sixtysixbooks

Author: Joel A Moroney

You can print this as a PDF :)

For a long time, I didn’t know what to do with the book of Jude. There were two reasons for that.

Firstly, I was never sure who wrote it and what made them so special as to be included in the Bible. Secondly, it features some pretty freaky stuff and references some books that we don’t consider to be part of the Bible. 

But the more time I’ve spent with Jude, the more I come to appreciate it. There’s an important message within these verses. And the more I think about it, Jude is really the hipster indie kid of the Bible. And that makes me happy. 

Who wrote Jude?

Verse 1 says the letter is written by a guy called “Jude, a servant of Jesus Christ and a brother of James.” Jude is a name that is short for Judas, just like Matt is short for Matthew, Sam is short for Samantha, and Jack is short for John (don’t ask me how that last one works – I’m just as confused as you are). You can imagine that Judas wasn’t exactly a popular name amongst 1st century Christians. It would be like calling yourself Adolf in Germany just after WWII. So the writer goes by the name Jude. 

There is a mention of a guy named Judas who has a brother named James. That’s in Mark 6:3. “Isn’t this the carpenter? Isn’t this Mary’s son and the brother of James, Joseph, Judas and Simon?” The carpenter being talked about here is Jesus. And it talks about Jesus’ brothers: James, Joseph, Simon, and… Judas. So that makes the guy who wrote the book of Jude Jesus’ little brother. Jude has grown up to be an important leader in the early church, but doesn’t want to make too big a deal out of being Jesus’ brother, because he doesn’t want that fact to get in the way of the important message he has to say.

Who was it written for?

We don’t know exactly who Jude is writing to, but we do know they are a group of Christians who are struggling with false teaching. Because of the specific nature of their problems, it’s most likely one particular church he’s writing to, rather than a whole stack.

Why was Jude written?

The reason the book of Jude was written was because the church was struggling with false teachers. “For certain men whose condemnation was written about long ago have secretly slipped in among you. They are godless men, who change the grace of our God into a license for immorality and deny Jesus Christ our only Sovereign Lord.” (v4) Teachers are entering the church who are teaching two things: that because of God’s grace we can live however we want without worrying about right and wrong (hedonism) and that Jesus is not really God. 

Jude calls these men “dangerous dreamers” (v8) which is a reference back to Deuteronomy 13:1-3, which says “If a prophet, or one who foretells by dreams, appears among you and announces to you a miraculous sign or wonder, and if the sign or wonder of which he has spoken takes place, and he says, “Let us follow other gods” (gods you have not known) “and let us worship them,” you must not listen to the words of that prophet or dreamer. The Lord your God is testing you to find out whether you love him with all your heart and with all your soul.” These men are leading people away from God and are therefore dangerous.

Because of these false teachers, Jude wants the church to be sure of their faith and to check what these teachers are saying carefully. 

What’s it all about?

Before we go too far, what’s the deal with the strange references? There’s the archangel Michael and Moses (v9) and references to the book of Enoch (v14). I can’t find any of this in my Bible! But that doesn’t mean you should be afraid. When I’m preaching, I’ll often quote from movies or music to illustrate my point. That’s what Jude is doing here – referencing books that aren’t considered Scripture, but still valuable as illustrations.

Jude is concerned for the salvation of these Christians. That’s what he wanted to write to these guys about (v3). And he is concerned that these false teachers are putting their salvation at risk. Because God treats sin seriously. Jude reminds them of how God destroyed those who didn’t believe after the exodus (v5), how he punished rebellious angels (v6), and how he brought judgment on Sodom and Gomorrah (v7). If these Christians keep listening to the false teachers, they could be in danger.

What’s so dangerous about their teaching? They “pollute their own bodies, reject authority and slander celestial beings.” (v8) What that means is that, firstly, they do whatever they want and don’t care how their greed and their actions affect other people (v12,16). Secondly, they don’t care about the Scriptures. They’re not interested in accepting God’s Word as their authority. 

In response, Jude encourages the church to stay strong. To build each other up and to stay faithful (v20-21). But also to be gentle with those who are struggling with this false teaching (v22-23). Look after them and bring them back to God’s Word without being a jerk about it.

Reading Plan.

If you’re like me and have a short attention span, then Jude is a great book. Because it’s so short (only 25 verses), you can knock it over in one sitting. 

Pay particular attention to v24-25. These are great words that Christians have been sharing with each other for centuries. Memorise them and use them to encourage your mates.

To him who is able to keep you from falling and to present you before his glorious presence without fault and with great joy—  to the only God our Saviour be glory, majesty, power and authority, through Jesus Christ our Lord, before all ages, now and forevermore! Amen.

You can download this as a PDF to put with your Bible.

Imagine being torn apart from a bunch of people you really, really care about. 

You’ve met these people, invested in their lives, become good friends and seen them grow immensely. And then you’re taken away, never to see them again. 

This is the situation behind 1 Thessalonians. Paul is writing to a bunch of people he’d led to Christ; they were new converts. Now he’d been taken away from them, and was deeply concerned for their well-being. 

Who was it written for?

Paul was writing to a church he’d founded; a small group of Christians living in a Macedonian town called Thessalonica. 

You can read about his visit to Thessalonica in Acts 17 - it wasn’t a pleasant one. He came to them having been arrested and then kicked out of Philippi, and his persecutors had followed him to Thessalonica, causing a riot. 

However, even though things didn’t turn out well, Paul’s visit was not a failure. The Thessalonian Christians were transformed by Jesus; they started imitating Paul, and became so well known for their love for one another, that other churches started imitating them.

Who wrote 1 Thessalonians?

1 & 2 Thessalonians were written by the Apostle Paul. He was one of the first people to take the gospel to new places; he is often referred to as ‘the Apostle to the Gentiles’ because he worked hard at his goal of taking the good news about Jesus from Jerusalem to ‘all the ends of the earth’.

Why was 1 Thessalonians written?

Paul wrote 1 Thessalonians because he really cared about the Christians in Thessalonica. He had led them to Christ, but didn’t get much time to teach them about being Christians, and didn’t get a lot of time to build the leadership in their church.

Paul wanted to go back to Thessalonica to visit these young Christians, but to do so was too dangerous for him. So he sent his friend, Timothy, to catch up with the Christians and see how they were going.

Timothy had returned to Paul with really great news: even though the Thessalonians were being persecuted, they were standing firm in their faith.

However, even though they were going well, there were still a few niggling issues that Paul wanted to work on; that they continue to be transformed by Jesus and loving one another, that they be informed about what happens after death, and that they keep working hard as they wait for Jesus to return.

What’s it all about?

1 Thessalonians is a really personal letter. In it, we see Paul’s real love for the people he’d led to Christ. We see his determination to keep preaching about Jesus, no matter the cost. And we see his fervent desire that Christians stand firm despite persecution. 

We learn that the good news about Jesus is not just a message to be agreed with; it’s a message that changes lives. The Thessalonians were transformed from people who worshipped idols, into people who served the one true, living God, who were waiting for the return of Jesus. 

And we read about a group of people whose love for one another was so real and strong that they became famous for it. Imagine if our churches were that well known for their mutual love! 

Reading Plan.

1 Thessalonians is a short letter that can easily be read in one go. In fact, that’s the way it was written; to be read out aloud, and listened to in one sitting. 

So as you read through, aim to read it all in one hit, taking notice of the flow; how ideas are developed and raised, and how one idea flows into another.

Then you can read smaller chunks; but as you do, try to remember the way the whole letter works as one.

• chapter 1 - 5 in one go.

Then…

• chapter 1 - Paul’s thankful prayer.
• 2:1-12 - Paul’s relationship with the Thessalonians.
• 2:13-20 - God’s word transforms
• 3:1-13 - Timothy’s Report
• 4:1-12 - Be Transformed
• 4:13-5:11 - The return of Jesus
• 5:12-28 - Stick at it. 

Download this as a pdf to print and keep with your Bible!

This post is written by Graham Stanton, principal of Youthworks College.

It’s the longest book in the Bible. It’s the Old Testament book that gets quoted in the New Testament more than any other. It’s got the longest chapter in the Bible in it. It’s got the shortest chapter of the Bible in it. It’s easy to find. It’s the Book of Psalms!

This is the song-book of the Old Testament. There are songs for happy days, songs for sad days, and songs for the ordinary days in between. They’re the songs that have helped God’s people to live all of their lives in conversation with God. And because they’re songs in the Bible, they also teach us about God, and all of them point us to Jesus.

Who were they written for?

Some of the psalms are obviously individual songs or prayers to God (like 13, 23 and 51). Others are songs that are for a group of people to sing together (like 46, 126 and 137). Some are more like poems that teach us about God and his world (like 1, 24 and 119).

Originally the psalms would have been written by individuals – either for their own prayer life, or for a group of friends to sing together.

Who wrote the Psalms?

About half of the Psalms were probably written by King David. 2 Samuel 23:1 describes David as ‘Israel’s singer of songs.’ Some of the psalms were probably written by people who worked in the temple – 12 from a guy called Asaph, and 11 from the Sons of Korah.

Think of them as the Music Directors of the ancient world. Nehemiah 12:46 refers to people who were the ‘directors for the singers and for the songs of praise and thanksgiving to God.’ It’s pretty likely that those people were responsible for writing and / or collecting the psalms into the collection of 150 we have today.

Why were they gathered together?

The Psalms were probably gathered together to be sort of the official song book for Israel. With the book of Psalms on hand in the temple or synagogue, the people of Israel would always have a song to sing – songs that would help them express what they’re feeling or thinking in whatever kind of situation they’re going through; songs that would help them say things that are true despite the situation they’re going through.

That gives us a clue to how to ‘use’ the Psalms in our own Christian lives. We go through all sorts of experiences, and for whatever experience we’re in, there’s a psalm we can use to speak to God about it. Psalm 30 for when you’re thankful. Psalm 38 when you know you have sinned. Psalm 42 for when you feel spiritually dry. Psalm 73 when you’re doubting. Psalm 103 when you want to praise the Lord.

But the psalms also help us to say what’s true even if we don’t feel like it’s true. When you are suffering and feel like God is far away, then Psalm 139 can remind you that he is always

near. When you’re doubting whether God is really good and still loves you, then Psalm 113 can give you words of praise. But the Psalms don’t only pick you up when you’re down – they can also bring us back to earth when we’re high. So, when everything is going well and you feel like nothing can stand in your way, then Psalm 88 reminds you that not everyone experiences the same blessings.

What’s it all about?

The Psalms aren’t like other books in the Bible – in fact, it’s not just one book but five books! Take a look at the subheadings before Psalm 1, 42, 73, 90 and 107. And then also take a look at the last verses of Psalms 41, 72, 89 and 106 – each of them have a sort of concluding word of praise to wrap up the book. Except for book 5 that is. But then book 5 seems to have a super-conclusion in Psalms 146-150 that wraps up the whole collection.

Psalm 1 begins with a confident statement of God’s love and care and justice.

But at the beginning of Book 2, it seems that the promise of blessing in Psalm 1 hasn’t come true for at least this person. Psalm 73 at the beginning of Book 3 starts in the same place – it doesn’t look like God is keeping his promise.

But wonderfully, the psalm comes to realise that God does still keep his promises even though it might not seem so now.

Psalm 90 (Book 4) recognises that the suffering in the world is a result of human sin, not God’s original intention.

And Psalm 107 (Book 5) reminds us that God continues to show his everlasting love despite our foolishness. And then at the end of this journey, from the goodness of God’s promises, through the hardship of our experiences, the realisation of our sinfulness and the recognition of God’s love, we end up being able to sing God’s praise – and the final five Psalms (146-150) give us the words and the instruction to do just that!

In short, one way to express the big overall theme of the Psalms is that we move from obedience (Psalm 1) to praise (Psalm 150) by crying out to God in the hard times as well as the good.

There’s another way to express the big overall them of the Psalms though. That’s Jesus.

The Psalms are quoted in the New Testament more often than any other book of the Old Testament. And mostly they’re quoted to help us understand who Jesus is and what he has done.

A good way to think about the psalms is to imagine Jesus praying them. The New Testament understands Jesus as the fulfilment of all of the experiences of God’s people in the Old Testament. All of the suffering of God’s people points forward to Jesus’ suffering on the cross. All of the obedience of God’s people points forward to Jesus’ obedience to the Father. All of the praise of God’s people points forward to Jesus’ praise to the Father. And every experience of rescue of God’s people points forward to Jesus’ resurrection.

So when you read the Psalms, think first about how they express the prayers that Jesus would have prayed in his life.

And then remember that as a Christian you are united with Jesus by faith – and so his prayers can be your prayers. In whatever circumstance of life you find yourself in. Hebrews 4:15 tells us that Jesus knows what it’s like to be one of us—he sympathises with our experience. And in the psalms we can hear his prayers, and by praying them ourselves, we can join in with his words. And you can be sure that if they are Jesus’ prayers, then they are prayers that God the Father listens to and answers.

Reading Plans

Beginner (1 week): 1, 42, 73, 107, 150

Intermediate (four weeks): a selection of ‘greatest hits’: 1, 8, 19, 22, 23, 40, 46, 51, 73, 78, 88, 100, 104, 107, 119:1-24, 121, 130, 133, 145, 150.

Advanced (eight months): start at 1, read a psalm a day till you get to 150 (you might want to spread 119 over two or three days… trust me). And once you’re done, go back to the beginning and start again.

yikes! 3 books in one go! Are you crazy?

nope … these letters were all written together, and they were all written about the same situation: false teachers in the church. 

PDF for printy goodness.

That doesn’t sound quite right…

When I hear preachers speaking, whether it’s listening to a Podcast, or watching someone on YouTube, or even reading a Christian book, I sometimes get the feeling that what’s being said or written isn’t quite right. Especially lately, it seems like a lot of Bible teachers want to rethink core beliefs, and ‘reframe’ them in ways that engage with our modern world.

Sometimes it’s just a niggling feeling and upon reading some more, thinking and praying, it turns out that the issue is a fuzzy one and there’s room for different ideas.

But sometimes the error I’m hearing is huge - and the more I think about it, the more destructive the error seems to be.

As Christians, how do we work this out? Which teachers should we listen to, and which teachers should we ignore?

This is why 1, 2 & 3 John were written: one of Jesus’ Disciples, John, wrote these letters to a bunch of churches that had been ripped apart by false teachers. And people were confused, “who is right? who do I listen to? who do I hang out with?”

Who was it written to?

We don’t really know a lot about who John was writing to, apart from that it seems like a group of churches and leaders spread out over a small area, like a few neighbouring cities.

But we can figure out from a close reading of 1, 2 & 3 John that a group of people in these Churches have split away from the rest, and have started teaching some things that were wrong.

It looks like they were saying that Jesus wasn’t God’s Son, and that our actions don’t matter; we’re free to do whatever we want. This meant that they claimed that they were right with God, but were living lives that were anything but good.

Who wrote it?

The Apostle John wrote these letters, around about 80-90 A.D. John was probably the last surviving disciple, and it seems like he was a bit of a spiritual father to these churches and leaders, he often writes to them as ‘Dear Children’, and ‘Dear Brothers and Sisters’.

John knew Jesus personally; he was the disciple referred to as ‘the Disciple Jesus loved’ (John 13:23). So when he writes of having had fellowship with Jesus in 1 John 1:1-3, we know that he actually knew, saw, heard, touched and hung out with Jesus personally.

Why was it written?

These three letters were written to help the first readers to understand who was teaching right stuff and who was teaching wrong stuff, and then how to carry on in the midst of all of the controversy.

In 1 John, he focusses on writing about what a real Christian looks like; that we not only believe that Jesus is the Son of God, but that we try to live like him. Look out for images such as light, love and life.

2 John was written to clarify further; that what people say and believe about Jesus’ nature (fully God and fully Man) is really important, and that Christians should show practical love to each other.

3 John is written to a guy called Gaius, encouraging him to show hospitality to teachers who teach the truth, and how to know who those good teachers are.

What’s it about?

1, 2 & 3 John are about determining the truth. At the heart of things, you can tell if someone is teaching truth, based on their beliefs about Jesus, and the way they live.

These days, false teachers are good at sounding right. They know the right things to say. This means that we need to work harder to figure out whether what they’re saying is faithful to the Bible or not. A big hint will be whether they continue to live in sin or whether they’re trying to be faithful to Jesus.

Reading Plan

For reading 1 John, I find the NIV headings quite helpful. Some sections cover a few paragraphs, others are really short, but are packed with a great big idea.

1 John

1. 1:1-2:2 - Introduction. Truth and Falseness.
2. 2:3-14 - Truth and loving one another.
3. 2:15-17 - Don’t love worldly stuff. 
4. 2:18-27 - Jesus is the Christ.
5. 2:28-3:24 - Sin and Love.
6. 4:1-6 - Testing False Teachers. 
7. 4:7-21 - All About Love.
8. 5:1-12 - Who is us and who is them?
9. 5:13-21 - Summing it all up.

2 & 3 John.

These letters are both about half a page long. Read them in one go.

1. 2 John - Keep obeying the old commands: to love and obey.
2. 3 John - Don’t imitate evil; imitate the good.

Happy reading!

Author: Kristen Young

You can download this as a PDF.

Here are some questions for you:

What makes someone a good friend? What sorts of people should we listen to? How do you survive in life? You’re about to get your first job: what do you do? How do you find a place to work? How do Christians make a difference in the world?

Proverbs is a book about wisdom. Wisdom is God’s word applied to everyday life. It teaches us how we can live skilfully as God’s people in God’s world.

Who was it written to?

The beginning of Proverbs shows us who it’s written for:

4 for giving prudence to those who are simple,

knowledge and discretion to the young —

5 let the wise listen and add to their learning,

and let the discerning get guidance. (Proverbs 1:4-6, NIV).

A lot of the Proverbs are written from the point of view of parents helping their children learn about the world. But it’s not limited to them. It’s a training book: a book for young people, old people, wise people, ‘simple’ people - everyone!

Who wrote it?

It’s pretty certain that King Solomon collected and wrote most of the Proverbs. But the book was probably edited - and extra proverbs added - during King Hezekiah’s time around 250 years later (see Proverbs 25:1)

It’s ironic that Solomon, who was called the wisest man in the world, actually stopped listening to his own instruction (1 Kings 11). It’s a good warning to us that listening to wisdom is a lifelong journey!

Why was it written?

A Bible-Scholar guy called Derek Kidner has said that the function of Proverbs is “to put godliness into working clothes.”* Being God’s person isn’t limited to Sundays, Youth Group and Quiet Times. We can be God’s person in our friendships, our workplaces, our cities.

What’s it about?

The foundation of wisdom is a right relationship with God (1:7), because God is the source of all true wisdom. We might be ‘clever’ without Jesus, but we can’t be wise!

Within a right relationship with God, we learn how to live well. In Proverbs, we meet interesting characters: wise, fool, scoffer, sluggard, king, friend, prostitute. Proverbs contrasts these characters all the way through the book. There is humour and tragedy, danger and safety, justice and injustice, righteousness and evil. We learn about different topics: speech, listening, alcohol, work, poverty, wealth, relationships, sex, mistakes, learning.

Reading Plan

There are 8 sections in the book of Proverbs:

1. Introduction (1:1-7)

2. Invitations and pleas to choose wisdom (1:8-9:18)

3. Collection 1: Solomon’s Proverbs (10:1-22:16)

4. Collection 2: The Sayings of the Wise (22:17-24:34)

5. Collection 3: More proverbs of Solomon (25:1-29:27)

6. Collection 4: The words of Agur (30:1-33)

7. Collection 5: King Lemuel’s mother gives advice (31:1-9)

8. Acrostic Poem: the Wise and Excellent Wife (31:10-31)

Proverbs contains different sort of literature (discussions, proverbs, poems etc), so these sections can be read in different ways. The Survival Guides to Wise Living** take a topical approach to Proverbs: they group key topics to read week by week.

Another way is to look at the different people who appear in the book: the wise man, the righteous man, the sluggard, the scoffer etc.

These ways work if you have an electronic version of the Bible. If you want to read the book from beginning to end though, here is a sample outline.

• 1:1-7 The Introduction
• 1:8-33 Avoiding Sinners and receiving Wisdom
• Chapter 2: The benefits of wisdom
• Chapter 3: Invitation to listen
• Chapter 4: the importance of Wisdom
• Chapter5: avoiding traps
• Chapter 6: the dangers of folly
• Chapter 7: the adulterous woman
• Chapter 8: The best woman: wisdom
• Chapter 9: two invitations: folly and wisdom
• Collections: (chapters 10-29) Read through a chapter a day.
• Pick out one or two proverbs that challenge or appeal to you.
• Memorise them. 30:1-33 Agur’s Sayings:
• Read one section a day (e.g., 30:1-6)
• 31:1-9 Advice to Lemuel 31:10-31 The wise wife

*Kidner, D. (1964). Proverbs: An Introduction and Commentary. Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries (33). Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press.

**The Survival Guide to wild wise living are available from Anglican Youthworks, www.youthworks.net

You can download this as a PDF!

One of the big things we can struggle with as Christians, is figuring out how “doctrine” (the big truths of the Christian faith) goes together with our everyday Christian life. In Ephesians, all this becomes clear! In Ephesians, God teaches us how the big truths of the Christian faith should shape our Christian life.

Who was it written to?

In Ephesians 1:1, we read that this letter was written to the “saints”, or Christians in the city of Ephesus. Ephesus was a city in the Roman Empire, in what we call today the country of Turkey. In the Ancient world, Ephesus was a center of travel and commerce. The city was situated on the Aegean Sea at the mouth of the Cayster River. Ephesus was one of the greatest sea ports of the ancient world.

Who wrote it?

Ephesians was written by the Apostle Paul (1:1; 3:1) in about 60 A.D., when he was in prison. According to the book of Acts, Paul first visited Ephesus during his second missionary journey (in the autumn of 52 A.D.) and ministered in the Synagogue for a short time (see Acts 18:18-21). He returned about a year later and stayed there for about two and a half years, leaving in 56 A.D (see Acts 19:10-20:1). He then called in one last time a year later to visit the elders or leaders of the church on his way to Jerusalem (see Acts 20:16-38).

Why was it written?

Paul wants the Christians in Ephesus, and the surrounding churches who would have also received a copy of this letter, to know how awesome God’s plan is for all his people. 

Before Jesus had come in to the world, God’s plans for the world had been hidden, they were a mystery, but in Jesus all God’s plans have now been revealed. 

One of the big ideas of the letter is that people who were dead in their sin, are now saved through the grace of God in Jesus (Eph. 1:8-10).

What’s it about?

The book of Ephesians can be separated in to two halves. 

In chapters 1 through 3, God teaches us about the great blessings that we have in Jesus. Things like being predestined to be God’s children, our adoption, redemption, forgiveness, and being given the Holy Spirit. We also learn about God’s great plan to bring all people in to his kingdom and how he will do this through the Church. 

In chapters 4 through 6, we learn what this looks like specifically in our lives. God also gives us some of his wisdom as we think about our relationships, particularly what it means to be a husband and wife, children and slaves and masters. 

In the last part of chapter 6, we also learn about the great spiritual battle that is going on here on earth. Paul encourages us to put on the full armor of God and to make a stand against the Devil and his work in the world.

Reading Plan

Ephesians is only 6 chapters so a great place to start would be to sit down somewhere comfortable and read the whole letter through at least once. That way you will get a good idea of the whole book and how it all fits together. 

Here’s a helpful outline for you to read Ephesians over the course of a couple of weeks (5 readings per week).

Part 1: Christian Blessings in Jesus.

1. 1:1-14 God’s great “spiritual blessings” for those in Jesus.
2. 1:15-23 Paul’s prayer for the Ephesians, that they would know their blessings in Jesus.
3. Ephesians 2:1-10 From death to life through grace.
4. 2:11-22 God’s peace and plans.
5. 3:1-21 Paul’s life having known God’s grace.

Part 2: Walking the Blessed Life.

1. 4:1-16 Walking with the Spirit.
2. 4:17-32 Walking the talk.
3. 5:1-20 Walking in love.
4. 5:22-6:9 Walking in our relationships.
5. 6:10-24 Put on the Armour of God to stand!

author: Michael Hyam.

author: Michael Hyam.

You can download a PDF of this post, with the reading plan.

I have always loved Mark’s Gospel.

Here are three reasons:

1. It’s a great read. Now don’t get me wrong here, but some books in the Bible are a tough read. Romans. Hebrews. Leviticus! You just can’t read those books once and think, ‘I got it!’
   Mark on the other hand is pretty straight forward. It’s about Jesus and it’s a great read. Now, that’s not to say that Mark is an easy read and there isn’t hard stuff to get your head around (check out ch 13 for a doozy passage). But the stories are interesting, the characters are real and the ending is awesome!
2. It’s short. Of the four “Gospels” about Jesus, it is the shortest at 16 chapters. You can sit down and read the whole thing pretty quick. But don’t be fooled! The slower you go, the more you think about what Jesus is saying, the more you’re going to get out of it. 
3. It’s about Jesus. I’m not sure if you’re a Christian. You may not be. But in Mark’s Gospel, you can’t escape Jesus. He is there from beginning to end, and as you encounter him throughout the Gospel, you will be changed!
   6 out of the 16 chapters in Mark deal with Jesus’ death and resurrection (ch 11-16). It’s important. Make sure you get there!

Who was it written to?

As you read Mark, you learn a great deal about who the Gospel was written to.

1. Mark wrote to people who spoke Greek but didn’t know Aramaic - that’s why he explains Jesus’ words in Aramaic when they come up (check out 3:17-22; 5:41; 7:11, 34).
2. Mark doesn’t explain the titles he uses for Jesus - words like Christ, Son of David. 
3. It seems like the original readers also knew the main characters and places that are mentioned as they are introduced, but no explanation is given. 
4. Mark’s readers also seem to be familiar with characters from the Old Testament (like Moses, David, Elijah) and know stuff about the religion of the Jews (like festivals and the Sabbath).

All this is to say that most people think this Gospel was written for the Church in Rome. Why Rome? Most people believe Mark was written to prepare the church for persecution and suffering first from Jews and later from the Emperors of Rome. This means that the Gospel was most probably written somewhere between 60-70 AD.

Who wrote it?

Like the other Gospels, the author doesn’t identify himself. He doesn’t claim to be an eyewitness like Luke (see Luke 1:2). We can assume that he was known by the people he wrote to and was a part of the community there as well. 

For most of the churches history, and for good reasons, this Gospel has been associated with a man named John Mark who was friends with one of Jesus’ disciples: Peter. Peter was an eyewitness to Jesus, and Mark seems to have written down what Peter said, then put it together as “Mark’s Gospel.”

Why was it written?

Lots of people say that Mark’s Gospel is a story about Jesus’ death with an extended introduction! What is clear from the beginning though, is that the most important theme of Mark is who is Jesus?

You see this from the beginning in the first few verses: ‘The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God.’ (Mark 1:1, HCSB).

Every story in the book focuses you on Jesus, and in fact, the turning point in Mark’s Gospel (8:27-30) is all about who Jesus is!

Apart from this, Mark’s Gospel also teaches us about how Jesus’ actions (his works and miracles) prove who he says he is. We learn what it means to be a ‘disciple’ of Jesus and what it means to ‘take up our cross.’ Finally, and most importantly, we learn what the death of Jesus actually means. 

What’s it about?

Mark is short enough to sit down and read in one go. That way, you’ll get the big picture in one big hit; then you can break your reading down into smaller chunks.

As I think about the Gospel of Mark, the structure of the Gospel helps me to figure out what it’s actually about. Here is a structure that I find really helpful and that you can use as a reading plan for the Gospel. 

See the PDF for the reading plan.

PDF to download, print and keep with your Bible.

As Christians, we will face persecution.

We will be bagged out for being Christians and believing in God. When this happens, it is easy to get upset, confused, or even doubt our faith. 1 Peter is the book for you. 

1 Peter is written to remind you of what you believe and how to live with your faith. Peter’s most important advice is to stand fast in your faith in the powerful, holy and loving God.

Who was it written to?

1 Peter was written to a bunch of Christians in the provinces of Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, and Bithynia. These days, we call those regions ‘Turkey’.

These Christians were predominantly Gentile (not-Jewish) converts and had probably started following Jesus after hearing Peter speak about Jesus. 

However, they were facing lots of persecution, and so Peter wrote to them.

Peter’s letter would have been passed between all of the Christians in these areas so that they could all hear what Peter had to say to them.

Who wrote it?

1 Peter was written by Jesus’ number one disciple, Peter. He was a fisherman who dropped everything to follow Jesus. He was one of Jesus’ closest friends, and one of the 12 disciples, so he saw and heard everything Jesus did. 

After Jesus returned to heaven, Peter was one of the main leaders of the church, and went on a lot of missionary journeys to bring Jesus’ message to the world. He then wrote this letter to his new Christian brothers and sisters in the places he had preached.

Why was it written?

Peter wrote his letter to these Christians to be like a Christian Survival Handbook. As these Christians faced a lot of scary persecution, it would have been really helpful for them to have been reminded that Jesus suffered like them, and that Jesus would be coming back. So instead of giving up, they would be encouraged to stand firm (5:12) and rejoice in their sufferings!

What’s it about?

1 Peter is all about Jesus. Peter reminds us that the core of our faith is Jesus; his death and resurrection, and that by believing in and following Christ, we are assured eternal life with God (1:3-5) and become his children (2:9). It is this faith that gives us hope and strength to stand fast when we suffer, remembering that we are children of God with the promise of eternal life. 

But that’s not all! We also have the example of Jesus to follow. Peter constantly reminds us that Christ is our example in suffering (2:21-25; 4:1) and that we can find comfort and strength from looking at his example. He experienced unbelievable suffering, yet never wavered in his faith.

Peter tells us that we need to arm ourselves (4:1), prepare ourselves for action (1:13) and be ready to face persecution. We need to be like Jesus; fleeing from sin and living for God so that the people who persecute us can’t accuse us of hypocrisy. We need to submit to and love each other deeply so that we stand out as positively different people because of our faith. And lastly, we need to be gracious and joyful as we face persecution; not getting angry or fighting it off, but calmly, respectively and lovingly accepting it; using it as an opportunity to tell people about Christ (3:13-17). 

Because this is how Jesus lived!

Reading Plan

It’s really good to read 1 Peter from start to finish. It’ll only take you 10-20 minutes. You can also read it in smaller chunks, so you can study each section in depth to really understand it. Both ways are great!

author: Andrew Fairhurst.

You can download this as a PDF!

written by Andrew Fairhurst.

It really sucks when you get bagged out for being a Christian.

In those times, it can be easy to just say you’re a Christian and then act like everyone else, because you only need faith in Jesus to be saved, right?

But what is real faith? What does it look like?

Who was it written to?

James is written to ‘the 12 tribes of the Dispersion’ (1:1). These were Jewish Christians who used to be a part of the first church in Jerusalem. However, in Acts 7, one of their members, a guy called Stephen, was killed for his faith. After Stephen was killed, the Christians scattered across the Mediterranean world (Acts 8:1).

So James is not writing to any one specific church; he wrote to these Christians who were scattered out over a massive area.

These Christians were:

• Facing persecution,
• Not quite living out their faith in Jesus,
• needing a kick up the butt, as well as some encouragement.

Who wrote it?

James was written by Jesus’ brother! Jesus had a few little brothers and sisters; one of them was called James, and he wrote this letter.

After Jesus’ resurrection and ascension into heaven, James became one of the leaders of the Church in Jerusalem; not because he was Jesus’ baby brother, but because he believed that Jesus is God, and that salvation from sin only comes through faith in Jesus.

Why was it written?

James begins his letter by saying, “consider it pure joy, my brothers, whenever you face trials of many kinds”, and ends his letter by writing, “be patient then, brothers, until the Lord’s coming.” These lines are like the bookends to what James wants to say.

James is encouraging the Christians as they face persecution by reminding them that Jesus would return.

In a time when the Christians should have been living out their faith, they had started failing pretty badly. They weren’t actively living like Christians; they were being selfish, greedy, immoral, insulting each other, impatient, proud and unloving.

So James writes to encourage them in their persecution, and to kick them up the butt, so that they would start living out their faith.

What’s it about?

James is all about real faith, and what it looks like! It’s a practical letter to read, and you’ll find it challenging and confronting.

As Christians, we will face persecution, even if it’s just being bagged out by people around us. Sometimes it seems easier to blend in by not living the way God wants his people to live. But that’s not real faith!

Real faith is believing in Jesus and his sacrifice for us, and then actively living it out. This means actually loving our neighbours, rather than just talking about loving our neighbours.

And we live the way God wants us to live, not because our deeds can save us, but because our deeds show our faith.

Reading Plan

Whenever you can, it’s good to try and read whole books of the Bible in one sitting, as well as reading it in smaller chunks.

Here’s 2 ways you could read through James:

FIRST:

Read it all the way through. It should only take you about 20 minutes, and it’s good to get the whole message in one dose.

SECOND:

1. 1:1-18 Be joyful, even though you’re suffering.
2. 1:19-27 Do what Jesus says. 2:1-13 Don’t show favouritism. 2:14-26 Live out your faith. 3:1-12 Your tongue is powerful. 3:13-18 Real wisdom.
3. 4:1-12 Real faith is submitting to God.
4. 4:13-5:12 Be patient; Jesus will return.
5. 5:13-20 Prayer is powerful.

Download this as a PDF if you’d like.

It’s just not fair!

Don’t you just hate it when people get away with the most terrible things? I’ve stopped watching Rugby League closely, because my team struggles against this all the time. The refs don’t like us, and it always felt like opposing teams could get away with late, high shots on our players, but the second any of our players did anything remotely like that, we’d be in trouble.

It’s just not fair!

But more importantly than football, we look around the world and we see terrible injustice. Children are abducted in Uganda and forced to be soldiers. The leader of Libya ordered his army to open fire and drop bombs on his own people. Christians all around the world are regularly persecuted, even killed for simply believing in Jesus and going to Church.

In Nahum’s day, the big bad guys were Ninevah, the capital of Assyria. You can read a bit about them in 2 Kings 17-23 & 2 Chronicles 33-34.

They were bad. They were known as the most cruel nation when it came to conquering other nations. And they were becoming quite successful at conquering; it looked like they’d take over and enslave the whole world. 2:12 is a visual summary of them.

Not long before Nahum was written, the Northern half of God’s people (Israel) had been conquered by Assyria.

What would be done about them? Who would stand up to them? Who would punish them for their injustice and cruelty?

Who was it written to?

Nahum was written for God’s people, but directed to Ninevah and Assyria, the enemies of God. God is about to act on his promise in Genesis 12:3, “whoever curses you, I will curse.”

Who wrote it?

Nahum was the prophet who spoke these Prophecies. We don’t really know anything about him, or where he was from.

Why was it written?

Nahum was written to warn Assyria of God’s judgment, and to give God’s people hope.

God had been patient with Ninevah - check out Jonah. But now, about a hundred years later, God’s patience had run out. Ninevah had become so sinful that God was ready to punish them for their sin. Nahum’s prophecy was a warning to them, that God was about to act.

EDIT: as an aside, you can read about the beginning of the downfall of the Assyrian Empire in Isaiah 36 -37. Sennacherib, their leader went out to attack Judah. His army was mysteriously wiped out, then he returned home, where he was assassinated by his sons. 

It was also written for God’s people in the Southern half of the Kingdom (Judah), to give them hope; this big bad enemy would soon be dealt with by God. God punishes injustice. God stands up against unjust people and governments, and he will deal with them.

What’s it about?

Nahum is about God’s anger at injustice and his promise to punish sin. Nahum teaches us that part of God’s plan to save his people is to punish sin. This means the downfall of anyone who stands against God and his people.

Nahum teaches us that God will judge injustice. All of the injustice we see in the world, will be judged by God one day. Nahum ends with people clapping at Ninevah’s downfall: the end of injustice is a great reason to celebrate!

And Nahum teaches us that even though life for God’s people can be full of persecution and suffering, God will ultimately defeat all who stand opposed to him, and he will rescue us.

In Nahum we see both God’s anger at sin and his love for his people. This is a foreshadow of Jesus: in Jesus, God deals out our punishment, and takes it on himself. Jesus bears God’s anger at sin for us. And he does that, because he loves us and wants to save us.

Reading Plan

Nahum is only 3 chapters long! I’d recommend reading it a couple of different ways.

First:

1. read it all in one go. Seriously! It won’t take long.

Second:

1. 1:1-18 God is a Warrior, and he wins.
2. 1:9-2:2 Ninevah falls, Judah is saved.
3. 2:3-13 The Lion will fall.
4. 3:1-7 Ninevah’s injustice exposed, poo thrown at them.
5. 3:8-19 Justice applauded.