Lessons from the Land
Summary
Lessons from the Land is a high-quality 13-lesson Bible study produced by Appian Media. It focuses on providing historical and archaeological context to various aspects of faith in a child-appropriate way. The textbooks, in combination with video lessons, work in tandem to create a complete lesson with directed Scripture reading and a few coloring or drawing exercises. The quality, information, and theology immediately place this Bible study among the best currently on the market.
Assessment
Lessons from the Land is a high-quality Bible study, complete with textbook and videos available for streaming or hardcopy purchase. Each lesson brings forward a specific archaeological site, delving briefly into its historical significance and Biblical context. Using that context and a variety of related Scriptures, the lesson dives into a theological question and accompanying answer. Some of the lesson topics include submission to God, doing good work, being brave, respecting authority, and Jesus’ kingdom.
The lessons are highly interactive between the small, related art projects and calls to dig into Scripture independently. Some lessons have students seek out 4-5 different verses in the Bible — both Old and New Testament — to analyze and answer questions on. There is also a lot of interactivity between the students, with instructions to speak with authority figures like teachers or parents, or peers such as friends and siblings, about the lesson’s topic.
Overall both the books and videos are of the utmost quality and thoughtfulness. The theology is solid, with strong Biblical teachings that do not shy away from the topics of sin and repentance, but that encourage Godly behavior in a loving way.
Light-o-Meter
Writing Style: 6 out of 7 Little Lights
Organization/Formatting: 6 out of 7 Little Lights
Pictures: 7 out of 7 Little Lights
Videos: 7 out of 7 Little Lights
Fulfillment of Purpose: 7 out of 7 Little Lights
Theological Message: 7 out of 7 Little Lights
Overall: 6 out of 7 Little Lights
Talk
I hope that when you see a 7 (or, in this case, 4) in the Light-O-Meter you feel confident that I don’t hand them out lightly. 7s are a big deal, 7s are the primo crowning achievement of the Brainy Blog. And I am not exaggerating when I say that this is one of the most impressive Bible study resources I have seen in a long time. The quality is top-notch, the lessons are both thoughtful and theologically sound, the historical context is used in a fantastic way to teach and to emphasize each lesson’s point.
This would be an amazing resource for Sunday Schools, for youth retreats, for homeschooling, for supplementary education, or any other context where a little extra archaeology would be a great thing in a Bible study. The videos are relatively short (all where under 4 minutes, if I recall) and were not presented in a stuffy, boring “let’s make history as dry as possible” type of way. They usually focus on one or two actual locations — filming in the area, with real life video and imagery or digital recreations — easily combining cool facts about these places with the Biblical context and theological lesson.
I think one of the things that strikes me the most about this Bible study is the fact that it provides so much context, both historical and Biblical, to its lessons. There are adult Bible studies out there with far, far less context to support and explain their theology. I really love this about Lessons from the Land because a lot of times children are not given that historical or Biblical context. The Bible is cut down into itty, bitty, bite-sized pieces and maybe the tiniest little, two-sentence paragraph is provided on what, why, and when but usually it’s not enough to satisfy most kids’ curiosity.
If you are a Sunday school teacher, a homeschool parent, or someone in charge of a youth group, I highly recommend checking out these books for your next Bible study or lesson series. And, the videos are available for free on Vimeo and YouTube!
Where to Enjoy
Videos
Vimeo: Appian Media
YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/@appianmedia
Textbooks
Appian Media: Appian Media
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