Our History

Five women ask Miss Johnson to teach them Colossians. She insists that she will not “spoon-feed” them.

As interest in learning from Miss Johnson grows, Bible Study Fellowship is officially launched. BSF holds its first board meeting at Miss Johnson’s home in Oakland, California. The BSF study method is expanded to include groups of men.

A class begins in Bloomington, Indiana—the first class outside of California.

BSF purchases its first headquarters in Oakland, California. There are 13 total classes in operation, including Indiana and Arkansas.

The Children's Program begins.

BSF has 23 classes in operation, with 3,000 total members.

Thirty-five classes are in operation in five states.

Forty-eight classes are in operation in eight states. Dr. Robert Stevens is hired to head up men’s studies.

The ministry purchases a new headquarters in Oakland, California. More than 100 classes are in operation, with 20,000 members.

BSF begins in Australia. There are 110 BSF classes in operation.

BSF expands to Liverpool, England. There are 131 classes in operation, with 30,000 members.

The first class in Canada is held. BSF holds its first Young Adult Class.

There are classes in 40 states, including Hawaii.

The Board decides to move BSF headquarters to San Antonio, Texas. There are 50,000 class members in 280 classes.

Rosemary Jensen begins as BSF’s second Executive Director. The ministry gets its first computer.

The first Summer Institute is held to train Teaching Leaders. At this point there are 316 classes worldwide.

There are 350 classes in operation around the world.

BSF expands to New Zealand. Four Teaching Leader Institutes are held. There are 385 classes in operation, with 77,222 adult members and 12,566 children.

There are 449 classes and 13,808 children in the Children’s Program. Rosemary Jensen visits Africa to expand BSF. Audrey Wetherell Johnson passes away; her BSF legacy continues to impact thousands worldwide.

BSF holds its first classes in Africa, Asia, and continental Europe. There are 548 classes and 25,181 children in the Children’s Program.

For the first time, the same BSF study is used in classes worldwide. There are 596 classes meeting in 12 countries, with 25,608 children in the Children’s Program.

BSF holds its first Leaders Retreat in Africa. There are 650 classes in operation, with more than 100,000 members.

There are 720 classes in operation.

Bible Study Fellowship becomes BSF International. A Hertzler Press is installed at the headquarters in San Antonio. There are 768 classes in operation with 118,210 members.

There are 825 classes meeting in 21 countries.

BSF has expanded to 857 classes, with 122,094 members.

BSF begins in South America. There are 866 classes in operation, with 134,362 members.

BSF launches a new study: The Life of Moses. There are 882 classes in operation.

BSF begins in India. There are 885 classes in operation.

The School Program begins. There are 903 classes in operation.

BSF launches a new study: The Acts of the Apostles. There are 914 classes in operation.

There are 945 classes, with 194,029 members, 57,853 children, and 20,000 students in the School Program.

BSF launches a new study: Romans. A Romans Institute is held for all Teaching Leaders.

Jean Nystrand begins as BSF’s third Executive Director. The ministry begins classes for expatriates in Shanghai, China. 971 classes are in operation, with 218,428 adult members and 64,565 children.

Classes for expatriates begin in Beijing.

A demonstration class begins for Chinese nationals in Beijing.

More than 1,000 classes meet in more than 30 countries, with 200,000 members and 60,000 volunteers.

Susie Rowan begins as BSF’s fourth Executive Director. BSF expands to Malawi and Ethiopia.

BSF launches a new study: Isaiah.

BSF materials are translated into Chinese for the first time. There are 235,000 members and 53,000 children.

BSF launches a new study: Revelation. All Teaching Leaders and Area Personnel attend the Revelation Institute.

BSF pilots the first Satellite Discussion Groups. There are 395,000 members and 78,000 children.

BSF Online is launched, allowing people around the world to study God’s Word with others regardless of where they live.

BSF launches a new study: People of the Promised Land–Part 1. MyBSF launches, making lessons available online. 

There are 1,256 classes in 38 countries, with 383,000 members and 75,000 children.

The WordGo app is launched as a way for people to study BSF content on their own or in organic groups.

BSF in-person classes are temporarily shut down due to COVID-19, but BSF classes continue to meet online. 350,000 adults and 51,000 children participate in BSF. 

The BSF app is launched and downloaded by 169,000 people.

Hollie Roberts begins as BSF’s fifth Executive Director.

There are over 430,000 adults involved in BSF classes and 72,600 users on the WordGo app.

73,000 adults meet in BSF satellite groups and nearly 25,000 participate in online groups.

BSF launches a new study: People of the Promise: Kingdom Divided.

Over 50,000 trained leaders volunteer with BSF.

BSF experiences a 29% growth in multilingual discussion groups. 58,700 kids and students participate in BSF around the world.  WordGo reaches over 200,000 downloads.