In this episode of Help Me Teach the Bible, Lane Tipton (associate professor of systematic theology at Westminster Theological Seminary) helps us understand the goal of God’s creation that drives the whole story of Scripture and provides an anchor for teaching every part of the Bible. Tipton defines the unifying theme of the entire Bible this way: “God, from the standpoint of creation forward, is seeking to confer himself in a bond of communion upon a holy people, in a holy realm, through a perfectly obedient federal head.”
Tipton proceeds to explains: “In the Garden of Eden, God was looking to advance Adam and Eve beyond probation, beyond the threat of death, beyond the conflict with the serpent to confirmed righteousness and holiness and into sabbath rest.”
Here are some additional audio resources you may find helpful on teaching the Bible’s central theme:
- Covenant History and the Tale of Three Sons by Lane Tipton at Reformed Forum
- The God Who Is There by D. A. Carson
For further study, here are some books you may find helpful, including titles from Crossway, the sponsor of Help Me Teach the Bible:
- The Son of God and the New Creation (Short Studies in Biblical Theology) by Graeme Goldsworthy
- The Goldsworthy Trilogy by Graeme Goldsworthy
Subscribe to this podcast in iTunes or on other devices to get this and subsequent interviews in the Help Me Teach the Bible series with Nancy Guthrie. Help Me Teach the Bible is now available on Stitcher.
Free eBook by Tim Keller: ‘The Freedom of Self-Forgetfulness’
Imagine a life where you don’t feel inadequate, easily offended, desperate to prove yourself, or endlessly preoccupied with how you look to others. Imagine relishing, not resenting, the success of others. Living this way isn’t far-fetched. It’s actually guaranteed to believers, as they learn to receive God’s approval, rather than striving to earn it.
In Tim Keller’s short ebook, The Freedom of Self-Forgetfulness: The Path To True Christian Joy, he explains how to overcome the toxic tendencies of our age一not by diluting biblical truth or denying our differences一but by rooting our identity in Christ.
TGC is offering this Keller resource for free, so you can discover the “blessed rest” that only self-forgetfulness brings.
