Timothy Paul Jones, PhD is a vibrate speaker in twelve 30-minute DVD sessions. Interesting facts and a subtle sense of humor make for easy listening while discovering the history of Christianity. Included in the complete kit is a colorful and well organized 224 page book. Each lesson takes a specific period of time and lists events, names, and terms every Christian should know. I have to admit history is not easy for me, it was never my favorite subject, but Dr. Jones DVD sessions and his book has taught me more history of my faith than any other course. Everyone has heard about the Crusades, but the reason behind the events and the slaughter of innocent Christians was shocking and yet knowledge that shaped the division of the Roman Catholics and the Eastern Orthodox Church. The book has an abundance of photos and paintings for each period. Timelines, key concepts, quotes from Church founders and links to information on the web fill the pages of this resource book. "In case you are confused" "Did you know?" insert boxes are filled with explanations and fun facts that liven up the pages. History can be dry, but this book is a pleasure to pick up over and over again. Sessions with a lively lecture and special animations on a variety of topics from Joan of Arc to the legend of Saint Patrick guarantee you will not be bored. Promotional materials include banners, postcards, and fliers. A variety of learning activities from crossword puzzles to fill in the blank will help participants remember key facts. Resources to lead the study are in the back of the book as well as on a DVD. A Leader Guide and one Participant Guide is included in the kit. The "Know More About..."pages in the participants guide allows for the eager students and unlimited discussions in the group. The Leader Guide is laid out step by step: what to do Before The Gathering, Goals For The Gathering, how to Get Them Talking, Seek The Central Truth, Wrap It Up and Work Together. There are more than 300 PPT slides to expand your teaching and enhance your presentation. Definitions of terms, colorful charts and application questions provide the instructor with all they need to make this an interesting study for all ages. Rose Publishing provided this kit for my unbiased review.

Christian History Made Easy (12 DVD Sessions)

Presenter: Dr. Timothy Paul Jones

What happened after Acts 28? One topic a Christian often lacks to study, I must admit, is Christian History. Most Christians cannot name more than five Christian Theologians who had great influence in church history, but can easily name more than five players in the NBA or NFL Hall of Fame.

I greatly appreciated the fact that in these 12 sessions, Dr. Timothy Paul Jones opened and closed with Gospel-centeredness, that it is God's will to bring the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ to His people.

I have learned how to answer those who ask me about church persecutions by watching one of the videos. I have learned that during the times of persecution in the early church, God opened more doors for Christians to continue their mission in bringing the Gospel to the ends of the earth.

I have read so many books on the Calvinism vs. Arminianism debate that I was not told in any book that Jacob Arminius was asked to defend Calvin's view on God's sovereignty in salvation, but he was defeated before the debate even began because he could not agree with Calvin. I have learned this valuable history lesson from one of these videos. Personally, it is well worth the price for just this information.

Another eye-opener for me is that at one time, the Roman Catholic Church was ruled by three popes. This must be an embarrassing fact for modern Roman Catholics to learn because they believe there is only one pope, who is the shepherd of the Church.

These 12 video sessions last about 30 minutes each, so it is perfect for any small group Bible Study and Sunday School class. You may have heard people say that if there is one thing they could do, they would want to go back and rewrite history. In these 12 DVD sessions, you will want to go and learn from history what God has done for His Church for His glory.

If you want to know what happened after Acts 28, get these 12 DVD sessions and learn for yourself and share them with your church and community group. You won't be disappointed; you will be glad you have these DVDs in your library.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I received these DVDs free from the Rose Publishing book review bloggers program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission's 16 CFR, Part 255: "Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising."

Christian History Made Easy is a 12-session DVD-based study series that covers the essentials on Church history. The Complete Kit edition includes the DVD's, PowerPoint presentation with PDF files, Leader Guide, Participant Guide, and Reference Handbook, making the Complete Kit an excellent choice for both individuals and small groups. The DVD sessions and the teaching sessions combine to make well over 12 hours of study.

The information includes:

- Major events in Church history

- Major characters in Church history

- Major Councils

- The formation of the Catholic, Protestant, and Orthodox Churches

- The Reformation

- How we got the Bible in English

- How specific doctrines developed

DVD's

The 3 DVD's contain 12 sessions that make up six hours of teaching on Church history. The sessions are taught by Dr. Timothy Paul Jones. Dr. Jones covers the major points really well, showing plenty of visuals. He's a good teacher and keeps the pace fairly fast- but not too fast. The sessions are broken up into periods of time, so each one includes a range of a hundred to a few hundred years and the major events that took place in that time frame. For example, the first session ranges from 1 AD to 100 AD.

PowerPoint and PDF's

The PowerPoint presentation includes 300 slides, which is every slide you need to teach this course. It includes PDF files to support teaching and promoting the class. The files include the Leader Guide, posters, fliers, handouts, a bulletin insert, door hangers, post card, and banners. They mostly look like the DVD or book cover with a small box for your Church information.

Leader Guide

The Leader Guide is 95 pages and includes an introduction (which is a summary of the main points), an outline, a glossary of key terms, a list of what to study (including Scripture), Scriptures and terms to get the group to discuss, which video and slides to show the group, a teaching point, a summary, and an ending group discussion. Each point shows how much time to spend for that section. This is a very good teaching guide that gets the teacher prepared in not only the material but also in the teaching role.

Participant Guide

The Participant Guide is 127 pages and includes the same introduction, outline, and key terms as the Leader Guide. Next is an explanation of major events with questions to answer- making each session more interactive. Each section ends with a segment called "Family Time". This section includes four sections within it: Get Together (an assignment for family members), Read Together (Scriptures to read), Learn Together (the main points with supporting Scriptures), and Pray Together (an ending prayer). I like this section because it gives the students something to take home to their families and supports family interaction. I recommend all families get together with some form of devotions and this section provides a good model that works for this course and any Bible study can be adapted to this format.

Reference Handbook

The Reference Handbook is 224 pages and is filled with color photos, charts, quotes, web links, questions and answers, maps, and facts. It is my favorite book in the kit and is worth buying as a stand-alone book if you don't buy the kit. It has 12 chapters- one for each session. There is a chart for each chapter that shows important events, names, and terms in that chapter. There is a study guide and activity guide in the back, along with an index. The Reference Handbook is very detailed and colorful.

Conclusion

This is a very good series on Church history. It's not too long but still covers the basics. It's taught well and has many great supporting materials. This series is not overly doctrinal, but there is some doctrine taught- especially in the study guides (which include the creeds). Like all study material, I caution readers to do their own study of doctrinal points. This is an easy series to follow and has plenty of good quality teaching, visuals, and activities. I highly recommend Christian History Made Easy Complete Kit from Rose Publishing.

Rose Publishing provided this review copy for free. I was not required to give a positive review- only an honest review.

This is a pretty good package, with a good instructional text for the teacher, a lesson guide, and a participant guide. There is also a Power Point review slide deck. And of course the very important 30 minute lectures. We've only done 3 of the lessons, but the response so far is quite favorable. The speaker in the videos is a bit fast, but quite understandable. I did not find the participant guide to be of much use, so have not ordered for the students. All together a really nice package and recommended. Our class time is 1:15, and one lesson comfortably fits into that time slot.

I really enjoy the presenters enthusiasm and ability to summarize. Not too brief and not too long. For further detail, you have the option to dive into the material.