REVIEW: Drive-Thru History® –“The Gospels” by Drive-Thru History®

I looked forward to reviewing Drive-Thru History® – “The Gospels” by Drive-Thru History®

WHAT IS IT?:

Drive-Thru History® –“The Gospels” is an 18-episode, 9-hour series that pairs the physical places and historical findings with the scripture in the gospels.

Host Dave Stotts takes you through the truly “extraordinary life of Jesus of Nazareth” in this eye-opening series.  In addition to the narrated video content geared for all ages, there is also a full-color book included in the DVD box set that summarizes each episode, adds side notes, and provides a handful of discussion questions and corresponding scripture references that can be used for family bible study.

You can purchase the complete box set for just $89.95.  You can watch the first episode for free and see if this compelling series is right for you and your family.

 

OUR EXPERIENCE:

I actually got this series for myself to watch.  I’m a big fan of historical documentaries, and I’m always up for learning more about how archaeological discoveries and known historical data tie in with God’s word to us in the bible.  I don’t personally have any doubts about the truth in the scriptures, but it always helps to have historical knowledge to support my beliefs when engaging in religious discussions with others who aren’t quite as convinced as I am.

I have really, really enjoyed this series.  I found it easy to binge watch several episodes at a time because it was just so interesting!  I watched several episodes in our mountain cabin on vacation with my whole family (there was only one television), and my children of varying ages from 9-17 and even my husband found that this series was actually pretty cool to watch!  My husband said it was better than he expected (he’s not a documentary-lover like myself).  It was truly so well done, and it’s really easy to listen to the host, Dave Stotts.  He has a voice and manner of speaking that gets your attention and isn’t monotone at all.

The content was thorough.  Each episode began with a quick summary of the previous episode and a quick introduction to what this episode would cover.  Then it dove right into the topic of discussion, driving to over 50 ancient sites in Israel over the course of the 18 episodes.  Dave read right from the scripture of the gospels and then discussed the cultural, archaeological, and geographical circumstances that applied to the events discussed in scripture.  He takes you through the birth, ministry, death, and resurrection of Jesus. 

To accompany the videos, the 118-page book with full-color illustrations provides an overview of each episode along with some basic discussion questions you can use with your children or bible study class.  I would say the questions are good for basic comprehension of the material covered in the episodes, and the book provides scripture references you can use for further study on the topics.  I did not use the questions since I was mostly just viewing the videos for myself, but I can see how they would work for even younger children who might be using the set for family bible study.

I learned a lot about artifacts and historical findings that do indeed support the scriptures, and I also got to hear cultural tidbits that I found interesting, like the fact that mangers at that time were actually made of stone and not wood the way most modern children’s books would depict them.  So the baby Jesus would have been laid in a stone manger in a room that would normally house animals at night.  One of the episodes showed what a typical building of this nature looked like, and as Dave trekked the countryside in Israel, I found myself better able to picture what it must have been like for Jesus to live there and grow his ministry among the people.

In fact, I found myself contributing some of the things I learned at our adult bible study at church, and I made a case for how I thought they’d all enjoy watching this series, as well.

I still have about 4 episodes left to watch, but I can pretty much guarantee that I will be sitting down with this set again in the future so I can repeat the whole series and glean even more understanding from it.  It’s definitely worth my time to watch it through again, and I look forward to sharing it with my family and friends!

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