The Bible: A Story that Makes Sense of Life

by Andrew Ollerton

'Honest, revealing insight into the bestselling book of all time.'
Bear Grylls

'A stimulating and accessible survey of history's most influential book.'
Tom Holland, historian and author of Dominion

'Personal and profound; informative and practical. If you want to experience the Bible as a rich source of guidance and hope, this book is for you.'
Simon Thomas, former Sky Sports and Blue Peter presenter

When we make sense of the Bible, the Bible makes sense of us.

The political, social and cultural upheaval of our times can leave us feeling bewildered and wondering where to turn for trustworthy guidance. As unlikely as it may seem, could the Bible provide ancient wisdom that helps us flourish today?

Join Andrew Ollerton as he explores the storyline of Scripture, connecting six major biblical events with six definitive human for meaning, freedom, peace, community, love and for an ultimate home. In short, digestible chapters, Andrew reveals how the Bible story makes sense of our human story.

Discover for yourself a limitless source of guidance and hope in the face of so much uncertainty.

Underpinned by a depth of scholarship, the book is non-technical in style, making it accessible for the widest possible readership - including Christians and seekers interested in the Bible. The book will also provide a model for Bible communicators and church leaders wishing to engage more deeply with the relevance of the Bible in our cultural moment.

Contains discussion questions for small groups, as well as suggested Bible readings and reflection questions to accompany each chapter. The structure of the book makes it ideal for a home group study.

This book was chosen for the National Big Church Read in January 2022.

Genres: Christian, Religion, Nonfiction, Christianity

352 pages, Paperback

Published October 18, 2022

Reviews

[David Campton · Rating 3 out of 5]

If I had to rate this based on the first 50 pages I would have given it 4 or 5, as it is written in an engaging way and whilst it begins with Genesis (unsurprisingly in a survey of the Bible) it avoids the beartrap of creation v evolution and seems to understand the likely origins of the creation stories as a counterblast to the creation myths of Babylon. But the further I read the more I became frustrated by the characterisation, particularly of the Old Testament in terms of an individualistic "personal salvation manual", and artificially fragmenting them into Origins, Exodus and Exile texts (with the break points at strange places) ignoring not only the Jewish understanding of their own sacred texts, but other scholarly insights. It largely ignores the wisdom and prophetic literature, except insofar as it "points to" Christ, meaning that the apocalyptic texts of both Daniel and Revelation are represented in a very simplistic fashion... the first as a straightforward narrative of faithful separatism, the second as an "end times almanac". When the author finally gets to Pentecost he rightly notes that the church was communal in nature from the get go, offering an important corrective to some of the individualistic readings of the Pauline epistles, (and in this as with his eschatology I read more than a whiff of N.T. Wright's perspective) but again there is no recognition that this is because Judaism was also always communal in its nature, and thus the Old Testament texts need to be read in that way too. It isn't just Judaism that gets casually dismissed (except as a channel of God's covenant fulfilled in Jesus/Christianity), the author also casually states, as many have done before him that Christianity is uniquely an historical religion. This may come as a shock to followers of Judaism, Islam, Buddhism and other which all claim historic events as key to their existence. I suspect he may have meant something more than this but does not go into those details. And I suppose that you cannot go into details with a 350 page survey of a much larger book/collection of books. But there again is part of my complaint in that just as he avoids the awkward Wisdom Books/Writings/Kethuvim of the Hebrew texts (its clearly not just his 8 year old son who got stuck in 1 Chronicles), he effectively ignores the non-Pauline epistles, denuding this survey of the Bible of one of its joys ie. its ability to hold together diverse perspectives. He is not overtly Marcionite in his excision of bits of the scriptures that don't fit his narrative, or even Lutheran in his dismissal of books like the Letter of James, he simply doesn't mention them. So whilst it is well written, with many interesting turns of phrase and helpful explanations which I will return to mine in future years, it isn't sadly, as I had anticipated early on in my reading of it, a book I would put in to the hands of someone wanting to understand the Bible better. It may be characterised as a beginners guide, but my fear is that it would set in place some fairly rigid understandings that might be difficult to unpick later. Although, sadly, in some people's attitude to scripture that isn't perceived as a bad thing.

[James · Rating 3 out of 5]

I'll preface this by saying my reading of this was from the perspective of an agnostic with a less than average knowledge of the bible.

I wanted to read the bible. Recently I'd cottoned on to an intellectual forum that convey some very interesting ideas about the bible. So I had bought a Bible, and in hope had bought this with the understanding that it could be used a manual to waypoint my reading of the bible.

Plot twist, this didn't happen so much as I thought it would, the book is divided into six different sections. With only the first four really relating to the chronology of the bible. I enjoyed reading the book, there is a mixture of the authors stories, how they relate to themes of the bible and having no knowledge of the teachings, it certainly improved my overall knowledge. Some parts I found harder to digest including the reflection tasks at the end of each chapter. As an agnostic these sections felt slightly forced for me to engage in, but I'm sure it was meant for someone who has recently accepted christianity. Conversely, I did enjoy reading the passages from the bible and having them broken down for an interpretation, and relation.

As the author mentions, the bible is not meant to be an academic text and exploring it shouldn't be with the pursuit of knowledge in mind. This book is a good introduction to the Bible, and highlights that its interpretations are one of the things that make it hard to objectively understand. Would I buy this book again? Probably not. I'm not sure that it was meant for me, however there certainly certainly is a demographic for this book and if you happen to come across it as I did, go for it.

[Sarah Tummey · Rating 3 out of 5]

Glad to get to the end of this book. It sounded amazing and I thought it would be a good resource to recommend to others, but I was disappointed in it. The author comes over much better on the accompanying videos, but from just reading the book, he comes across as someone who has very high expectations of others. I don't think it's helpful to say we don't need to suffer from anxiety if we believe in Jesus, for example. It sounds dismissive of any Christians who do and I don't think Jesus is like that. I think He comes alongside us and shows us, instead of just telling us how to feel.

There are things I did like about the book. The author's explanations were very clear, and I think he could have made more of the stories he told - maybe used them in his chapter-titles? I would sit up and take notice if there was a chapter called Jaffa Cakes!

[Calum Mackenzie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I mostly enjoyed this. It’s a good refresher, while offering lots of cultural context, Greek/Hebrew words and anecdotes. As some reviews have mentioned, a few stories fall flat - especially in relation to rugby and climbing mountains…that’s personal taste though.

The book ‘jumps’ quite a few times so if you’re expecting every book of the Bible discussed/ explored, you’ll be disappointed.

The book is packed with truths and for Christians, is a real encouragement.

My main issue is that I’m not sure this is a book for non-Christians but it’s possibly not a deep enough dive for well-read/mature Christians. Maybe if you’re in the first year of faith?

I recommend it but Ollerton’s book on Romans was far better.

[Kate Brumby · Rating 5 out of 5]

A book to read more than once which provides a great overview of the Bible as Andrew Ollerton navigates through it, whilst providing illustrations from his own life which help show how the Bible is God's story and his - God's story and our own - God's story and my own story.

Questions at the end of chapters aid deeper personal reflection and could be used for group discussion. A separate section at the back of the book provides more questions for discussion purposes.

I will be revisiting and re-reading many times I am sure.
Highly recommended.

[Colin Hayes · Rating 4 out of 5]

A very readable book that helps to make sense of the collection of writings that make up the Bible. it's written in a simple style and shows how The Bible tells one big story of good news. Particularly helpful for people who may not have studied the Bible in depth but there are still things to learn for those who may have read it many times.

Andrew Ollerton is a gifted communicator and teacher. Highly recommend for those who want to learn more about what the Bible teaches but may be daunted at the task.

[Andrew Pierce · Rating 5 out of 5]

Five Stars is the least this book deserves. With humour and honesty Andrew Ollerton sets the Bible in a context where one can start to get to grips with it. I've been around the Christian church all my life, my father was a pastor and a preacher but I've never previously come across a narrative which unpretentiously gives the novice or the weary and confused such a clear backdrop from which to explore the story of the book and its real author.

[Suzi · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really enjoyed this thought provoking walk through the Bible. It breaks the narrative down into nicely digestible parts and explains the links really well. I also loved that each chapter finishes with a Bible reading and reflection so you stay constantly focused on scripture while reading. Definitely a book full of wisdom that I will undoubtedly return to.

[Undomiel Books · Rating 3 out of 5]

A really lovely exploration of some of the most important books in the Bible (Genesis, Exodus, Gospels, Revelations) with some great anecdotes and modern-world examples to support. I do think for me personally this was a little too introductory, however I truly wish I'd known about this book when I first began reading the Bible. Perhaps not of as much use to people like me who are quite familiar with it, but still acts as a nice refresher of key things we may often overlook or forget from time to time. Definitely recommend to anyone new to Bible study.

[Gareth Davies · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really uplifting book about the Bible story and how it makes sense of our lives. It’s very easy to read and clearly shows the relevance of the Bible to modern life.

I found there were too many personal anecdotes but overall I’d give it a 3.5/5.

[Bethan Edge · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 ⭐️ a helpful and easy read on the ‘big’ story of the Bible. I really liked how he divided up the chapters and refers back and forwards to how the overall story comes together. Could have used a lot less personal anecdotes, at times they didn’t even help.

[queen-zara amoah · Rating 3 out of 5]

3⭐️ DNF
idrk if it’s even fair to rate this bc it’s not rlly a book like that but it was kinda hard to understand. i liked the references tho and the little picture charts to help understand. also i tried to read it twice but never got far ig that says smt?

[Phili Wilson · Rating 5 out of 5]

Excellent overview of the Bible and how the themes connect across the testaments. Highly recommend for those who are looking to explore the Bible, possibly a bit basic for those looking to really deepen their theological understanding.

[Ali · Rating 4 out of 5]

Easy to follow. Very good resource for new Christians.

[Patrice · Rating 5 out of 5]

I will always reread this book definitely recommend if you want to know about the bible and ways of seeing things

[Kirsty · Rating 5 out of 5]

An excellent and accessible resource. Can be revisited time and again

[Heather Paton · Rating 4 out of 5]

Excellent overview, easy to understand, thoughtful and relevant.

[Celeste · Rating 2 out of 5]

I don't mean to be a hater here. I've met many Christians and not a single one whose experienced their faith in the same way as I have. The author, well intentioned though he is, gives us a view into his understanding of the faith that is tinged by his upper middle class upbringing. He relates his own experiences as anecdotes of Christian ideas that correspond things like missed connections for ice cream and train rides down from a mountain on vacation with his family to the need for faith in times of disappointment. He relates the promise of divine inheritance to the CD his grandfather started for him when he was born. It's just not relatable for this reader, this Christian. And worse, it feels like a sanitized, virtual reality based, understanding of Christianity. I thought early saints were hard to take as they shed all material comforts to go into caves and encounter God. That is the other side of "not relatable" but it's more relatable as the extreme sacrifice is palpable and corresponds to the modest beginnings of our Lord and Savior, who speaks to the poor in a special "lived experience" way that this author will never be able to convey, not that that is his fault.

These might not be issues for you when reading this explanation of the Bible as a story that makes sense of life but they were mine. I'm on my third pass studying the Bible and the insights of the author feel extremely basic. I know the Bible is a daunting encyclopedia of sacred texts, complex and varied, and this expose just feels sanitized, irrelevant to my life journey and un-elucidating.

I feel like a hater writing this but this book did not add a new layer to my understanding of the Bible.