Biblical Metanarrative
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Biblical Metanarrative
Christopher Moore
Liberty University
THEO 104 – B29
Mr. Thomas Spotts, Professor
September 3, 2020
Biblical Metanarrative
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Biblical Metanarrative
The Bible is a diverse collection of 66 books written in the times, context, and culture of
the individual authors. God’s Divine inspiration runs through the entirety of the Bible, telling His
story and revealing his plan through the metanarrative. Supported by the scriptures, the
metanarrative unifies all the books through various themes and doctrines, binding events, and
people from beginning to end. The themes of grace and redemption permeate every aspect of the
metanarrative, from creation through new creation. This demonstration of His plan for
humankind is a beautiful story, fully realized by a powerful, loving, and amazing God.
Throughout the Bible, there is an overarching lager story unfolding through the
extraordinary will of God. This larger story is what is called the metanarrative. A metanarrative
is a comprehensive, wide-ranging story in which humanity sees God at work (Small & Etzel,
2016). It is like a canopy spread over humanity, binding His creation together. (Etzel &
Gutierrez, 2014). Consisting of four parts, creation, fall, redemption, and new creation, the
metanarrative is God’s story and His plan for humanity. From the beginning of The Old
Testament in Genesis through the end of The New Testament in Revelation, His grace and His
redemption can be seen intricately woven throughout scriptures with a deft hand. All four
sections of the metanarrative are crucial to understanding His plan and promise of what is still to
come. The Bible is a treasure, and the metanarrative is a gift given to us to provide hope in a
sincere act of love for His creation.
Though there are several books of the Bible and they are all different in their way, they
all address aspects of creation, fall, redemption, and new creation put forth by the metanarrative.
They tell of God’s grace and his love for all creation, even those that would deny Him. God’s
grace is evident in our every day, and without it, salvation would not be possible. God
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understood, even before creation, that humanity would need to be redeemed as we are incapable
of being perfect and without sin. The grace of God shines time and time again throughout the
Bible. There are many stories of God’s grace pouring out in the form of forgiving sins. Paul tells
us plainly where our salvation comes from in Ephesians, “For by grace you have been saved
through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that
no one may boast. (Eph 2:8-9, ESV) God’s grace was there during creation with the gift of life. It
was there in the fall when He covered them in animal skin to protect them. Grace is there, nailed
to a cross for our redemption. And it is there in the hope and promise of the new creation.
Just like grace, redemption unifies the Bible as well. God knew how important
redemption would be to telling his story and the role His Son would have to play in bringing said
redemption to the world. And because He is all-knowing, His plan was put into place well before
creation. “The Lord possessed me at the beginning of his work, the first of his acts of old. Ages
ago I was set up, at the first, before the beginning of the earth.” (Prov 8:22-23, ESV). God
desires for us to be redeemed so that he may commune with us as he did with Adam at the
beginning, but after the fall, that wasn’t possible without a divine redemption planned by God.
We see this plan, and the redemptive nature of God ultimately perfected and reflected in the life
and death of Christ. “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever
believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the
world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.” (John
3:16-17, ESV). Redemption is also found in the formation of a new heaven and a new earth, and
knowing that we will be there with our God, in perfect unison and communion.
God’s plan, His grace, His redemptive nature, and His overwhelming love for us reveals
itself to us in the beauty that is the metanarrative of the Holy Bible. So much more than a
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collection of books, but instead a unified, cohesive plan and story written by God Himself. The
unification of scripture, the demonstration love and redemption for us on the cross, and his
ultimate goal to bring us all to dwell with Him in the new heaven and the new earth is proof of
His providence. His story plays out in the metanarrative of the Bible, so carry that knowledge
with you because it also plays out in your life every day.
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References
Small, R. & Etzel, G. (2016). Everyday Theology. B&H Publishing Group. Retrieved from
https://app.wordsearchbible.com.
Etzel, G. & Gutierrez, B. (2014). Theology Applied. B&H Publishing Group. Retrieved from
https://app.wordsearchbible.com.
Crossway Bibles. (2007). ESV: Study Bible: English standard version. Wheaton, Ill:
Crossway Bibles.
