The words of life
A teenage shepherd who slew a giant and become a king, a prostitute who helped win a battle and become a national hero, an orphan girl who grew up to be a queen on the largest empire that ever existed, a prince who left it all for the sake of the oppressed. A man who worked for seven years to the father his lover to marry her. An immigrant woman who became respected in a foreign land, married the most eligible bachelor in town and became an ancestor to King David and Jesus, the Messiah, a teenager sold into slavery by his brothers who became a prince of a foreign nation. Yes, it all looks like stories from Hollywood and Disney, but they adopted them all from the Bible. The Bible is full of mini biographies of men and women whom we could learn a lot from. It has stories of joy and sorrow, love and hate, poverty and riches, not to mention the mundane and adventurous.
It has proverbs that show you how to live the best life imaginable. There are more than 150 songs and poems that are raw, joyful, and filled with emotions that express what we all are going through. Starting from creation, the Bible includes events and issues such as the Flood, the tectonic plates, governance, medicine, microbiology, ecology, immigration laws, human rights, workers rights, and many other things that are beneficial for a peaceful and prosperous life.
Importance
The Bible is the most valuable, motivating, faith-igniting and encouraging book ever. It has been the bestseller since records began. Therefore, they are not bothered to put it into the bestselling book charts. It is out of the league of books written by men. Several bestselling books and movies have been written based on just one Bible verse or story. It is a must-read for literature students and a reference book for the archaeologist.
When we want to know about a person or a thing, the first thing we do is either ask or read about them. Even better: if you have the chance to talk to them yourself, you will be able to make your decision based on your own experience rather than others. Usually, we start with something that is written about them. If they have an autobiography, we will read it to gain more insight into their life. The same rule applies when it comes to God. Thus, start with the Bible.
The Bible contains 66 books: 39 in the Old Testament that we share with Judaism, which were written before the birth of Jesus Christ, and 27 in the New Testament that are unique to Christianity. The New Testament was written after the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, whereas the first five books of the Bible were written to chronicle the first 1,400 years of human history and relationship with God.
The Torah, the five books of Moses, was written 1,400 years after creation, which makes sense. Before that they lived as they liked without rules or laws. There were not enough people to write about our history with God so we can learn his ways and how to relate to Him. And it was not too late in history where people couldn’t know how to live or not know the expectations of God. Thus, the Torah records the creation story and what followed until the release of the Israelites who just came out of 430 years of slavery. The rest of the book contains the Law and outlines the rewards of following it and the punishments for disobedience.
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