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The Jesus Story: Everything That Happens in the New Testament in Plain English

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Long-time Bible Professor Tells the Compelling Story of Jesus

The story of Jesus is the greatest story of all time. But the repetition and varying order of events in the Gospels can be confusing to readers. As he does in his bestselling book The Whole Bible Story, Dr. William Marty presents the full narrative of Jesus in chronological order. He tells the fascinating account of everything that happened in Jesus' life--from his birth to his ascension--as well as what happened in the church after he left. The Jesus Story is perfect for new Christians longing to get to know Jesus or long-time believers wanting to recapture the awe and amazement of hearing this remarkable story for the first time.

162 pages, Kindle Edition

First published October 15, 2013

98 people are currently reading
209 people want to read

About the author

William H. Marty

16 books27 followers
Dr. William H. Marty (ThD, Dallas Theological Seminary) is Professor of Bible at Moody Bible Institute and has published two textbooks, Surveying the New Testament and Survey of the Old Testament. He is unique among Bible college professors in that he teaches and writes on both the New and Old Testaments. Dr. Marty lives with his wife in Chicago.

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5 stars
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36 (30%)
3 stars
14 (11%)
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Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
41 reviews
February 8, 2020
Short but thorough

This was a great book about Jesus. Easy to understand but well done. If you want to learn more about the teachings of Jesus then this book is for you
Profile Image for Marcel.
24 reviews
March 29, 2022
Great timeline of events summarized of Jesus existence, death, and Resurrection. The same section from his other book the whole Bible story.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
Profile Image for Greg Ellis.
91 reviews1 follower
March 11, 2017
Quick summary of the New Testament. Very simplistic and contains a few errors. Overall, not a bad book for someone that is unfamiliar with the New Testament.
Profile Image for Sunflower.
268 reviews42 followers
December 15, 2013
Having read William H. Marty's previous book, "The World of Jesus", I was quite curious of his current book, "The Jesus Story: Everything that Happens in the New Testament in Plain English", and needless to say, I have been very impressed with his work.

For a quick background, Dr. William H. Marty is a Professor of Bible at Moody Bible Institute and ha behind his name, two textbooks, "Surveying the New Testament" and "Survey of the Old Testament". With this, Dr. Marty, provides to the layman reader, works that are very easy to read, but with a depth that really brings both the new Christian, the maturing Christian and the mature Christian, books that provide a detail background in both the Old Testament and New Testament, and focusing on the prime subject, Jesus.

In the book, "The Jesus Story: Everything that Happens in the New Testament in Plain English", Dr. Marty once again brings to reader, back to the Bible, and following in order, the introduction of Jesus through His birth to what happen to the Church body after Jesus left.

What draws me to Dr. Marty's book is the depth of knowledge that he gives to the reader as is obvious not just by his credentials but by his ability to translate what he knows to us, the reader, in a way that doesn't talk down to us, shares the knowledge of the Scriptures to us and at the same time, weaves a story that really drew me in with his style of writing that is conversational and informative.

Between discussing the rich cultural background of the times that the New Testament is set in with the theological relevance that will encourage and uplift the Christian believer, Dr. Marty never fails in delivering to the reader, a masterful tale that draws them ever deeper into the bible, particularly the New Testament.

This is one of many books by Dr.Marty that I would highly recommend, be it in ebook form or in hard copy form to keep on ones shelf and use to enrich one's bible reading.

The paperback runs at 151 pages, but is filled with biblical truth that will keep the reader hanging on to each chapter that runs from the Birth and Childhood of Jesus to such topics as The Story of the Church in Acts.

Dr.Marty brings the college courses to everyone and opens up the bible, particularly the New Testament in a new way and light that still holds strong to the Biblical truths of the Bible and providing readers with a refreshing new look to Jesus's world and His story.

"The Jesus Story: Everything that Happens in the New Testament in Plain English" is everything that a good reference book on God's word should be about and a book that needs to be on everyone's shelf.
Profile Image for Doug Hibbard.
Author 2 books3 followers
March 15, 2014
I believe, wholeheartedly, that the New Testament as we have in Christianity is exactly what God intended for us to have. Overall, though, that's a theology discussion for another day. I say that simply to address a complaint that may arise from my next statement: sometimes, the New Testament can be hard to follow.

At times, working through the New Testament is like reading a combination text of geography, narrative, and theology. This is because that is exactly what you have! In an effort to help our action-oriented society dig into the New Testament, you get a The Jesus Story: Everything that Happens in the New Testament in Plain English.
http://bakerpublishinggroup.com/books...


The Jesus Story is written by Dr. William H.Marty, a professor at Moody Bible Institute. (Well, really, the Jesus story is written by Matthew, Mark, and...you know.) He has written a couple of additional books, including The Whole Bible Story. I have not read that work, but this one looks like it is similar in concept.

Overall, Marty has done an excellent job lifting the narrative passages out of the New Testament and weaving just the action into a coherent unit. The Jesus Story walks from Bethlehem to Rome, covering John the Baptist's birth through the life of Christ, and ending with Paul in his Roman residence.

Marty then uses a synopsis of the Book of Revelation as an epilogue, a "this is where this ends up" summary. It makes for an excellent conclusion.

I find The Jesus Story handy, though I will admit to a prejudice for the actual New Testament. I think this is the kind of book that often us seminary-trained, church-all-our-life preacher types do not understand the value of, but someone who is not used to wading across chapter and verse to get the picture of what's happening in the Bible does. As such, I think this makes a great handout or gift book, especially in the current season headed toward Easter. It would also be great around Christmas.

Then, use it to leverage interest in reading the actual Bible--something I'm sure Marty agrees with as a goal. However, some folks won't touch the Bible out of a level of fear in terms of understanding. This is a great starting point instead.

(Note: I did receive a copy of this book in exchange for the review.)
Profile Image for Dawn Paoletta.
Author 1 book27 followers
November 21, 2013
What do you get when you combine a college professor, biblical scholar, textbook author and expert storyteller? Apparently you get Dr. William H. Marty, author of The Jesus Story-Everything That Happens in the New Testament In Plain English.

Dr. Marty takes us through a chronological adventure which covers the days of Jesus' childhood, ministry, crucifixion and resurrection-and beyond. As the title itself suggests, it covers all of the New Testament. The beauty of the teacher's telling is his own excellent grasp of Original Judaic teaching and culture at this time in history.

The seven chapters of this highly readable book cover the birth, childhood and years of Jesus' life as told through the Gospels and create a wonderfully active picture of the events surrounding the manifestation on earth of the One True Living God in Jesus Christ. The Acts of the early church through Revelation are covered in the final chapters. Main characters and geographical settings are listed at the start of each chapter and the table of contents reference the scripture covered alongside the appropriate chapter.

I loved this short, but insightful look into the life of Jesus. It's obvious that the author has a gift for teaching and communicating in this manner. I appreciated the way he wrapped historical accuracy, cultural dynamic and theological relevance together in a
chronological journey that takes the reader up close and personal. It feels like a live news report, with the Gospel Writers and early disciples standing alongside us, walking, talking, witnessing and sharing the exciting story as it unfolds.
Profile Image for Beyond the Pages with Eva K.
3,064 reviews166 followers
November 15, 2013
The Jesus Story by Dr. W.H. Marty was a simple read about the life, teachings, works, and impact of Jesus. Written in an uncomplicated style, this book presented key biblical references for the reader’s consideration. Each chapter began with a listing of the main characters and the setting. Throughout each chapter, focal headings were listed, which aided in helping the reader to appreciate more specifically what was being discussed. At the end of each chapter, the author provided a condensed summary of the content.

While I did enjoy reading this book, I cannot agree that it does what the title suggests – tell “Everything That Happened in the New Testament,” as it relates to Jesus. With that said, however, I found that what the author did do was to effectively offer material for a general look at Jesus’ story.

The way that this book is written allows for new and seasoned students of the Bible to grasp basic level information about people, places, and events. It encouraged further study, while at the same time, it satisfied an elementary curiosity.

+ (Positive): A simple, easy read written in clear language

- (Negative): Scripture references were not immediately cited per chapter, rather they were listed in the table of contents (I would have preferred a quick reference format in each chapter.)

A complimentary copy of this book was provided by the publisher in exchange for an honest review. I was not required to write a positive review. The words I have expressed are completely my own.
Profile Image for IrenesBookReviews.
1,039 reviews28 followers
October 25, 2013
This book is the authors take on the story of Jesus based on scripture. I thought the idea of the book was good. Take all the events in the life of Jesus and present it like a story or history book for others to read. I also thought the author’s writing style was easy to read and understand. You can tell a lot of research and scriptural study went into writing this thought provoking book. I think The Jesus Story would be a perfect gift for a new Christian or you could even use the book as a witnessing tool. I gave this book 5/5 stars. I would recommend it for any Christian to read. I think it will give you a new perspective on the life and times of Jesus.

I would like to thank the publisher for the copy of this book I enjoyed reading. I gave an honest review based on my opinion of what I read.
Profile Image for Samantha.
265 reviews
Read
November 29, 2013
The Jesus Story is Marty's take on the life of Jesus based on New Testament Scripture. It's writen in such a way that it's engaging and easy to understand. I loved that I was able to link actual Scripture to pieces of the story and it's a brilliant way to introduce new believers to Jesus and his life.

The cover is absolutely beautiful too and if I hadn't been intrigued by the idea of reading Jesus' story in "plain english" I'd certainly have been drawn in by the cover!

I received a digital version of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review.
Profile Image for sharon smith.
5 reviews1 follower
April 15, 2015
I really found this book very helpful to understand what happened during Jesus life on earth and what happened after his ascension to Heaven to keep the church of Christ growing.smithsharondl@aol.com


I do recommend this book to anyone who wants to read a straight forward accounting of the life of Christ on earth and His followers after His ascension to Heaven .prO


75 reviews2 followers
May 18, 2015
A quick perfectly arranged recounting of Jesus' life as a man on earth, as the catalyst for a profound change that impacts our relationship with God and the perfect example of his love for both his father and humanity. As a catholic, I was intrigued by how important the role of the disciple Paul was in spreading Christ's message and the growth of the church.
Profile Image for Richard.
3 reviews
January 22, 2016
It was a pretty simple straightforward telling of the story of Jesus in the New Testament. It was not a word for word retelling. It was informative and concise. I believe it to be a relatively accurate overview of the life of Jesus and the formation of the early church.
Profile Image for Teresa Parker.
276 reviews2 followers
October 18, 2014
A great break down from the New Testament which is all about Jesus and his time line; Acts with Paul is included. A great read.
Profile Image for Taylor Burrows.
41 reviews1 follower
March 15, 2017
This is a nice compilation of New testament stories all into a chronological chain of events. Overall fairly nice to have a consolidated version of events even if not strictly quoting the gospels.
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews

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