The Biblical Use of Narrative and the Benefits of its Inclusion as the Primary Method of Instruction for Adult Converts to the Christian Faith

Abstract

The Bible is essentially one grand story focused on Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who lived a perfect life and gave himself into death for the sins of the world. It is not incidental that as God told salvation’s story he delicately wove its fabric with the threads of human experience so that fallen man could identify with his holy maker. It is also no accident that God chose to give narratives center place in his Spirit-wrought Word; good stories resonate with the intellectual and emotional faculties of man. Modern scholarship has come to realize this fact in the secular realm and a great deal has been written championing the merits of narratives in instruction, particularly by those in the constructivist school of thought. Although some tenets of constructivism must be rejected by Christians, there is a natural synthesis between narrative teaching and the concept of active knowledge construction. Thus, it is imperative that a basic Bible instruction curriculum be created that uses narratives as the basis of instruction, which has the added benefit of counteracting the effects of biblical illiteracy in America. This thesis project has undertaken to design such a course that traces the promise of the Savior though the ages, using Bible stories as the primary tool for instruction, while at the same time creating an inductive organizational structure that allows learners to gradually grow in their knowledge and understanding of God and his plan of salvation.