Hey everybody, time for a quick coffee break in the Bible.
Today we're actually going to be doing a quick Q&A specifically about the Bible though,
and I am going to be answering one of the most common questions, especially amongst
new believers and those who have never read the Bible all the way through.
And that question is, how do I start reading the Bible, or more specifically, where do
I start reading the Bible?
Now let's face it, the Bible can be very intimidating to some.
It is a huge manuscript, it has a lot of books, it has a lot of information, it covers a lot
of history, there's a lot of different things in here.
So it is a valid question, and there are a couple trains of thought out there.
Now if you were to put it out to social media, and the people who you know are believers
and everything, and say, hey, where's a good place to start reading the Bible?
The most common answer you're going to get is, go to the beginning and start with Genesis,
and read it through.
And it makes sense, you know, go to the beginning, read to the end, cover to cover, Genesis to
Revelation.
Nothing wrong with that answer, nothing at all, perfectly good answer.
Now, if you were to come to clergy, a lot of us have a different recommendation, and
that is to start with the Gospels.
Start with the Gospels.
As a matter of fact, you can include me in this group, because that is the answer I would
give, and I will actually drag this down a little bit more to the specific answer I would
give.
So if you're not sure what the Gospels are, those are the books of Matthew, Mark, Luke,
and John.
Now why would we suggest this?
Well, it's because these are the eyewitness accounts of Jesus' life and everything that
He taught us during that time.
And it's really the foundation and the core of what Christianity is and why we believe
what we believe.
So those four books, they all have slightly different views.
They all cover a lot of the same things though.
The book of Matthew is looking at the person of Jesus.
Matthew is talking about the promised King.
Mark, talking about Jesus, is talking about the servant of God.
Luke is talking about Him as the Son of Man.
And John is talking about Jesus as the Son of God.
Now this is going to drive more to why I have a specific book here, and we'll see why here
very quickly.
So Matthew, his book was initially intended for the Jews.
Mark was written for the Gentiles and the Romans.
Luke, his book was intended for the Greeks, whereas John's was a little different.
His book was specifically written for Christians throughout the world, especially new Christians
and non-Christians who are searching, trying to find out what we're all about.
And for that reason, I would actually recommend John as being the best place to start.
Matter of fact, I could probably do a sermon on it all unto itself, but I won't, especially
for time's sake.
John actually starts at the beginning, goes all the way back before Genesis.
The very first verse in there says, in the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with
God, and the Word was God.
Going into verse 2, he was with God in the beginning.
This is all the way back before the creation.
So it is a great place to start, and it goes all the way through Jesus' life, His crucifixion,
and His resurrection and His ascension into heaven.
It covers the gauntlet there.
So it is a great place to start.
Now from there, really it's up to you.
You can go from John to John 1, 2, 3, and kind of skip around and cherry pick your way
through the book.
Or you can go all the way back to the beginning and read it cover to cover.
Or if you have trouble with the tension and you want to make sure that you're getting
through a lot, because there is so much material in there, you don't want to be so intimidated,
because there is a lot in the Bible.
The other thing that you could do is go through and start reading from the shortest book all
the way to the longest book.
And really when it comes to the shortest books, you'll get through a lot of those really quick.
You will start learning a lot very quickly.
All these books, every book in there has a lot in there.
However, like I said, the best recommendation I have, and it's just my personal choice,
it would be to start with the Gospel of John.
Take care.
We'll catch you next time.
Peace.