Should We Read the New Testament First

If yous are a new Christian, which book of the Bible should you read showtime?  Do you outset reading the whole thing from cover to cover starting with Genesis and working your way to Revelation?

Or perhaps you lot've even been a Christian for years. You tried reading the Bible before but gave up later a while.  Now, y'all'd like to get back into reading again more than diligently and are determined to get to grips with at least i book.

You might find the whole thing intimidating. After all, in that location are 66 books of the Bible containing various types of literature from nearly forty different authors.

Whatever your situation, hither are some suggestions I would personally recommend. While people'due south opinions may vary, these are my peak 5 easiest places to beginning reading the Bible going from easiest to hardest.

Which volume of the Bible should you read offset?

1. The gospels

1 proficient identify to start is in the New Testament with ane of the gospels. By starting in a gospel, you tin can get to know Jesus and his grapheme and see what he is like every bit a person.

The whole of the Bible is centred around Jesus. Therefore get-go with a gospel helps us focus on the main signal of the scriptures. If yous are working through the Sometime Testament, information technology may take you a while before y'all get to the gospels and you might miss the main signal. Everything must be seen in the light of Jesus.

Some people would suggest John's gospel gives you a practiced insight into who Jesus is as a person. While John is a good get-go, some readers might prefer more of an overview of the whole of Jesus' life from nativity to death to resurrection. Both the gospels of John and Mark only introduce us to Jesus as an adult already and as he is well-nigh to brainstorm his ministry building.

Personally, I would bespeak people to Luke'south gospel. That is a comprehensive book which contains all of the cardinal elements of Jesus' life. It also sometimes feels more than down to earth than John's more spiritual gospel and may therefore feel more accessible and an easier read.

two. Paul's alphabetic character to the Romans

Another good place is St Paul'due south letter to the Romans. Hither Paul explains the human condition and our inability past our own efforts or by observing the law to live upwardly to God'southward perfect standard that is Jesus Christ.

He explains how Jesus' decease and resurrection brought about our freedom from sin and death, as well as emphasising that salvation comes only through religion in Jesus Christ alone and not our works.

For a new Christian wanting to gain a amend understanding of the basics of the Christian faith, Romans is an excellent place to get-go. Information technology cuts direct to the point and explains everything systematically. If yous didn't fully understand the significance of certain events in the gospel, Romans sheds light on that.

From at that place on, you lot can progress to the other letters such as 1 and 2 Corinthians, or jump about to Galatians, Ephesians or Phlippians.

I would definitely recommend reading through all the New Attestation letters to become started, only starting time with Romans to sympathise the central message of the gospel.

3. The volume of Psalms

This volume is total of songs written by the likes of Male monarch David, Asaph, the sons of Korah, Heman the Ezrahite and many others. The Psalms offering a lot of hope and encouragement. There are songs for different occasions, whether you're total of praise and celebration, or in anguish, sadness, fear or despair.

The Psalms are designed to be read aloud rather than silently to yourself. When y'all read them aloud, the words demand a response on your part. At that place is something about the words that you simply can't ignore without it feeling that they are stirring something up in your soul.

The reason for that is because the Psalms are speech acts which I've written most in more detail here.

Starting off with the Psalms can aid you to fix your eyes on God. It tin shift your eyes off your own situation, especially if you are speaking the words aloud.

4. The volume of Proverbs

Proverbs is a proficient place to start if you want to read an Old Testament book. Information technology contains the wisdom of Solomon, with enough of practical advice that is easy to read. Many of the proverbs are broken down into short sayings which brand it more digestible and byte-sized.

There are likewise 31 chapters of proverbs, which tin be used for a daily Bible devotion for a whole calendar month.

I would only recommend Proverbs for more of a light read rather than equally a manner to really go into the Bible. It's like shooting fish in a barrel to end upwardly seeing it as a bunch of quotations or pithy sayings and terminate up missing the cardinal message of how the Bible should exist pointing to Jesus.

5. The book of Genesis

Genesis is ane place I would propose. But I wouldn't recommend it if it's the first time you're always reading the Bible. It'due south more than for if you've read through the Bible before and want to approach it in a different way.

Genesis sets up the entire scene. It's like Act ane or the prepare upwardly of a moving picture. It shows us the creation of the earth and the fall of humans due to sin, and already points to a prophecy about Jesus' crucifixion in Chapter iii:fifteen which says:

^xvAnd I will put enmity
between you and the woman,
and betwixt your offspring^[a] and hers;
he volition beat^[b] your head,
and you will strike his heel."

It's important to encounter the overall big picture of the Bible and how information technology all fits together. The Bible is all nearly Jesus and God'south saving plan for humanity. While all the Former Testament stories tin exist interesting by themselves, it's important to recognise that all of these characters are pointing towards Jesus in some way. They are types foreshadowing Jesus.

While information technology'southward good to beginning in Genesis, I wouldn't advise but going through the residual of the Onetime Testament in volume lodge. You'll probably find that past the time you come to Leviticus, Numbers or Deuteronomy that you're getting bogged down by hundreds of laws and rituals. You might question the relevance of these laws for your life today, or wonder why there are all these genealogies of people you've never heard about.

However, if you practise determine you desire to offset with Genesis, after that I would skip alee to i of the gospels – perhaps even the gospel of John. The get-go chapter of John also echoes the opening words of Genesis but shows information technology in a new low-cal.

If you go through the Onetime Testament in volume order, you may before long detect you've go discouraged and eventually give up and not end upward reading your Bible at all. That's why I'd recommend starting with the New Attestation first and picking one of the other choices above.

Decision

I've given my top 5 recommended places for which volume of the Bible you should read first. But there isn't a right or wrong reply to this question. Information technology all depends on where you are at in your Christian journey and what you're trying to achieve. However at that place are some entry points which are more accessible than others.

Wherever you lot commencement though, it'due south a good idea to have a modern translation written in contemporary English. Even if you begin reading in the nigh accessible place but are wrestling with a version written in old English, yous're going to struggle with the language. You don't desire to put an extra obstacle in the fashion.

>> If yous desire to read nigh creative ways to make your Bible reading more interesting, I've written an article virtually it here.

At present one mode of getting into a book of the Bible easily is past reading a graphic novel version of the gospel of Luke. I've created and illustrated 1 which includes every unmarried verse. That will allow you lot to follow it each pace of the way from offset to terminate while viewing the images at the same time. You can read more almost information technology here.

You can also download a preview of it below.

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Finally, where practise y'all find the easiest place to kickoff reading the Bible and which book would you recommend to a new reader? Leave me a comment below.

Robert is the founder of Cartoon on the Discussion. He has a Available's degree in Theology and a Master's caste in Systematic Theology. He also has a degree in Constabulary and was called to the Bar. Robert previously taught religious studies and was a theology lecturer. He is an artist, musician and writer, and has created a graphic novel version of Luke's gospel. You tin can follow him below.

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