What is StudyLight.org?

Answer

StudyLight.org is an online resource established in 2001 to assist in Bible study, research, and preaching. According to the website, it offers “the most extensive collection of online Bible study tools and resources . . . . StudyLight provides more Bible commentaries, encyclopedias, dictionaries, lexicons, and original language tools than any other website on the internet!” (accessed 5/10/20).

StudyLight.org is not affiliated with any specific church group or denomination. The following is their statement of faith:

• “We believe the Bible to be the inspired, the only infallible authoritative Word of God.

• “We believe the Triune Godhead exists in One Eternal, Transcendent, Omnipotent, personal God, manifested in three Persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

• “The substitutionary and redemptive sacrifice of the Lord Jesus Christ for the sin of the world, through His literal physical death, burial, and bodily resurrection followed by His ascension into Heaven.

• “We believe in the regeneration by the Holy Spirit as absolutely essential for the salvation of lost and sinful men.

• “We believe in the present ministry of the Holy Spirit, by Whose indwelling the Christian is enabled to live the Godly life.

• “We believe in personal salvation from the eternal penalty of sin, provided exclusively by the grace of God on the basis of the atoning death and resurrection of the Lord Jesus Christ, to be received only through individual faith in His Person and redemptive work on the cross, and to be followed with a life characterized by the empowering grace of the Holy Spirit, giving evidence in loving service and adherence to the principles and practices of the Christian Faith as set forth in the New Testament.

• “We believe in the future personal, bodily return of the Lord Jesus Christ to the earth to judge and establish His eternal kingdom and to consummate.

He will accomplish all His purposes, including the works of creation and redemption, rewarding believers eternally and punishing the unsaved.

• “We believe in the spiritual unity of believers in Christ, demonstrated by our love for one another and how we conduct our ministry.”

This statement of faith is deeply evangelical, although some resources on the site are Roman Catholic. This is not a concern, as it can be beneficial for an evangelical to comprehend the Roman Catholic perspective on specific biblical passages.

StudyLight.org offers the following resources:

• Bible Study Tools (comprising searchable commentaries, mostly in the public domain; concordances; dictionaries; and encyclopedias)

• Original Language Tools (including interlinear versions and lexicons)

• Historical Writings (featuring ancient and modern sources)

• Pastoral Resources (providing illustrations and quotations for sermon use)

• Personal resources (offering devotionals and Bible reading plans)

StudyLight.org is a comprehensive multimedia site; it features audio programs from various teaching ministries and professionally narrated sermons from preachers of the past. These audios are also accessible as podcasts.

StudyLight.org provides numerous resources freely available online. One challenge with this site (and many similar online Bible study sites) is that many of the top evangelical commentaries and reference works from the last century are not accessible due to not being in the public domain—these must be purchased. While reading Spurgeon or Calvin is beneficial, there have been significant advancements in biblical scholarship recently. Our knowledge of biblical languages, customs, and archaeology has improved. Similarly, modern commentators and reference works will address current questions and challenges.

To the faith. (For example, a commentary on Romans 1 from the mid-seventeenth century will approach the topic of homosexuality differently than a contemporary commentary. Both can acknowledge the sinfulness of homosexuality, but the modern work will discuss the topic in a manner that engages with the current cultural context, which can benefit the present-day reader.) This does not imply that new is superior, and it would also be inaccurate to assume that older is superior.

StudyLight.org is a valuable resource; by utilizing it, one can acquire much wisdom from talented men of the past, explore the significance of words in Biblical Hebrew and Greek, and discover motivation for conveying God’s Word to contemporary audiences.