1 Peter 5v7 says: “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.” But what does that mean, and how do we do it? Let’s spend a little while thinking about these wonderful words.
Last week’s session was on Proverbs 3:-12 – “Wisdom & Well-Being”. All previous sessions are available on this playlist.
In this session we look at one of the most profound and life-changing truths in the Bible: God made everything. It’s something we often teach to kids, but have you ever considered what it means for us?
These are the links which I mentioned in the video.
This is part of the weekly Thought for the Week series. This series is designed to give a short, 10-15 minute ‘thought’, including a Bible reading and a prayer. Currently I am working through the Westminster Shorter Catechism. You can see all videos on the catechism on this playlist.
Do subscribe to the mailing list if you want to get these delivered in a weekly email, or subscribe directly on YouTube if you want to see them there.
I know that the Bible is a big book, and it might seem difficult to know even where to start. I’ve found that books can be one of the most helpful things when learning to read the Bible. A good book can open your eyes and encourage you in your faith. But how do you know which books to choose? There are hundreds of thousands of Christian books available, and more are being published all the time! How do you know which are the best ones?
Let me help you. I’ve chosen three books which I think will help you to understand the Bible, even if you’re a complete beginner. I hope these give a good cross-section, so together they will help you understand the Bible and Christianity more broadly.
Before we begin, there is just one thing I’d like to say: when you’re looking for books, please don’t look simply for new books! C.S. Lewis, the Christian author most famous for his Chronicles of Narnia books, once wrote an essay about why you should read old books. It’s well worth reading. I’ve tried to include here older and newer books, but my suggestion is to try to read tried-and-tested books alongside modern books.
All that said, let’s get into it!
The first book I would recommend is… the Bible! But not just any old Bible – I would suggest beginning with a study Bible. What is a study Bible? Alongside the actual text of the Bible, it has notes which help to explain things in the text. Good study Bibles will often have other articles in them to help introduce Biblical themes, as well as introducing each book of the Bible. I would suggest that a good study Bible is the most useful thing you can buy to start understanding the Bible.
So, which study Bibles are good? There are two which I would recommend – the Zondervan NIV Study Bible and the ESV Study Bible (both available in various different editions). I have personally used the ESV Study Bible but I have heard good things about the NIV Study Bible also. I believe there is little to choose between them, apart from your particular translation preference. I use the NIV translation of the Bible day-to-day and in all the Understand the Bible videos. If you’re new to the Bible, I would recommend it as a good general purpose, easy-to-read version. (The other one I recommend which is a bit easier to read is the New Living Translation. There is an NLT Study Bible, but I don’t know much about it. If you use the NLT, you might want to check it out!)
The next thing on my list is a book to help you read the Bible day-by-day. There are lots of daily Bible reading notes, and I have a few links to some on the resources page. My suggestion for one book to begin with is Through the Bible Through the Year by John Stott. John Stott was a very capable Bible teacher, who for years was the rector of a large church in London. What I really like about this book is that it’s not complicated: for each day you have a short Bible reading and a page explaining it. It takes you through the whole Bible (in short!) and you focus on the Christmas and Easter passages at those times.
I think this book is a really good way of getting into reading the Bible every day and helping you understand it.
Another thing that will really help you to understand the Bible is a Bible overview. It’s so helpful to be able to pick up a Bible and know, whichever book you’re reading, roughly where it comes in the timeline of the Bible and how it fits in with the big picture. In fact, the What is Christianity? course on Understand the Bible is basically a mini-Bible overview. The most helpful thing I’ve ever done in understanding the Bible was an ‘Introduction to the Bible’ course, which was basically a Bible overview. It really does help put things together.
My suggestion for a Bible overview is God’s Big Picture by Vaughan Roberts. It’s a readable overview of how the whole Bible fits together, looking at it through the perspective of God’s Kingdom.
This is also available as a video course which is ideal for small groups.
As I’ve been writing this post, I’ve been thinking about the books which have been significant in my journey of understanding the Bible. There are lots of books which have been really helpful to me – but the most important thing hasn’t been any individual book (apart from the Bible itself!). The most significant thing is the day-by-day journeying with God, reading the Bible, praying, worshipping with other Christians, hearing sermons. It’s all significant in understanding the Bible.
I hope that these books will give you a head start. But remember that understanding the Bible is a journey, not a destination! In fact, I’d say that the more you understand the Bible, the more you realise there is to understand. It’s like walking into a building when it’s dark and thinking it’s only small, but then over time beginning to realise that it’s actually the size of a cathedral.
The most important thing is never to give up. God rewards those who seek him. As Jesus said:
Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. For everyone who asks receives; the one who seeks finds; and to the one who knocks, the door will be opened.
Matthew 7:7-8
What books have been the most helpful for you in understanding the Bible? Let us know in the comments below! 👇
I’ve just published the next part of the Learn to read the Bible series on Mark’s Gospel. This week we are looking at Mark 6:6-13, where Jesus sends out the Twelve disciples.
For those who are coming to this new, the idea behind this series is not for me to simply explain everything to you, but rather to give you things to think about yourself. This is about training you to read the Bible for yourself, rather than just giving you all the answers!
See this page if you’d like a few pointers for how to use these videos. Don’t forget to pray!
You can read the passage online here (although I’d suggest it’s better in a physical Bible). You may also want to have a pen and paper handy to jot down notes and things you want to look into more.
Take a few moments to re-read the passage, think, and pray.
You can see the rest of the videos in this series on the this page. If you’d like a more focussed series teaching the Christian faith, check out the teaching programme.
You might also want to see the previous episode in the series on Mark 6:1-6.
In this session we are thinking about how we see God’s plan in action. Does God really plan everything? We also think about some of the difficult questions that raises about free will!
I recommend the same books I recommend last week:
You might also appreciate session #10 of the Heidelberg Catechism on God’s Providence. If you’d like to explore more about God’s power and knowledge, check out the Get to know God series, especially #6 – God is infinitely powerful.
This is part of the weekly Thought for the Week series. This series is designed to give a short, 10-15 minute ‘thought’, including a Bible reading and a prayer. Currently I am working through the Westminster Shorter Catechism. You can see all videos on the catechism on this playlist.
Do subscribe to the mailing list if you want to get these delivered in a weekly email, or subscribe directly on YouTube if you want to see them there.
It feels at the moment like we’re in something of a desert: away from family and friends and many of the things that we love. How do we pray in these times?
Update: my plan is to do a lockdown livestream up until Easter, and then to continue a regular Friday night mental health livestream in a similar vein after Easter.
Last week’s one was on Psalm 121 – “Where our help comes from”. All previous sessions are available on this playlist.
I’ve just published the next part of the Learn to read the Bible series on Mark’s Gospel. This week we are looking at Mark 6:1-6, where Jesus goes back to his home town.
For those who are coming to this new, the idea behind this series is not for me to simply explain everything to you, but rather to give you things to think about yourself. This is about training you to read the Bible for yourself, rather than just giving you all the answers!
See this page if you’d like a few pointers for how to use these videos. Don’t forget to pray!
You can read the passage online here (although I’d suggest it’s better in a physical Bible). You may also want to have a pen and paper handy to jot down notes and things you want to look into more.
Take a few moments to re-read the passage, think, and pray.
You can see the rest of the videos in this series on the this page. If you’d like a more focussed series teaching the Christian faith, check out the teaching programme.
You might also want to see the previous episode in the series on Mark 5:21-43.
If we have lots of bad emotions, that can lead to us having bad mental health. If we don’t do anything with those feelings bad things can happen. But there is good news – Jesus can help us!
Over the last few weeks I’ve been doing a Lockdown Mental Health session each week. I’ve also started to worry about children’s mental health, and so I decided to trial doing a children’s mental health session. I have been thinking about starting Understand the Bible for kids, so this was a good opportunity to try something out.
Let me know if you like it, and I will see if I can develop it into something more!
Our plans are often subject to change. The best laid plans don’t always come to pass. But is it really like that with God?
I don’t mention this in the video, but if you would like to read something more about God’s sovereignty and plan, especially in salvation, check out these books:
You might also appreciate Part #9 of the Heidelberg Catechism – “God our Father”.
This is part of the weekly Thought for the Week series. This series is designed to give a short, 10-15 minute ‘thought’, including a Bible reading and a prayer. Currently I am working through the Westminster Shorter Catechism. You can see all videos on the catechism on this playlist.
Do subscribe to the mailing list if you want to get these delivered in a weekly email, or subscribe directly on YouTube if you want to see them there.
