
Answers to Questions about the Community Bible Experience
Three aspects of this experience combine in a powerful way to transform participants, small groups, and entire churches like never before:
- Read Big –Participants read the entire New Testament (or large chunks of the Old Testament) in 8 weeks, simply by reading about 10 pages per day. The Books of the Bible is formatted without chapters or verses to enable the greater understanding and comprehension that comes with reading larger portions. In this way, Community Bible Experience participants begin to truly understand the complete story of the Bible, in many cases for the first time in their lives.
- Read in Context – The Books of the Bible has re-ordered and re-combined many sections of the Bible back to the way it was originally written. This re-ordering allows the participants to experience the Bible in its historical context. By understanding the times and circumstances in which the Bible was written, participants feel the real power and drama of the God’s word like never before.
- Read Together – The small group format allows participants to read the same passages at the same time and come together in fellowship to discuss the power and meaning of what they read. Group members wrestle with the same passages, and together they provide deeper meaning and understanding for the entire group. They grow closer to God, and to each other.
When the Bible becomes an experience –and not simply a book- it strengthens your relationship to God, your family, and your community. You will find yourself transformed and enriched in only 8 weeks.
Beginning in 2012, we'll introduce three Old Testament campaigns:
Covenant History
Genesis to Kings (ORDER NOW)
Return to where our story begins: creation, rebellion, exile, and the formation of a covenant people through whom God will bring redemption to the world.
The Prophets (Coming 2013)
Jonah, Amos, Hosea, Micah, Isaiah, Zephaniah, Nahum, Habakkuk, Jeremiah, Obadiah, Ezekiel, Haggai, Zechariah, Joel, Malachi (Order Now)
Read the prophets in historical order — and retrace Israel's story through the unique perspective of these divinely inspired messengers.
The Writings (Coming 2014)
Psalms, Lamentations, Song of Songs, Proverbs, Ecclesiastes, Job, Chronicles-Ezra-Nehemiah, Daniel (Order Now)
Experience the poetry and wisdom of the Hebrew Scriptures, as God's people reflect on their story and look ahead to their deliverance.
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All promotional, church and group leader materials are FREE.
This page includes everything you need to prepare for the experience, including
- Complete e-book of The Books of The Bible
- Complete MP3 audio file of The Books of The Bible
- The Books of The Bible for Kids Complete New Testament MP3 Audio
- Daily participant reading and audio materials,
- A planning guide
- Small group leader's guide,
- Customizable bulletin inserts for churches, and more.
See the complete list of resources.
Information for Participants
Those too young to read the entire New Testament can listen to The Books of the Bible for Kids: New Testament Audio, which is included FREE. This downloadable audio version consists of 39 episodes that sync with each day's reading for grown-ups. That way parents and their children can share the experience together!
Information for Group Leaders
The Books of the Bible is a new and innovative way to engage your small group in Scripture. Stripped of artificial formatting and presented in pure, complete form, The Books of the Bible reveals God’s Story as it was meant to be. Your group will go right to the Source. They will ponder meaning, discuss application and share challenges. And they will grow…together.
Information for Pastors
Your mission as a pastor – your calling – is to influence others for Christ. You preach with passion, you shepherd your flock, you lead by example. You know the power of God’s Word in your own life, and you yearn for your church to embrace this truth as well.
Community Bible Experience, through The Books of the Bible, is your opportunity to further facilitate change and growth. Your congregation will engage in the Bible like never before. The pure format and novel-like presentation will capture their minds and restore every heart. The small-group format will connect people to each other and to God in a fresh, new way.
In just eight weeks, you will see the impact that only comes from God’s Word. Individual lives touched. Relationships healed. Marriages strengthened. Your community transformed.
Questions about The Books of the Bible
- Chapter and verse numbers removed
- Natural literary breaks restored
- Better book order
- Single column format
- Book intros to unlock the context of each book
Verse numbers appeared even later, when a French printer named Stephanus added them to the New Testament in 1551.
Chapter and verses help us navigate the Bible, but they're artificial dividers. They don't always line up with the natural divisions of thought found in Scripture. And they encourage us to read in fragments.
The Books of the Bible removes chapter and verse numbers from the text so you can go beyond fragmentary reading — so you can experience whole books.
Plus, we included the chapter/verse range at the bottom of each page to help you navigate — without the numbers getting in the way.
For example, the gospel of Matthew is naturally divided into five major sections, each of which concludes with some variation of the statement, "When Jesus had finished saying these things…"
The Books of the Bible uses these natural literary divisions to help you follow the author's train of thought as you read.
We had two priorities when choosing a new arrangement for The Books of the Bible:
- Arranging the books in a more authentic order - For the Old Testament, we followed the original Jewish order more closely. We also recombined books that were separated over time — like 1 and 2 Samuel. Around 200 BC, Samuel was divided in two because the Greek translation didn't fit on one scroll. The Books of the Bible reunites Samuel for the first time in over 2,000 years.
- Helping you follow the story as it unfolds - For example, the New Testament books of Luke and Acts are two volumes of the same story. So we put them next to each other in The Books of the Bible. Also, most Bibles arrange Paul's letters roughly from longest to shortest. We put them in a more chronological order so you can trace Paul's life as it unfolds.
