David R. Helm

First sentence: This book is for anyone who wants to teach the Bible but doesn't know how to begin. It's also for those who are already teaching the Bible but don't know if they are doing it well.

This book is short. There's short, and then there's extremely short. As in why does this exist as a book instead of a free tract or blog article short.

The advice or tips are somewhat obvious and just common sense. For example you need to be confident. Confident that God is God is God. Confident show more that the Bible is the Word of God. Confident that the Holy Spirit will use you--even you--to accomplish his will. Confident that whatever happens, God's will will be done. Confident that God will answer prayers and that prayers are a must--for teacher and students.

Are there people teaching the Bible who needs these basic refreshers???? Probably. But those are the very people unlikely to pick up a book by Crossway.

Is everything super basic? Yes and no. The section on preparation is more practical and helpful, perhaps. But it is also the most challenging--the one that will require the most work for you to apply. The principles seem solid enough but will require you to put in six to eight hours of effort each week for whatever Scripture passage you'll be teaching. It is relatively easy to read the how-to basics of how to study Scripture and less easy to start actually digging *that* deep into Scripture.

The book concludes with a great message: You must always, always, always keep your listeners in mind. Have a precise goal in mind, follow an outline, and don't forget applications. show less

First sentence from the Old Testament section: The Bible is God's story, and it begins with these big words: "In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth." Do you know how God created everything? Simply by speaking words. Imagine, making the world with words! Strong words. Powerful words. With words God created everything!

First sentence from the New Testament section: Years passed without a single word from God. And the years turned into many years, and the many years turned show more into hundreds of years. And the great promises of God seemed to fade away. Israel became less important in the world. Other nations became great--strong nations, powerful nations, whose kings ruled over God's people. One such king...was Caesar Augustus.

The Big Picture Story Bible is one of my favorite bible story books. Why? Because it presents the Bible not as a series of entertaining, informational, educational, inspirational stories but as a unified story. The Bible does in fact have a big picture. If you miss the big picture, you miss the point. By understanding--grasping, appreciating--the big picture, you are enabling yourself to appreciate the smaller as well because you can see how everything fits, everything belongs.

The Big Picture Story Bible has twenty-six illustrated stories. Together they tell one big story. These stories build upon one another. They are interconnected. Everything is building up to the big climax--the appearance of Jesus Christ. The first eleven stories cover the Old Testament. The remaining fifteen stories cover the New Testament.

The Bible is for believers young and old. The story it tells is grand, glorious, but above all TRUE and TRUSTWORTHY. Yet people of all ages can struggle to read the Word for themselves. Perhaps because it seems so strange and otherworldly. Perhaps because it is intimidating. Perhaps because they don't know where to begin. A familiarity with the BIG PICTURE of the Bible could be the very boost one needs to begin to ACTUALLY read the Bible.

The Big Picture Story Bible gives readers of all ages the orientation they need to grasp not only the story but the theology behind the story. It covers the basics of the gospel, the good news of Jesus Christ. It is not so thorough and comprehensive that it would ever--could ever--take the place of the Word itself. That would be silly. But by showing you the structure of the Word, how everything fits together, how every story belongs to the whole, it can be a considerable help.

I think this one is for readers of all ages. I definitely think parents with children should have this one in their homes. (Christian parents and grandparents). Parents have an awesome responsibility to teach and instruct their children in the faith. It isn't anyone else's responsibility to do so for you. It is a great task, but it isn't an impossible one. It's never too early. It's never too late. You might feel overwhelmed, but you can learn alongside your children. You can go on this glorious, wonderful journey together.

But I also think adults without children could benefit from this one as well. There are a million excuses why believers don't read the Bible. Grasping the big picture and holding onto the big picture could be a great stepping stone into actually reading the Bible and tasting for yourself the sweetness of the Lord. show less

Grasping the continuity of the Bible is difficult, even for adults. It's easy to read it as many separate stories, each one written to reveal something about God but not necessarily connected to one another. But to view the Bible like this is to miss the "big picture," the story line that is hidden in the pages, waiting to be discovered. That story line is the Christ-centered story of redemption.

In The Big Picture Story Bible, David Helm and Gail Schoonmaker simply yet superbly tie together show more the major stories of the Bible and show how each of these stories continually point to the fulfillment of God's promise of redemption. The book begins with creation and the Fall, showing how Adam and Eve, who were once joyful in the fellowship of God, disobeyed. But, even from the very beginning, "God gave Adam and Eve a hint that he would not always be angry with them. God promised that one day someone would come and crush Satan's power over people. But that day was a long way off." (pp.48-49) Through the stories of Noah, Abraham, Joseph, Moses, David, the prophets and other, we continually read the reminders of God's promise. By the time you get to the New Testament, there's a great expectation that surely something is going to happen and soon! "What a very big day! What God had promised to Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and David had arrived in the birth of Jesus!" (p.256-257). The book tells of Jesus' ministry, his death, burial and resurrection. It closes with another promise that Jesus would return again and that "God's forever people will one day live in God's forever place under God's forever rule." (p.450)

David Helm and Gail Schoonmaker take what is often simply told as individual Sunday School stories and writes the story of the Bible in such a way as to make it accessible to children. Each page is filled with colorful drawings that beautifully, yet simply illustrate what is happening. The book does take a few liberties in describing some situations, like giving the background for why Caesar decided to count all the people in his kingdom. Additionally, many details about Biblical events or stories are not covered, but are briefly mentioned, if at all. But keep in mind that the purpose of this story Bible is to look at the big picture and, as a result, many smaller details or stories may not be mentioned.

Every family with young children should have a copy of this story Bible. It certainly gave me a great reminder of how the Bible all fits together. The Big Picture Story Bible is an excellent way to teach how the whole Bible is about God, how each story builds to the coming of Jesus and how even today, we wait for the final chapter to be written in the story of redemption.

(A huge "Thank you" to Crossway for providing a copy of this book for review.) show less

Excellent little book that answers the "Why?" and "How?" of expositional preaching. Helm writes clearly and winsomely on a vital topic for the church. This is a great resource for pastors to give young men in the congregation who aspire to preach. While it's far from exhaustive, I gave it 5 stars because I believe Helm accomplished exactly what he sought to do: provide the Church with an accessible treatment of the nuts and bolts of expositional preaching.