I met with a couple who are looking to start reading the Bible and they asked me for advice on where to start. Based on their interests and spiritual goals, this was the list that I made up for them.
Maybe it will be helpful to others too?
- God makes a covenant promise with Sarai and Abram (Sarah and Abraham)
- A short reading: Genesis 15:12–21
- A long reading: Genesis chapters 15–17
- This is the creation of a special connection between God and humanity, a covenant that forms the throughline of the whole rest of the Bible. Abraham and Sarah have a son Isaac, who has a son Jacob, who has twelve sons—most notably Joseph…
- Joseph saves his brothers from dying in a famine
- A short reading: Genesis 45:4–15
- A long reading: Gensis chapters 37–50
- Up to this point the Bible has moved from one difficult event to the next. But Joseph is an example of someone breaking a negative cycle with an act of forgiveness and putting the whole story on a different trajectory.
- The whole rest of the Hebrew Bible is people recording their experiences with God
- Two short readings: Jeremiah 29:1–14 (the descendants of Abraham are captured in Jerusalem and taken into Babylon where God advises them to live full lives). Psalm 103 (the psalms are hymns/poetry for communal expression of emotions).
- A medium reading: The Book of Ruth
- A long reading: The Book of Job
- The latter two-thirds of the Hebrew Bible / Old Testament include the words of prophets and the stories of regular people (like Ruth and Job) sharing their profound experiences of God.
- Jesus inspires an approach to Judaism that later becomes Christianity
- Matthew 4:18 to 5:20
- Some of Jesus’s spiritual genius is on display here: Jesus invites several people leave home and become his spiritual apprentices; Jesus preaches a message of care for the disenfranchised to the people who are curious about him.
- Luke 10:30–42
- Jesus taught using parables. This approach to teaching frustrated people who wanted Jesus to give them clear answers. Different listeners could take away different lessons from the parables. This Parable of the Good Samaritan is followed by a story about Jesus helping people figure out what’s important in life.
- Luke 15:11–32
- The Prodigal Son story is the longest of Jesus’s parables. It can be interpreted in different ways, but forgiveness is at the heart of it.
- Matthew 4:18 to 5:20
- Paul (a Roman Jew) uses Roman and Jewish traditions to launch a Christian movement
- Philippians 4
- The letter-writer Paul worked hard to bolster and promote Christianity.
- Philippians 4