Have you tried assembling a puzzle without looking at the picture on the box? An individual piece might be colorful, but it’s not meant to stand on its own. Corner and edge pieces give you clues about their location, but others require study and comparison to get them into the right spot.
Individual stories from Scripture are like these single puzzle pieces. They look interesting, but their purpose may not be immediately clear. Only when we see them in their rightful place can we better see and understand God’s big picture.
The Bible tells a unified story
While working as the kids’ curriculum coordinator at a church in Dallas, I led the team in creating a Bible timeline to help kids see how the smaller stories fit into God’s one big, true story. It also helped us, as teachers, to remember how the whole story fits together and point those we taught to the main character of even the smallest stories: God.
Scripture is not an anthology of disjointed myths. Rather, as the Bible Project says, the Bible is “a unified story that leads to Jesus.”
God set each story in its place for a particular reason: the fun, exciting ones, like the parting of the Red Sea in Exodus 14, as well as the tragic ones, like David’s sin involving Bathsheba and Uriah in 2 Samuel 11. Skipping over stories just because they might be difficult for us to teach leaves kids with an incomplete picture of the Bible, like a puzzle with a missing piece.
God’s Word is not PG-rated, but that does not mean we must give kids every gory detail in adult-rated stories. When teaching complicated passages, the level of detail given to different age groups will vary. You can share Scripture with kids in a way that is simple but not watered down. Core truths can still be taught to any audience.
Teaching kids an idealized version of David’s life, that he killed Goliath as a boy who went on to rule as Israel’s favorite king, makes him sound like a superhero. However, he was a sinner like the rest of us and needed God just as much. God is the hero of David’s story, not David.
Seeing God’s heart through flawed people
As we teach the full story of Scripture to kids, they get to know the God of the Bible, his character, and his unconditional love. Imperfect people fill the pages of the biblical narrative, like Abraham, Judah, Rahab, Jeremiah, and Esther, but God chose to include them in his unfolding story. Jesus’ own disciples repeatedly misunderstood him, but he still used them to start his church and spread the gospel.
God’s interactions with these men and women reveal his heart for us, too. Grounding kids in this truth at a young age gives them a foundation to stand on when their lives hit storms and their own flesh fights against them. No one is too far gone for God to use.
Moses killed a man and struggled with anger, but God used him to shepherd Israel. Despite Samson’s womanizing and irreverence, God gave him the strength to destroy his enemies and preserved his name in the “Hall of Faith” of Hebrews 11. Mary Magdalene was possessed by demons, but she became the first witness to Jesus’ resurrection and was given the task of telling the others.
If we shy away from the dark parts of these people’s stories, we risk giving kids the impression that people who follow God never make mistakes. It might cause them to question if God loves them or if he will reject them because of something they did.
However, the big, true story we see in Scripture highlights God’s mercy and grace while not shying away from the severity of sin. Learning how God moves through flawed humans offers kids the freedom to rest in his works rather than their own. Obedience becomes a response to his love, not a way to try and earn it.
Equipping kids for future trials
The God revealed in the Bible is the very same God active in world events today. Teaching kids the full story of Scripture shows how he works in and through the events that seem chaotic to us but are really part of his plan. He is bigger than anything that happens and remains securely in charge of it all.
Ecclesiastes 1:9 states that there is nothing new under the sun… and that was written over 2,500 years ago! Injustice, ungodly leaders, wars, natural disasters, cultural conflicts, and interpersonal strife run throughout human history.
The story of Scripture shows how God remains sovereign over poor leadership, like Saul and Caesar. He used international conflicts, such as the Babylonian conquest, for his purposes.
We may not understand his reasons for current events, but we can trust the God of the Bible who remains forever faithful to his people.
The biblical narrative also reveals God’s longing for his people to stand out and be a light to the world that opposes them. Jesus promised his followers they would experience suffering in this world, but reminded them that he had overcome it (John 16:33). The leaders, parents, and culture creators of tomorrow are looking up to you today, and Scripture offers stories that speak to what they might encounter in the future.
The Lord comforted Elijah when he thought he was the only faithful follower of God left in Israel. The Holy Spirit empowered Peter and John to speak truth to an antagonistic audience and strengthened Paul in prison. That very same Spirit remains alive and active in believers today!
When God says “Remember”
Throughout his story, God repeatedly tells his people to remember:
Teaching the full story of Scripture reminds us who God is, what he has done, what he is doing, and what he will do, while passing those truths on to the next generation. Ask the Lord for discernment to know how you might help put the puzzle pieces together for the kids under your care so they can better see God and his one big, true story.
Denison Forum
