I remember when I first realized the whole Bible—particularly the Old Testament—is about Jesus. I had just read the Jesus Storybook Bible and was astonished to discover all stories point to Jesus.
Since then, I have learned that missing Jesus as the point of the Bible is a common phenomenon among Christians. And this is dangerous since misreading the Bible leads to misinterpretation, which results in misapplication. Therefore, Ben Connelly wrote Reading the Bible, Missing the Gospel: Recovering From (Shockingly Common) Ways We Get the Bible Wrong in Our Everyday Lives.
He says, “But even if we don’t realize it, many earnest followers of Jesus see the words of the Bible through the wrong lens…and the danger is greater than just giving us a headache: these wrong lenses lead us to miss the very heart of the Bible altogether and thus misinform various aspects of our walk with God, our relationships with others, and our everyday lives.”
The book has two main parts. In part one, “Spiritual Eye Exam,” Connelly explains the symptoms and remedy of missing the gospel while reading the Bible. And in part two, titled “Learning to See Clearly,” Connelly explores six examples of well-known verses and details how we commonly misunderstand or misapply them.
Reading the Bible Missing the Gospel is easy to read, biblical, and practical. However, I found the title slightly misleading. I expected this book to focus on biblical hermeneutics with detailed steps for reading the Bible correctly. But the instruction was light, and most of the book focused on select examples of misunderstood verses.
As for the content, I did not agree with some of the author’s claims. For instance, in part one, Connelly lists various lenses through which we can read the Bible. These are theology, historical, moral, devotional, and rules. He says these ways focus “on the words of the text but miss the true Word.” Instead, we must read the Bible considering Jesus’s life, death, resurrection, and reign. I agree that reading the Bible in light of the gospel is critical, but I don’t think it is mutually exclusive to the other lenses. Particularly the theology and historical ones, as this helps us interpret the text correctly so we can understand it in light of the gospel.
Another point where I am unsure I agree with the author is on asking forgiveness. I frequently ask for forgiveness for my sins, and I was interested in learning why it may not be biblical. Connelly states there are no examples or commands to ask God for repeated forgiveness in the New Testament after the resurrection. And he says not even the Lord’s prayer counts because Jesus gave this instruction before the resurrection; hence, it is a petition for God’s initial forgiveness (as in justification).
I am not sure what to make of this statement. Jesus started the prayer with “Our Father,” which implies it is for believers. It is for people who are already forgiven through Christ by looking either forward or backward to the cross. Furthermore, I always understood that this petition for forgiveness was related to our intimate relationship with God, not our standing. I will have to study this issue more.
Overall, Reading the Bible Missing the Gospel is a good book. It features a lot of helpful information about the story of the Bible and additional tips on Bible study that would mostly suit a new believer. But I did not really enjoy reading it and learned little from it.
Moody publishers graciously gave me a copy, and this is my honest review.
