One of my friends responded to my post about reading “30 Days to Understanding the Bible” by commenting that he could have saved a lot
of time and money if he had known about this book before he went to Seminary. Of
course, he was being facetious, but he made a good point.
Will this book replace years of Bible study and give someone
the equivalent of a Master of Theology? The answer is No. However, for someone who
wants a good overview of the Bible and its themes this is a good book. It is
also a good review for some of us who forgot who the Kings were and when they lived.
We may also have forgotten some of those Minor Prophets too. That is covered in this book.
Each chapter begins with an illustration that sets the theme
for the chapter. I appreciated the illustrations some of which were humorous
but many of the illustrations were powerful.
I don’t want to ruin the reading for anyone but the introduction to the chapter
on the Gospels talks about a severed nerve and how Jesus twisted himself to accommodate
the lives twisted by sin.
When Max Anders introduces the Epistles he talks about a women
who anonymously writes letters to people who need a word of encouragement. The
point is not that the Epistles were anonymous but rather that letters can have
an impact and these New Testament letters certainly did have an impact.
I plan on putting this book on the recommended reading list
for my class in the winter because it is a good overview and it does provide a good
review of the people, places and themes of the Bible. It would be a good book for a small group and
section 6 contains lesson plans that could be used in a small group.
The author insists on the importance of repetition so there
are reviews throughout each chapter and throughout the book. Section 4 gives a summary
of the Bible in 3000 words so once the body of the book is read there is a
summary of the summary.
In the interest of giving an honest review I must mention a
few concerns. The author uses symbols as a mnemonic device. I found the symbols
confusing but maybe that would help with memorization by connecting a negative
emotion with a specific symbol.
However, one symbol irritates me. The author has a symbol
for each of the 10 major doctrines of the Bible and the one he associates with
the doctrine of Angels is a set of wings. Of all the angelic beings described
in the Bible only one had wings. There is no indication that any other angelic
being had wings and they certainly didn’t have wings when they visited humans
here on this planet. That would have been a clue they weren’t human. I have other symbols in mind for angels but it’s
not my book.
One other concern is for those who think they have mastered
the Bible because they have read this book or those who think that the symbols used
in this book are the final word. This is a good start but there is a lot more to
discover.
This book is published by Thomas Nelson
I received a copy of the galley for review.
