8 Free Online Bible Courses With Certificate of Completion

The Bible is the most influential text ever written. It is a fascinating book full of wisdom, and everyone should study it, even those who don’t identify as Christian. However, being a Christian would make your studies much more interesting to you. After all, you’re studying the text that birthed it all.

Why pick an online course to study something like the Bible? Online courses are great because they respect your time. You don’t have to physically attend classes, and you don’t have set hours for learning.

Maybe you have a full-time job, or maybe you can’t stay away from your home because you are taking care of a loved one. Other people simply don’t like traveling to and from their university that often, since it includes a lot of dead time.

Online courses fix all of these issues. Just connect to the course’s website and start watching the lectures remotely. You can freely pause and rewind videos, in case you miss important information.

Multiple colleges offer the possibility of following online bible courses for free. Many of these colleges will also release a certificate as proof of your attendance, although some will charge you for your transcripts.

Naturally, the courses aren’t just about learning what’s written in the Bible. They offer you the tools you need to read and fully understand the Scripture. You’ll gain a greater understanding about the philosophy of religion, and what makes religion so important for humans as a species.

Keep reading to find a list of free online bible courses with certificate of completion.

What Can You Do With a Bible Course Certificate?

If all you have is a bible course certificate, not much in the official sense. It’s not like a full degree that will open up many employment doors that were previously closed. However, you’ll gain valuable skills that are easily transferable to many jobs.

For example, studying the Bible requires a lot of writing and reading, so you’ll be able to succeed as a writer/editor if you put in the work to excel at your craft.

Private Christian schools don’t particularly care about typical degrees. They might allow you to teach classes even with just a couple of courses under your belt, provided you are a good fit for their needs.

But studying the Bible isn’t about advantages in the physical world. Or at least, it shouldn’t be. Studying the Bible is going to give you a much better outlook on the spiritual world, and strengthen your relationship with God.

Spiritual wealth is much better than its physical counterpart. Embarking on a journey to study the Bible will be extremely rewarding.

You will learn what created the western civilization as we know it, and how the Christian philosophy still influences our society after more than 2000 years.

How to Pick the Right Course

We considered many factors when compiling this list.

The Curriculum

Some institutes offer a comprehensive Bible education for free, while others only offer smaller courses. Which one to choose depends on what you want to do.

Smaller courses can be a great introduction to Bible studies. Perhaps you are just trying to understand the Bible and Christianity more, and you want to read the Bible by yourself.

Other people are actively looking to become a minister, or to further their education on religious topics. Comprehensive courses are better for them.

Certificate/Transcript Price

Yes, we know. The title includes “free online Bible courses”, but hear me out. Sometimes, you’ll have to spend some money to get your certificate.

Editor’s note: The courses themselves are all free, the money is only needed if you want your certificate/transcript. Not all courses require you to pay to get your course.

Accessibility

These free online Bible courses are specifically made for people who would like to know more about the Bible and Christianity in general. If you are planning to become a missionary or a ministry, the courses offer a solid foundation for further theological studies.

People who benefit the most from Bible courses are those with full time jobs or with limitations in regards of time and/or travel. Going to class takes time, and you must also be there at the right time.

All courses in this article are 100% online. You can follow them whenever you want, and however you please.

The 8 Best Free Online Bible Courses

There are tens of free online Bible courses. Some are more comprehensive than others. We gathered the best ones in this list.

1. Christian Leaders Institute’s Courses

This is by far the best online Bible course you can attend. It is entirely free, including your transcripts, provided you pass the preliminary class Christian Leader Basics (which is also free).

Whether you are looking to brush up your theological knowledge, or you are looking to become a minister of faith, this course is for you. Completing it will net you training to become a certified minister. How cool is that?

The college is accredited, so you know you are in good hands. It offers a real curriculum with high-quality education, all for free.

It is a great choice if you are an active Christian, or a minister, be it volunteer, part-time, or full-time. There is a course for everyone. Let’s say you wanted to become a Christian Wedding Officiant. There is a course with a certificate for you.

The Christian Leaders Institute offers over 100 free courses dedicated to learning more about God and Christianity.

Take some time to review the amazing offer by the institute, and then enroll into the courses that interest you the most. There are no time limits, and the courses are free. Figure out what interests you the most and then dive in.

2. International Seminary for Distance Education’s courses

ISDET is an institute that promotes a very low-cost online education for everyone. You only pay a small registration fee when you enroll, and then you’re done.

All you need to enroll in this course is to have enough schooling to be eligible to apply to any other undergraduate program. But not even that is necessary, as the school might make an exception for you if you are older than 21.

The three bachelor programs available to students are:

• BTh (Bachelor of Bible Theology)
• BMin (Bachelor of Christian Ministry)
• BRE (Bachelor of Biblical Religious Education)

The school supplies all materials for free, and there is no tuition. You will pay a small registration fee, and then another small fee when you graduate for the printing and shipping of the certificates. That’s it.

3. World Bible School’s Courses

World Bible School is an institute that offers a plethora of courses around Christianity, including of course the Bible.

In fact, the Bible has the most comprehensive course with 10 different topics in it, discussing the Scripture, the Way of Faith, the Good News, and everything you need to read and understanding the sacred text yourself.

Other courses offered by the institute include courses about the Prophets, knowing Jesus, Life, and Family. All topics of great interest for someone looking to get an education in Christianity.

All courses offered by the World Bible School are entirely free, certificate included.

You can easily attend web-based lessons, or if you prefer you can get printed booklets via postal mail. The courses are available in four different languages: English, French, Spanish, and Portuguese.

WorldBibleSchool’s biggest downside is not being an accredited school. You can’t earn a diploma or a degree. The institute’s mission is to teach people the ways of God for free, it’s not in the business of typical education.

You still get a certificate that proves you completed the coursework, but don’t assume people will take it seriously at face value, especially if they don’t know about WorldBibleSchool.

4. Harvard’s Course on Religious Literacy

This is a great introductory course on religion. It’s not focused on Christianity or the Bible, but if you are looking to expand your knowledge on the topic of religion, it’s a great first step.

What I like about this course is its teaching about pros and cons of learning about religions through their scriptures, which is extremely relevant for reading and interpreting the Bible.

This is a great course for people who feel like they don’t really understand religion and want to know more about the topic without committing to a specific one.

The course itself is free to audit, but if you want the certificate of completion, you’ll have to pay $99. However, the certificate itself is useless in this case, since you are only here to learn more about religions, what they mean, and how they shaped our history.

5. Bold Christian University’s Degree Programs

Bold Christian University is a weird case. It calls itself a university and offers degree programs, but it’s not an accredited school. I don’t mind, as I don’t think a government should have the power of telling religious institutes what to do, but it’s important to know this fact.

The institute offers three different degree programs:

• Bachelor of Christian Evangelism
• Master of Christian Evangelism
• Doctor of Christian Evangelism

You’ll learn everything about Christianity: Literature, Sociology, Evangelism, and many other topics. If you are looking for a degree program that is entirely free and that gives you a comprehensive understanding of Christianity and its history, look no further. Bold Christian University has got you covered.

As the name suggests, it is a bold university. You sure won’t be missing that. You can tell a lot of passion and religious fervor went into making the website and all the materials. I suggest attending this if you’re already convinced of your path towards Christendom. Otherwise, look for other more neutral programs.

6. Trinity International Theological Seminary

The Trinity International Theological Seminary offers a whopping 13 courses about the Bible. These courses are designed for everyone, from the new Christians to the seasoned Bible group study leaders.

Here are the courses’ topics:

• Jesus Christ
• Salvation
• God
• Man
• Prayer
• The Church
• Evangelism
• The Holy Spirit
• Judgment
• Christ’s Second Coming
• Prophets and Prophecies
• Sin from a Biblical Perspective
• God’s Recipe for a Happy Home

You can request a certificate of achievement for any of these courses by sending one-page essays summarizing your learnings for each course.

If you earn six certificates of achievement, you’ll be awarded with a Certificate in Biblical Studies. If you earn twelve certificates, you will earn the Seminary’s Diploma in Biblical Studies.

Editor’s note: the courses are entirely free, but each certificate of achievement will cost you $20. So, if you want to get the Seminary’s Diploma in Biblical Studies you have to pay $240 for the twelve certificates.

7. Open Yale Courses in Religious Studies

Yale is an Ivy League school that offers many online courses to the public completely free. I know they don’t exactly fit this list, since they don’t offer a certificate upon completion, but they are offered by such a high-quality university that not including them felt wrong.

There are 2 courses available through the Open Yale Courses’ platform:

• Introduction to the Old Testament (Hebrew bible)
• Introduction to the New Testament history and literature

Even if you are looking for a course that comes with a certificate, I suggest looking at these two courses offered by Yale. They are a great introduction to religious studies, and they will make your study path much easier in the future.

⚠Warning: these courses don’t come with any certificate. They are purely available to learn more about the Bible itself.

8. Dallas Theological Seminary’s Courses

Dallas’ University offers many free online Bible courses, including:

• Evangelism
• Exodus
• Thessalonians
• Names and Attributes of God
• Corinthians
• James
• Daniel

And many more. You can find all courses in the linked page. If you’re looking for a course that explains the Scripture in depth, you’ll be hard-pressed to find one better than this.

Completing these courses will take a long time. Many of these courses last several weeks, and there are 20 of them. Finishing the seminar will turn you into a Bible expert, but don’t expect it to be easy.

Editor’s note: the website doesn’t mention whether you get a certificate when you complete a course.

Conclusion

There you have it, a list of the best online Bible courses. Making the list was hard. There is so much to talk about in religion, and it’s a sensitive topic for many people. Plus, the Bible is a universe in itself, so it’s hard to find high-quality courses about it.

By attending any of the courses on this list, you’ll gain a much deeper understanding of religion, the Scripture, and how humans interact with religion.

You’ll be armed with the knowledge to read the Bible by yourself and make sense of it. You’ll even be able to spread the Good News to the people around you. Spiritual awakening is one of the most intense experiences you can have in life, and these Bible courses are a great first step towards it.

What are you waiting for? Enroll in one of the courses I mentioned in this article, and become a Bible expert to guide your friends / neighbors / community towards their spiritual awakening.

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