I still remember when the revolution came " it was reading Graeme Goldsworthy's Gospel and Kingdom as an undergraduate. Suddenly the Bible's overall coherence became clear to me. I was stunned. I don't think I had discovered anything new within the Bible itself, but for the first time I saw the way the various parts constituted the whole. It was a breakthrough in my Christian understanding, permanently altering the way I read and understood the Bible.

It's a constant goal of pastors and teachers to help people gain this overall biblical understanding, but a goal which is difficult to achieve through weekly sermons. The eight-part Bible Explained course by Michael Bennett (author of Christianity Explained) is intended to help people grasp the Bible's big picture.

He says the course is aimed at those whose Bible knowledge is a disconnected jumble of stories, those who might be intimidated by the Bible's size and complexity, or those who have tried and failed to read the Bible the whole way through. Adopting a now common format, the course is based on participants' workbooks, leaders' manuals, and session content presented by Bennett himself on 4 DVDs.

Bennett explains that the Bible moves from Creation to New Creation. For ease of understanding and memorisation he organises this overarching Bible story into "history', summarised by seven "great journeys', such as "Abraham's Journey' and "the Exile Journey'. Each has a corresponding development in "theology' expressed in a series of covenants. He makes use of a central diagram, which is developed with each new session. He has deliberately tried to make the content simple and accessible.

The course is a case-study in biblical theology. Although I would sometimes part company with Bennett in his exegetical remarks on a particular passage, overall the material is good, clear and well-structured. He lays out the progressive biblical revelation and demonstrates the connections of each stage with its fulfilment in Christ. I found the session on Jesus particularly strong. It helpfully integrated the gospels' presentation of Jesus with Old Testament themes and images. An enormous amount is covered in the eight sessions.

The DVDs show Bennett presenting the material to a group of around 30. Although at the Sydney launch last year, he argued for the value of using the course one-to-one. He also recommends using the course with unbelievers, but I must say it seems a more natural fit with those already reading the Bible and keen to progress.

There is a fair amount of Bible reading and some memorisation work to be done outside the sessions, so the course is aimed at those who are reasonably well-motivated. Occasionally, I felt Bennett's presentation of the material was slower than really necessary and rather daggy at points.

If the DVDs are used in full along with the allocated question time, each session would require up to 90 minutes. And while I'm complaining, I might add that my leaders' manual wasn't of the highest publication quality, with something of a church photocopier feel to it, especially given the cost ($17.50). However, the participants' workbook was better presented and the DVDs are of acceptable quality.

Having given "Bible overview' presentations of my own of varying quality over the years to pave the way for a series of Old Testament sermons or Bible studies, I am pleased to have come across The Bible Explained. I shall certainly be trying it out.

My preference would be to present the content myself. Many people could do the same having watched the DVDs and using the leaders' manual. I can certainly see the value of taking Bible study leaders through the course and encouraging them to use it in their own groups. I can also imagine using it as a follow-up to the Christianity Explained"type courses used in many churches, for those eager to go further.

It's a welcome addition to the resources available to those who are keen to better understand the Scriptures.