Internet Resources For Bible Study

In the last two entries we talked about Bible study computer programs and online Bible study sites that would aid us in studying the Bible. In this installment, I want to mention a few sites that can be found on the internet that are helpful in studying the Bible. These sites are not directly related to textual studies, but provide resources that can be used in studying the text or Biblical topics.

A great site that provides links to important, classic works of the brotherhood is from the International College of the Bible. They have a page called “Gospel Books” that provides links to these classic works. These books are in pdf format and can be downloaded free of charge. If a Christian had this library, he would have at his fingertips over 560 works, many of which are classic volumes, though some are more contemporary. These works include volumes from Alexander Campbell, Benjamin Franklin, Whiteside, Boles and Stone and many more. Bookmark this site and come to it often. You will not be disappointed.

A good site for Bible history related material is found at Bible History Online (http://www.bible-history.com/). The site is constantly being updated and new material provided but the material there is already very good. It also provides links to other sites dealing with these same issues and provides many extensive quotes from Bible dictionaries on these historical issues. A site called Bible Geocoding claims to locate every identifiable place mentioned in the Bible. It claims to have 21,768 photos of 1183 different places. It uses Flckr images so not all of these photos would be relevant, but with a little effort, you can find useful images that will aid you in your study.

BiblePlaces.com is also a good sight for high quality images of the Bible lands. This site provides limited free images, but if you want the higher quality images, and many more of them, then you have to purchase their collection of discs of photos of the Bible lands. Still, some good images are available for free if you right click and save the image. Also, they provide links at the bottom of the page which lead to other web sites dealing with the same place.

Another good resource for Bible study is sound brotherhood publications. There are several brotherhood sites that provide access to back issues of good brotherhood periodicals. The first I will mention is the Bellview church of Christ site which provides back issues of the Defender and their local bulletin called The Beacon. The back issues can be searched by author and title. The site has recently been updated. These brotherhood publications have been providing sound and doctrinal articles for decades and these can be studied with great profit.

Another good publication that can be studied with profit and has been archived online is Fulton County Gospel News. The articles here reach back into the early 1950’s and provide a wealth of studies from the scriptures and much profitable reading. Yet another publication that is no longer printed is Banner of Truth. This publication was edited by Walter Pigg, who is now deceased, but his writings are helpful. Contending for the Faith, a journal dealing with brotherhood issues, has several years of back issues available online. Seek the Old Paths also has back issues available and it is searchable by word or phrase.

The Christian Courier, edited by Wayne Jackson, has good material also available online. Much of his work deals with studying the various doctrines of the Bible. Also, if you are looking for good articles on Christian evidences, the premier brotherhood site is Apologetics Press which sends out hard copies of its magazine, Reason and Revelation, but it also provides many of those articles on-line free of charge.

Let me also suggest that public forum sites like Facebook can be very useful in Bible study. There are church of Christ related groups dedicated to answering Bible questions and discussing Bible issues. Depending on whom the moderators are and who they allow to become members of the group, you can benefit from the discussion.  One must always be careful to let the Bible and reason be his guide, for many wild and fanciful views might be espoused by some. Always try the spirits!

Another useful site is Youtube. Many sound congregations post their sermons and services online. Some, like WVBS (World Video Bible School), provide whole courses online. Also, Youtube can be used to travel to the Bible lands. I recently watched a guided tour of Bible places entirely online from Youtube. Biblical culture can be explored here. For example, did you ever wonder what a shofar (horn) sounds like? You can listen to a shofar being blown at the western wall.  Listen to it reverberate through the hills.  Can you imagine what the inhabitants of Jericho would have felt when they heard the sound of the shofar being blown as the ark was carried around the city (Josh. 6:1-20)?

Another good sight is Google Books. Google Books provides access to a countless number of volumes. Those under copyright protection are limited as to how they can be viewed. However, those now in public domain, which include many important, older volumes can be found and downloaded for future use.

There are many other sites, but these are some of the ones I use.  NOTICE:  PLEASE UNDERSTAND THAT I DO NOT NECESSARILY AGREE WITH OR ENDORSE EVERYTHING ON THE SIGHTS MENTIONED.  I ONLY OFFER THEM AS A SOURCE FOR STUDY AND INFORMATION.

Eric L. Padgett