Course Offerings

Revelation, the last book in the Bible, is a book on prophecy, and the first prophecy in this book covers a topic dear to the Lord’s heart—the church which is His bride. The Lord first prophesied about the church in Matthew 16:18 when He told Peter, “I will build my church, and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.” But He didn’t tell Peter exactly how he would build His church, or how the gates of Hades would try to overpower it. This He left for the Apostle John to write about in the first chapters of Revelation. The things John revealed here were all in the future as he wrote them, but their fulfillment has happened over time between then and now. Today we have the advantage of using history to understand John’s prophecy concerning the church. Watchman Nee takes us on this adventure in his book, The Orthodoxy of the Church.

This class includes how to read the Greek Bible, how to do keyword studies with Greek lexicons and theological dictionaries, and how to conduct verse and chapter study with Greek grammar, syntax, and key commentaries.

Our focus study scripture in this semester is Romans chapter 8 associated with First Peter chapter 1.

1. How to pronounce and read aloud Greek Bible in an efficient way.

2. Study Romans chapter 8 associated with First Peter chapter 1 with the resources in Bible Hub.

If you ask some Christians which of the apostles they relate to the most, quite a few would pick Peter, especially when you look at his life in the gospels. The life of Peter is full of triumphs and disappointments, the weakness of man and the power of God, and ultimately showcases the amazing transformative journey a Christian can undergo throughout their life. Although Peter did not write as much as Paul did, the epistles of his later life read with a real maturity and joyful hope that all believers can aspire to attain. These two aspects of Peter, his dynamic experiences and his later maturity, are not unrelated. In this class, we will look at both of Peter’s epistles through the lens of his own experiences through the gospels and the Acts. May these chapters bring us all further unto maturity!

Each class will include both lecture and open discussion sections.

In his Gospel, John shows sinners the way to eternal life–believing in Jesus Christ, the Son of God. In his Epistle, he teaches believers how to have assurance of this life in them by pointing them to the virtues of being born of God: righteousness, love, and overcoming the world which lies in the power of the evil one. By studying this Epistle, we aim to have this assurance for ourselves and become people who are full of these virtues.

This class will cover 1 John chapters 3–5 in a guided round-table Bible study format. There may be up to 30 minutes of homework per week outside of class time.

This class is a second pass through the nine pillars of truth that was first covered in the spring of 2022. We consider these truths to be helpful in laying a foundation for a healthy Christian life. Knowing eternal life, the pathway of Christ’s salvation from justification to glorification, crucial facts about Christ Himself, the Spirit with our spirit, the church in its universal and local aspects, eternal security and the kingdom reward, and some facts about the Lord’s second coming are important for any Christian. A person can attend and enjoy church meetings for many years but may never receive a focused foundation in these crucial topics. This class will be different from the previous one in that every outline and topic will be updated and revised for clarity and effect. This is not a new believers series. Rather, these are topics intended to give a believer a foundation of crucial truths that can help them grow in a healthy way with Christ and in the church life.

The class will be lecture format with “pre-work” for each class. Pre-work will include simple questions that help you (or your group doing the pre-work together) understand the topic more deeply and on an experiential level. We will also make memory verses (with old fashioned cards that can be printed out) for each of the topics presented. There will also be time each class for testimonies from the students.

In his two epistles, the apostle Peter gives us a rich and practical view of the church and God’s purpose for His people. Peter presents the believers as a living spiritual house, a holy priesthood, and a chosen people being built together for God’s testimony. He also speaks to the church’s experience of suffering, growth, shepherding, and living as a testimony before the world. In this class, we will explore Peter’s writings to see what they reveal about the nature of the church, its spiritual reality, and how the believers should live together in Christ.

Hymn singing is a treasured practice the Lord has used to bring Christians closer to Him for millenia. Through singing we can lift up our love, hopes and challenges to the Lord. And through hymns we sing not just our own praises but the words of countless Christians who have gone before us. Hymn writers have given us their experiences in following the footsteps of the Lamb through trial and victory. And by singing their words the depths of resolve, faith and love they had for the Lord can shape our hearts to seek the Lord in a fuller, healthier and mature way.

In Riches of Hymns, we will cover 27 hymns and more that will help any Christian grow. We will cover foundational experiences every Christian needs to progress well such as loving the Lord, consecrating to Him, desiring more of Himself, knowing the cross and serving in union with the Lord. These key experiences will be enhanced with some background of key hymn writers such as A. B. Simpson, M. E. Barber and Watchman Nee.

The letters of Apostle John to the Churches were probably his last written communication. This nine-week course will look at key principles in the first two chapters of his first letter. John opens his letter by revealing: the Word of life, the Apostles’ experience of that life, fellowship with the Father and the Son, and the resultant fullness of joy. He goes on from there to write about two expressions of this fellowship — walking in light and loving the Father and those whom the Father has begotten. When we have both the vision and practical experience of walking in light and love, we will uplift and strengthen the brothers and sisters we have fellowship with.

Throughout this semester. participants will explore the burden and heart of the apostle Peter conveyed in the text in this epistle – First Peter. The class intends to present a clear general overview of the letter, as well as examine its specific content, context, and overall message. In addition to the general survey of the letter, the class will highlight throughout the semester some of the more meaningful passages of truth, doctrine, and practical fellowship presented by the seasoned apostle to practically advise, aid and strengthen the believer into a healthy Christian life of finding and following the Lord while facing struggles and sufferings in the world and age of their time: Which is still relevant and applicable to us all today.

The book of James is fondly known for its catchy one-liners and graphic metaphors that vividly describe practical Christianity. Yet it was also one of the last books to be recognized as part of God’s Holy word, and for obvious reasons: it contains strange concepts, such as healing oil, brotherly confession, and dead faith. It neglects truths concerning Jesus’ death and resurrection and seems to contradict Paul’s teachings. So, what does God want us to learn from this Scripture and how can we navigate through its unusual character?

A woman who drives a tent peg through the temple of an enemy general into the ground. Gideon’s fleece. A man kills a young lion with his bare hands, then picks up a donkey’s jawbone and strikes one thousand men, and finally, having had both eyes gouged out, throws his entire weight against the two pillars of a house, thereby killing himself and more people than he had ever killed in his lifetime. We may read the book of Judges out of morbid curiosity, savoring the heroic exploits of valorous men, intertwined with the frequent gory and unsavory details of their narrative, almost like a Hans Christian Anderson fairy tale or an Edgar Allen Poe horror story. Yet there is much more than the sensational and the macabre in this book. Indeed, the book of Judges does lead us step by step into Israel’s darkest hour, not sparing the grisly details, but, more than that, underscores the reason for, and graphically describes, the failure of God’s people to lay hold of the promises that God had given them. Shortly before the death of Joshua, who led the children of Israel into Canaan, the promised land, God told him that there still remained very much land to possess. Joshua divided the land into lots as an inheritance for the twelve tribes of Israel. In order for each tribe, excepting the tribe of Levi, to possess their inheritance, it was necessary to drive out the inhabitants of the land. The book of Judges describes Israel’s failure to drive out the Canaanites, and instead to mingle and live with them, thereby learning to worship false gods and adopt the idolatrous manners and customs of the inhabitants. Such a picture may mirror the condition of the church. However, in the midst of apostasy and unfaithfulness, God never forsakes His people. He raised up judges, men and women, to bring about spiritual revival. With the exception of Deborah, and later Samuel, these were not judges appointed to adjudicate in civil or criminal cases or disputes, like Moses, but merely as military leaders and deliverers. Such judges were used by God and acted by faith, as Hebrews 11:32 tells us, resulting in the enemies of God’s people being subdued and the people of Israel being brought back to the worship of God. Nevertheless, such revivals did not last for long. As we will see, the vessels that God raised up and used hardly allowed themselves to be touched and worked on by God. Many of them relied on the gift or the faith that God had given them, rather than on God Himself. As a result, neither their nature, nor the nature of the people, was much changed. Such a tragic failure may mirror our condition today as believers, and is a lesson to us to seek to know God’s ways rather than merely His acts. We may seek to serve God and work for Him by using the gift that God has given us, but God, in His mercy and compassion, desires to break our vessel and touch our gift so we can know Him and glorify Him alone, and not our overcoming ability and strength.

This is a one year (two semester) course, each semester (Fall and Winter) comprising nine weeks. We will examine the first ten chapters during the Fall Semester, and the last eleven chapters during the Winter Semester.

Une femme enfonce un pieu de tente dans la tempe d’un général ennemi jusque dans la terre. La toison de Gédéon. Un homme tue un jeune lion à mains nues, puis ramasse une mâchoire d’âne et frappe mille hommes, et enfin, après qu’on lui a crevé les deux yeux, appuie de tout son poids contre les deux piliers d’une maison, se tuant ainsi lui-même et faisant périr plus de gens qu’il n’en avait jamais tué au cours de sa vie. Nous pouvons lire le livre des Juges par curiosité morbide, en savourant les exploits héroïques d’hommes valeureux, entrecoupés des détails souvent sanglants et peu ragoûtants de leur récit, presque comme dans un conte de fées de Hans Christian Andersen ou une histoire d’horreur d’Edgar Allan Poe. Pourtant, ce livre contient bien plus que du sensationnel et du macabre. En effet, le livre des Juges nous conduit pas à pas jusqu’à l’heure la plus sombre d’Israël, sans épargner les détails sordides, mais, plus encore, il souligne la raison de l’échec du peuple de Dieu à s’emparer des promesses que Dieu lui avait données, et décrit de manière saisissante cet échec. Peu avant la mort de Josué, qui avait conduit les enfants d’Israël en Canaan, le pays promis, Dieu lui dit qu’il restait encore beaucoup de pays à posséder. Josué répartit le pays par lots comme héritage aux douze tribus d’Israël. Afin que chaque tribu, à l’exception de la tribu de Lévi, puisse prendre possession de son héritage, il était nécessaire de chasser les habitants du pays. Le livre des Juges décrit l’échec d’Israël à chasser les Cananéens et, au contraire, son choix de se mêler à eux et de vivre avec eux, apprenant ainsi à adorer de faux dieux et à adopter les manières et les coutumes idolâtres de ses habitants. Une telle image peut refléter la condition de l’Église. Cependant, au milieu de l’apostasie et de l’infidélité, Dieu n’abandonne jamais Son peuple. Il suscita des juges, hommes et femmes, pour provoquer un réveil spirituel. À l’exception de Débora, puis de Samuel, ces juges n’étaient pas des juges désignés pour trancher des affaires ou des différends civils ou criminels, comme Moïse, mais simplement des chefs militaires et des libérateurs. De tels juges furent utilisés par Dieu et agirent par la foi, comme nous le dit Hébreux 11:32, ce qui eut pour résultat que les ennemis du peuple de Dieu furent subjugués et que le peuple d’Israël fut ramené à l’adoration de Dieu. Néanmoins, de tels réveils ne durèrent pas longtemps. Comme nous le verrons, les vases que Dieu suscita et utilisa se laissèrent difficilement toucher et travailler par Dieu. Beaucoup d’entre eux s’appuyèrent sur le don ou la foi que Dieu leur avait donnés plutôt que sur Dieu Lui-même. Par conséquent, ni leur nature ni celle du peuple ne furent beaucoup changées. Un tel échec tragique peut refléter notre condition actuelle en tant que croyants et constitue pour nous une leçon : nous devons chercher à connaître les voies de Dieu plutôt que simplement Ses actes. Nous pouvons chercher à servir Dieu et à travailler pour Lui en utilisant le don que Dieu nous a donné, mais Dieu, dans Sa miséricorde et Sa compassion, désire briser notre vase et toucher notre don afin que nous puissions Le connaître et Le glorifier Lui seul, et non notre capacité et notre force à vaincre.

Ceci est un cours d’un an (deux semestres), chaque semestre (automne et hiver) comprenant neuf semaines. Nous examinerons les dix premiers chapitres pendant le semestre d’automne, et les onze derniers chapitres pendant le semestre d’hiver.