The Big Picture Story Bible by David Helm, Illustrated by Gail SchoonmakerA Book Review

This article was first published in French at TPSG.

If you’re a Bible nerd like me, you’re probably most familiar with David Helm as the executive director of The Charles Simeon Trust and author of Expository Preaching in the 9Marks: Building Healthy Churches series. But in addition to being a passionate expositor of God’s Word, he has also written a book entitled “The Big Picture Story Bible”, conceived for children ages 2-7. 

An Introduction to Biblical Theology for Little Ones

I first learned of this book while preparing to teach on Biblical Theology at a training held for women Bible teachers through SOLA. One of my colleagues alerted me to the fact that this 456-page book introduces young children to Biblical Theology in a simple and accessible way. This was confirmed when I read the acknowledgment in the opening pages of the book, in which David Helm thanks Graeme Goldsworthy (one of the godfathers of Biblical Theology) for helping him grasp the message of the Bible from this perspective: “God’s People, in God’s Place, Under God’s Rule.” If you want your little ones to grasp the beauty of that truth, then this may be the ideal book to add to your Christmas gift lift this year. 

The Bible is God’s Story

The story opens with a line many adult Christians benefit from remembering, “The Bible is God’s story.” In an era in which the world trains us to make everything about us and in which many Christian books follow suit, this is an axiom we do well to inculcate in our children from a tender age. 

From that starting point, Helm and Schoonmaker walk us through the storyline of the Bible, beginning with creation, and continuing through each of the major events of redemptive history, with particular emphasis on the purposes and promises of God (or as we grown-ups call them, covenants). Many of us learned the stories of the Old Testament as distinct units with little connection to one another. This common thread of promise, therefore, joins these stories as the anticipation mounts with each epoque in the biblical narrative - the people of God long for the day he will fulfill his ultimate promise to send them a king who will reign forever. 

With the advent of the Son, the hopes of a nation are fulfilled in Jesus Christ. In their depiction of the life of Jesus, Helm and Schoonmaker demonstrate how he was born to be the promised king. How he fulfilled all the promises contained in Moses, the prophets, and the Psalms. And how all the saints await the day in which we will live in God’s eternal home under the reign of God’s eternal King.

Engaging Through Questions 

One of this book's strengths is the way it engages little ones through questions. “Do you see Adam and Eve?” “Do you think Joseph was all alone in Egypt?” “Do you know what God did next?” Such questions help children interact with their parents as they read to them, allowing them to be active participants in the story-telling event. 

Conclusion

Are you in the market for a special Christmas gift for a little niece, nephew, daughter, son, or special friend? Look no further than The Big Picture Story Bible. With its simple artwork and its winsome prose, this book is destined to be a classic in your home. Find it here.