Who Uses the Grace Commentary? And Why?

I want to thank all of you who participated in the first ever Grace Commentary Readers’ Survey. Based on your feedback, I have learned that the typical Grace Commentary reader is 50+ years old, English-speaking, and actively preaching and teaching the Bible.

Most readers access the Grace Commentary via a desktop (46%) but many also rely on phones (37%).

We already know that the Grace Commentary is widely read all over the world, so in the survey we asked respondents were asked to provide a sentence explaining why they use the Grace Commentary. The word cloud above shows the words that appeared most frequently in their answers, but here is a typical response:

The Grace Commentary helps me understand the Bible from a New Covenant perspective.

Many readers use the Grace Commentary “to get a grace perspective on Scripture” or “to get a clear and simple understanding of the Bible.” One reader said they used the Grace Commentary because “it’s all about how good God is and not about what an utter failure I am.” I like that one.

Several readers said they used the commentary to help them with lesson or sermon preparation.

I am a youth pastor, so I am using the Grace Commentary weekly to help me write my lessons, especially for ‘sticky’ verses where I am struggling to see grace.

That is really encouraging. The Grace Commentary is not just helping people, it’s helping leaders help other people. It is a tool for equipping the whole body of Christ.

Readers were also asked to offer suggestions for improving the Grace Commentary. The number one suggestion by a wide margin was “keep working on it” or “continue writing.” I will.

A few readers said, “I wish there was a printed version.” There is. The Grace Bible is the printed version of the Grace Commentary. The content is identical and new installments are being released regularly.

What do I take from the readers’ survey?

I learned that most of you find the Grace Commentary a highly useful tool, but you want more. I hear you. In my next update I will tell you about how we plan to beef up the commentary in the coming months.

In the meantime, if you have any suggestions on how to make the Grace Commentary more appealing to young leaders and people under the age of 40, I’d love to hear them. Let me know in the comments.

Thanks again for your input.

Paul

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