3. READ THE HOLY BIBLE CHRIST CENTRICALLY
and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel
Christ Jesus is the center of the Holy Bible. He is the subject of God’s redemption. He is both the subject and the object of God’s Work. The ‘first Gospel’ proclamation by God Himself makes it unmistakably clear that His Son is the “Seed of the woman”, ‘Satan’s head crusher’ and the sinless substitute, who is the Sacrifice of God to redeem mankind.
In fact He and His work are inseparable and that is what Salvation is. His identity reveals His work. Many facts are explicitly stated in this first prophecy about the Lord Jesus Christ. I’m offering a few that I found in this verse, a. The offspring will be a ‘virgin born’, b. The Seed will be a ‘male’, c. The Seed is a ‘singular person’, d. The inseparableness of God and the Seed (“I will put enmity….. He shall bruise your head”). See the correlation between God initiating this battle and the ‘Seed of the woman’ accomplishing this task. He must be a human to be the ‘Seed of the woman’, yet at the same time, He must be above the fallen angel to judge him, hinting at the divinity and humanity of Jesus Christ.
The crux of His identity is revealed in the cross, since on the cross both the ‘bruising of his heel’ and the fatal blow to the enemy of ‘bruising his head’ took place. While bearing the wrath of God on one side, on the other He rescued us from the eternal wrath of God. Hence the cross of the Lord Jesus Christ is prophesied, anticipated and indicated in the OT and perfectly accomplished whereby completing the work of salvation in the NT.
This verse is the OT’s anticipation of the Lord Jesus Christ and His work. The Lord Jesus Christ understood, interpreted and preached the Holy Bible in the same manner and so did the Apostles. The following verses provide the proof:
Luke 24:25-27 - And he (the Lord Jesus Christ) said to them, “O foolish ones, and slow of heart to believe all that the prophets have spoken! Was it not necessary that the Christ should suffer these things and enter into his glory?” And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.
Acts 2:23-24 - this Jesus, delivered up according to the definite plan and foreknowledge of God, you crucified and killed by the hands of lawless men. God raised him up, loosing the pangs of death, because it was not possible for him to be held by it.
To read the Holy Bible and not see the Son of God is like enjoying the sunlight everyday and not knowing that the Sun exists.
4. READ THE HOLY BIBLE END CENTRICALLY
and between your offspring and her offspring; he shall bruise your head, and you shall bruise his heel
The words in the first prophecy anticipate a time in history when the salvation of the Lord will come to fruition. This presents a timeline to follow and to use as a trajectory to consider while studying the Holy Bible.
History as a whole can neatly be divided into two halves. The first being a preparation for the first coming of the Lord Jesus Christ as the God-Man as the Savior of mankind and the second half as a preparation for the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ as the Groom of the Church and the Judge of the world. Consider the following verses:
Revelation 13:8 - All inhabitants of the earth will worship the beast—all whose names have not been written in the Lamb’s book of life, the Lamb who was slain from the creation of the world.
Galatians 4:4 -But when the fullness of time had come, God sent forth his Son, born of woman, born under the law,
Revelation 1:1-3 - The revelation of Jesus Christ, which God gave him to show to his servants the things that must soon take place. He made it known by sending his angel to his servant John, 2 who bore witness to the word of God and to the testimony of Jesus Christ, even to all that he saw. 3 Blessed is the one who reads aloud the words of this prophecy, and blessed are those who hear, and who keep what is written in it, for the time is near.
“The Lamb (the Lord Jesus Christ) was slain from the (before the) creation of the world”, but was born “when the fullness of time had come”. And now we await a time when He will come back to receive those who received Him as their Savior and Lord and punish those who rejected His offer of forgiveness and eternal life.
In the first coming of the Lord Jesus Christ and His work on the cross, both the salvation of mankind and the judgment of Satan took place. Now it is the time for people to repent of their sins and receive forgiveness and eternal life in His Name. The final application of this salvation happens when He returns to redeem those who received Him to be with Him forever and also to judge the enemy by casting him into the eternal lake of fire along with those who reject Him.
This theological timeline is seen throughout the Holy Bible. This is how both the prophets in the OT and the Apostles in the NT wrote and applied the Scripture to themselves and the believers.
Therefore, when you read the Holy Bible, based on where you are in your study, seek to understand the timeline and read it with the ‘end’ in mind.
5. READ THE HOLY BIBLE MAN CENTRICALLY
Although only the first set of human beings were the audience when Gospel was proclaimed for the first time in Genesis. 3:15. The whole of humanity is a recipient of this Gospel.
Beyond any shadow of doubt these following verses make it clear that the Gospel is for humanity as a whole.
Romans 5:12 - Therefore, just as sin came into the world through one man, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men because all sinned
Romans 3:23 - for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God,
Revelation 20:15 - And if anyone's name was not found written in the book of life, he was thrown into the lake of fire.
Romans 6:23 - For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Acts 4:12 - And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”
John 20:31 - but these are written so that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that by believing you may have life in his name.
2 Peter 1:3-5 -His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence, by which he has granted to us his precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire.
Do you want to know what God intends to speak to you? Then know for sure that He wants you to know that He loves you and has planned and accomplished His glorious salvation in His Son long before you and I were even born.
The Holy Bible is addressed to you. You are God’s special and only recipient of this message. Read it with yourself as the centre, while Christ and His salvation as God’s main message for you.
6. READ THE HOLY BIBLE GOD’S GLORY AS THE CENTER
This can never be overstated, it may at best be understated. God, the Creator and Redeemer of man does all things for His own glory. Creation displays the glory of God, Christ is the glory of God. “In the first act of creation we see His hand, in the second we see His heart”, as someone said.
That is why the Holy Bible says:
Colossians 1:16 - For by him all things were created, in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or dominions or rulers or authorities-all things were created through him and for him.
And His glory is the reason for it all:
Romans 11:36 - For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen.
He is the center of Heavens worship:
Revelation 4:11 - "Worthy are you, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things, and by your will they existed and were created."
Dear reader, you are given, life, breath and everything else (Acts 17:25) so that you would reach out to the Holy Bible and read the good news of everlasting life in Jesus Christ. God’s desire is that you may know His Son and enjoy His glory forever. Your journey begins here, by knowing how to study and apply God’s Word to your life. To neglect it, is to neglect your eternity, beware!
May the Lord help you to study the Holy Bible the way He intends it to be studied.
By Cyril Nehemiah