The Bible
There are 66 books in the Bible. The first section is the Old Testament consisting of 39 books. The second section is the New Testament consisting of 27 books.
It would be advisable to use a study Bible such as the New International Version (NIV) of the Quest Study Bible. It will help you understand scriptures because there are commentaries on the side of most verses. Besides, it is written in a way to be easily understood while having the same meaning without words like "thee, thou, thy, and thine" as in the King James Version (KJV) of the Bible that was written during the Elizabethian period.
Also, purchase tabs with the names of the books on them to paste in your Bible until you learn how to find the books when you need them.
Divisions of the Bible
There are different sections of the Old Testament and different sections of the New Testament. This course is about the first section of the Old Testament called the Pentateuch. "Penta" means "five" as in the word "pentagon."
Therefore the Pentateuch in the Bible consists of the first five books: Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers, and Deuteronomy. The Pentateuch is also known as "the Law" or the "Law of Moses." This course will be based on those five books.
Know these things to get started.
-- The Bible was written to and for believers. A believer is one who has accepted Jesus Christ as his Lord and Savior. This is simply believing that Jesus died on the cross and God raised Him from the dead on the third day. Unless a person is saved, he will never understand the Bible. Paul says it will be foolishness to him.
--The word "Trinity" is not in the Bible, but the concept is there. The Trinity consists of three persons in one. God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit.
You might be wondering how can God be three persons in one.
God is the creator of the heavens and the earth. The world became so sinful that God made Himself into a man to come to earth so people could understand Him because God cannot be seen. Therefore, God became Jesus.
Jesus lived for 33 years teaching and preaching until it was time for Him to die on the cross to atone for the sins of the people. After Jesus died on the cross, He ascended to heaven to be with His father because his work was completed when he offered Himself as a sacrifice to God.
Before Jesus ascended to heaven, He said He would send back another comforter. He kept His promise and sent back the Holy Spirit or Holy Ghost to live within us to comfort, lead and guide us.
Even though God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit are all the way through the Bible, God is more prominent in the Old Testament, Jesus is more prominent in the New Testament, and the Holy Spirit is more prominent in the world today.
-- The first person of the Trinity is God. He is the Creator and is referred to as the Almighty, Jehovah, Yahweh, and other divine names.
-- The second person of the Trinity is Jesus, God's only Son. Jesus is God in the flesh who came to earth. There are many names in the Bible for Jesus.
-- The third person of the Trinity is the Holy Spirit, also called the Holy Ghost. He is a person and should not be referred to as an "It."
Take the brief quiz to test your knowledge of this lesson. Once you understand it, you will be on your way to understanding more about the Bible.
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