Why We Need to Share the Story of the Bible

A favorite hymn from my childhood is I Love to Tell the Story by Katherine Hankey. That hymn is listed under the category of “Service and Zeal” on page 100 of my grandmother’s one-hundred-year-old, green, paperback hymnal. 

I love to tell the story of unseen things above, 
Of Jesus and His glory, Of Jesus and His love, 
I love to tell the story, Because I know ‘tis true, 
It satisfies my longings, As nothing else can do. 

As a child, I was taught the Bible in Sunday School. Jesus wept (John 11:35) was an easy Scripture passage to memorize. We tried to understand His weeping; to a child, those tears could have meant pain, loss, or sorrow. It wasn’t until I became an adult Bible student, however, that I realized more of Jesus: His empathy, His compassion, and His love for man. His tears were real. His tears were recorded for a reason. His tears could have been for any number of those expressions. But through reading, studying, and praying, my “longings” are satisfied in knowing that our Father’s Love is deep and it is a story I love to tell. 

Stories are a gift from God. And I can use my imagination when reading these stories. We no longer have the Garden of Eden but I can imagine the story of Adam and Eve. The sights, sounds, tastes, and temperature of the Garden of Eden where Adam and Eve conversed with God come alive to me. Eve did not seem surprised when a snake spoke to her! How did she want “more” than that perfect garden where God was so close to them? Suddenly, I can relate to my own sin, and how I so often look beyond God’s perfection to try to find life. 

In 1 Samuel 25, I can hear the pounding of the 1,600 horse’s hooves echoing through the mountain ravine as David and his 400 men rode on a revenge mission. Abigail and a few of her servants set out with fresh bread, wine, prepared mutton, roasted grain, raisins, figs, and a determination to stop David from ruining his life. Brave, wise Abigail quickly assessed the situation and became a peacemaker using the resources she had. 

I envisioned a new room, the Shunammite Lady of II Kings designed for Elisha so that he would have a place to stay in Shunem. That “Better Homes and Gardens” room had hand-woven rugs and bed coverings. When Elisha gave the sun-stroked son of the Shunammite woman mouth-to-mouth resuscitation, I heard every one of those three sneezes that little boy sneezed when he came back to life, and I felt a mother’s deep joy at the sound of those precious sneezes. 

Sarah, Lot’s Wife, Rachel, Leah, Jezebel, Bathsheba, and even Gomer… women who had emotions of love, fear, hope, envy, jealousy, and restoration. Abraham, Joseph, David, Jeremiah... men who led, failed, loved the Lord, and are real, relatable. The Word never grows old; these men and women from the past become “new” in 2022 when I realize how God wants to be “found” in our failings so that we can “own” His Attributes: He already knows (Omniscient), He is still in charge (Omnipotent) and He will never leave us (Omnipresent). 

One of the many fantastic stories of “Jesus and His love” is found in John 4: the story of the woman at the well. No respectable God-fearing Jewish man or especially a rabbi would dare to even look at a Samaritan, let alone speak with a Samaritan woman… and in broad daylight. 

This woman came alone; she was most likely rejected in her village. I can still hear the grit of her sandals and feel the heat of the Noon Day sun as she walked alone to that well. I see her avoiding eye contact with Jesus, a lone Jewish man whom she assumed despised her. She was thirsty in many ways and my heart still beats a little faster every time I read this account of Jesus’ words to her. 

Jesus waited. Did Jesus’ eyes sparkle when He anticipated what He was about to tell this rejected woman? He knew she was thirsty for “the spring of water welling up to eternal life.” Thirst. Waiting. The grit of sandals. Anticipation of Truth being revealed. An ordinary woman going about an ordinary job. An extraordinary story. 

In John 4:25, the woman told Jesus, “I know that Messiah, (called Christ) is coming. When he comes, he will explain everything to us.” Did Jesus pause after that? Did He smile and look up to Heaven? Did He lean in a little across that well so that she could hear Him say, “I who speak to you am He.” Did the woman’s eyes open wide? Did she let the bucket fall down the well? I love to tell this story. 

The third verse of the hymn: 

I love to tell the story; ‘Tis pleasant to repeat. 
What seems each time I tell it, More wonderfully sweet, 
I love to tell the story; For some have never heard 
The message of salvation From God’s own holy word. 

Why is this hymn listed in the old hymnal under “Service and Zeal”? It is because we are wired for stories - to hear and to retell with fervor (zeal?) how the words and stories of the Bible have impacted our lives. It is our duty (service?) to repeat stories to the next generation of the God Who saves. 

Living as boldly as Abigail, as creatively as the Shunammite and as in awe of Jesus as the woman at the well. When we come to realize that Jesus is the only One who “satisfies our longings, as nothing else can do”, our God-centered conversations and new lives in Him will retell “the message of salvation from God’s own holy word.”