Bible Gateway Blog

Most Recent Blog Posts

June 8, 2021

The Thompson® Chain-Reference® Bible: Where It Came From, How to Use It, and Where It’s Going

By the Zondervan Bible Group

The Thompson® Chain-Reference® Bible (Zondervan, 2021) has been trusted and used for more than five generations. It’s a study and reference work that’s unparalleled in its ability to enrich personal devotions, topical study, and sermon preparation.

Why has it been so popular since its release in 1908? Because this unique reference Bible enables you to follow Scripture’s teachings on thousands of topics throughout the entire Bible. Its Chain-Reference System is an ideal tool for comprehensive topical study, with over 100,000 references that are listed in the Bible’s margins covering over 8,000 topics that span the entire Bible.

Continue reading →

June 7, 2021

What Are the Gospels?

Jonathan Petersen

The New Testament of the Bible begins with four individually authored books about the life of Jesus:

[Read the Bible Gateway Blog post, The Bible Table of Contents]

While they’re not straight biographies as such—since they omit such information as character development, background facts, and chronology—they’re four accounts of the one gospel: the person of Jesus Christ. Each of the writings are set in first-century Palestine during the Roman occupation.

Continue reading →

June 6, 2021

Bible News Roundup – Week of June 6, 2021

Jonathan Petersen

Read this week’s Bible Gateway Weekly Brief newsletter
⇨ Bible Gateway Weekly Brief
⇨ Newsletter signup
▼
Support Bible Gateway—Find the Resources You Need At:
⇨ FaithGateway Store
⇨ Christianbook.com
Order Resources in Bulk At:
⇨ ChurchSource
▼

Illinois School Reverses Decision to Ban 2nd Grade Girl From Bringing Her Bible to School
⇨ CBN News
▼

Author Josh McDowell Speaks of Bible’s Truth to Tabernacle Audience
⇨ OCNJDaily
⇨ Read the Bible Gateway Blog post, Evidence That Demands A Verdict Redux: An Interview with Josh McDowell and Sean McDowell
▼

Continue reading →

June 3, 2021

D-Day June 6, 1944: The Bible and Prayer of WWII

Jonathan Petersen

During World War II, troops were given a pocket Bible in which was included a letter from US President Franklin Roosevelt encouraging them to read it. The letter reads:

To the Armed Forces:

As Commander-in-Chief, I take pleasure in commending the reading of the Bible to all who serve in the armed forces of the United States. Throughout the centuries men of many faiths and diverse origins have found in the Sacred Book words of wisdom, counsel and inspiration. It is a fountain of strength and now, as always, an aid in attaining the highest aspirations of the human soul.

Very sincerely yours,
Franklin D. Roosevelt.

Continue reading →

June 2, 2021

USA Cities Most Committed to Weekly Bible-Reading

Jonathan Petersen

According to Barna Group data collected between 2005 and 2021, about three in 10 USA adults reads the Bible at least once a week.

[Read the Bible Gateway Blog post, 2016: What Are America’s Most Bible-Minded Cities?]

City data taken from Barna’s annual tracking research reveals the top-ranked city for Bible-reading—Monroe, Louisiana—roughly doubles the national percentage of participation, with 64% of the city’s residents saying they read the Bible at least weekly. Other markets that report regular Bible-reading are in close proximity.

[Read the Bible Gateway Blog post, More Americans Turning to the Bible Than in Previous Years and Reporting a More Frequent Reading Habit]

Map of USA Cities Most Committed to Weekly Bible-Reading

Continue reading →

June 2, 2021

How to Live the Bible — Treasured Possession

Mel Lawrenz

This is the one-hundred-fifty-ninth lesson in author and pastor Mel Lawrenz’ How to Live the Bible series. If you know someone or a group who would like to follow along on this journey through Scripture, they can get more info and sign up to receive these essays via email here.

Now if you obey me fully and keep my covenant, then out of all nations you will be my treasured possession. Although the whole earth is mine, you will be for me a kingdom of priests and a holy nation.” These are the words you are to speak to the Israelites. Exodus 19:5-6

Image of Bible pages bent in the shape of a heart with a sunset behind them

Continue reading →

June 1, 2021

What Does It Mean to Abide?

Guest Post

By Jodie Berndt

When I read John’s Gospel and got to chapter 15, I didn’t really think it was intended for me.

I mean, I know that all of God’s Word was written for all of his people, but this particular passage—one where Jesus tells us 11 times in only ten verses to “remain” in him—just seemed so passive. Like it had been written for people who had time to be still—people with fewer children and less laundry than me. People who were content to sit and wait for their name to be called, like you do at the DMV.

DMV people, I thought, would appreciate John 15.

Continue reading →

June 1, 2021

A Bible and Bible Study to Help in Addiction Recovery: An Interview with John Raymond

Jonathan Petersen

John Raymond Research indicates more than 200 million people the world over intractably misuse alcohol, drugs, gambling, tobacco, and other activities despite the ruinous consequences they cause personally and for the people surrounding them.

Bible Gateway interviewed John Raymond, vice president and publisher for HarperChristian Resources, about the NIV Celebrate Recovery Study Bible (Zondervan, 2021) and the Celebrate Recovery Curriculum Kit (Zondervan, 2021).

What is Celebrate Recovery and how does it differ from other similar programs?

John Raymond: Celebrate Recovery is a program for implementing a Christ-centered recovery ministry in the church. There’s a way the church can help the wounded move beyond their hurts, habits, and hang-ups to experience the forgiveness of Christ. Celebrate Recovery helps the church fulfill its role as Christ’s healing agent. Since 1991, over 5 million people have participated in the Celebrate Recovery programs offered at more than 35,000 churches, prisons, and rescue missions in 21 different languages.

Continue reading →

May 30, 2021

Bible News Roundup – Week of May 30, 2021

Jonathan Petersen

USA Cities Most Committed to Weekly Bible-Reading
⇨ Bible Gateway Blog
⇨ Read the Bible Gateway Blog post, Latest Bible-Related Research
▼

‘Fake Christianity’ Is Growing in the USA
⇨ Eternity
⇨ Read the Bible Gateway Blog post, Extremely Low Percentage of Americans Hold Biblical Worldview: An Interview with George Barna
▼

Continue reading →

May 27, 2021

Trinity Sunday: Considering One of Christianity’s Greatest Mysteries

Jonathan Petersen

Trinity Sunday is the day set aside to reflect on one of Christianity’s most interesting and difficult-to-understand doctrines: the Trinity. The doctrine of the Trinity posits that God is one God who is also three persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

Unlike other tenets of the Christian faith, the doctrine of the Trinity is never concisely explained in one place in Scripture (the word “Trinity” does not appear in the Bible). And it’s certainly a difficult concept to grasp logically. But Christians believe that it is the clear teaching of the Bible, and that the three persons who comprise the Trinity fill distinct but essential roles in God’s relationship with humanity and creation.

[See books about the Trinity in the Bible Gateway Store]

Nonetheless, Christians have long struggled to understand the nature of God’s three-part nature without inadvertently drifting into any of many heresies that misrepresent the Trinity. This video humorously illustrates how quickly you can get into theological trouble when you try to explain the Trinity:

Continue reading →

Bible Gateway Blog

Most Recent Blog Posts

The Thompson® Chain-Reference® Bible: Where It Came From, How to Use It, and Where It’s Going

What Are the Gospels?

Bible News Roundup – Week of June 6, 2021

D-Day June 6, 1944: The Bible and Prayer of WWII

USA Cities Most Committed to Weekly Bible-Reading

How to Live the Bible — Treasured Possession

What Does It Mean to Abide?

A Bible and Bible Study to Help in Addiction Recovery: An Interview with John Raymond

Bible News Roundup – Week of May 30, 2021

Trinity Sunday: Considering One of Christianity’s Greatest Mysteries

Search the Blog

Search the Bible

Facebook

Polls

Topics

About Us