Using A Bible Timeline: Five Steps to Power Up Your Bible Study Or Teaching
Here are the five steps. Study or teach 1. The Biblical Principles 2. The Order 3. The Overlap 4. The World 5. The Why
The Principles: Most of us know how to get a principle out of a story ie David and Goliath principle - give God the credit. But we miss the larger picture. We’re so busy teaching principles we don’t put them in God’s larger viewpoint. We don’t even know simple things like when Ruth lived compared to Esther or Daniel to Solomon? Even after years of Bible study.
You or your students get more out of a lesson when you understand in view of God’s big picture for man. That’s where a Bible timeline comes in handy. And a Biblical timeline chart with world history adds more. Let’s begin with the order of events.
The Order. The order and the timing of people and events. Most people have no idea how much time passed between Adam and Noah or between Noah and Abraham. Using a timeline makes it visual. You can literally see the passage of time; long, short or in between. A comparatively long time between Adam and Moses (about 2500 years), a short time from Moses to Solomon (about 500 years) and in between length of time from Solomon to Christ (about a 1000 years). Now the 2000 years from Christ to today is seen in a much larger context.
The overlap. What can we get from that? When we see, using a Bible Timeline that Enos, Adam’s grandson lived until Noah was in his 90’s, and that Noah lived until after Abraham was born or that Noah’s son Shem lived until Isaac was born - wow! Is it possible Abraham and Isaac were told stories of the flood and Adam’s time in the garden from a person who lived through it or knew someone who did?
Other world events. Most of us have bits of history floating around in some kind of hazy mess; like looking at an out of focus picture with some parts less blurry but the picture doesn’t make sense. Using a Bible timeline with World history on it as well brings it all into sharp focus. We see the whole not just random bits.
When we discover that Homer and Solomon lived during the same century, or that Daniel and Confucius lived at the same time, the history of the world becomes one grand picture rather than little bits. These aren’t isolated events happening “somewhere in time.” History is a series of connected events - all under God’s direction.
Why. We see God’s hand dealing with all of His children, the descendants of Noah, scattered across the globe. Some parts of his vineyard receive more attention than others from history but all are known to Him and play a part in His plans to bring about the saving of the human family through Jesus Christ. That’s your why. We see His hand orchestrating major events to bring about prophetic promises of blessing or cursing. Especially now during the wrapping up years as the entire world is in contact and relationship with each other. Now we see His hand played out on a world stage, all of that history coming together into one grand finale. A Bible World History Timeline gives us that whole world view of God’s plan.
There are your five steps. 1. Teach or study your principle. 2. Orient the story in time. Place it in order on the timeline. 3. View the overlap and what that tells us. 4. Consider other events going on in the world at the same time. 5. Why. See it all as part of the God’s great plan for man.
Now that’s powerful study and teaching.