The Bible is the cornerstone of
Christianity, but a lot of Christians even, may not have a good big
picture idea of the entire book. That is where “A Brief Survey of
the Bible” by John Walton and Mark Strauss can help. The book has
an accompanying DVD with videos enough for 14 weeks of lessons to
give students a good overall view of the scriptures.
Walton is a professor of Old Testament
at Wheaton College, and Strauss is a professor of New Testament at
Bethel Seminary in San Diego.
This resource would be best used by
groups, but an individual might profit from reading the book to get
an overall picture.
The writers give a good synopsis of
each book, as well as some cultural and historical information, that
will make the books of the bible more interesting for those that may
not be as familiar.
Another valuable part of this book and
video series is that it shows how the Bible fits together. It gives
readers an idea of how the books relate to each other, offering
glimpses into key events, characters and themes of the bible. There
is good information about why they were written and these kinds of
things that help develop a better understanding.
There are study questions, as well as
discussion questions, that will help a small group enjoy the study.
The videos are well done and present a good bit of information.
The series starts with an introduction,
and then the next 13 weeks are spent going over a section of the
bible. It does not delve a lot into content simply because it is a 14
week long series. But it might give students a taste and pique an
interest in further bible study.
The authors also pick key texts for the
students to read each week, and will help give a taste for each of
the individual books of the bible.
The series is at the adult level and
would also be great for a new believers class in a church.
