Permission must be obtained from the copyright holder for any other purpose, or for multiple copies.
13 – Who’s who?
IF our normal pattern of conversation is anything to go by, we are interested in people: who they are, who they are related to and what they are really like. You soon learn, when conversing with Christadelphians not to say anything untoward about anyone: you’re probably talking to a relative!
It was the same in Bible times: people were often closely related, and that was sometimes the reason why things happened, or didn’t happen. David strongly disapproved of Joab’s behaviour, but he took no effective action to remove him, for they were cousins. Have you wondered why Titus is never mentioned in the Book of Acts, although we know from the epistles that he was present? Perhaps he and Luke were brothers; some even think that Titus and Luke are different names for the same person!
Character traits
The Bible is a library of books all about people and that is what makes it so fascinating and instructive. We would soon get tired of reading lists of commandments, or recitals of national history. It can be hard to relate them to our own lives. Think what it would be like if we had forty two chapters of philosophical musing about suffering. Instead we have the Book of Job: a ‘no-holds-barred’ argument between five self-opinionated men, with God Himself having the last word. So, if God, in His infinite wisdom, determined that we should learn about life by examining the experiences of others, we should take full advantage of the opportunity.
We can talk about Bible people, of course, and learn from one another in the process; many of our exhortations and Bible Classes do just that. Or we can read about them, and compare our own impressions with the views of others. That’s why newspapers and magazines sell: because people like to know ‘the inside story’, even if it is mainly made up. Biblical biographies might be speculative at times, but the good ones will include a careful analysis of the text, and offer the writer’s own assessment of the ‘whys and wherefores’ of a particular situation.
Easy way in
If you have been waiting for the opportunity to read something that will help you with your life in Christ, but didn’t know quite where to start, character studies are the ideal opportunity. And there is no better time than when we’re reading the Book of Genesis. There are excellent Christadelphian books about Abraham, Jacob and Joseph and, if you can finish those during January, you will be ready for Moses My Servant and a cluster of others over the rest of the year. Brother Maurice Beale’s book Joshua: His Life and Work also contains a detailed commentary on the Book of Joshua; Brother Michael Ashton’s Samuel the Seer does the same thing with the Books of Samuel; while his Chronicles of the Kings contains some very helpful character sketches, as it progresses through the two Bible books in question.
The kings come in for detailed treatment, too. Brother Harry Tennant’s The Man David is supplemented by Brother Roy Standeven’s The Warrior Tamed, and Brother Harry Whittaker’s Samuel, Saul and David. A recent book has been published on Solomon – Wise and Foolish (details on the inside front cover), and another new one by Brother Stephen Palmer on Josiah and his Children (advertised in last month’s magazine).
That is by no means an exhaustive list of books about Old Testament characters. There are books by Christadelphian authors about Ruth, Elijah, Elisha, Hezekiah, and many more. There are also collections of character studies, like Women of the Bible, a picture gallery of forty different women written by present-day sisters, who take a sympathetic and insightful view of those from ages past, who shared the same hope. As always with this series, the Christadelphian website has much more information about what is available.
New Testament opportunities
In pole position for the New Testament is A Life of Jesus written by Brother Melva Purkis in 1953, and now reprinted in a very attractive format. This is an ideal gift for the newly baptized brother or sister, but you should never give something you haven’t read yourself! There is Brother Alfred Norris’ Peter: Fisher of Men and Brother W. H. Boulton’s Paul the Apostle, which balances things up between the two apostles: just as Luke does in the Acts of the Apostles!
Judging from The Christadelphian booklist, it seems that less attention has been given by our authors to New Testament characters, perhaps because we have concentrated more on its teaching and exposition. But there are plenty of non-Christadelphian studies to help out, provided you read them carefully and are ready to take a different view occasionally.
William Barclay and F. F. Bruce have been mentioned earlier and they have both written useful books, like Barclay’s The Master’s Men and Bruce’s The Pauline Circle, and other works he wrote about the Apostle Paul. Writers like F. B. Meyer were once much read by brothers and sisters, for they specialised in character studies. And there are several series of books, like those by Alexander Whyte, which deal with all the Bible characters you can think of, and others besides!
Give the situation a little careful thought and you could be accompanied by a different Bible character all through the year, and be all the better for it. Why delve into the life of a worldly politician, or worry about celebrity gossip or their persistent tantrums? We could be learning instead about the life experiences of people with whom we are hoping to spend eternity, by the grace of God.
