30 Days to Understanding the Bible Study Guide

Unlock the Scriptures in 15 Minutes a Day

Max Anders

• Publisher: HarperChristian Resources
• Year: 2020
• ISBN:
  9780310112815
• Topic: Theology & Religion
• Subtopic: Biblical Reference

Start Your 30-Day Journey to Master the Bible.

For many people—regardless of their level of experience—the Bible can seem intimidating. Maybe you've tried to read or learn about the Bible in the past and found it hard to understand. Maybe you've been reading it for years, but you still lack confidence when it comes to expressing what it says.

Throughout the videos (DVD/video steaming sold separately) that accompany each of these six sessions—along with the interactions and exercises in this study guide—you will build a solid foundation of knowledge for understanding the most important book ever written.

With author and pastor Max Anders, you'll have a complete understanding of the story of the Bible and its core teachings or doctrines in 30 days.

Sessions include:

• An Overview of the Bible: Its Structure, its History, and its Promise
• The Early History of Israel: Patriarch–Kingdom Eras
• The Later History of Israel: Exile–Silence Eras
• The History of the Church: Gospel–Missions Eras
• The Great Doctrines: The Bible, God, Christ, the Holy Spirit, and Angels
  
• The Great Doctrines: Man, Sin, Salvation, the Church, and Future Things

Anders' simple-to-use, straightforward guide has been recommended by Bible teachers and pastors for over thirty years, and now he can join your Bible study and launch you on a journey of mastering the Bible so well that the Bible masters you.

Designed for use with 30 Days to Understanding the Bible Video Study available on DVD or streaming video, sold separately.

SESSION ONE

AN OVERVIEW OF THE BIBLE

If you want to learn architecture, you must first learn how buildings are put together. If you want to learn sailing, you must first learn how ships are put together. And if you want to understand the Bible, you must first learn how the Bible is put together.

MAX ANDERS

WELCOME

Welcome to 30 Days to Understanding the Bible! This is the first step on a journey that can revolutionize your understanding not only of Scripture, but also yourself and the world around you. The Bible is the bestselling, most-loved, and most-impactful book ever written. Actually, the Bible isn’t a single book—it is a collection of sixty-six books written by more than forty individuals over a period of more than 2,000 years. It’s an enormous volume that contains a huge amount of information on a wide range of topics—including history, poetry, prophecy, geography, instructions, epistles, commandments, promises, and more.

For these reasons, the Bible can often seem intimidating . . . and even overwhelming. Maybe you have tried to learn about the Bible in the past and found it difficult to understand. Maybe you have been reading the Bible for years, yet you still lack confidence when it comes to expressing what it is and what it says. Or, maybe this is the first time you have opened its pages.

Regardless of your level of experience, what you will encounter with your group over the course of the next six weeks will provide a key to unlocking what the Bible says, what it teaches, and how to apply it to your everyday life. Through the videos that accompany each session, and the daily interactions in this study guide, you will build a solid foundation for engaging and understanding the most important book ever written.

SHARE

To get started, take a few minutes to introduce yourself to anyone you do not know in the group. Then jump into the theme of this session by discussing the following questions:

• How would you describe your level of understanding of the Bible at this point in your life? Beginner? Intermediate? Advanced?

• What are you hoping you will learn about the Bible during this study?

WATCH

Play the video segment for session one. As you watch, follow along with the main points listed in the outline below and record any key thoughts or concepts that stand out to you.

I. The Promise: If you commit to spending fifteen minutes a day in this study for the next six weeks, you will receive an understanding of the entire Bible.

A. It possible to understand each of the major people, major places, and major events of the Bible.

1. The problem many people have with the Bible is that they start out by studying the details without ever getting the big picture.

2. This study will focus on the big picture first and save the details for later.

B. When gaining an understanding of the Bible as a whole, it is important to focus on the broad strokes.

1. There are thousands of mountain peaks in Colorado, but there are only fifty-three that rise over 14,000 feet.

2. This study will focus on the “fourteeners” of God’s Word, which is a manageable amount of information to process.

II. Structure: A key to mastering the Old Testament is understanding that it contains only three types of books.

A. These three types of books are:

1. Historical books

2. Poetical books

3. Prophetical books

B. There are seventeen historical books in the Old Testament.

1. Only eleven of those books are primary. The other six are secondary.

2. So, if you want to get your mind around the story of the Old Testament, you need to read Genesis, Exodus, Numbers, Joshua, Judges, 1 Samuel, 2 Samuel, 1 Kings, 2 Kings, Ezra, and Nehemiah.

3. These eleven books create a timeline into which you can fit the secondary historical books, the poetic books, and the prophetic books.

III. Geography: In addition to understanding the structure of the Bible, it is important to also understand the broad strokes of biblical geography.

A. The entire area described in the Old Testament is about the same size as the state of Texas.

B. Israel, the promised land for God’s people in the Old Testament, is roughly the same size as New Hampshire.

OLD TESTAMENT BOOKS

HISTORICAL	POETICAL	PROPHETICAL
Primary:	Job	Isaiah
Genesis	Psalms	Jeremiah
Exodus	Proverbs	Lamentations
Numbers	Ecclesiastes	Ezekiel
Joshua	Song of Solomon	Daniel
Judges		Hosea
1 Samuel		Joel
2 Samuel		Amos
1 Kings		Obadiah
2 Kings		Jonah
Ezra		Micah
Nehemiah		Nahum
		Habakkuk
Secondary:		Zephaniah
Leviticus		Haggai
Deuteronomy		Zechariah
Ruth		Malachi
1 Chronicles
2 Chronicles
Esther

THE GEOGRAPHY OF THE OLD TESTAMENT

IV. History: The Bible’s historical books cover twelve eras of the biblical story.

A. In the Old Testament:

1. Creation Era: the creation of the world and humankind, and early events.

2. Patriarch Era: the birth of the Hebrew people through a family of patriarchs, covered a period of 200 years.

3. Exodus Era: the exodus of the Hebrew people as the...

Table of contents

• Cover Page
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Ebook Instructions
• Contents
• How to Use This Study Guide
• Session 1: An Overview of the Bible
• Session 2: The Early History of Israel: Patriarch–Kingdom Eras
• Session 3: The Later History of Israel: Exile–Silence Eras
• Session 4: The History of the Church: Gospel–Missions Eras
• Session 5: The Great Doctrines: The Bible, God, Christ, the Holy Spirit and Angels
• Session 6: The Great Doctrines: Man, Sin, Salvation, the Church, and Future Things
• Answers to Review Questions
• Leader’s Guide