Falling in Love with the Bible
Hello Friends,
I have had several people contact me regarding my challenge in last week’s sermon to “fall in love with the Bible.” So I wanted to share some resources with you that I trust. There are all kinds of crazy “bible experts” out there that are a mixed bag of scholarship and credentials. I encourage you to always read about the author of any resource and make sure that they have actual accredited degrees from seminaries. Lots of people claim “Bible college” that are not actual real places of accredited scholarship but people who love the Bible and study it. If they use the term “Rev” then they have at least a Masters degree in seminary just like Pastor Seungrok and I do. If they are a “Rev. Dr” then they have completed their doctorate work at a seminary as well. I hope this helps you choose new resources but I encourage you to use the things that we have in the church that do not have to be purchased. The UMW have a wonderful library of resources that can be checked out and returned in the Adult wing of the church.
https://bibleproject.com is a free resource with devotions and videos teaching about the themes and books of the Bible. I have used these videos for both youth and adults. They also provide some simple curriculum to be used by yourself or your families. I make an annual donation to this website because I use it so often.
Harper Collins Study Bible and Bible Commentary. These were the first two books that I had to purchase for seminary and I still use them almost every week. They also have a Bible Dictionary that we have purchased for use in the building. It is another great resource.
I also love a good Bible parallel. It shows the four gospels lined up by story together so you can see the differences or similarities. One of my heaviest Bibles is also a parallel and I enjoy looking at the different translations for an overall feel for the scriptures.
www.workingpreacher.com is a podcast that I listen to for lectionary Bible passages. It comes out of Luther Seminary and has Bible scholars discussing the verses for each Sunday. Sometimes I preach from the lectionary and sometimes in a series. They also have scholarship on Bible verses on their website and you can read up to four different publications for every Bible passage in the lectionary. It is a wonderful way to gain knowledge without having to purchase a lot of books.
Anything that comes from Abingdon Press is a United Methodist publication. They have a wonderful commentary series called The New Interpreter’s Bible and we have a couple of sets of these books at the church. Don’t buy this! It is huge and cumbersome. Just borrow one from the church.
Different publishing houses tend to produce content that aligns with different denominations. Zondervan is the Baptist publishing house. Westminister John Knox press is Presbyterian. Fortress is Lutheran. This is important for you to know when choosing any resource for Bible study.
Sorry this is so long but I loved how excited so many of you were to challenge yourselves to really get to know your Bibles. Our Monday night Bible study is a great way to start. Richard Perry coordinates this class. And of course, I encourage you to study in a group next time we begin Disciple Bible study.
Happy learning!
