Our culture is fascinated with unconventional methods to reach common goals, especially when they work! Well, here’s my hot take of an unconventional method to assist Christians in attaining the common goal of biblical literacy. Read a good children’s Bible, whether you have kids or not! These books have been one of the most unexpected tools that God has used to increase my knowledge of His Word. They’ve given me the ability to understand the over-arching story of the Bible better. They have also equipped me to share that story with kids and adults!
I love to teach where Old Testament stories or passages fit in the redemptive storyline of the Bible or how they point us to Christ. Take the story of David and Goliath, for example. I may say something like, “this story points to Jesus because Jesus is the better David, who goes on our behalf to fight the giants of sin and death and when He wins, His victory is attributed to us, even though we didn’t lift a finger.”
Or I may consider how David’s victory over Goliath was an essential part of his path to becoming king and receiving a promise from God that one of his descendant’s would rule on his throne forever, a promise that was fulfilled when one of David’s descendants was crucified, resurrected, and sat down at the right hand of the Father to reign forever.
How can we see connections like this? One of the best places is a good children’s Bible. They excel at giving you the gist of a passage and showing you how it fits into the larger story of the Bible. They can provide excellent summaries, application, and food for thought. I love reading them with my kids, but I also enjoy reading them for my own personal benefit.
Here are a few of the ones I recommend:
- The Jesus Storybook Bible by Sally Lloyd-Jones
- The Biggest Story Bible Storybook by Kevin DeYoung (we are currently reading this with our oldest sons right now and using the memory cards for scripture memorization)
- The Beginners Gospel Story Bible by Jared Kennedy
Remember, with a lot of these you are not reading direct translation of God’s Word. You are reading distilled and simplified passages that are meant to show the reader what the passage means in the grand scheme of God’s revealed truth. Don’t replace regular Bible reading with one of these, use them in addition to your regular reading. I hope that you’ll find, as I have, that such a tool is invaluable, and a worthy addition to any child or adult’s library!
*Header photo by Crossway featuring Deyoung’s The Biggest Story Bible Storybook
Before reading Putting on the Armor, I must confess that I often viewed the “armor of God” passage in Ephesians 6 as somewhat irrelevant. In a way, I knew it was probably important, but it seemed to be no more than a descriptive metaphor for walking with God, something I could easily skim over and get the point. I remember hearing a small handful of sermons or talks on the subject that seemed to trivialize the description of the armor. These talks of “praying on the armor” or “which piece of the armor are you missing?” trivialized the concepts of the passage so much that it had a negative effect on how I viewed the relevance of the verses. Dr. Lawless’ book has changed my view on the concept of the “armor” by providing me with an accurate view of the passage as a whole, helping me understand each individual piece of armor, and walking me through how to “wear” the armor in everyday life.
Discipleshift is a ministry altering book, especially for anyone who is looking to align their ministry with the Great Commission: making disciples who make disciples. This book reminds the reader of the importance of disciple-making as the primary work of the church. Throughout, Putnam gives practical insight into how make disciples in a local church context. Many other discipleship books stress the importance of discipleship but fail to give an answer to the question of “how do we do this in a local church?” Discipleshift answers that question.
JARRETT FLETCHER 