Welcome to the Bible
Opening the Bible for the first time can feel daunting. Where do you even begin?
What you’re holding isn’t a book; it’s a library of 66 books written over more than 1000 years. There are histories, poems, letters, biographies and more. Together they tell one story but you can start anywhere you want.
We recommend starting with one of the biographies of Jesus (there are 4):
Luke – clear and carefully researched
or
Mark – the shortest and fastest-moving
Don’t worry about understanding everything. Just enjoy the story and maybe ask yourself some questions as you read:
- What does this show me about Jesus?
- How do I feel about this?
- Is there anything surprising?
Read slowly
The Bible wasn’t designed to be rushed. Even a few paragraphs at a time can be enough.
You might find it helpful to:
- read a short section each day
- jot down questions
- talk about it with someone else
Keep exploring
If you’d like to go further, some good next steps are:
Genesis – the beginning of the story
Psalms – ancient prayers and poems about real life
Acts – the story of how the Church started
Here are a couple of great free resources:
- YouVersion Bible app – a Bible for your phone with a reading plan to suit you.
- Bible Project – high quality videos, podcasts, and blogs. Click here for their series of 5 minute videos introducing the Bible.
Questions?
If you'd like someone to explore the Bible with, ask questions, or simply talk things through, we'd love to meet you.