As I said before, I merely scratch the surface of what Accordance can do. I’m not good enough with the original languages to do some of the analysis that can be done, but I’m amazed by what I’ve seen others do.
I do make use of the Bible dictionaries at times. I’ve consulted some of the other works maybe a half dozen times: topical Bibles, old commentaries, etc. There are some nice articles in Spanish on the history of the canon, etc., that have been helpful for my radio program.
What I have used a number of times are the maps. I can get 2-D or 3-D maps, rotate the 3-D maps, measure distances and changes in elevation, and host of other things. I’ve found this helpful when studying the 7 churches of Revelation, for example, or for noting the elevation distance from Jerusalem to Jericho. (hence “a man went down from Jerusalem to Jericho” and all the statements about going up to Jerusalem) I could spend hours playing with that sort of thing.
I should point out a couple of things. One is that a growing number of these resources are available on the Internet. You don’t get the interconnectedness that you do by having them all in one program, but quality materials are there. The other is something that was discussed in the comments yesterday: these things are tools. Tools are used to help accomplish things. These tools help us do Bible study, prepare sermons, etc.; they don’t replace study itself. I don’t spend as long pulling books off the shelf or searching to find the information within those books. I do often include more resources than I might have otherwise. Surely that’s a good thing.
Hi Tim,
If you haven’t already seen, Accordance is now hosting free Webinars and has placed the entirety of the Training DVD online for free as well. The combination of both of these should really help.
Thanks Rick. I didn’t know that about the DVDs.
I was curious to know if anyone from Accordance monitored the blogosphere.
Grace and peace,
Tim
Tim,
I really appreciate your legwork on this. I think your reviews are very valuable.
Thanks again,
ME
Thanks Mark. I should have mentioned that I used the above image in a sermon on the Letter to Sardis. The program lets you rotate the 3-D view, so I was able to show Sardis’ placement high above the river valley. Don’t know if it helped anyone else, but I found it interesting when discussing the history of the city.
Hello Bro. Tim,
I just need to ask a quick question about the Lord’s Supper. I am studying with a friend who asked if we believe that when we take the Lord’s supper that we are drinking the blood of Jesus and when we take the bread if we are eating the body of Christ. I believe that when they participate of the Lord’s supper they believe the wine turns to blood and the bread into the body of Christ. Please let me know if you understand my question. Thank you.
blessings,
Patsy
Hi Patsy,
I don’t believe that there is a physical transformation of the elements. Note that in Matthew 26:28, Jesus says “This is my blood.” However, in the very next verse he calls it “fruit of the vine.” It was still fruit of the vine, not blood.
Does that help?
Grace and peace,
Tim