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Bible Study the Libronix Way

This is an amazing time we live in and one of the most amazing things about it is how the computer has made Bible study easy and efficient. Using Libronix Digital Library System you can do a Bible study based on a selected Bible passage, a selected word, or a selected topic.

To study a given Bible passage you just type in the passage in the Study Passage box. As you type in your scripture passage, i.e. John, a list of passages appears with topic names for the part you have typed in. As you type in more, i.e. John 3, the list changes. You can select an item in the list or complete what you are typing, i.e. John 3:16. When you click on GO!, your passage appears in the right hand column in the Bible version of your choice. In the left hand column, a Passage Guide appears with several references to other texts in your collection. It is simply amazing the choices you have to select from. There are several references from your Bible Commentaries, parallel passages from other Bible versions, and relevant sermons. The sermons list is a recent free resource that you get when you download the free updates to your Bible software. Important words in your passage are pointed out in addition to several hymns that are related to your study passage. As you can see, there are many possibilities for expanding your Bible study.

You can do a Bible study on a word. You just type in your word of interest in the Study Word box and click on GO!. The Bible Word Study window appears with a definition from a dictionary in your collection, key links to other texts, Hebrew root words, Greek root words, and concordance Bible references to every occurrence of your word. The Hebrew and Greek root words generate a star diagram with your word at the center and rays going out to the root words. You can easily study your word from English passages or jump to Hebrew and Greek references and meanings.

You can study what the Bible says on a given topic. Just type in your topic in the Study Topic box and click on GO!. You can get additional references to your topic by clicking on the “Search entire library for this topic….” The search results window gives you an extensive list of topics related to your search topic. You can easily do a Bible study on any of the listed topics.

To illustrate the power of this type of Bible study, I did a brief study on the familiar passage John 3:16. From reading the passage and noting the important words in this passage—only, begotten, loved, I understand that God loved the world so much that he sacrificed His only Son so that we can have eternal life with Him. The love that God is showing towards us is “the fatherly concern of God for humankind.” (MW Collegiate Dict. (11th Ed.)) The Greek word for this love is ἀγαπάω (agapaō). Luckily the Bible program pronounces this word for me. Topically, the “love of God” towards us is clearly explained in the verse: “But God ademonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.” - Romans 5:8.

My enthusiasm for these computerized Bible study tools is obviously high. Studying the Bible from passages, individual words, or various topics makes it speak to me in much more relevant ways. Praise be to God for His word in our lives.

Submitted by Gerald Gruhn