Two for Thursday: Bible Study Edition

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app, Bible, Bible Study, Dallas Theological Seminary, Faithlife, God, Logos, Seminary, websites, YouVersion

We’re back for another installment of Two for Thursday, and I suppose if I had to add an additional hint to what type of resources will be included, I’d simply say “Bible Study Edition.”

Our first resource today is one that many of you may already be aware of, but in case you’re not, let me introduce you to Faithlife.

Faithlife Corporation publishes and creates electronic tools and resources for Bible study. It produces the Logos Bible Software, but also publishes tools and resources under a number of other brands, and partners with more than 500 publishers to offer over 120,000 Christian ebooks available to users of its software.

Logos Bible Software is a digital library application designed for electronic Bible study. In addition to basic eBook functionality, it includes extensive resource linking, note-taking functionality, and linguistic analysis for study of the Bible both in translation and in its original languages. It is developed by Faithlife Corporation. As of October 29, 2019, Logos Bible Software is in its eighth version.

For those of you that haven’t checked out Faithlife yet, you are in for a surprise!  Faithlife is a resource that is designed to work with churches and individuals to equip them for ministry and to deepen their knowledge of the Scriptures.  It is a centralized site that encompasses various other platforms such as:  Logos, Faithlife TV, and Bible Screen.  With a free account, you have access to a wide variety of web based Bible resources including commentaries, dictionaries, theological books, Bible translations, etc.  I will warn you; however, that it may take some time to find your way around the platform, especially Logos, to unlock all of its free content.  But if you take the time to do so, I’m sure that you’ll find that it is well worth it.  Before long you will have a library of free books and reference material at your fingertips!

The second resource is another that you may be familiar with and it is the very popular Bible App, powered by YouVersion.  Of the app, the website exclaims “Tens of millions of people are using the Bible App™ to make God’s Word a part of their daily lives. Download the free app and access your bookmarks, notes, and reading plans from anywhere. Enjoy hundreds of versions, including audio, all on your mobile device.”

 

This app is really incredible!  In addition to a wide variety of Bible reading plans, you have access to daily devotionals, Bible audio versions, and over 1000 Bible translations.  Videos are available, as well.  And if you are interested in maintaining a Bible reading plan, the app will send you reminders and keep track of your progress.  You can even set up a community with other users to keep track of what they are doing.  There are daily verses that can be shared via memes, or you can even create your own to share across social media platforms.

If you haven’t checked out the Bible App, I’d like to encourage you to go on over and do so.  It can greatly aid you as you seek to deepen your knowledge of the God of the universe!

BONUS RESOURCE…Just for today, I’d like to offer a bonus resource (free of charge), and it comes from the Dallas Theological Seminary.  Did you know that they offer online Bible courses for free?  Well if you didn’t, you do now!  I’m currently enrolled in a six week course on Romans, and here is a bit of the email that I received at the start of my course:

“My name is Jacob Beck, and I’m here to help you get the most out of this course. If you have any questions, please reach out to me at any time.

This course is designed to last six weeks, but you can go at whatever pace works for you. 

While these courses are not accredited at Dallas Theological Seminary or any other institution, they are adapted from the same classroom teaching that DTS students enjoy.

Once you complete all six quizzes, a certificate link appears close to the quiz section. You can click the link to download your certificate.
You can share this course with as many people as you want. You can use this Facebook sharing link, or you can direct people to courses.dts.edu to register for free.

If there are any more questions I can answer for you, just reply to this email and I’ll respond as soon as possible. 

If you didn’t know about theses free resources before today, I’m happy to share them with you.  I trust that you’ll find them packed with value, and if so, why not drop a comment to let me know?

Why I Don’t Take My Study Bible to Church

Tags

Bible, Bible Study, Church, Meaning, Message, Pastor, sermon

“Seriously?”  You may be wondering .  “Yes, seriously” is my response to you.  I choose not to take a study bible to church.  And while that may be puzzling to some, I feel that my reasoning is sound.  Furthermore, I find that I am able to retain far more of the sermon than I am if I take my study bible.  “How’s that?”  You may ask.  Well, read on and I’ll attempt to explain my reasons.

The first and most ridiculous reason I choose not to take a study bible to church is due to its size.  Wow!  Have you seen some of the sizes of those?!  Though one of my study bibles is a bit thinner than the other, it is also a hardback.  The one I consider to be my primary is about three feet thick and weighs nearly four hundred pounds!  Not really, a bit of exaggeration here (no, really).  There is a lot of thought that goes into producing a study bible that is that thick and heavy – many hours of notes, introductions, illustrations, word meanings, and maps.  Indeed, it is heavy with the prose of many biblical experts, and their insights are very helpful.  And though I love my study bibles and use them often, I just find them too big and clunky to use in church, unless I plan to literally use it as a weapon.  I am convinced, however; that this is not really how you are supposed to use the “sword of the Spirit.” ( Ephesians 6:17)

The main reason I choose not to take a study bible to church is the meat and potatoes of today’s post.  I prefer to listen to the whole sermon.  Yes.  That’s it.  I want to hear every point that our pastor is trying to convey, and I have found that I can’t do that if I am constantly following a trail of cross-referenced verses or biblical commentary.  My mind will not allow me to continue hearing the preacher speak while it also immerses itself in the thoughts of those previously mentioned “biblical experts.”  Trust me, I get it.  We should be eager to “ search the scriptures” and verify that what is being presented is biblical.  I do that.  It’s just that I do it in a way whereby I jot down notes until I get home, and THEN I refer to my study bible for additional meaning and clarification.  By doing this, I am more fully able to hear the pastor’s complete sermon and all of its applications.  I find that I do not spend precious moments (while he is preaching) flipping pages and chasing other thoughts.  That is of no benefit to me and it can be distracting to others.

In summary, I choose to use a bible that will allow me room to jot down thoughts or references in the margin.  Sometimes I use a note pad for this purpose, but whichever method I use, my mind is totally engaged in what the pastor is saying for the entirety of the sermon.  And then afterwards, I can spend additional time searching the scriptures and developing a fuller understanding.

How about you?  Does this logic resonate with you?  I’d love to hear your thoughts.

*Now the Berean Jews were of more noble character than those in Thessalonica, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true. – Acts 17:11 NIV

^*12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. ¹³ Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand. ¹⁴ Stand firm then, with the belt of truth buckled around your waist, with the breastplate of righteousness in place, ¹⁵ and with your feet fitted with the readiness that comes from the gospel of peace. ¹⁶ In addition to all this, take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming arrows of the evil one. ¹⁷ Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.¹⁸ And pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests. With this in mind, be alert and always keep on praying for all the Lord’s people. ¹⁹ Pray also for me, that whenever I speak, words may be given me so that I will fearlessly make known the mystery of the gospel, ²⁰ for which I am an ambassador in chains. Pray that I may declare it fearlessly, as I should. – Ephesians 6:12-20 NIV

A Few Thoughts…

Tags

Bible Study, Blogging, Church, Community Group, Disciples of Christ, encouragement, God, Making Disciples, No Sweat Discipleship, waterfalls

My writing time has been few and far between as of late.  That doesn’t mean that I don’t have things to write about, rather, I think it has more to do with what I’m doing with my time, other than writing.

As recent transplants to North Georgia, my wife and I both have full time jobs.  When we aren’t working, we’re taking time out to visit various locations throughout this area that we dearly love.  It’s beautiful and breathtaking.  From the rolling hills filled with wildlife and waterfalls to the rivers, streams, and Lake Lanier, we simply feel that God has given us one of the desires of our heart to move here.  And simply put, we’re taking advantage of every moment.

One of our greatest achievements thus far has been to get involved with a local church.  Not only is it a church that we feel wholeheartedly that God led us to, but it is a dynamic church that is “on fire” for the Lord, especially when it comes to making disciples.  In fact, our church’s mission statement is to “make disciples everywhere.”  This is not something that is tossed about flippantly, either, but it is something that is taught from the pulpit, community groups, and regularly communicated by its members.  There is even a small booklet that we use called “No Sweat Discipleship” that not only helps you be a disciple, but it can be used to teach others how to be a disciple and to disciple others.  For more information, click here:  No Sweat Discipleship

Additionally, we have joined a community group within our church, and it has allowed us to make new friends and be involved in the “making disciples” process.  This is similar to a Sunday School class, but we also meet regularly outside of the church.  The women of the group meet together, as do the men.  Both groups are currently using the No Sweat Discipleship model to learn and grow in the things of the Lord.

As I previously stated, though my time hasn’t been spent as much writing here at the Straight, Narrow, and Sometimes Crooked, it doesn’t necessarily mean that I don’t have as much to say, I guess I’ve started directing those efforts to other places.  That doesn’t mean that I don’t intend to continue posting here, because I do.  It just means that I feel that the Lord is leading me to expand my boundaries.  One way is through encouragement texts to the men in my community groups.  And if not for the encouragement of my wife, I probably wouldn’t be sharing one of those texts here, but hoping that you may find encouragement too, here it is:

“Men, last week I sent our a reminder for us to pay attention to what we let our mind dwell on so that we may glorify God even with our thoughts and not be compelled to sin.  This week’s thought centers around us keeping a proper perspective that we are “not home yet.”  Philippians 3:20 reminds us that “Our citizenship is in heaven, and from it we await a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ, who will transform our lowly body to be like his glorious body, by the power that enable him even to subject all things to himself.”  Furthermore, the Psalmist cries out “I am a sojourner on the earth; hide not your commandments from me.”  Psalm 119:19

It is imperative that we not lose sight of the big picture, as we live, love, and share.  Just as Abraham lived in the “land of promise, as in a foreign land, living in tents with Isaac and Jacob” and “was looking forward to the city that has foundations, whose designer and builder is God”, we too should be encouraged to know that all of those difficult trials and persecutions will culminate in a glorious homecoming in a place that our Savior has prepared for us!  Keep the faith!”

Thanks for stopping by the site, and if you’d like, please feel free to drop a comment!