Biblical Metanarrative Essay Assignment (1)
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Apr 3, 2024
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Uploaded by GeneralGalaxy718
Kristen Phillips
Professor Davis
Theology 104
31 August 2023
Biblical Metanarrative Essay Assignment
The Bible is composed of 66 books written by many different authors.
“The Bible affirms that both human authors and a divine author wrote the Bible” (Ben Gutierrez, page 27). It can all be connected by what is called the
biblical metanarrative. In similar terms, the overarching story that connects the smaller stories together. The four significant scenes of the biblical metanarrative are creation, fall, redemption, and new creation. The metanarrative of the Bible can help elaborate what God’s plan is for humanity, present and future. The Bible has more than stories; it contains life lessons and guidance for Christians on how they should live their lives. The first movement of the Bible is creation. “The first verse of the Bible sets the tone for the discussion on the creation of the world. Genesis 1:1 says, ‘In the beginning God created the heavens and the Earth’” (Ben Gutierrez, page 57). God then created light, separated the water from the Earth, created vegetation, formed the different seasons, and created animals. After He finished this work, He saw that all was good with the Earth. “So
God created man in his own image” (Gen 1:27). According to the Bible, this is the beginning of all humankind.
In the second movement of the Bible, we move to the fall. The first downfall of humankind was when Adam and Eve disobeyed God and ate the
forbidden fruit. The serpent in the garden introduced sin to Eve by convincing her to take the forbidden fruit. She then convinced Adam to follow her, introducing this sin to him. “Then the eyes of both were opened, and they knew that they were naked” (Gen 3:7). This event led to the knowledge of what is good and evil, along with the introduction of sin to humans. Redemption, the third movement, starts in the Old Testament with God’s promise to establish an eternal covenant for Abraham and his descendants. We first learn of this promise in Genesis 12:1-3. Many years later, God makes similar promises to Moses in Exodus 6:6-7. Through Moses He gives the law in which the world should follow by. Later, God made a similar promise to David. This story of redemption continues through the Old Testament to the New Testament with the story of Jesus Christ, which can also be seen as the climax of the redemption movement. Jesus gives Christians eternal life through him. “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me” (John 14:6).
God then gave His only son to the world so that anyone who believed in him
would not perish. They would live an eternal life (John 3:16). Humans can now redeem themselves through Jesus Christ and look forward to a life after death. The final movement, new creation, is revealed in Revelation 21-22. God promises to create a new heaven and a new earth, where pain and suffering will no longer be (Rev 21:1-4). This new earth is where God’s people will dwell for all of eternity. The metanarrative of the bible helps to foster a biblical worldview by answering the five main life questions of origin, identity, meaning, morality and destiny. Within the four major movements of the bible, these questions can easily be answered. Creation tells the story of how everything was created, including humans, which ansers the question of origin. During the fall, it is shown that humans are sinful. This helps shape our questions regarding identity. The redemption arch can help answer both meaning and morality. Through Christ it is shown that we have a purpose to serve God and live in obedience to His commands. Jesus also gives a set of guidelines to adhere by to help people better understand what is right and wrong. Finally the answers to questions about destiny come in the new creation.
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This is when God promises a new heaven and new earth for all of His people
to dwell in for eternity. Understanding creation, fall, redemption, and new creation helps to understand the Bible and how all the stories can be connected. The four major movements clearly give us an understanding and fosters a biblical worldview. Creation tells the story of origin. Fall gives us an identity. Creation brings meaning and morality through Christ. Finally, new creation gives a sense of destiny. These four movements “also gives us a way to see our place in the story” (“Understanding the Metanarrative” 6:39).
Works Cited
The Holy Bible: English Standard Version (Wheaton, IL: Crossway Bibles, 2016). Ben Gutierrez and Gabriel Etzel, Everyday Theology: Exploring the Christian Faith, (B&H Academic, 2016).
“Understanding the Metanarrative.” LU, uploaded by theo201m1understaning, 15 July 2019.