Help Me Teach The Bible

On this episode of Help Me Teach the Bible, Nancy sat down with Trevin Wax—writer, TGC blogger, Religion New Service contributor, and (at the time) managing editor of The Gospel Project, a gospel-centered small group curriculum for all ages published by LifeWay Christian Resources. Wax presents the three questions every teacher needs to ask when preparing to teach as well as what makes teaching genuinely gospel-centered according to his book, Gospel-Centered Teaching: Showing Christ in All the Scripture.

Resources mentioned by Trevin Wax:

• The Big Picture Interactive Bible Storybook
• The Big Picture Story Bible by David Helm
• The Jesus Storybook Bible by Sally Lloyd-Jones
• According to Planby Graeme Goldsworthy
• God’s Big Pictureby Vaughan Roberts
• Reading God’s Story: A Chronological Daily Bible by George Guthrie
• Read the Bible for Lifeby George Guthrie

In this episode of Help Me Teach the Bible, sat down with Carrie Sandom from TheProclamation Trust in the UK and Jenny Salt from Sydney Missionary and Bible College in Australia to talk about how they approach a passage they are preparing to teach.

They discuss their first opportunities and how they found the confidence to teach, as well as how they would each like to continue to improve their teaching.

Audio resources:

• Jenny Salt’s series on Ruth
• Talks by Salt in TGC’s resource database
• Carrie Sandom’s messages at the Proclamation Trust
• Talks by Sandom in TGC’s resource database

On this episode of Help Me Teach the Bible, recorded live in front of an audience at The Gospel Coalition’s 2016 Women’s Conference in Indianapolis, Nancy talked to John Piper about the book of 1 Peter. Piper is the founder of Desiring God and chancellor of Bethlehem College & Seminary.

While most of us may be familiar with John Piper’s preaching, he makes a case for teaching using the Socratic method by writing good questions for Bible study participants to work through, first on their own and then as a group.

Audio/Video Resources on 1 Peter

• Plenary Sessions on 1 Peter from The Gospel Coalition’s 2016 Women’s Conference
• Sermons on 1 Peter by Dick Lucas
• Sermons on 1 Peter by Alistair Begg
• Video series and group study on 1 Peter by Jen Wilkin

Recommended Books

• 1 and 2 Peter and Jude: Sharing Christ’s Sufferings by David Helm
• 1 Peter (Reformed Expository Commentary) by Daniel Doriani
• The Message of 1 Peter: The Way of the Cross by Edmund Clowney
• 10 Keys to Unlock the Christian Life by Colin Smith

In this episode of Help Me Teach the Bible, Nancy Guthrie talked with Ray Ortlund Jr. about the book of Proverbs. Ortlund was the founding pastor of Immanuel Nashville and is president of Renewal Ministries and a Council member for TGC. Among many other books, he’s the author of Proverbs: Wisdom that Works in Crossway’s Preaching the Word Commentary series. Ray presents Proverbs as an opportunity to sit down with Jesus and have him as our counselor.

Recommended resources:

• Ancient Wisdom: Mentoring from the Book of Proverbs, a series of messages by Ray Ortlund
• How Do I Preach Expository Sermons from Proverbs? by Dan Doriani
• Proverbs: A 12-Week Study by Lydia Brownback

Resources recommended by Ray Ortlund Jr.:

• Proverbs in the Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries series by Derek Kidner
• The Book of Proverbs: Chapters 1–15 and The Book of Proverbs, Chapter 15–31 by Bruce K. Waltke
• The Expositor’s Bible Commentary, which includes commentary by Allen P. Ross on Proverbs
• “The Emotional Life of Our Lord” essay by B. B. Warfield

On this episode of Help Me Teach the Bible, Nancy Guthrie talked with Justin Taylor and Dane Ortlund about how Bible teachers can build a library of useful resources.

Taylor and Ortlund discuss books they believe are essential for the Bible teacher, publishing projects they’re most pleased to have been a part of, as well as what they’re working on now. They also talk about what makes an effective Bible teacher and how to become a better one.

Resources suggested by Taylor and Ortlund:

• How to Read a Book by Mortimer Adler
• Knowing the Bible study guide series
• Introductions to Bible sections and other ESV Study Bible resources
• According to Planby Graeme Goldsworthy
• The Bible Speaks Today commentary series

On this episode of Help Me Teach the Bible, Nancy Guthrie sat down with Colin Smith, pastor of The Orchard Evangelical Free Church in Arlington Heights, Illinois, and preacher at Unlocking the Bible. They discussed how to teach the story of Joseph with Christ at the center, as demonstrated in Smith’s “Snapshots of a Godly Life” sermon series.

Joseph’s is the story of the loved and favored son who is hated by his brothers. Yet he is the one to whom they must come for salvation, the one to whom they must be reconciled.

Mentioned in the discussion:

• Gleanings in Genesis  (full text online) by A. W. Pink

Resources on Joseph:

• Sermon on Joseph by Dick Lucas
• Sermons on Joseph by Alistair Begg

In this episode of Help Me Teach the Bible, Nancy sits down with George Guthrie (no relation), professor of Bible at Union University in Jackson, Tennessee, to talk through how to teach Paul’s second letter to the church in Corinth.

Guthrie provides clarity on the “triumphal procession,” our transformation “from one degree of glory to another,” as well as how to teach on financial giving in a way that captures the beauty of the passage. Guthrie has participated in numerous Bible translation projects and wrote Read the Bible for Life: Your Guide to Understanding and Living God’s Word as well as the volume on 2 Corinthians in the Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament series.

Recommended Print Resources

• 2 Corinthians: Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament  by George Guthrie
• A Sincere and Pure Devotion to Christ: 100 Daily Meditations on 2 Corinthians by Sam Storms (Volume 1 and Volume 2)
• 2 Corinthians: Power in Weakness  by R. Kent Hughes in the Preach the Word Commentary
• 2 Corinthians: A 12-Week Study  by Dane Ortlund (forthcoming)

Recommended Audio Resources

• 2 Corinthians sermon series by Sinclair Ferguson
• 2 Corinthian sermon series by Richard Pratt
• 2 Corinthians sermon series by R. Kent Hughes

In this episode of Help Me Teach the Bible, Nancy talks to Scott Redd, campus president and associate professor of Old Testament at Reformed Theological Seminary in Washington, D.C. Redd is the author of the chapter on Deuteronomy in A Biblical-Theological Introduction to the Old Testament: The Gospel Promised, edited by Miles Van Pelt.

He describes Deuteronomy as “the hub around which the entire Old Testament revolves.” In this discussion, Redd describes how the Ten Commandments serve as a table of contents for much of the book of Deuteronomy. He also helps with handling hard issues in the book, such as its discussion of slavery and the stoning of a rebellious son.

Resources on Deuteronomy:

• Sermons on Deuteronomy by Sandy Willson
• Deuteronomy’s Riches: A Conversation with Ajith Fernando
• The Theology of Deuteronomy for Preachers  workshop by Gary Millar
• New International Biblical Commentary: Deuteronomy  by Christopher Wright
• Deuteronomy (Apollos Old Testament Commentary)  by J. G. McConville
• Deuteronomy (Evangelical Press Study Commentary)  by John Currid
• Deuteronomy: Loving Obedience to a Loving God  by Ajith Fernando
• Now Choose Life: Theology and Ethics in Deuteronomy  by Gary Millar

In this episode of Help Me Teach the Bible, Nancy Guthrie talks with Lee Gatiss about the final book in the Old Testament, the book of Malachi. Gatiss  is the director of Church Society and is an adjunct lecturer in church history at Union School of Theology in Wales. Gatiss is the senior editor of The NIV Proclamation Bible and is the author of numerous books including his recent book, The Forgotten Cross.

Resources for teaching the book of Malachi:

• Lee Gatiss’s leaders notes on Malachi (pdf)
• The Message of Malachi  by Peter Adam
• Joel, Obadiah, Malachi (NIV Application Commentary) by David Baker
• John Piper’s sermon series on Malachi

On this episode of Help Me Teach the Bible, Nancy Guthrie talks with Dick Lucas in London’s Proclamation Trust offices about what makes an excellent Bible teacher. We talked about how a teacher studies and prepares to teach, dealing with discouragement as a teacher, as well as the temptation to pride.

Lucas was rector of St. Helen’s Bishopsgate from 1961 to 1998. In 1986, he founded the Proclamation Trust to train men and women to correctly handle Scripture through prayerful study of the text in light of its context in both the biblical book and the Bible as a whole. Now in his early 90s, Lucas was a key figure along with John Stott and J. I. Packer in shaping the conservative evangelical movement in the UK during the 20th century. He still has an active and influential ministry, preaching and speaking at conferences and serving on the leadership team of the Cornhill Training Course.

You can hear Lucas’s own Bible teaching through these audio resources:

• The message of Galatians, Lucas’s most recent teaching to the staff at St. Helens Bishopsgate
• Dick Lucas Sermon Archive

In this episode of Help Me Teach the Bible, Nancy Guthrie speaks to Iain Duguid about the book of Judges. Duguid has been a professor of Old Testament at Westminster Theological Seminary since 2014, having taught previously at Grove City College, Westminster Seminary California, and RTS Jackson.

Duguid is the author of numerous commentaries and books, including volumes on Daniel and Esther and Ruth in the Reformed Expository Commentary series, The Song of Songs in the Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries, The NIV Application Commentary: Ezekiel, and Numbers: God’s Presence in the Wilderness in Crossway’s Preaching the Word series. He is working on a commentary on Judges that will be published by B&H.

In this episode, Duguid points out that most of us are familiar with a few of the stories from Judges but don’t have a sense of how they fit together. He helps us to see how the book of Judges can minister to people whose lives have been significantly affected by the darkness of this world and even darkness among God’s people, the church.

Recommended Resources for Teaching Judges

• The New American Commentary: Judges, Ruth  by Daniel L. Block
• Judges: Such a Great Salvation  by Dale Ralph Davis
• Judges & Ruth: There Is a Redeemer  by Sarah Ivill
• Judges and Ruth: God in Chaos  by Barry Webb

On this episode of Help Me Teach the Bible, Nancy Guthrie talks with David Garner of Westminster Theological Seminary. They discuss what it takes to be clear as a teacher, how to lead in situations where participants want to take the discussion in a direction away from the text, and how our sense of the authority of Scripture impacts what and how we teach.

Garner is the editor of Did God Really Say? Affirming the Truthfulness and Trustworthiness of Scripture. His lectures on the authority of Scripture  from Westminster’s Full Confidence conference are available online. Additionally, his article “High Stakes: Insider Movement Hermeneutics and the Gospel” appeared in the July 2012 edition of Themelios.

Resources on Teaching with Authority and Clarity

Did God Really Say? Affirming the Truthfulness and Trustworthiness of Scripture by David Garner

Taking God at His Word by Kevin DeYoung

Why Trust the Bible? by Greg Gilbert

Women of the Word: How to Study the Bible with Both Our Hearts and Our Minds by Jen Wilkin

You’ve been asked to give a Bible talk. So where do you begin? And how do you make sure you’re understanding and applying the passage of scripture rightly? How will you get to the gospel?

In this workshop session, recorded live at The 2021 Gospel Coalition National Conference, Nancy Guthrie takes listeners through the process of preparing to teach the Bible including prayer, looking at the context, determining the structure of the passage, composing and aim, creating an outline, getting to the gospel, developing applications, and coming up with an introduction and conclusions. She then applies each of these tasks to putting together a talk on Numbers 6:22-27.

Mentioned in this episode: Putting Together a Bible Talk worksheet

In this episode of Help Me Teach the Bible, Nancy sat down with Christopher Ash at his home in Cambridge, England, to get help for teaching the book of Job, which was perhaps the first book of the Bible written.  Their conversation covers ways Job is often taught inadequately and the many ways to preach Christ through this ancient book.

Ash is a pastor and writer in residence at Tyndale House in Cambridge. He recently retired as director of the Cornhill Training Course, where he served from 2004 to 2015. He is the author of Job: The Wisdom of the Cross in Crossway’s Preaching the Word commentary series.

Resources by Christopher Ash:

• Job: The Wisdom of the Cross
• How Does God Treat His Friends? sermon series by Christopher Ash
• Teaching Romans Volume 1 and Volume 2
• Zeal without Burnout 
• Married for God: Making Your Marriage the Best It Can Be 
• Sermons by Christopher Ash at All Saints Little Shelford (1998 to 2004)

More Resources on Job:

• Holding onto Your Faith in the Midst of Suffering sermon series by John Piper
• Sermon series on Job by Sandy Willson
• The Gospel According to Job: An Honest Look at Pain and Doubt from the Life of One Who Lost Everything by Mike Mason

In this episode of Help Me Teach the Bible, Nancy talked with Greg Beale, who was at the time professor of New Testament and biblical theology at Westminster Theological Seminary, about the book of Revelation—the book of the Bible surveys say people most want to be taught to them and teachers least want to teach. We work our way through key statements from Beale’s Revelation: A Shorter Commentary to cover questions on:

• symbolism;
• recapitulation;
• the nature of the renewal of all things; and
• central pastoral and theological themes in Revelation.

Books by Greg Beale:

• A New Testament Biblical Theology: The Unfolding of the Old Testament in the New
• Book of Revelation (New International Greek Text Commentary)
• Revelation: A Shorter Commentary
• God Dwells Among Us: Expanding Eden to the Ends of the Earth

Recommended by Beale:

• More than Conquerors: An Interpretation of the Book of Revelation  by William Hendricksen

More Resources on Revelation from Crossway, the sponsor of Help Me Teach the Bible::

• Revelation: The Spirit Speaks to the Churches  by James M. Hamilton Jr.
• Revelation: A 12-Week Study  by Stephen Witmer

Recommended audio resources:

• Sermons on Revelation  by Greg Beale
• 26-part sermon series on Revelation by D. A. Carson
• Sermons on Revelation by Mike Bullmore

Even in churches in which men and women are getting a regular diet of biblical theology and redemptive history in what is being preached from the pulpit, often what is being offered in small-group Bible study is driven by felt needs, has little biblical or theological rigor, or is oriented around self-improvement. But when biblical theology infiltrates Bible study, it puts the emphasis on what Christ has done rather than on what we must do. It helps participants put the various parts of the Bible together so they begin to make sense. And it makes being united to Christ by faith urgent and necessary.

In this workshop recorded live at The Gospel Coalition 2021 National Conference, Nancy Guthrie works through seven ways biblical theology transforms Bible study as well as ways teachers can develop a deeper grasp of biblical theology.

Registration opens on July 1 for 12 Biblical Theology Workshops for Women around the country taught by Nancy Guthrie in 2021. For cities and dates, go to: www.nancyguthrie.com/biblical-theology-workshop.

Recommended in this podcast:

• Name Above All Names by Sinclair Ferguson and Alistair Begg
• God’s Big Picture by Vaughan Roberts
• The Unfolding Mystery by Edmund P. Clowney
• The Goldsworthy Trilogy by Graeme Goldsworthy
• God Dwells Among Us by G. K. Beale and Mitchell Kim
• Remaking a Broken World by Christopher Ash
• The Story Retold by G.K. Beale and Benjamin Gladd
• Even Better than Eden by Nancy Guthrie

In this episode of Help Me Teach the Bible, Nancy talked with Robert Smith Jr., professor of preaching at Beeson Divinity School. They discussed Psalm 42–43 and what it has to teach about moving from sorrow to joy, from mourning to morning. 

Smith was previously associate professor of Christian preaching at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky. Among other writing projects, he is the author of Doctrine That Dances: Bringing Doctrinal Preaching and Teaching to Life, which was named Preaching magazine’s 2008 Preaching Book of the Year and Preaching.com’s 2009 Preaching Book of the Year.

Recommended resources:

• “Seeing My Son’s Murderer,” article by Robert Smith
• “The Oasis of God,” message on Psalm 42–43 by Dr. Robert Smith
• Sinclair Ferguson on Psalm 42–43
• John Piper on Psalm 42 and Psalm 43

In this the second of a two-part episode of Help Me Teach the Bible, Nancy talked to Gary Millar, principal of Queensland Theological College in Brisbane, Australia, and author of Saving Eutychus. Millar is currently working on a commentary on 1 and 2 Kings, which will be published by Crossway. The Book of 1 Kings opens with a weakened King David who can’t seem to keep warm in bed, and subsequently works its way through:

• the glorious and yet ultimately failed kingship of Solomon
• the building and dedication of the temple
• the division of the kingdom with its good and bad kings
• the prophetic ministry of Elijah

Recommended audio resources on 1 Kings:

• Chapel messages on 1 and 2 Kings by Gary Millar
• Sermons on 1 Kings by Sinclair Ferguson

Recommended  print resources on 1 Kings:

• 1 and 2 Kings (Brazos Theological Commentary on the Bible) by Peter J. Leithart
• 1 Kings: The Wisdom and the Folly by Dale Ralph Davis
• King Solomon: The Temptations of Money, Sex, and Power by Philip Graham Ryken

In this two-part episode of Help Me Teach the Bible, Nancy talked to Gary Millar, principal of Queensland Theological College in Brisbane, Australia, and author of Saving Eutychus. Millar is currently working on a commentary on 1 and 2 Kings, which will be published by Crossway. The Book of 1 Kings opens with a weakened King David who can’t seem to keep warm in bed, and subsequently works its way through:

• the glorious and yet ultimately failed kingship of Solomon
• the building and dedication of the temple
• the division of the kingdom with its good and bad kings
• the prophetic ministry of Elijah

Recommended audio resources on 1 Kings:

• Chapel messages on 1 and 2 Kings by Gary Millar
• Sermons on 1 Kings by Sinclair Ferguson

Recommended  print resources on 1 Kings:

• 1 and 2 Kings (Brazos Theological Commentary on the Bible) by Peter J. Leithart
• 1 Kings: The Wisdom and the Folly by Dale Ralph Davis
• King Solomon: The Temptations of Money, Sex, and Power by Philip Graham Ryken

In this episode of Help Me Teach the Bible Nancy went to Columbia, South Carolina, to sit down with Derek Thomas and ask his help for teaching through the book of Mark. Over the course of the conversation they discussed:

• the miracle stories and how to apply them
• the kingdom of God
• true repentance
• what it means to be a disciple

Recommended audio resources:

• Sermons on the book of Mark by Derek Thomas
• Sermons on the book of Mark by Kevin DeYoung
• Sermon series on the book of Mark from Holy Trinity Church
• TGC sermon resources on Mark

Recommended print resources:

• Let’s Study Mark by Sinclair Ferguson
• The Gospel According to Mark in Pillar New Testament Commentary by James R. Edwards, Jr.
• Mark: A 12-Week Studyin the Knowing the Bible series by Dane C. Ortlund

In this, the second of two episodes, Nancy talked with Ryan Kelly, pastor for preaching at Desert Springs Church in Albuquerque, New Mexico, where he taught through the book of 1 Samuel. Kelly calls 1 Samuel a “hinge book” between the time of the judges and the establishment of the kingship in Israel. Topics include:

• The prayer of Hannah that extends beyond what has been revealed and provides a table of contents for the book
• The problem with Israel’s desire for a king
• David’s speeches in the David and Goliath story
• What Jonathan reveals about true conversion
• Three decapitations
• Warnings for us in the sin of Saul

Additional audio resources 1 Samuel:

• Sermons on 1 Samuel by Ryan Kelly
• Sermons on 1 Samuel by Tom Schreiner
• Sermons on 1 Samuel by Liam Goligher

Recommended print resources:

• ESV Men’s Devotional Bible 
• 1 Samuel: Looking for a Leader by John Woodhouse
• A Son to Me: An Exposition of 1 and 2 Samuel by Peter Leithart
• The King in His Beauty  by Tom Schreiner

In this two-part episode, Nancy talked with Ryan Kelly, pastor for preaching at Desert Springs Church in Albuquerque, New Mexico, where he taught through the book of 1 Samuel. Kelly calls 1 Samuel a “hinge book” between the time of the judges and the establishment of the kingship in Israel. Topics include:

• The prayer of Hannah that extends beyond what has been revealed and provides a table of contents for the book
• The problem with Israel’s desire for a king
• David’s speeches in the David and Goliath story
• What Jonathan reveals about true conversion
• Three decapitations
• Warnings for us in the sin of Saul

Additional audio resources 1 Samuel:

• Sermons on 1 Samuel by Ryan Kelly
• Sermons on 1 Samuel by Tom Schreiner
• Sermons on 1 Samuel by Liam Goligher

Recommended print resources:

• ESV Men’s Devotional Bible 
• 1 Samuel: Looking for a Leader by John Woodhouse
• A Son to Me: An Exposition of 1 and 2 Samuel by Peter Leithart
• The King in His Beauty  by Tom Schreiner

On this episode, Nancy Guthrie talked with Mike Bullmore about what may be one of the least-studied books in the Bible. The book of 2 Chronicles is rich in story and encouragement to trust God to be faithful to his promises. Bullmore is senior pastor of CrossWay Community Church in Bristol, Wisconsin, and author of The Gospel and Scripture: How to Read the Bible (Crossway, 2011).

Topics include:

• Why study 2 Chronicles?
• How do we prepare people to understand the two histories of 2 Chronicles?
• What is the purpose of 2 Chronicles?
• What is the difference between 1–2 Kings and 1–2 Chronicles?
• What is the divine promise 1–2 Chronicles is arguing God will be faithful to?
• What is the angst of the situation in Judah?
• How does the chronicler’s record of Solomon reveal his purpose in writing?
• How does the theme of temple run throughout this book, and, in fact, through the whole Bible?
• How is Christ anticipated in 2 Chronicles?
• How should teachers bring content from the prophets into teaching 2 Chronicles?
• What kind of moral instruction is in 2 Chronicles?
• How do we teach 2 Chronicles 7:14 rightly?

Additional audio resources :

• Sermons on 2 Chronicles by Mike Bullmore
• Sermons on 2 Chronicles by Richard Pratt

Recommended print resources:

• Word Biblical Commentary Vol. 15, 2 Chronicles by Raymond B. Dillard
• 1 and 2 Chronicles, The Mentor Commentary by Richard Pratt
• 1 and 2 Chronicles, The NIV Application Commentary by Andrew Hill
• The Message of Chronicles by Michael Wilcock

In this episode of Help Me Teach the Bible, Nancy talked about the book of Hebrews with Sam Storms, lead pastor for preaching and vision at Bridgeway Church in Oklahoma City, and founder of Enjoying God Ministries. They discussed the many challenging aspects of teaching this book so steeped in the Old Testament, as well as the deep encouragement that comes from it. Topics include:

• the aim of the writer of Hebrews
• the wealth of the first four verses
• the humanity of Jesus
• the Sabbath theme in Hebrews
• warnings in Hebrews
• why we need a priest
• the reason we should not anticipate a rebuilt physical temple and reinstated sacrifices
• the challenge and intimidation of teaching Hebrews 6
• teaching Hebrews 11 rightly

Here are some additional audio resources you may find helpful in preparing to teach Hebrews:

• Sermons on Hebrews by Sam Storms
• Messages on Hebrews by John Piper

For further study, here are some books you may find helpful, including titles from Crossway, the sponsor of Help Me Teach the Bible:

• The Epistle to the Hebrews by F. F. Bruce
• A Commentary of the Epistle to the Hebrews by Philiip Edgcumbe Hughes
• The Letter to the Hebrews, Pillar New Testament Commentary by Peter O'Brian
• Hebrews, NIV Application Commentary by George Guthrie
• Commentary on Hebrews, Biblical Theology Christian Proclamation Commentary by Tom Schreiner
• Hebrews: An Anchor for the Soul Volumes 1 & 2 by Kent Hughes
• Hebrews: A 12-Week Studyby Matthew Z. Capps

Books by Sam Storms include:

• Kept for Jesus: What the New Testament Really Teaches about Assurance of Salvation and Eternal Security
• Tough Topics: Biblical Answers to 25 Challenging Questions 

In this episode of Help Me Teach the Bible, Nancy talked with one of her favorite Scottish preachers, Colin Smith, about how the book of Jonah reveals the steadfast love and mercy of God. Smith is senior pastor of The Orchard Evangelical Free Church in Arlington Heights, Illinois, and teacher on Unlocking the Bible. Topics in this episode include:

• ways the book of Jonah is taught inadequately
• reasons Jonah would not have wanted to go to Nineveh
• the pagan sailors’ response to the offer of a sacrifice that saves
• Jonah in the fish—a picture of being in Christ
• the heart of the book: “Salvation belongs to the Lord”
• Jonah's fearless message of judgment and grace
• what to do with “God relented”
• how grace either makes a person worship or makes a person angry

Here are some additional resources you may find helpful in preparing to teach Jonah:

• Sermons on Jonah by Colin Smith
• Sermons on Jonah by Alistair Begg
• Sermons on Jonah by Tim Keller
• “The Sign of Jonah,” a sermon by Christopher Ash

For further study, here are some books you may find helpful, including titles from Crossway, the sponsor of Help Me Teach the Bible:

• Jonah: Navigating a God-Centered Life by Colin Smith
• Man on the Run!, a children’s book on the Jonah story
• Man Overboard  by Sinclair Ferguson
• The Gospel Transformation Bible (with notes on Jonah by Colin Smith)

To teach us how to teach the book of James, Nancy Guthrie talked with Dan Doriani, vice president of strategic academic initiatives and professor of theology at Covenant Theological Seminary in St. Louis. Doriani is the author of Getting the Message: A Plan for Interpreting and Applying the Bible, a book that is essential reading for every Bible teacher, as well as numerous commentaries. He also wrote the introduction and notes on the book of James in the Gospel Transformation Bible. Topics in this discussion include:

• the way Jesus is presented differently in James compared to other epistles
• the tree tests of James
• the nature of “true religion”
• the gospel according to James
• bringing a social justice framework to teaching James
• whether there’s conflict between James and Paul regarding faith and works
• praying for healing according to James

Here are some additional resources you may find helpful in preparing to teach James:

• Doriani’s class lectures on James at Covenant Theological Seminary (registration required)
• Sermons on James by Alistair Begg
• Sermons on James by Dick Lucas
• Let’s Get Real!  sermon series by various teachers at All Souls, Langham Place

For further study, here are some books you may find helpful, including titles from Crossway, the sponsor of Help Me Teach the Bible:

• James (Reformed Expository Commentary) by Dan Doriani
• The Letter of James (Pillar New Testament Commentary) Douglas J. Moo
• James: Faith that Works (Preaching the Word Commentary) by R. Kent Hughes
• James: a 12-Week Study by Greg Gilbert

In this episode of Help Me Teach the Bible, Nancy talks with David Helm, pastor of the Hyde Park Congregation of Holy Trinity Church  and chairman of  The Charles Simeon Trust. The book of Daniel is often mined for the stories in its first half while the apocalyptic visions of the second half are avoided. David is the author of a new book Daniel for You (The Good Book Company, 2015) and is also author of the acclaimed  Expositional Preaching: How We Speak God’s Word Today,  One to One Bible Reading, as well as The Big Picture Story Bible. Promising that we can teach the book of Daniel without charts, David provides great wisdom to teachers in this episode, including:

• Why teach the book of Daniel
• Understanding Babylon throughout the Bible and in this book
• The thematic poetic line in Daniel
• Getting to Christ in the fiery furnace scene
• Making the genre shift in the second part of Daniel
• The primary fulfillment of Daniel's prophecies in the death and resurrection of Christ

Here are some additional resources that you may find helpful in preparing to teach Daniel:

• At Home in Babylon (Daniel 1–6) and Getting Home from Babylon (Daniel 7–12), sermon series from Holy Trinity Church
• TGC sermon resources on the book of Daniel
• The Proclamation Trust has numerous resources on Daniel by Sinclair Ferguson, Simon Manchester, and others.
• Jesus in the Lions’ Den?: Preaching Christ from Daniel (Matt Smethurst interviews Sidney Greidanus)

For further study, here are some books you may find helpful, including titles from Crossway, the sponsor of Help Me Teach the Bible:

• Daniel for You by David Helm
• Preaching Christ from Daniel  by Sidney Greidanus
• The Gospel According to Daniel: A Christ-Centered Approach  by Bryan Chapell
• Daniel: Reformed Expositional Commentary  by Iain M. Duguid

In this episode of Help Me Teach the Bible, Nancy talks with Michael Lawrence, senior pastor of Hinson Baptist Church in Portland, Oregon, or “the ends of the earth” as Lawrence calls it in context of the book of Acts. In this episode you'll not only hear the sounds of a church office building under construction, you'll also hear about how God is going about building his church as recorded in the book of Acts. Topics include:

• epic moments in redemptive history in Acts
• Acts as part two of Luke's Gospel
• the main character of the book of Acts
• the structure of the book of Acts
• the cinematic sweep of Acts
• the Spirit falls on unexpected people
• questions about tongues
• sermons in the book of Acts
• implications and applications of the crucifixion and resurrection
• whether the early church is a model for the church today
• resources for teaching Acts.

Here are some additional audio resources that you may find helpful in preparing to teach Acts:

• Michael Lawrence’s sermons on Acts
• TGC sermon resources on Acts

For further study, here are some books you may find helpful, including titles from Crossway, the sponsor of Help Me Teach the Bible:

• Perspectives on Pentecost  by Richard Gaffin
• The Spirit, the Church, and the World: The Message of Acts by John R.W. Stott
• The Acts of the Apostles, Pillar New Testament Commentary by David Peterson
• Acts, Baker Exegetical Commentary on the New Testament  by Darrell Bock
• The Acts of the Risen Lord Jesus by Alan J. Thompson
• Acts: The Church Afire, Preaching the Word Commentary series by R. Kent Hughes
• Acts, The St. Andrews Expositional Commentary  by R. C. Sproul
• Acts: A 12-Week Study  by Justin Holcomb

In this episode of Help Me Teach the Bible, Nancy sits down with Dale Ralph Davis at First Presbyterian Church in Columbia, South Carolina, where, in his “retirement” he serves as minister in residence or, as senior pastor Derek Thomas calls him, “the preacher of the night.” Davis is a long-time pastor and former professor of Old Testament at Reformed Theological Seminary in Jackson, Mississippi. Davis's book, No Falling Words, has long been a must-have commentary on Joshua.

We sat down with him as he was reworking his messages on Joshua for an upcoming conference to talk about “the strange God” of Joshua as well as:

• old promises fulfilled in Joshua;
• the meaning of the land;
• God’s command to destroy the Canaanites;
• the unlikely recipient of mercy;
• the grace demonstrated and response to grace commanded in Joshua.

Here are some additional audio resources that you may find helpful in preparing to teach Joshua:

• Overview of Joshua by Dale Ralph Davis
• David Jackman messages on Joshua
• John Woodhouse messages of Joshua
• Entering into the Promises series at All Souls Langham Place
• TGC sermon resources on Joshua

For further study, here are some books you may find helpful, including titles from Crossway, the sponsor of Help Me Teach the Bible:

• No Falling Words by Dale Ralph Davis
• Joshua: An Exegetical and Theological Exposition of Scripture (New American Commentary) by David Howard
• Joshua: People of God's Purpose by David Jackman
• Joshua and the Flow of Biblical History by Francis A. Schaeffer

On this episode of Help Me Teach the Bible, I spoke with Bryan Chapell, senior pastor of Grace Presbyterian Church in Peoria, Illinois, and the former president of Covenant Theological Seminary about how to teach through the book of Ephesians. Chapell’s books include Holiness by Grace: Delighting in the Joy That Is Our Strength and Christ-Centered Preaching. In Ephesians, Paul presents us with so much essential teaching for understanding what Christ has done and how we are to live as those who belong to him.

Topics in the discussion include:

• the cosmic scope of Ephesians;
• God’s plan that includes the persecution of the church;
• the meaning of “the heavenly realm”;
• answering questions about predestination;
• key words and concepts such as reconciliation and mystery;
• the indicative and imperative of Ephesians; and
• teaching submission in the context of the broader message of Ephesians.

Recommended audio resources on Ephesians:

• Sermons on Ephesians by Bryan Chapell
• Sermons on Ephesians by Dick Lucas
• Sermons on Ephesians by D. A. Carson
• Sermons on Ephesians by Kent Hughes

Recommended print resources on Ephesians:

• Kevin DeYoung’s introduction and notes on Ephesians in the ESV Gospel Transformation Bible
• Ephesians (Reformed Expository Commentaries) by Bryan Chapell
• Ephesians: The Mystery of the Body of Christ by R. Kent Hughes

In this episode of Help Me Teach the Bible, I talked with Mark Futato, the Robert L. Maclellan professor of Old Testament at Reformed Theological Seminary in Orlando, Florida, where he teaches core classes on Hebrew and Old Testament books. Futato has written a number of books on Psalms that flow out not only from his study but also his love for and his living with the Psalms.

Topics in the discussion include:

• whether or not we should make the Psalms “about me”;
• allowing the organization of Psalms to inform our teaching;
• common mistakes made in teaching Psalms;
• the big three kinds of Psalms;
• how Psalms speaks to our emotions; and
• singing the Psalms about Jesus, to Jesus, with Jesus.

Recommended audio resources on the Psalms:

• Mark Futato on Psalm 1, 23
• Dick Lucas sermons on Psalms
• Sinclair Ferguson sermons on Psalms
• Edmund Clowney sermons and lectures on preaching Christ from the Psalms

Recommended print resources on the Psalms:

• Knowing the Bible: Psalms: A 12-Week Study by Douglas Sean O’Donnell
• Journey to Joy: The Psalms of Ascent by Josh Moody (Psalms 120–134)
• The Psalms: Rejoice, the Lord Is King, Volume 1, Psalms 1 to 41 by James Johnston
• Transformed by Praise: The Purpose and Message of the Psalms by Mark Futato
• Joy Comes in the Morning: Psalms for All Seasons by Mark Futato
• Interpreting the Psalms: An Exegetical Handbook by Mark Futato
• Psalms: Cornerstone Biblical Commentary by Mark Futato, George Schwab, and Philip Comfort
• How to Read the Psalms by Tremper Longman III
• Psalms 1-72: An Introduction and Commentary by Derek Kidner
• Psalms 73-150 by Derek Kidner

Recommended Audio Resources

• Hans Bayer on context, outline, and thought flow in Philippians
• Dick Lucas sermons on Philippians
• John Piper sermons on Philippians

Recommended Print Resources:

• Philippians: A 12-Week Study by Ryan Kelly
• Philippians: The Fellowship of the Gospel by R. Kent Hughes
• Let's Study Philippians by Sinclair B. Ferguson
• Basics for Believers: An Exposition of Philippians by D. A. Carson
• Message of Philippians: Jesus Our Joy by Alec Motyer

In this inaugural episode of Help Me Teach the Bible, I talked with John Piper, founder and teacher of Desiring God and chancellor of Bethlehem College & Seminary, where he taught through the book of Philippians. He called this teaching a “dream come true.” Topics in this interview include:

• allowing those you teach to discover what the book is about;
• Paul's love expressed in this personal letter;
• connecting propositions in Paul's arguments; and
• the better by far of being with Christ at death vs. the resurrection of the body.

Recommended Audio Resources

• Hans Bayer on context, outline, and thought flow in Philippians
• Dick Lucas sermons on Philippians
• John Piper sermons on Philippians

Recommended Print Resources:

• Philippians: A 12-Week Study by Ryan Kelly
• Philippians: The Fellowship of the Gospel by R. Kent Hughes
• Let's Study Philippians by Sinclair B. Ferguson
• Basics for Believers: An Exposition of Philippians by D. A. Carson
• Message of Philippians: Jesus Our Joy by Alec Motyer

When I began recording interviews for Help Me Teach the Bible in the fall of 2014, I didn’t have a grand plan. At that point I wouldn't have said that I had the goal of recording an episode on every book of the Bible because that would have seemed like an overwhelming task and too much of a commitment. But I just kept doing interviews, and people kept finding the podcast and listening. I kept being stretched and informed and inspired by getting to have these conversations with a lot of people I admired who have helped me in my own teaching. And I have loved it.

The podcast now has an episode or two on every book of the Bible as well as over 60 topical episodes on various aspects of getting better at teaching the Bible. For this final* episode I asked my husband to turn the tables and interview me about the podcast itself, and I asked listeners to send in questions they wanted me to answer. We talked about how the idea for the podcast came about, why and how I interviewed the people I did, how my own teaching ministry has developed, and what some of my favorite conversations have been.

We will continue to re-release old episodes every couple of weeks. Because most podcast apps only offer a limited number of past episodes, we’ll start again from the beginning, posting the earliest episodes from the podcast, which means that the next episode will be an interview with John Piper on teaching the book of Philippians.

Listeners who want to communicate with me about the podcast can send me a message using the contact page at nancyguthrie.com. Thank you for listening. I hope it has been a help and blessing to you.

* I reserve the right to record a new episode here and there going forward when I’m with someone brilliant and I just have to talk to about something that would help Help Me Teach the Bible listeners.

It’s the shortest book in the Old Testament—only twenty-one verses—and I don’t think I’ve heard it preached or taught. According to my guest, Jonathan Gibson, associate professor of Old Testament at Westminster Theological Seminary, the message of this short book is “the realization of the Lord’s sovereignty and the role reversal of Edom and Judah on the day of the Lord.”

Essential to understanding and teaching the book is its connection to the narrative of Jacob and Esau as Obadiah applies events in the individual biographies of Esau and Jacob to Edom and Judah. Rather than teaching Obadiah as a warning against human pride, Gibson suggests that the book should be presented as as the outworking of God’s covenant promise to Abraham to bless those who blessed him and curse those who dishonored him.

Books by Jonathan Gibson

• From Heaven He Came and Sought Her: Definite Atonement in Historical, Biblical, Theological, and Pastoral Perspective (Editor with David Gibson)
• Reformation Worship: Liturgies from the Past for the Present
• The Moon is Always Round

Recommended Resources on Obadiah

• NIV Proclamation Bible
• ESV Expository Commentary, Volume VII with commentary on Obadiah by Max Rogland
• The Minor Prophets, Volume Two edited by Thomas Edward McComisky, with commentary on Obadiah by Jeffrey J. Niehaus
• Obadiah message by David Cook
• Obadiah message by Christopher Wright
• Obadiah lecture (RTS) by Richard Belcher

Leviticus is the place where the best of intentions to read through the Bible often stall out. But it is a book that Jay Sklar, professor of Old Testament and vice president of academics at Covenant Seminary in St. Louis, MO, has studied and written about prolifically. Sklar's doctoral studies focused on the theology of sin, impurity, sacrifice, and atonement in the Old Testament sacrificial system. He contributed to the study notes of Leviticus for the ESV Study Bible, the introduction and notes for Leviticus for The Gospel Transformation Bible, and he wrote a commentary on Leviticus for the Tyndale Old Testament Commentary Series (InterVarsity Press).

In this conversation, Dr. Sklar delineates five reasons Leviticus is a challenging book to read and understand, as well as to teach:

1. It is mostly law, which is unappealing to most of us.
2. It is culturally strange.
3. It emphasizes ritual which we tend to assume is meaningless.
4. Its laws and teachings appear to be unfair or unjust.
5. It is hard to fit into the larger story of the Bible.

But Sklar also offers keen insights into how to make sense of the book and break down some of the barriers of interest in the book. He also talks about how to present Christ through discussing issues that arise in the book such as slavery, homosexuality, ritual impurity, and disability.

Recommended Resources by and from Jay Sklar

• The Book of Leviticus (New International Commentary on the Old Testament) by Gordon J. Wenham
• Leviticus (Tyndale Old Testament Commentaries) by Jay Sklar
• How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth by Gordon Fee and Douglas Stuart
• Jay Sklar’s Page (Covenant Seminary website) which includes audio, video, and a printable resource for preaching and teaching Leviticus

In the years I’ve spent in the church listening to sermons and teaching, I can think of very few times that I have heard direct applications from the text made to the sin of racism or the sin of apathy toward injustice. Maybe I just didn’t have the ears to hear it. In my own teaching, I may have mentioned racism in a list of sins, or mentioned it as one of the things that will be “no more” in the new heaven and new earth, but I don’t think I’ve ever used an opportunity teaching in a passage to challenge these sins. I want to do better, and I imagine there are a lot of others who do too.

That is why I asked two excellent Bible teachers who bring a great deal of experience and credibility to this topic to have a conversation with me about how to rightly and helpfully apply the Bible to the sin of racism. Irwyn Ince is a pastor at Grace DC Presbyterian Church and director of the Grace DC Institute for Cross-Cultural Mission. He has contributed to the books Heal Us Emmanuel and All Are Welcome: Toward a Multi-Everything Church and is author of the new book The Beautiful Community: Unity, Diversity, and the Church at Its Best. Sean Michael Lucas, senior minister of Independent Presbyterian Church, Memphis, Tennessee, is the author of numerous books on people and institutions with a history tainted by racism including, Robert Lewis Dabney: A Southern Presbyterian Life,The Legacy of Jonathan Edwards: American Religion and the Evangelical Tradition,Blessed Zion: First Presbyterian Church, Jackson, Mississippi, 1837-2012, andFor a Continuing Church: The Roots of the Presbyterian Church in America.

Few teachers are rushing to teach the book of 1 Chronicles. Perhaps that's because they have already taught through 1–2 Samuel and 1–2 Kings and so much from these earlier books is repeated in 1–2 Chronicles. But according to Richard Pratt, president and co-founder of Third Millennium Ministries and author of the volume on 1–2 Chronicles in the Mentor Commentary series, to not study these books because of repeated material would be similar to a person not studying Mark or Luke because they’ve already studied Matthew. The Chronicler intentionally diverged from the records of Samuel and Kings to reveal his theological perspectives, and, according to Pratt, this perspective does not take away from the credibility of the book. Rather it serves the purpose of the book, which is to direct his audience to reconsider what they believed about the people of God, about the king and the temple, and about God’s blessings and curses.

Rather than simply thinking of the book as historical chronology, we should also view it as representing an underlying logical argument, a step-by-step effort at persuasion. In this conversation, Pratt talks about how best to handle the first nine chapters of the book (a lengthy genealogy of the twelve tribes), the importance of the term “all Israel” that is used throughout the book, and the unique contribution the book makes to what we understand about the role of music in worship.

Recommended Resources:

• Pratt’s section on 1–2 Chronicles in A Biblical-Theological Introduction to the Old Testament: The Gospel Promised
• 1 & 2 Chronicles: A Mentor Commentary by Richard Pratt
• ESV Expository Commentary: Ezra–Job, Volume 4
• Who Needs The Chronicles? We Do.
• Knowing the Bible: 1-2 Chronicles, a 12-week Practical Study Series on the Books of 1-2 Chronicles (TGC Course)

What are the essentials to good Bible study materials? And what makes a small group Bible study work well? Are we going to take prayer requests? Will there be homework or no homework? What makes the difference between good questions in curriculum and questions that frustrate the group?

These are the kinds of questions I talked through with Lydia Brownback who has just embarked on creating a new series of Bible study resources called the Flourish Bible Study series for which she plans to create three new studies a year for ten years. We talked about the importance of defining terms, studying a book of the Bible in the larger context of the Bible’s story and message, and the best way to go about making personal application. Because Brownback is a senior editor at Crossway books, I also asked her about the advice she gives when people ask her about how they can get a book published. Her bottom line? It’s really hard.

All of us who dare to stand up and teach the Bible are teachers in progress. We all have ways we can get better.

Recently I got to sit down with Mark Meynell who, in his role as director of Europe and the Caribbean for Langham Preaching, spends most of his time traveling to different parts of the world to help teachers and preachers get better at handing the Bible. According to Meynell, Bible teachers all over the world lament the same thing—a lack of time to do the kind of study they want to do on the text. His word to teachers is: "You make time for what you think is important.” Meynell says that the marks of really good Bible teaching include faithfulness to the set, relevance to the audience, and clarity in delivery. Our discussion included tips on how to discover the tics we all have as teachers that make it hard for our audience to listen to us, how to and how not to bring in passages outside of our main text into our talks, and the way in which John Stott modeled for him what it looks like to be a life-long learner.

Meynell is the author of numerous books including What Angels Long to Read (Langham Preaching Resources, 2017), When Darkness Seems My Closest Friend (IVP, 2018) and his most recent, Colossians and Philemon for You (Good Book, 2018). He blogs at markmeynell.net.

The book of Ecclesiastes raises so many questions. Who is Qoheleth? Who wrote the book? Is life really meaningless? Are we supposed to just eat, drink and be merry?

After putting it off for forty years as many fine preachers and teachers have done before him, Harry Reeder, senior pastor of Briarwood Presbyterian Church in Birmingham, Alabama, finally preached through Ecclesiastes. In our conversation, we talked about the things that make the book challenging to teach and how to organize teaching through the book. According to Reeder, Ecclesiastes has a lot to teach us about how to approach life and death, as well as the promise of life beyond death.

Recommended resources:

• Preacher’s Toolkit: How Should I Preach Ecclesiastes
• Ecclesiastes: Why Everything Matters (Preaching the Word) by Philip Graham Ryken
• Living Life Backward: How Ecclesiastes Teaches Us to Live in Light of the End by David Gibson
• Ecclesiastes: A 12-Week Study by Justin Holcomb
• Sermon Series on Ecclesiastes by Harry Reeder
• Sermon series on Ecclesiastes by Kevin DeYoung

In these days of COVID-19, plenty of people are asking if the virus is a judgment from God, if he is sending a message to us.

I recorded this conversation on the book of Joel with Paul House, professor of Old Testament at Beeson Divinity School, prior to the spread of the virus, but his points about God’s message in disaster to call out to the Lord has proved to be timely. Disasters, he says, should cause us to ask, “What have we as a people and a nation been doing? It certainly hasn’t been looking to the Lord. So without going into direct causation, these are meant to get people to repent."

House presents the book as Joel preaching on Deuteronomy 28 and Exodus 34, using vivid imagery to warn of the awful reality of God’s judgments. Joel calls the people of God to turn toward God, assuring them that "even now, if they return to the Lord with all their heart, with fasting, with weeping, and with mourning, he will be gracious and merciful and relent from disaster."  House offers insight on the locusts in the book, the meaning of the the Day of the Lord, and how to present the mercy of Christ for sinners from the book of Joel.

Recommended Resources:

• Sermon Series on Joel by Sinclair Ferguson
• Sermon Series on Joel by Christopher Ash
• Message on Joel by John Piper
• ESV Expository Commentary: Daniel-Malachi
• The Restoration: God’s Precious Promise for the Future by Willem VanGemeren

I spoke to Brian Tabb, academic dean and associate professor of biblical studies at Bethlehem College and Seminary, general editor for Themelios, and author of 1-2 Timothy and Titus: A 12 Week Study in the Knowing the Bible study guide series from Crossway. In our conversation, Tabb answers the question, “What is the book of Titus about?” in several ways including, “Titus is about the gospel at work,” “It’s about being saved for good,” and “Titus is about the organic connection between what is taught and caught.”

Over the course of our conversation Tabb helps Bible teachers understand the unique setting of the ministry of Titus—the island of Crete and Cretans who have been saved by grace—as well as the role of good works in the life of a Christian. We also talk about what it looks like to “adorn the gospel” in the way we live it out.

Resources recommended by Brian Tabb:

• The Letters to Timothy and Titus (The Pillar New Testament Commentary) by Robert W. Yarbrough
• 1 and 2 Thessalonians, 1 and 2 Timothy, Titus (The Expositor's Bible Commentary) by Robert L. Thomas and Andreas J. Köstenberger
• Commentary on 1-2 Timothy and Titus (Biblical Theology for Christian Proclamation) by Andreas J. Köstenberger

Recommended Audio Resources:

• Talks on Titus by Carrie Sandom
• Talks on Titus by Jamie Child
• Sermons on Titus by Alistair Begg

Colin Smith is senior pastor of The Orchard Evangelical Free Church, a thriving, multi-campus church located in the northwest suburbs of Chicago, and a TGC Council member. He's also president of Unlocking the Bible, a ministry that seeks to root people in the Word of God through their website, publishing, podcast and radio program.

When Smith asked me to read his newest book, For All Who Grieve: Navigating the Valley of Sorrow and Loss in view of offering an endorsement, not only was I glad to endorse it, I discovered that the book is really an exposition through the book of Lamentations. Lamentations is a book that, I think it is safe to say, very few preachers and teachers teach all the way through. Written by Jeremiah, who endured one manifestation of the divine judgment the Bible consistently calls ‘the day of the Lord,’ this brief book not only includes vivid descriptions of judgment; it offers compelling prayers that confess sin, express renewed hope, and declare total dependence on God’s grace.

In our conversation, Smith explained how he structured his own sermon series on Lamentations into four messages on: 1) Tears and Talk, 2) Guilt and Grievance, 3) Hope and Healing, and 4) Prayer and Praise. He also explained some of the ways this book, written by a prophet weeping over Jerusalem, points to the greater prophet who will also weep over Jerusalem. The man of sorrows seems to speak through Lamentations, saying along with the writer, “I am the man who has seen affliction under the rod of his wrath” (3:1) and, "Though I call and cry for help, he shuts out my prayer" (3:8).

Recommended Resources

• The Message of Lamentations by Christopher Wright
• Jeremiah and Lamentations: From Sorrow to Hope by Philip Graham Ryken
• Lamentations, Habakkuk and Zephaniah: A 12-Week Study by Camden Bucey
• Five Festal Garments: Christian Reflections on the Song of Songs, Ruth, Lamentations, Ecclesiastes and Esther by Barry Webb
• Bible Book of the Month—Lamentations by Meredith G. Kline

We have four gospels. Each of the gospels tell the story of the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus in different ways, targeting different audiences, and with different purposes.

In this conversation, I asked Benjamin Gladd, associate professor of New Testament at Reformed Theological Seminary in Jackson, Mississippi, and author of the new book, The Story Retold: A Biblical-Theological Introduction to the New Testament, to walk listeners through the book of Luke looking for the particular larger biblical themes Luke seems to be most concerned with impressing upon his readers. The kingdom of God is a focus of each of the gospels, but Gladd suggests that Luke is most concerned with how a person gets into the kingdom, which is through faith in Christ. In addition, Gladd highlights the themes of the nations and Gentiles, Jesus as the obedient son, his journey narrative as a second exodus, the temple, and paradise, suggesting that at the resurrection of Jesus, heaven itself changed.

Suggested resources:

• The Story Retold: A Biblical Theological Introduction to the New Testament by G.K. Beal and Benjamin L. Gladd
• From Adam and Israel to the Church: A Biblical Theology of the People of God by Benjamin L. Gladd
• Hidden but Now Revealed: A Biblical Theology of Mystery by G. K. Beale and Benjamin L. Gladd
• Luke (2 Volumes) Reformed Expository Commentary by Phlip Ryken
• Luke: A 12-Week Study by C.D. Jimmy Agan III

If you’ve heard a sermon on Zephaniah that you can remember, likely it was on Zephaniah 3, where we are told that the Lord will “rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing.” We like that part. But we don’t get to this kind of hopeful assurance in the book of Zephaniah until chapter 3. So what do we do with all of the judgment in Zephaniah when we’re teaching through this book?

William Wood, assistant professor of Old Testament at Reformed Theological Seminary Atlanta, who is currently finalizing his doctoral dissertation on the use of the Old Testament in the book of Zephaniah, tells us in this conversation. Wood says that the book of Zephaniah is summarized by the line: “Those who exalt themselves will be humbled; those who humble themselves will be exalted.” Wood also demonstrates how to connect the promises in the book of Zephaniah to the clothing of the priests, the story of Dagon, Pentecost, and the ultimate Day of the Lord.

Oftentimes Nehemiah is the book that gets preached through when a church building campaign comes around. Or Nehemiah is used as an example of a prayerful, strategic, and effective leader for a series on leadership. But is seeing and teaching the book of Nehemiah through the lens of wall-builder or inspiring leader the best way to approach the book?

Aaron Messner, senior pastor of Westminster Presbyterian Church in Atlanta, Georgia, suggests there is more. The building language of the book of Nehemiah is showing us something about the building up of God's covenant people, the church, which is being built with living stones led by one greater than Nehemiah.

Recommended Audio Resources

• Sermon series on Ezra, Haggai and Nehemiah by Aaron Messner
• Sermon series on Nehemiah by Alistair Begg
• Sermon series on Nehemiah by Derek Thomas

Recommended Print Resources

• Nehemiah: Rebuilt and Rebuilding by Kathleen Buswell Nielson
• Ezra and Nehemiah: A 12-Week Study by Kathleen Buswell Nielson
• Exalting Jesus in Ezra and Nehemiah by James Hamilton, Jr.

Habakkuk had some significant questions for God. And God’s answers were hard to hear. But God told Habakkuk to write down what God was showing him because future generations would need to hear it. We need to hear it. Those we teach need to hear it.

In this episode of Help Me Teach the Bible, David Helm, lead pastor of the Hyde Park congregation of Holy Trinity Church in Chicago and chairman of the board of the Charles Simeon Trust, walks listeners through the short three-chapter book of Habakkuk, helping us to trace its argument, feel its poetic pathos, and sing its song. We spend time on how to handle Habakkuk’s important statement “the righteous will live by faith.” We also talk about Habakkuk's faith-filled determination to trust God in the disaster that is about to come down on his people as God determines to use the Babylonians to deliver his judgment.

Recommended Print Resources:

• Habakkuk: A Wrestler with God by Walter J. Chantry
• Nahum, Habakkuk, and Zephaniah:The New International Commentary of the Old Testament by O. Palmer Robertson
• Lamentations, Habakkuk, and Zephaniah: A 12-Week Study by Camden Bucey

Recommended Audio Resources:

• Sermon series on Habakkuk from Holy Trinity Church
•  Sermon series on Habakkuk by Alistair Begg
• Message on Habakkuk by Colin Smith

The book of 2 Kings begins with the prophet Elijah being taken up into heaven in a chariot of fire, and it ends with Jerusalem being destroyed by fire with plenty of action and intrigue in between. So how do we make the most of teaching this book, clearly presenting its message and getting to the greater Elisha and the greater king it points toward?

Andrew Sach, pastor of Grace Church Greenwich in greater London, has been teaching (and, interestingly enough, rapping) through the books of 1 and 2 Kings. He is also working on a book on 1 and 2 Kings for his Dig Deeper series. Having listened to some of his messages in person and others online, I noted nine things Andrew did as a teacher that make his teaching clear and compelling, which we worked through in our conversation. Andrew  demonstrates how Elijah and Elisha relate to John the Baptist and Jesus at numerous points in their stories. He also talks about how the story of the northern tribes of Israel presents an opportunity to get to Christ as the ultimate prophet, while the southern tribes of Judah present an opportunity to get to Christ as the true king.

Suggested Audio Resources:

• Sermon series on 2 Kings by Andrew Sach
• Chapel series on 2 Kings by Gary Millar
•  “Life Among the Remnant,”a sermon series on 2 Kings,  by Dale Ralph Davis

Print resources:

• Dig Deeperby Nigel Beyond and Andrew Sach
• 2 Kings: The Power and the Fury by Dale Ralph Davis
• 1-2 Kings: A 12-Week Study by Gavin Ortlund
• 1 Kings(Reformed Expository Commentary Series) by Philip Ryken

Hosea is a book that tells a heart-breaking story—for some a perplexing story—about a prophet told to marry a prostitute. It’s a book that is filled with cycle after cycle of promises of judgment. But, according to David Murray, professor of Old Testament and practical theology at Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary, Hosea is a book that gives teachers the opportunity to present people with vivid pictures of God as a faithful husband intent on loving his unfaithful wife, a parent whose heart is twisted up inside him over the impact of his child’s sin, and so much more. In context of all of God’s uncomfortable promises to judge his people in heart-breaking ways, Murray points out God’s repeated promises throughout the book to live, to save, to redeem, and to restore his people to himself after they’ve wandered away from him. 

Mentioned in this episode

• Preparing a sermon using The Compelling Communicator (video demonstration)
• Murray’s Top Online Articles on Christ in the Old Testament
• 30 “I Wills” from Hosea
• Jesus on Every Page by David Murray
• Exploring the Bible Together: A 52-Week Family Worship Plan by David Murray (releases May, 2020)
• Meeting with Jesus: A Daily Bible Reading Plan for Kids by David Murray (releases March, 2020)
• The Word of the Lord video session on Hosea by Nancy Guthrie

Nancy Guthrie interviews Nicholas Reid

Nancy Guthrie interviews Greg Lanier on the second half of 1 Corinthians

Nancy Guthrie interviews Greg Lanier about 1 Corinthians

Nancy Guthrie interviews David Helm

Nancy Guthrie interviews Christopher Ash

Nancy Guthrie interviews Melissa Kruger

Nancy Guthrie interviews Aaron Messner

Nancy Guthrie interviews John Currie

Nancy Guthrie interviews Stephen Um

Nancy Guthrie interviews Rebecca McLaughlin

Nancy Guthrie interviews Richard Phillips

Nancy Guthrie interviews Andrew Sach

Nancy Guthrie talks with 5 women from the Middle East

Nancy Guthrie interviews

A live interview by Nancy Guthrie

Nancy Guthrie interviews Christopher Ash

Nancy Guthrie interviews Jonathan Carswell

Nancy Guthrie interviews T. Desmond Alexander

A talk by Nancy Guthrie

Nancy Guthrie interviews Anthony Petterson

Nancy Guthrie interviews Ligon Duncan on Covenant Theology

Nancy Guthrie interviews Leigh Swanson

Nancy Guthrie interviews Joe Novenson

Nancy Guthrie interviews Jared Wilson

Nancy Guthrie interviews David and Sally Michael

Nancy Guthrie interviews Michael Stead

Nancy Guthrie interviews Jim Hamilton

Nancy Guthrie interviews Jackie Hill Perry

Nancy Guthrie interviews David Robertson

Nancy Guthrie interviews John Neufeld

A talk on how the Bible's story changes your story

Nancy Guthrie Interviews Matt Smethurst

Nancy Guthrie Interviews Matt Smethurst

Nancy Guthrie interviews Philip Ryken

Nancy Guthrie interviews Sam Allberry

Nancy Guthrie interviews Don Carson

Nancy Guthrie interviews Greg Beale about teaching Colossians

Nancy Guthrie interviews Elizabeth Groves

Nancy Guthrie interviews Iain Duguid

Nancy Guthrie interviews Jennifer Marshall

Nancy Guthrie with Scott Redd

Nancy Guthrie interviews Kay Arthur and David Arthur

Nancy Guthrie interviews Howard Griffith

Nancy Guthrie interviews Mark Futato on the Psalms

An Interview with Colleen McFadden

Nancy Guthrie interviews Paul Tripp

Nancy Guthrie interviews Nate Shurden

Nancy Guthrie interviews David Filson and Nathan Finn

Practical help for Bible teachers

Nancy Guthrie with Dennis Johnson

Nancy Guthrie with J. V. Fesko

Nancy Guthrie

Nancy Guthrie talks with Simon Manchester about how to engage listeners

Nancy Guthrie, Peter Orr

Nancy Guthrie talks with David Murray about how to teach biblical typology

Nancy Guthrie talks to Scott Swain about how to teach the doctrine of the Trinity

Nancy Guthrie talks with Peter Adam about how to keep Bible teaching interesting.

Nancy Guthrie, Andy Davis

Nancy Guthrie, Kevin DeYoung

Kevin DeYoung on teaching the book of Exodus

Nancy Guthrie, Miguel Núñez

Nancy Guthrie, Tony Reinke

Nancy Guthrie, H. B. Charles

Nancy Guthrie talks with David Helm about how to teach the books 1, 2, and 3 John

Nancy Guthrie, Tim Keller

Nancy Guthrie, Vern Poythress

Nancy Guthrie, Carlton Wynne

Nancy Guthrie, Ed Welch

Nancy Guthrie talks with Jonathan Gibson about how to teach the book of 2 Peter

Nancy Guthrie talks with Marty Machowski about teaching the Bible to children.

Nancy Guthrie talks with Colleen McFadden and Lisa Helm

Nancy Guthrie, Ligon Duncan

Nancy Guthrie, Ligon Duncan

Nancy Guthrie, Jen Wilkin

Nancy Guthrie, Michael Kruger

Nancy Guthrie, Michael Kruger

Nancy Guthrie, Paul House

Nancy Guthrie talks with Phillip Jensen about how to teach the book of 1 Timothy

Nancy Guthrie, Graeme Goldsworthy

Nancy Guthrie, Michael Horton

Nancy Guthrie, John Woodhouse

Nancy Guthrie, John Woodhouse

Nancy Guthrie, Donna Dobbs, Kari Stainback

Nancy Guthrie, Rosaria Butterfield

Nancy Guthrie talks with Trevin Wax about how to center Bible teaching on the gospel

Nancy Guthrie talks with Bible teachers Jenny Salt and Carrie Sandom about how to prepare a Bible talk

In a live session recorded at The Gospel Coalition's 2016 Women's Conference, Nancy Guthrie talks with John Piper about how to teach the book of 1 Peter.

Nancy Guthrie talks with Ray Ortlund about how to teach the book of Proverbs.

Nancy Guthrie talks with Justin Taylor and Dane Ortlund about how Bible teachers can build a library of useful resources.

Nancy Guthrie talks to Colin Smith about teaching the story of Joseph

Nancy Guthrie talks with George Guthrie about how to teach the book of 2 Corinthians

Nancy Guthrie talks with Scott Redd about how to teach the book of Deuteronomy

Nancy Guthrie talks with Lee Gatiss about how to teach the book of Malachi

Nancy Guthrie talks with Dick Lucas on how to improve as a Bible teacher

Nancy Guthrie talks with Ian Duguid about how to teach the difficult book of Judges

Nancy Guthrie interviews David Garner

Nancy Guthrie talks with Christopher Ash about how to teach the book of Job