Good News

Introduction

Hello! Welcome. What you are about to hear are some of the most important words you will ever hear. They explain the relationship between God and man. It is good news for everyone. Look at the picture book and listen as I tell you this good news. When you hear this sound, it is time to look at the next picture. You can stop the program at any time to think about the things you hear. Start now at the first picture.

Picture 1: In the Beginning

Genesis 1:1-5; Psalm 90:2

In the beginning of time, only God existed. Then God created the sky and the earth. God made the earth and He commanded the light to shine. He made the sun and the moon and all the stars. God is good, and He rules over everything. (Bridge music.)

Picture 2: The Word of God

Isaiah 45:18-19; Hebrews 4:12; Psalm 19:7-10

The Book in this picture is a Bible. It is the Word of God and it tells us about God and His ways. God loves all people. And He wants us to live in close fellowship with Him. What I want to tell you is from the Bible. (Bridge music.)

Picture 3: Creation

Genesis 1:1-25

God created everything by the words that He spoke. He said, "Let it be!", and it was as He said. He spoke and made the sky, the sea and the land. Then He created all living things: the fish in the water, the birds in the air, and all the animals. In this way God created everything. God was pleased with all that He made. Everything that God made was very good! (Bridge music.)

Picture 4: Adam and Eve

Genesis 1:26-31, 2:7 - 3:24

God made the first man and the first woman. He called them Adam and Eve. God loved Adam and Eve. He gave them authority over everything He had made and gave them honour and glory. God made a special garden for them to live in. There God walked with them and spoke with them. They had close fellowship with God. God said they were free to eat fruit from all the trees in the garden except for the fruit of one tree. An enemy named Satan came to them in the garden in the form of a serpent. He put doubt in the minds of Adam and Eve about what God said. He lied to them about the consequences of eating from the forbidden tree. He said, they will not die. Instead, they will be like God. Adam and Eve listened to the serpent and did not trust God anymore and ate the forbidden fruit. They sinned against God, and they broke their relationship with Him. They lost the honour God had given them. God sent Adam and Eve out of the beautiful garden, but He never stopped loving them. Since we are all offsprings of Adam we have all sinned against God and are separated from Him. This is why we experience pain, sickness and death. But God promised to send someone to reconcile us with Him, restore our honour and save us from sin; and that someone is Jesus. (Bridge music.)

Picture 5: Cain and Abel

Genesis 4:1-16; Romans 3:23

Adam and Eve had two sons named Cain and Abel. One day the two brothers brought offerings to God. God was pleased with Abel and his offering but He was not pleased with Cain and his offering. So Cain lowered his face and became angry. God came to him and said: “Why are you angry? And why is your face downcast? If you do what is right, will you not be lifted up? But if you refuse to do what is right, watch out! Sin is crouching at your door, eager to control you. But you must master it.” But Cain did not listen and one day he killed his brother. God came to Cain again to talk to him about his sin and its consequences. He asked Cain, “Where is your brother Abel?” Cain answered: “Am I my brother’s keeper?” God said, “What have you done? Your brother's blood is crying out to me from the ground! You are banished from the ground that received your brother’s blood. It will not yield good crops for you, no matter how hard you work. You will be a wandered on earth.” Then Cain left God’s presence. His sin and shame separated him from God. (Bridge music.)

Picture 6: Noah's Ship

Genesis 6:1-22; 2 Peter 3:9

Many generations went by and Adam and Eve had many descendants. All those people were wicked, even their thoughts were evil. The sin of the people became so great that God decided to destroy them by a great flood. There was only one man God was pleased with. His name was Noah. Noah was a good man and he walked in close fellowship with God. He preached to people about how to have this kind of relationship with God. God told Noah to build a big ship so that he could be saved from the flood. It took many years to build the ship. (Bridge music.)

Picture 7: The Flood

Genesis 7:1-24

When Noah finished building the ship he took birds and animals of every kind into the ship as God commanded him to do. Then Noah and his wife, their three sons and their wives, also entered the ship. There were only eight people in the ship along with the animals. Then God closed the door. After seven days God sent very heavy rain and He brought water from under the ground. In forty days God flooded the whole earth. Not a bird, animal, reptile, or human was left alive anywhere on earth. They all drowned. Only Noah and his family were saved because they believed God. (Bridge music.)

Picture 8: Abraham, Sarah and Isaac

Genesis 9:18-19,17:1-8, 21:1-7; Matthew 1:1-16

After many, many years the descendants of Noah became many tribes. One of the descendants was a man named Abraham. He was a man who loved God and trusted in Him. God promised Abraham that his descendants would become a great nation. Abraham and his wife Sarah did not have any children, but they still believed God's promise. According to the customs then, Abraham had a son by his wife’s servant. His name was Ishmael. He became the father of the Arab nations. But he wasn’t the child God promised Abraham. When Abraham and Sarah were very old, they had the son God promised. They called him Isaac. God promised to bless all people through Isaac and his descendants. (Bridge music.)

Picture 9: Moses and the Law of God

Exodus 19:1-25, 34:27-32

As God had promised Abraham, Isaac had many descendants. They became a great nation called Israel. One of the Israelites was a man named Moses. He believed and loved God. One day, God called Moses to a mountain where He spoke with him as a mediator for His people. He gave Moses laws to teach the people. This picture shows Moses coming down from the mountain with the laws of God written on pieces of stone. God’s laws are for all people. His laws are good. (Bridge music.)

Picture 10: The Ten Commandments 

Exodus 20:1-17

The laws which God gave to Moses are for the good of all people. When God gave Israel His laws, He made a covenant with them. He said, “I am the LORD your God, who rescued you from the land of Egypt, the place of your slavery. You must not have any other god but me.” The law requires trust and loyalty. We show God honour if we keep His laws. These are the Ten Commandments: You shall not make idols or bow down to them. You shall not use God's name in a disrespectful way. Set aside one day each week for the Lord and to rest. Honour your parents. You shall not murder. You shall not commit adultery. You shall not lie and deceive others. You shall not steal and have strong desire for the things that belong to other people. (Bridge music.)

Picture 11: Sacrifice for Sin

Leviticus 4:27-35; John 1:29

In the time of Moses when a person broke God's laws, he had to sacrifice a lamb to God. The lamb died in the place of the offender. This showed them God’s love and grace who would forgive them, because their sins were placed on the lamb and it suffered the consequences of those sins, instead of the offender. The lamb was also a symbol. It pointed to a much greater sacrifice that would come later. God planned to send Jesus into the world to become that sacrifice and take on himself the sins of all people. (Bridge music.)

Picture 12: A Saviour Promised

Luke 1:26-38; Matthew 1:18-25

Many years later, an angel from heaven was sent to a young virgin named Mary. Mary was promised in marriage to a man named Joseph. The angel said to Mary, "You have found favour with God. You will give birth to a son and you will call Him Jesus." Mary asked, "How can this be since I am a virgin?" The angel answered, "The Holy Spirit will come upon you, and the power of the Most High God will overshadow you, so the Holy One to be born will be called the Son of God." When Joseph found out that Mary was with child he wanted to quietly break the engagement. But the angel also appeared to him in a dream. The angel said, "Joseph, do not be afraid to take Mary as your wife, because what is conceived in her is from the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son and you are to give Him the name Jesus because He will save His people from their sins." 'Jesus' means 'Saviour'. Joseph took Mary as his wife but he did not sleep with her until after the baby was born. (Bridge music)

Picture 13: The Birth of Jesus

Luke 2:1-20

About that time, the king commanded all people to return to the town of their ancestors to be registered. Mary and Joseph travelled to the town of Bethlehem. When they arrived, it was so crowded there, that there was nowhere for them to stay except where the animals stayed. It was there that Mary gave birth to the baby Jesus. The same night an angel appeared to some shepherds who were watching their sheep in a field nearby. The angel said, "I bring you good news which is for all people. Today a Saviour has been born to you. He is Christ the Lord!" Suddenly many angels appeared in the sky, singing and praising God. The shepherds said to one another, "Let us go to Bethlehem and see this thing that has happened." When they had seen Jesus, they told everyone there what they had heard about Him from the angels. Everyone who heard it was amazed. The shepherds went back to their sheep, praising God for all they had heard and seen. (Bridge music.)

Picture 14: Jesus the Teacher

Luke 2:41-52; Mark 6:34

Mary and Joseph took the baby Jesus to Egypt when the king of that time was trying to kill the holy baby. Then they returned to Israel to the town of Nazareth. Jesus grew in wisdom and strength, and the grace of God was upon Him.
When Jesus was twelve years old, Mary and Joseph took Him to Jerusalem. He was sitting with the teachers and leaders of the people of Israel, and talked with them about God. He listened to them, and asked them questions. They were all surprised at His great knowledge of God. When Jesus was thirty years old, He began to teach the people about God. Often large crowds would gather to hear him speak and tell stories.
Many believed His teaching and followed Him. Other people did not believe and they opposed Him. (Bridge music.)

Picture 15: Jesus Performs Miracles

Mark 8:22-26, 5:35-43, 6:45-52

Jesus had great power from God. He worked many miracles. He healed the sick and made blind people see. He raised people from the dead. He calmed storms and walked on water in the sea. When the people saw these miracles many believed that He had come from God. They were amazed by all that Jesus did and said. They saw that He was not just an ordinary person. (Bridge music.)

Picture 16: Jesus Suffers

Matthew 27:11-31

Jesus did many wonderful things, and many people followed Him. He helped many people and taught the ways of God. Jesus came to show God's love, and to bring people back to God. However, the religious leaders were jealous of Jesus. Their hearts were hard, and they did not believe that He was sent from God. They refused to admit that they were sinners just like everyone else. Those leaders told lies about Jesus and they had Him arrested. The soldiers whipped Him. They placed a crown made from thorns on His head and they mocked Him. Jesus had the power to stop this and destroy those people, but He did not resist them. He knew this was in God's plan. God sent Him to save people from their sins and restore the relationship between God and man. (Bridge music.)

Picture 17: Jesus is Crucified

Mark 15:22-39; 1 Peter 2:21-24

The soldiers nailed Jesus to a wooden cross and He hung there until He died. In those days it was the custom to kill law breakers in that cruel way. Two criminals were also crucified with Jesus. However, Jesus was not a criminal. He had done no wrong and never dishonoured God. But he loved us so much that he died in our place. He was taking the punishment which we deserved. We have all sinned and we should die for our own sins. Jesus became the sacrifice to pay for the sins of all people. If we confess that we are sinful and turn from our sin, God will forgive us. Instead of being His enemies, we can be reconciled to God and live as His children. Jesus through His sacrifice restored our honour and makes it possible for us to honour God, too. Put your hope and trust in the Lord Jesus Christ and you will be saved. (Bridge music.)

Picture 18: The Resurrection

Luke 23:50 - 24:9

The enemies of Jesus thought that they had destroyed Him, but that was not so! After Jesus died on the cross, His followers put His dead body in a cave. They closed the entrance of the cave with a big stone. On the third day, early in the morning some women went to the cave to perform the proper burial customs. They were surprised to find the stone rolled away and the body of Jesus gone. They were even more surprised to see two angels! The angels said, "He is not here. He has risen!" Yes, God raised Jesus from the dead in highest honour! He showed that Jesus truly is God. Jesus is alive today and He has overcome Satan and death forever. He is seated in the place of honour at the right hand of the Father. And because He lives, we no longer have to live in shame and under the power of sin and Satan, or die in our sins, but we can live a new life with Jesus. If we accept this new life God will also seat us with Christ in the place of honour, because we are united with Christ Jesus. (Bridge music.)

Picture 19: Thomas Believes

John 20:19-31

After Jesus rose from the dead He appeared to His disciples. He talked with them and ate with them. One disciple called Thomas, was not with them when that happened. He would not believe that Jesus was alive again. He said, "Unless I see His nail wounds and touch them, I will not believe." A week later, Jesus appeared again and this time Thomas was there, just as you see in this picture. Thomas fell down on his knees before Jesus and said, "My Lord and my God!" Thomas had no more doubts. Jesus said, "You believe because you see Me. Blessed are those who do not see Me, and yet believe." (Bridge music.)

Picture 20: The Ascension

Acts 1:1-11

After Jesus rose from the dead, He appeared to many people. They saw Him and they knew that He was alive. Forty days later the time came for Jesus to go back to Heaven. He had finished the work He came to do. Jesus said, "Go and make disciples in all nations. Teach them to obey everything I have commanded you." As the disciples watched, Jesus rose up from the earth and disappeared from their sight in a cloud. Just then, two angels appeared. They told the disciples that Jesus would return one day in the same way that they had seen Him go. Jesus is now in heaven. He is preparing a place for all those who believe in and follow Him. Jesus made the way for us to come to God. Jesus IS the way for us to go to God. In fact Jesus himself said, I am the way, the truth and the life, no one goes to the Father except by me.”
Will you believe and follow the Lord Jesus? Will you be ready to meet Him when He returns? (Bridge music.)

Picture 21: The Empty Cross

1 Peter 3:18; Galatians 2:20

Why did Jesus die on the cross? Jesus died to reconcile us with God. He died to save us sinners from the power and punishment of sin. In dying on the cross He took our shame on Himself so He can restore our honour before God. Jesus never sinned. The cross reminds us that He died to take away the sin and shame that separates us from God. Jesus is the holy, sinless, Lamb of God. He was sacrificed for us. When we believe in Jesus and turn from our sin, God forgives us. Jesus makes us God's children and restores our relationship with Him. The following pictures will help you understand what it means to be a follower of the Lord Jesus. (Bridge music.)

Picture 22: The Two Roads 

Matthew 7:13-14; John 3:16; 1 John 1:9

Jesus taught about the way to eternal life. Everyone starts out on the wide road of sin because we all have a sinful nature which we inherited from Adam. The wide road leads to destruction in hell. But the narrow road leads to God and to everlasting life in heaven. Jesus said that we should turn into the narrow road. You can see in the picture a cross standing at the entrance to the narrow way. We enter that way when we repent of our sins and believe that Jesus died on the cross for us. Why not speak to God now? Say to Him, "Lord God, You are great and holy, but I confess to You that I have sinned. I believe that Jesus died on the cross to rescue me from sin and shame. Please forgive me. Cleanse me from sin and make me one of your children. I want to follow the way of Jesus and live with you in Heaven when I die. Thank you Lord." (Bridge music.)

Picture 23: God's Children

John 6:37-40, 14:6; Revelation 7:9

Jesus welcomes people from every tribe, nation and language group. When they believe in Him and follow Him, they become the children of God. They are on the narrow way which leads to heaven. The children of God are like one big family. They may be rich or poor, black or white. There are men, women and children. They are all united together by the Lord Jesus. (Bridge music.)

Picture 24: Born Again

John 3:1-18; Titus 3:4-7; 1 Peter 1:22-23

When Jesus was on earth there was an important teacher of religion named Nicodemus. One night he went to Jesus to ask him some questions. Jesus told him an amazing thing. He said that anyone who wants to belong to the family of God, must be born again. We enter the family of our parents when we are born into it. We enter into God's family, when we are born a second time. The first is a physical birth; the second is a spiritual birth. Through this spiritual birth, the Holy Spirit of God gives us new life. It is the life of Jesus which we receive as we follow Him. We become new people, the people of God. (Bridge music.)

Picture 25: The Holy Spirit Comes

John 14:15-18; Acts 2:1-39

Before Jesus went back to Heaven, He promised His disciples that He would send them the Holy Spirit. Ten days after Jesus returned to Heaven, there was a Jewish holy day. Jewish people living in many other nations came to Jerusalem to celebrate this. The disciples of Jesus were also there, all together in one place.
Suddenly, there was a sound like a great wind. Tongues like fire appeared above each of the disciples. The Holy Spirit came and filled them all, just as Jesus had promised. The Jewish people who came to Jerusalem from all those other nations were surprised when the disciples began speaking in all of their different languages, about the wonderful things that God had done. 3000 people turned to Jesus that day. God’s Spirit is powerful. He is more powerful than any other spirit. He lives in all who truly follow Jesus. The Holy Spirit gives us power to be more and more like Jesus and to tell others about Him. (Bridge music.)

Picture 26: Walking in the Light

John 3:19-21, 8:12; 1 John 1:5-7

Before a person believes in Jesus, he is like the man in the picture who is walking in the dark. He stumbles and often falls because he has no light to guide him. When we trust in the Lord Jesus, we become like the man walking along the road on a sunny day! He can see where he is going. He does not fall when the way is rough. Jesus said, "I am the Light of the world. If a man follows Me, he will not walk in darkness." He gives His Holy Spirit to guide all believers in His way. (Bridge music.)

Picture 27: A New Person

Galatians 5:16-26; Ephesians 4:22-32; 2 Corinthians 5:17

When God’s Spirit gives a person spiritual birth he becomes a new person. It means that he died to sin and to himself and was raised to new life with Christ. God’s Spirit lives in Him. He is in a close fellowship with God, he loves God and wants to do what He says in His Word. He is thankful that God has forgiven his sin and given him a new life. He is not under the power of sin anymore. He does not want to do anything to displease God. A believer in Jesus does not have any desire to commit adultery or fight. He does not want to steal and he does not worship idols or other gods. The Holy Spirit gives the believer power to turn away from evil things and become more and more like Christ every day. (Bridge music.)

Picture 28: The Christian Family

Ephesians 5:21 - 6:4; 1 Peter 3:1-9

When a family is truly walking in Jesus' way, the man and his wife love and honour one another. This is what the Word of God teaches. The husband and the wife help and encourage each other. They teach their children to love God and obey His Word. The family who honour God pray and work together in harmony. (Bridge music.)

Picture 29: Love Your Enemies

Matthew 5:43-48; Luke 10:25-37

Jesus taught His followers to love all people, even their enemies. Jesus told a story about a man who was travelling along a road. Robbers attacked him and beat him up. A man from another tribe and religion found the badly injured man. He bandaged his wounds. He put the man on his donkey and took him to an inn where he took care of him. He himself paid the innkeeper to look after the sick man until he was better. Jesus said we too should love and help anyone who is in need, even people of other races or religions. (Bridge music.)

Picture 30: Jesus is the Powerful One

Acts 19:18-20; Psalm 115:1-8; 1 John 3:8, 4:4

The men in this picture are burning their idols and fetishes. They used to worship Satan but now they follow Jesus. Jesus' followers must not worship evil spirits. We do not have to fear them or serve them. The Lord is more powerful than Satan, evil spirits or idols. Believers must get rid of everything that binds them to Satan and evil spirits. Jesus will protect us from them when we ask Him. (Bridge music.)

Picture 31: Casting out Evil Spirits

Mark 5:1-20; James 4:7

Once there was a man who was possessed by many evil spirits. Ropes and chains could not hold him because the spirits inside him were so strong. Jesus commanded those spirits to come out of the man, and they did! That man was freed from the power of the spirits. He went and told all his friends what Jesus had done for him. Jesus has much more power than evil spirits. He delivered many people from their bondage. Satan and evil spirits must obey Him. Maybe you are a believer but you are disturbed by evil spirits. Remember that you belong to God. Satan has no place in your life. Resist him and ask the powerful Lord Jesus to send those spirits away. Ask other believers to pray with you. When you obey Jesus, His power protects you and Satan cannot harm you. (Bridge music.)

Picture 32: Temptation

Matthew 6:24; 1 Timothy 6:6-10; 1 Corinthians 10:13-14

Satan often tries to tempt God's children. He wants them to stop following the Lord Jesus. Satan will try to tempt the believer with many different things. Here are just a few examples: desire for money, clothes, using tobacco, strong drink and immoral living, and many other sins, like pride, jealousy, selfishness, gossiping, anger and worry. He wants us to believe that some of these things will make us happy, or that we can trust ourselves rather than God. But Satan is a liar. He wants to deceive us and turn us against God. Only God can give you true and lasting satisfaction and only He can help you think and act like Christ. Ask the Lord to help you resist temptation. Trust the Lord Jesus and follow only Him. The more you submit yourself to Him and His Spirit, and the more you think about God's truth, the better you will be able to win this battle against temptation. (Bridge music.)

Picture 33: The Father’s Love 

Luke 15:11-32; 1 John 1:7-9

Jesus told this story: A young man asked his father for his share of the inheritance. Then he left home, went far away, and did many evil things. He acted shamefully by committing adultery and wasting his father's money. Then there was a severe famine. He became very poor and hungry. He realized that he had sinned against God and his father. He truly regretted what he had done. He returned to his father. His father loved his boy even though he had sinned greatly. With great joy he received the young man back again and forgave him. He told his servants “Bring the fattened calf and kill it! Let us eat and celebrate, because this son of mine was dead, and is alive again – he was lost and is found!” If we sin, we must truly regret our sin and turn from our sin. God has forgiven us and accepted us when we became His children, and He will never reject us. But He does not want us to continue to live in sin and shame. He knows how much it harms us. Jesus said, "There is rejoicing in heaven over one sinner who repents." (Bridge music.)

Picture 34: Sickness

Philippians 4:6-7; James 5:13-16

What should God's people do when they become sick? They should first pray to God and trust Him to do whatever is best. They must not pray to any other god or spirit, or rely on charms or fetishes. They can also call the leaders of the church to come and pray for them. God is able to heal the sick person. God loves us and controls all that happens to us. Jesus is with us to give peace and to help us in times of sickness. (Bridge music.)

Picture 35: Death

1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; Hebrews 2:14-15; Revelation 14:13

In this picture we see people burying their dead as was their custom. We all know that one day we will all die. But what happens to us then? The Bible, the Word of God, says that when a believer dies, his spirit goes to be with the Lord Jesus in heaven. We need not be afraid of death. God loves us and has saved us from sin and everlasting death. So when a believer dies, we do not need to be overcome with grief. Death is not the end. It is the gateway to new life in heaven with God. Unbelievers do not have this hope of eternal life with God. The Bible says that they go to a place where they will be destroyed forever. Where will you go when you die? (Bridge music.)

Picture 36: The Body of Christ

1 Corinthians 12:12-31; Ephesians 4:11-16; 1 Peter 4:10

Each part of our body has its own task. The eye is for seeing, the ear for hearing, and the mouth for talking and eating. All the parts of the body work together. If one part is sick or injured, the whole body suffers. God says that believers are parts of one body called the Church. The Lord Jesus is the Head of that body. God has work for every believer to do, for example, preaching, singing, giving, teaching, giving hospitality, helping others. If one believer fails to do his part, the whole body of the Church will suffer. All believers must work together to honour God and serve each other. In this way the Body of Christ will be strong. (Bridge music.)

Picture 37: Meeting for Worship

Heb. 10:24-25; 1 Cor 11:23-34; Colossians 3:15-17

Believers meet together regularly to worship God. When they meet they learn from the Bible, pray to God and praise Him in song. They bring gifts for the work of God. Jesus instructed His followers to remember His death. In this picture you can see believers eating and drinking together. The bread which they are eating reminds them of the body of Jesus when He died on the cross. As they drink together they remember His blood which was shed to save them from sin. We too remember the death of Jesus in this way, when we meet together and share the bread and the drink, until He comes back again. (Bridge music.)

Picture 38: Jesus Will Return

John 14:1-3; 1 Thessalonians 4:13 - 5:4

One day the Lord Jesus will return to earth from Heaven, just as He promised. He will come suddenly when people do not expect Him. Believers who have died will rise from their graves to meet Him. Those who are still alive, will join them. Together they will meet the Lord Jesus in the air. They will be with Him in heaven for ever. Unbelievers will be left behind. They will suffer the judgment of God. We do not know when Jesus will return but we must always be ready and waiting for Him. Would you be ready to meet the Lord Jesus if He returned today? (Bridge music.)

Picture 39: Bearing Fruit

Matthew 7:15-20; Galatians 5:22-23; John 15:1-8

The tree in this picture has much fruit. When we have a new life in Jesus, God's Spirit works in us to produce fruit. The Bible tells us that the fruit of God's Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Jesus said, "I am the vine. You are the branches. If you stay in Me, and I in you, you will bear much fruit." This is why close fellowship with Jesus is so important. Dead branches do not bear fruit. They will be cut down and burned. Jesus wants His followers to produce much fruit. This honours God and helps other people. (Bridge music.)

Picture 40: Witnessing

Matthew 28:18-20; Acts 1:8

Jesus told His followers that they should go and tell other people about Him. Anyone who believes in Him will be saved from sin, shame, punishment and death. They become God's children and enjoy his presence and love in this life and then spend eternity in great joy in heaven. If you are a believer you must help others to understand this Good News. God's Holy Spirit will give you the courage to live and speak for Him. Use this picture book to tell others what you have learned. In this way many people will come to know the truth about God and our Saviour, the Lord Jesus Christ.