Official Review: The Bible in a Nutshell by Dele Babalola

[Manang Muyang]

[Following is an official OnlineBookClub.org review of "The Bible in a Nutshell" by Dele Babalola.]

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3 out of 4 stars

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Dr. Dele Babalola used to be an atheist. But in 1987, after heeding a divine leading to read the Scripture passages in Galatians 5, he met Jesus in a powerful revelation. His life has never been the same. Today, he is burdened to share the gospel of Jesus Christ to bring more people into a relationship with Jesus, “the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6 of The Holy Bible). He wrote this book for both the Christian and the non-believer. He urges the former to remain true to the Christian calling and the latter to accept Jesus; the time to do both is now.

The book contains a digest of the entire Bible, highlights in the story of Jesus and His ministry, and a detailed explanation of the End Times from the Rapture to the coming of the New Jerusalem. Dele warns that the End Times are near; the signs are manifest in the world today.

Should we be afraid? Who will be saved?

The full title of the book, The Bible in a Nutshell: An Invaluable Aid to Understanding Creation, Life, The Rapture, End Times, Death and The Afterlife, sums up the book so well. I have always wanted to read the Bible from cover to cover, Genesis to Revelation. I have succeeded in reading Genesis and Revelation and a few other books in between. From the little I know, the synopsis given by Dele is wonderful. It contains the most important stories (including creation, the great flood and Noah’s ark, the liberation of the Israelites led by Moses, a sampling of fulfilled prophecies, the miracles and teachings of Jesus, and the cryptic messages in Revelation). He introduces Jesus and makes His messages of love and salvation known, with selected Scripture verses familiar to the devout and the not-so-devout. Those who are overwhelmed by the 66 books of the Bible (39 in the Old Testament and 27 in the New Testament) will find Dele’s book simple and clear. He offers an in-depth analysis of the End Times bolstered by his exhaustive research. The message to prepare for the impending doom is appropriately emphasized.

I am a Christian. I should be happy that Dele repeatedly declares that God favors the Christian and has a special plan for true Christians. Christians are reported to account for 31% of the world’s population; true Christians will naturally be a lower percentage. I believe in a God who loves all humanity without condition. I cannot imagine that this loving and merciful God will leave more than two-thirds of His beloved humanity in limbo. That is my major disagreement with the author. But faith is a personal matter, and I respect his beliefs.

Some topics are needlessly repeated. For instance, Noah and Abraham appear in both chapters three and four, and the End Times are discussed in chapters three, five, and seven to nine. Streamlining may help keep the reader focused. There are also some inaccuracies. Paul and Mark are included among the twelve apostles. The author misses two charismatic gifts of the Holy Spirit the first time these are mentioned. The dating of biblical events is a little confusing as some events are indicated as having transpired on two different dates without a good explanation. A few Scripture passages are misquoted.

Better proofreading is also needed. The table of contents has to be revised to show the correct page references. Misspellings, wrong punctuation, inconsistent capitalization, and unaligned text likewise need to be addressed.

I believe this book will be most appreciated by Christians, both true and untrue. The urgency of making the right decision is palpable. Let the Christians not waste their privilege as God’s favored people.

I personally would replace the term “a true Christian” with “a righteous person,” one who follows the way of Christ, which is the way of love. The greatest Christian commandment is to love God, and next to that is to love your neighbor. Everyone, not just Christians, can follow both.

For successfully condensing the Bible in a nutshell, painting an understandable picture of the End Times, and following the urgent call to bring others to salvation, but failing in the area of editing, this book merits 3 out of 4 stars.

“Today is the day of salvation, for tomorrow is not promised and may be too late!” – from the foreword written by Reverend Brian Bernard, paraphrased from 2 Corinthians 6:2 of The Holy Bible

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The Bible in a Nutshell
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Like Miriam Molina's review? Post a comment saying so!

[gen_g]

I suppose the term "a true Christian" does sound rather contentious. However, I do admire the author's drive and motivation; it's not easy to maintain that for a prolonged period of time. Thanks for the great review, Miriam!

[Anon_Reviewer]

Condensing the Bible is a mammoth task, so I applaud the author for his attempt. I hope he gets an editor on board soon because the book has potential. Thank you for the helpful review!

[Sonya Nicolaidis]

Hopefully, condensing the Bible into a more concise format will encourage more people to try and read it and familiarize themselves with the tenets of Christianity. One thing does disappoint me though: I would expect such a responsible job to be undertaken with more care and attention to accuracy. Not only the problems with proofreading, but more worryingly, the errors in the teaching would put me off this book. Outstanding review once again from you, Miriam. Many thanks.

[Manang Muyang]

I suppose the term "a true Christian" does sound rather contentious. However, I do admire the author's drive and motivation; it's not easy to maintain that for a prolonged period of time. Thanks for the great review, Miriam!

Thanks for the wonderful comment, as always!

[Manang Muyang]

Condensing the Bible is a mammoth task, so I applaud the author for his attempt. I hope he gets an editor on board soon because the book has potential. Thank you for the helpful review!

Thank you for reading and commenting. Dele is bent on saving souls plus bodies. We will all be resurrected, the sheep into eternal bliss and the goats into eternal fire.

[Manang Muyang]

Hopefully, condensing the Bible into a more concise format will encourage more people to try and read it and familiarize themselves with the tenets of Christianity. One thing does disappoint me though: I would expect such a responsible job to be undertaken with more care and attention to accuracy. Not only the problems with proofreading, but more worryingly, the errors in the teaching would put me off this book. Outstanding review once again from you, Miriam. Many thanks.

The inaccuracies aren't too worrisome for me. As to who will be saved is the more critical aspect. In fairness to Dele, there are many different interpretations of the cryptic passages that talk about the End Times. Nobody knows when. We can only hope we will be ready.

Thanks for the kind words, Sonya01!

[kandscreeley]

I, too, have wanted to read the Bible cover to cover. And, I, too, have not yet accomplished that feat. Still, I think I would rather keep striving towards it than simply reading what someone else thought was important. Though, I'm sure this book still has its merits. Thanks for the information.

[ALFO-MU+254]

wow! this is the best review I have ever read. I think it will make many to know the way of the truth because its like a bible by itself and as it is in John 1:1 says' in the begining there was a word, and the word was with God, and the word was God. So, the bible itself is God talking to us. the review will make us all come close to God and He will come closer to us because truly today is only the day of salvation because no one knows what will happen next. So we should be closer to God all the time and do His will. we can only know His will if we have a habit of reading the bible everyday. Infact the title of the review should be "Today is the day of salvation" Thankyou.

[Manang Muyang]

wow! this is the best review I have ever read. I think it will make many to know the way of the truth because its like a bible by itself and as it is in John 1:1 says' in the begining there was a word, and the word was with God, and the word was God. So, the bible itself is God talking to us. the review will make us all come close to God and He will come closer to us because truly today is only the day of salvation because no one knows what will happen next. So we should be closer to God all the time and do His will. we can only know His will if we have a habit of reading the bible everyday. Infact the title of the review should be "Today is the day of salvation" Thankyou.

You obviously share the author's passion to save souls. Thanks for your enthusiasm!

[Manang Muyang]

I, too, have wanted to read the Bible cover to cover. And, I, too, have not yet accomplished that feat. Still, I think I would rather keep striving towards it than simply reading what someone else thought was important. Though, I'm sure this book still has its merits. Thanks for the information.

Thanks for the visit, Sarah! I hope we both accomplish that most-desirable feat.

[Jackie Holycross]

I, too, have wanted to read the Bible cover to cover. And, I, too, have not yet accomplished that feat. Still, I think I would rather keep striving towards it than simply reading what someone else thought was important. Though, I'm sure this book still has its merits. Thanks for the information.

Thanks for the visit, Sarah! I hope we both accomplish that most-desirable feat.

I have a Bible that is written in chronological order rather than in the standard order. It makes much more sense to me that way.

[T_stone]

I personally would replace the term “a true Christian” with “a righteous person,” one who follows the way of Christ, which is the way of love

I will also find the term 'true Christian' a little offensive. I agree with you that "a righteous Christian" sounds better. I find your review very interesting and it has piqued my interest in reading this book.

[Manang Muyang]

I personally would replace the term “a true Christian” with “a righteous person,” one who follows the way of Christ, which is the way of love

I will also find the term 'true Christian' a little offensive. I agree with you that "a righteous Christian" sounds better. I find your review very interesting and it has piqued my interest in reading this book.

Thanks for visiting! I believe that God wants all to be saved as He loves each individual without measure.

[Manang Muyang]

I have a Bible that is written in chronological order rather than in the standard order. It makes much more sense to me that way.

That would be nice to have. What version is this? Would they have an ecopy?