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Story of a kingdom

Overview for overseas

STORY OF A KINGDOM
By Jonathan Gibson
Hilton McGregor. 124 pages. £5.00
Study Guide. 312 pages. £10 inc. p&p
Available from: jonny@sok.org.uk or http://www.sok.org.uk

As all teachers and preachers know, to explain a complex plotline simply and concisely can be a very difficult task. The Story of a Kingdom, an overview of the message of the whole Bible, written for those with English as a second language, does exactly that.

There is also a Study Guide which is a Bible course divided into 44 chapters, each very well illustrated, with discussion questions at the end and a shorter book with a very similar format designed for personal use.

It would be impossible to sit with a group of overseas students and complete all the studies in the larger course. This is acknowledged in the preface where the book is described as a sausage where some parts that are harder to digest can be cut out as required. The point is that the students know that it is a sausage they are eating.

The shorter book would be an ideal gift for students to take away and use in their quiet times and could be well used as a text from which homework can be set before a weekly group discussion. The course can either be used evangelistically with a group or 1:1 or for new Christians. The only problem with the shorter book is that the chapter divisions are not as clear. A reprinting would benefit from amending this.

Clear objectives

The course focuses on God’s kingdom through the Bible which is defined as ‘God’s people in God’s place under God’s rule and blessing’. It seeks to show how God’s kingdom in the Old Testament builds up to prepare us for Jesus and his kingdom in the New Testament. At the start of each chapter the learning objectives are set out. The presentation is very clear and easy to teach from. The book doesn’t just record the plotline of the biblical narrative in simple and visual form. Doctrine is taught and response is demanded, e.g. ‘Chapter 1: The authenticity, reliability and inspiration of Scripture’; ‘Chapter 41: The choice we all face’.

This course is unprecedented in explaining the whole Bible and how to respond to its message for those with English as a second language. Working with international students we know that these people are some of the most receptive in the world, but our time with them is limited and resources to give to them and study with them are few. The authors of Story of a Kingdom have put a tremendous amount (four years) of time and effort into producing fantastic resources which include an excellent website (http://www.sok.org.uk) with the whole book visually presented through PowerPoint, and translated into simplified Chinese and Turkish. I was glad to review this book and have subsequently ordered ten copies, which I’m sure will be used!

Chris Webb,
Friends International, Guildford