READ: PSALM 19:9-10; JOHN 1:1-5, 15; LUKE 4:14-21; HEBREWS 4:12

Of all the things I learned at Bible college, the most important thing I learned was from Dr. Kroeze. In every class, Dr. Kroeze’s excitement for the Bible was contagious. As he talked about the Scriptures, he would bounce up and down on his toes, close his eyes and gesture with his hands, and sometimes take off his glasses and spin them. Most classes ended a bit late because he never wanted to skip any detail. In fact, he got so caught up in teaching the Word that he’d never have time to finish everything he wanted to cover. I don’t think we ever completed the syllabus. But that’s okay, because the most important thing Dr. Kroeze taught me was how to love the Bible. He spoke with such wonder, affection, and excitement about Scripture that I couldn’t help but fall in love with it.

If you’ve grown up in the church, it’s easy for the stories in the Bible to become just that—stories. We can forget that these were real things that happened to real people engaging with a real God. But when we approach Scripture with childlike wonder and curiosity, letting ourselves get swept up in the drama of the story instead of only ever pursuing the exact correct theological interpretation of every little detail, we get a fresh taste of who God is.

Don’t get me wrong—I love theology! And pursuing solid Biblical interpretation and sound doctrine are vital to the Christian faith. But sometimes we get so bogged down in the details that we miss the beauty of the larger story. We miss out on beholding the divine mystery of grace. Scripture tells the story of God’s ridiculous, never-ending love for us, and His pursuit of His people through hundreds of generations. This pursuit culminates in God taking on human flesh in Jesus, walking among the people He’d been pursuing for thousands of years, teaching them the true meaning of the Scriptures they had been studying for generations, embodying God’s own presence with them, then being killed by Jewish authorities on a Roman cross, only to resurrect from the dead three days later and then ascend into heaven. All because He loves us.

I think that’s what made Dr. Kroeze fall in love with the Bible. It tells the story of Jesus, who loves us enough to lay down His life for us, who is powerful enough to rise from the dead, and who promises to raise us from the dead and give us eternal life when He returns. And that’s a story worth listening to. • Taylor Eising

• What part of the Bible captivates your attention? Why is that?

“Heaven and earth will pass away, but my [Jesus’s] words will never pass away.” Matthew 24:35 (NIV)