Customer Reviews

1, 2, & 3 John (Life Application Bible Studies (NLT))

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This is an excellent bible study. It has everything you need. It has the notes and maps and profile guides of the people in the Bible. It's very nice to be able to look at the maps and recognize where the events happened. I felt it was a very good way to learn more about your Bible.

This small booklet is an excellent size for carrying in a purse or bible bag. Plus the fact that the New Living Translation Bible chapters for 1-3John are included at the beginning of the booklet means that you don't need to carry around a bible as well. However, I found that it was totally unnecessary for the publisher to include the complete preamble to the bible version and the printing was so small it was very difficult to read, especially the notes. The 13 lessons were each divided into sections with questions pertaining upon Reflecting on your life, Reading the passage, Realizing the principle, Responding to the message and Resolving to take action on the principle as well as two more advanced questions at the end. Although the intent was great, I found the questions very basic and rather repetitive. This would be a great beginners' study but not for someone more familiar with bible studies.

Tyndale House Publishers sent me a copy of this study to review. There was no requirement as to the nature of my review.

It's a little hard to review since it's not an actual book...but it does look like it could come in very handy. I'll be honest, I did not read through the entire thing, but I think a cursory skim gets the job done.

The benefits:

It's small. This mean's it is super easy to carry around. If you wish to study one book of the Bible, these little guys are the way to go.

It includes the full text of the Scriptures, plus WAY more background and notes than you get in your average study Bible.

It also includes 12 unique Bible study layouts for you to use in a small group setting (or personal use, should that be your cup of tea).

Again, this book (booklet, really) is only 70 pages and super thin. Sure beats the heck out of carrying around a massive study Bible with you everywhere you go. I will most definitely consider purchasing this type of item if and when I am ever needing some extra research on one book of the Bible. Way to go Tyndale!

This study is really neat in what all it has with it. The book is in two parts: the text used with all kinds of study notes and the study itself.

I loved having the text, notes and study guide all in one place. There have been studies I've done in the past that used a different bible translation than the one I use all the time. Having the translation the study used right at my fingertips was nice. I also liked the fact that I didn't have to carry a separate study bible with me when I wanted to work in it. It was so nice grabbing one small book instead of two (one being my very thick study bible) to work on in the school car line. The questions were thought provoking and helped me understand the text and what John was trying to convey to his readers. When you were told to read a certain portion of scripture that covered the next set of questions, it also showed you what notes to read and refer to when they were used. The personal questions showed me how my life has often gotten off track and my focus off God and His love for others. It also gave me inspiration to make necessary changed to get my life and focus back where it should be: on God and His purposes.

There were a few downsides that I encountered with this study. When I first started using it, the portion with the scripture was a little confusing. It is set up like a study bible, with the notes for a particular verse at the bottom of the page and other references at the beginning to the book. Quite often, there were more notes and references on the page than scripture. But, after using it a couple of times, I was able to use it with ease and find my place. Also, the print was smaller than I am used to in a bible study book. Sometimes I had to read the section I was working on a couple of times because I kept losing my place. The book is only 75 pages total. The study would still be awesome if they made the script a little bigger and added a few pages to compensate.

This book was provided by Tyndale House Publishers for review. The thoughts here are all my own and I was not compensated for them or asked to provide a positive review.

I've been itching to start a deep study lately so when Tyndale offered me the chance to review a Life Application Bible Study, I jumped on it. Life Application -- I love that title, as I don't want to simply read the Word and let it slip away. So I had lofty thoughts of doing the study as a family or maybe just as a couple to try it out.

Then I opened it up. "A Note to Readers" in tinier print than this blog with literally no spacing between sentences took my three times to not read. In other words, I tried and couldn't succeed-- it was that wordy, and, in essence, defending and documenting the history of the New Living Translation. What followed was the introduction about translation philosophy and methodology and the team... again in the same tiny print that makes newspapers and grocery receipts look like large print reading.

It's not until 15 pages into it that you get to the actual scripture and even then the commentary takes up more of the page than the verses and it's harder to read than my study bible. And I took Theology in college and read a 700 page textbook so I'm no stranger to commentary. This is simply not for the average person hungering to learn more. This is for someone who enjoys to immerse themselves in academic study.

Finally the questions. They start off very slow and very impersonal. A lot of what do some people, what to do some Christians, type of questions. If you're patient enough it gets to some good personal questions but I doubt many are going to get that far. If you choose this book for a small group, just know that most of your attendees are not going to be reading any of the pages prior to the questions. And I don't blame them. But if you want to have a goal of what to read on your own and then use the questions for discussion, then it's not half bad. 2.5 book lights out of 5.

This book is one of a series of studies available from Tyndale House Publishers that includes the full text of the book to be studied from the New Living Translation of the Life Application Bible. When I received this study guide the first thing I noticed was the very attractive presentation. You will want to pick it up and thumb through it. Inside, the pages have enough room to record your responses without having to resort to abbreviations or microprint. I like that. It also means the responses are likely to require more than one word.
The first few pages contain an explanation of how the translators worked through the some common language issues to arrive at the NLB translation. Interesting reading but not necessary for the study itself. The text of John 1, 2 & 3 and notes from the Life Application Bible follow. I think it is reprinted directly from the NLT Life Application Bible so that you get to test read that version while doing your study. I didn't find any questions that rely on this particular version like I have in some other studies. That is very thoughtful for the class member that prefers another Bible version will still find that this study available for them.
To the study itself now. I have not done the entire study so this will be based on a preliminary impression. As with most studies this one starts with something easy and familiar but pertinent to the content to allow the student to wade a little deeper into the material. The whole point of this study is to do more than study the content. It is application. Learn it and live it might be the short version of the authors' purpose.
Conversation is stimulated by the way the questions are asked. How, when, why, what, or describe start nearly every line. Can't get away with those "yep" or "nope" responses any more. Another nice thing is the student is encouraged to think more deeply, more thoroughly so the learning is more apt to become action. For students or leaders looking for more depth and more interaction during their meeting times, this study may be what you are looking for. Give it a try.
Tyndale House Publishers has provided me with a complimentary copy of this book in exchange for this review.

The Life Application Bible Study for John 1, 2, 3 is a fantastic way to delve into the study of the books of John. The study starts off by giving an introduction to the New Living Translation of the Bible and describing how this translation came about and the details of what this translation offers to the reader. It then gives short sections on why the the Life Application Bible Study is unique, how application of the Bible is defined, and then an overview of the features of this study.

Each of the three books of John are then broken down to include:
*A book Introdution
*Timeline-includes historical setting, key events, and the dates they occurred
*Vital Statistics-a list of facts that the reader needs to know that includes info such as the purpose for this book, the author, key people in the book, and key verses.
*Overview-a summary of the book with general lessons and applications that can be learned from the book as a whole.
*Blueprint-an outline of the book.
*Megathemes-a section that gives the major themes of the book, explains their significance, and tells why they are relevant in today's world.
*Map-a map to give key places in the book. A map is not always included.

The study includes the full text of the Bible from the New Living Translation and each verse has its own explanation. I thoroughly enjoyed the exlanations as it greatly aided the understanding of what you were reading and how it applies to life. There are cross references listed in the explanations as well as in the margins of the actual Bible text. After each book has been given their own section to include all of this, there is a study question section. This section begins with tips on how to use the study question section and then contains 13 lessons for you to work on. The questions are in sets in this section and labeled under categories to include: Reflect on your life, Read the passage, Realize the principle, Respond to the message, and Resolve to take action. The questions let you reflect on the text that you read and how it applies to your life, yet there are questions that really make you think about yourself and your faith and figure out if you are following God's word and how to improve on those things you need to work on.

I received a free copy of this book from Tyndale Publishers to read and post an honest review. I really enjoyed this Bible study and would like to have one for each book of the Bible. It is an in-depth study as it goes through each verse of a book and contains detailed information to make sure you get the most out of your Bible study. I had never used a New Living Translation before and enjoyed this version.