What's In The Bible?
The Bible consists of 66 Books: The Old Testament the New Testament, written by 40 authors, before 4000B.C. & 95 A.D, and it teaches about Jesus Christ, the Son of God, who came to earth to save us from sin.
The Old Testament
39 books that are written about the Nation Israel.
Foundational (5 books)
Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy also called The Law, The Torah, The Pentateuch.
Historical (12 books)
Joshua, Judges, Ruth, 1&2 Samuel, 1&2 Kings, 1&2 Chronicles, Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther.
Instructional (22 books)
5 Poetic: Job, Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Song of Solomon.
5 Major Prophets: Isaiah, Jeremiah, Lamentations, Ezekiel, Daniel.
12 Minor Prophets: Hosea, Joel, Amos, Obadiah, Jonah, Micah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Zephaniah, Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi.
The New Testament
27 books that are written about Jesus Christ.
Foundational (4 books)
Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John also called The Gospels.
Historical (1 book)
Acts.
Instructional (22 books)
4 letters to leadership: 1&2 Timothy, Titus, Philemon. 9 letters to churches: Romans, 1&2 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, Philippians, Colossians, 1&2 Thessalonians.
9 Letters to believers: Hebrews, James, 1&2 Peter, 1-3 John, Jude, Revelation.
What is the Bible and The Story of the Bible
Here is some short Introduction to the Bible videos to get you started:
Which Bible Version Should I Use?
New Living Translation (NLT) is a comfortable read, especially if you are a beginner. However, most of the Bible teachers use the King James Version. To select a version that fits you best click here.
To help you visualize and better grasp different types of translations, explore the graphic below that shows where some of the more popular translations fall on the “translation spectrum”
How to Study the Bible?
There are seven basic guidelines to follow as you begin reading the Word of God
(according to J. Vernon McGee)
Begin with prayer:
"Open my eyes to see the wonderful truths in your instructions." Psalm 119:18
Read the Bible:
Do you want to know what the Bible has to say? Read the Bible.
Study the Bible:
You have to study the Word of God to understand the meaning.
Meditate on the Bible:
To meditate is to ruminate, to bring to mind and consider over and over.
Read what others have written:
Consult a good commentary take advantage of the study of other men in the Word of God.
Obey the Bible:
Obedience is essential as people measure Christianity by you and me. We must recognize that God will not continue to reveal truth to us if we become disobedient.
Pass it on to others:
We are called to be witnesses, therefore we ought to pass it on to others.
Prerequisite to Studying the Bible
Two World Views
1. Everything is a result of a cosmic accident
2. We are a deliberate result of the Creator, God.
Depending on your world view it will lead to the response to these four basic questions.
Who am I?
Where did I come from?
Why am I here?
Where am I going when I die?
Our hope is that you selected the second option that we are a deliberate result of the Creator, God.
Before you start your study of the Bible, here is a precondition:
Invite Jesus Christ to your life. This is vital because when the Holy Spirit comes and dwells in us, He is the one who leads us into all truth. In John 3, Jesus told Nicodemus that he had to be born again, and we do too. People who aren’t saved can read the Bible and learn from it, but when we are born again we allow the Holy Spirit to bring the Bible to life in our minds and hearts.
"When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all truth. He will not speak on his own but will tell you what he has heard. He will tell you about the future." (John 16:13)