. He declared that the serpent would be subdued by one of Eve’s descendants (Gen. 3:15). This promise, known as the protoevangelium, is the first proclamation of the gospel. While Adam and Eve willingly sided with the serpent against God, one of Eve’s descendants would oppose it. Most important, Eve’s descendant would succeed where Adam and Eve had failed. He would, however, suffer while doing this, for the serpent would strike His heel.
In light of God’s promise regarding Eve’s descendant, Genesis traces the start of a unique family line, a patrilineage that ultimately leads to Jesus Christ. The story of this lineage begins in Genesis. Significantly, the Greek word genesis means “genealogy.” The whole of Genesis is an extended genealogy that leads to the Serpent-Slayer.
The early chapters of Genesis trace the patrilineage from Adam to Abraham. Despite the continued rebelliousness of humans, God remains committed to sending a Serpent-Slayer to deliver humanity from the devil’s control. Significantly, God forms a special covenant relationship with Abraham, promising that one of his descendants would serve as a faithful King, establishing God’s kingdom on the earth. As a sign of the covenant, God instructs Abraham to circumcise all the males in his household. The sign of circumcision points to the promised offspring of Eve, who will overcome the serpent. The promise that Abraham will be the spiritual father of many nations is linked to Isaac, whom Sarah will bear as a son to Abraham despite her old age.
The promises associated with the covenant of circumcision are passed down through the generations of Abraham’s family. God swears to Abraham that all the nations of the earth will be blessed through one of his descendants (Gen. 22:18). Isaac blesses Jacob, stating that nations will serve him and peoples will bow before him (27:29). Implicit in this promise is the expectation that the devil will no longer control these nations and peoples. In due course, Jacob pronounces a similar blessing on Judah and looks ahead to a future King who will receive “the obedience of the peoples” (49:10).
By anticipating the coming of a future King, who will defeat the serpent and bring God’s blessing to the nations, Genesis looks forward to the coming of Jesus Christ. Significantly, the patrilineage that begins in Genesis is subsequently linked to the Davidic dynasty (see Ruth 4:18–22). This connection is noteworthy because God guarantees David that his dynasty will last forever. While David falls short of being a perfect king, he looks forward in anticipation of God’s appointing a King who will rule with justice and righteousness. Psalm 72 is Solomon’s prayer for such a King. Among other things, Solomon requests that this King will rule over the whole earth:
May he have dominion from sea to sea,
and from the River to the ends of the earth! . . .
May all kings fall down before him,
all nations serve him! (Ps. 72:8, 11)
Remarkably, at the start of the New Testament, Matthew’s gospel begins by alluding to Old Testament expectations regarding a coming King: “The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the son of David, the son of Abraham” (Matt. 1:1). Having introduced Jesus as heir to the Davidic dynasty, Matthew proceeds to describe how Jesus is the promised King who has come to establish the kingdom of heaven. In numerous ways, Matthew portrays Jesus’ uniqueness as a King, highlighting especially His authority as both a teacher and a healer.
Not surprisingly, as the One who has come to establish God’s kingdom on earth, Jesus is not welcomed by everyone. The forces of evil conspire against Him. When He is eventually crucified, a sign on the cross mockingly declares, “This is Jesus, the King of the Jews” (27:37).
Yet Jesus’ sacrificial death is not the end of the story. Remarkably, Matthew’s gospel ends with the resurrected Jesus telling His disciples:
“All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” (28:18–20)
As people from all nations begin to live in obedience to Him, Jesus’ instructions anticipate the overthrow of the devil.
After His sacrificial death, resurrection, and ascension, Jesus enters the heavenly sanctuary to take His place at “the right hand of the Majesty on high” (Heb. 1:3). As the promised Serpent-Slayer, the enthroned Jesus awaits the end of the age, when He will return to complete the task of handing “the kingdom to God the Father after destroying every rule and every authority and power” (1 Cor. 15:24).
Beyond this, God will create new heavens and a new earth, where He will dwell in harmony with His people, “and God himself will be with them as their God” (Rev. 21:3). As the Bible reveals, through Jesus Christ, the promised descendant of Eve, God will ultimately enable the spiritual children of Abraham to enjoy His presence on a renewed earth (21:1–22:5).
As God’s response to the human predicament, Jesus Christ alone is the answer to all our personal and global problems. In two remarkable ways, He gives us unimaginable hope. To those who acknowledge Him as Lord and Savior, He offers the life-transforming gift of the Holy Spirit. All those who are born of the Spirit discover an inner healing that changes how they live their daily lives in the present.
In addition to affecting our present lives, Jesus offers hope for a glorious future life on a new earth devoid of evil. This resurrection hope transforms our perspective on the transience of the present. Death no longer fills us with dread and fear. We anticipate a better life to come.
When I am absorbed by my anxieties, disappointments, frustrations, and hurts, where is my hope? When I witness chaos and evil in the wider world, where does my hope for the future rest? In my career? In education? In good health? In politics? In relationships? In wealth? As the Bible reveals, our only true hope is found in Jesus Christ. He alone offers hope for this life and beyond.