In what order should I present the basics of Magic?
Start simple, build their knowledge step by step and only introduce new concepts when they're comfortable with what's gone before.  When I introduce a new player, I always start with the basics:


MtG is a card game using a deck of shuffled cards
The colours of magic and their themes (Red - destruction, blue - subversion, green - power etc)
The types of cards - creatures, instants, sorceries, artifacts
Life totals
How to win the game
Creature and spell damage
Phases of a round
The stack


With that information, a person can watch a game and more or less understand what's going on, without having to understand all the complexities.  After watching a few games, most players can start to step through games at which point, they learn by making mistakes. :)