Part 1: Before You Begin

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1 The B-I-B-L-E, Is That a Book for Me? Taking the "fear and trembling" out of approaching the Bible, a few basic benefits of Bible reading, how we got our Bible from a bunch of manuscripts, how to choose a Bible translation that's right for you.

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2 Claims and Disclaimers Why people view the same Bible so differently, what the Bible says about its own authority, what noted people have said about the Bible, understanding the Bible's layout, getting the most from what you read.

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Part 2: The Old Testament

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3 In the Beginning (Genesis 1-11) God creates the world, Adam and Eve romp around naked until they're tossed out of Eden, Cain kills Abel, Noah builds an ark, and people (Partially) build the Tower of Babel.

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4 Abraham: A Not-So-Accidental Tourist (Genesis 12-23) Abraham receives some promises, moves his family, separates from Lot, gives up his wife a couple of times, witnesses the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah, and comes within a second of killing his son.

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5 Isaac and Jacob: Lessons in Family Dysfunction (Genesis 24-36) Isaace gets a long-distance bride, their sons Jacob and Esau don't get along at all, Jacob leaves home and Starts a family of his own, Jacob has a couple of encounters with God-one of Which leaves him limping, but with a new name.

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6 Joseph: Not Your Average Joe (Genesis 37-50) Joseph is the little brother nobody likes, is sold into slavery, ends up in Egypt where he is imprisoned on rape charges, is released to become second in command of Egypt, and is eventually reunited wit with his family.

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7 Moses: God's Reluctant Hero (Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, Deuteronomy) The life of Moses from a boby on the Nile, to the burning bush in the desert, to the plagues before pharoah, across the Red Sea, up Mount Sinai, and through the wilderness.

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8 The Good, the Bad, and the Lovely (Joshua, Judges, and Ruth) Joshua takes over for Moses, including his famous battle at Jericho and making the sun stand still; the judges (including Gideon and Samson) take over; Ruth adds some romance to the Old Testament.

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9 That's Saul, Folks! (1 Samuel-15; portions of Chronicles) The Israellites demand a king; Saul is crowned but doesn't exactly shine as a leader; David rises to power after a little confrontation with a giant named Goliath

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10 David: Now for Some King Completely Different (1 Samuel 16-2 Samuel; portions of Chronicles) David becomes kings and strengthens Israel into a formidable nation, but then has an affair with Bathsheba and watches everything go downhill from there

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11 The Riches-to-Rags Story of Israel and Judah (1 & 2 Kings; portions of Chronicles) Solomon becomes king and is unsurpassed in wealth and wisdom; the kingdom splits into Israel and Judah; a long series of kings provided very few positive examples o worthwhile leader-ship; foreign nations conquer both Israel and Judah.

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12 Making the Best of a Bad Situation (Ezra, Nehemiah, Esther, Job) Ezra and Nehemiah return from captivity to repair Jerusalem; Esther boldly goes where no Jewish woman has gone before; Job sees his good life fall apart and wonders why.

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13 Old Testament Lit. 101 (Psalms, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, song of Songs) Wisdom comes in many forms, including songs and proverbs; a look into the mind-set of the guy who has everything; and proof that passion has its place among God's people.

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14 Tell-a-Vision Personalities (Isaiah through Malachi) God's message to humankind is forwarded to us by the prophets who found themselves in some of the strangest places--heaven, fish stomachs, lions'den, mud pits and more.

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Part 3: The New Testament

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15 God's Baby Gift (The Birth, Early Life, and Relationships of Jesus) The four Centuries between testaments is a trying time for God's people, after which Jesus is born and begins to introduce some new perspective on religion as they know it.

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16 We're Going to Need to See Some I.D. (The Miracles of Jesus) Jesus astounds people by walking around healing the sick, casting out evil spirits, telling nature what to do, and even raising the dead.

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17 Did I Hear That Right? (The Teachings of Jesus) Whether teaching in parables or saying exactly what he means, Jesus'teachings raise a lot of questions and discussion among his listeners.

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18 Arose by Any Other Name (Jesus' Death, Burial, and Resurrection) Jesus' enemies determine to stop him at any cost, resulting in his crucifixion, but his death is follwed by a resurrection that surprises even his closest followers.

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19 The Church Hits the Road (Acts) Jesus' disciples carry on where he left off and a new leader is called to include the Gentiles in the message of salvation, all resulting in the spread of Christian teachings from Jerusalem throughout the world.

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20 You've Got Mail! (Paul's Letters, Part 1) The epistles of Paul begin with three lengthy letters that provide clarity of Christian doctrines, rules for church order, some personal sharing from Jerusalem throughout the world

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21 More of the Apostle's Epistles (Paul's Letters, Part 2) Paul's other epistles include numberous instructions and encouragement, including warnings about false teachers,insight into the second coming of Jesus, and some mentoring comments.

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22 Still More People Doing the Write Thing (Hebrews through Jude) We hear from other epistle writers, including Peter, James, John, and Jude on a variety of topics.

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23 It's the End of the World As We Know It (Revelation) John records an amazing vision of heaven, angels, churches, horsement, beasts, and much, much more that is likely to keep people confused about the end of the world until it gets here.

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Appendices

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A The Books of the Bible

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B Where Can You Go from Here?

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C Reading the Bible in One Year