Courses & Seminars

Acquire the skills and tools you need to preach sound biblical truths that will connect and transform the lives of your hearers. This course addresses the ABCs of sermon preparation and delivery to give anyone the confidence to proclaim God’s Word through expository preaching. 5 Tuesday Nights, 6-8:30 pm, 5/25-6/22. 1 credit hour. Required text: The 12 Essential Skills for Great Preaching, 2nd Edition, by Wayne Mc Dill. (ISBN: 978-0-8054-3297-8)

The events of the Bible occurred in a unique and fascinating area of the world. How often do we come across the names of cities, rivers, mountains, and other places in the Bible without stopping to learn their location, meaning, or pronunciation? It is easy to think that we are not missing important information, or that it would take too much time and effort to find out about sites in Scripture. An understanding of Bible geography is vital to understanding the rest of the Bible. Learning about the features and terrain of the Bible lands can be a surprisingly enjoyable and exciting adventure! In this course, we will use a variety of media to become more familiar with Bible places, their characteristics, and their implications for understanding Scripture. Students will also learn about available resources that can make their own personal study easier and more rewarding. We will begin with a general overview, continue with a look at major locations and conclude with a focus on the key city of Jerusalem. 5 Mondays, 6-8:30 PM, 5/24 & 6/7-6/28. 1 credit hour

METACOLORS is a unique, simple coding system. With it, one can do many things better. Developed by the instructor, it was especially intended for learning and teaching the Bible, but it can be used with other subjects as well. It can help you memorize, organize, analyze, visualize, write, speak, clarify, highlight, and display information. It can enhance your study aids, papers, lists, presentations, tables, charts, diagrams, posters, handouts, and other teaching materials in a meaningful way. In this course, the system will be presented step-by-step with Bible teaching. 5 Tuesdays 6-8:30 PM, 5/25-6/22. 1 credit hour

The book of Acts is unique. It provides us with information that we gain nowhere else. We learn of the church’s beginning, early history, and how it triumphed over many obstacles. Follow Paul and others as the Gospel was proclaimed, lives were transformed, and the church spread rapidly even in difficult times. Learn from the disciples who best knew, understood, and followed our Lord. In this extended course we will get to spend more time delving into the text of this exciting book. 10 Thursdays 9:30am-12:00pm OR 6-8:30 PM. 5/27-6/24. 2 credit hours

This course requires no prior knowledge of the Bible. We will start with basic issues, such a the different kinds of Bibles and how to pick out a Bible. Moving from an overview of the whole Bible to its smaller sections, the goal is to help the student be more confident, knowledgeable, and comfortable anywhere in Scripture. In addition to general Bible content, we will also look at various Bible study resources. The instructor will try to answer any questions that students might have about the Bible and how to study it. One day Saturday Seminar, June 5, 9:30 am-1:30 pm, .25 credit hours.

Your call to pastoral ministry is a noble one. An essential role of a pastor is to feed and lead his or her congregation. To fulfill this aspect of your calling effectively, join us to acquire the basic training and skills that will enable you to function as a shepherd after God’s heart (Psalm 78:70-72). 5 Tuesdays 6-8:30 pm, 6/29-7/27. 1 credit hour. Required text: Pastoral Ministry: How to Shepherd Biblically, by John MacArthur and The Master’s Seminary Faculty. Thomas Nelson, Publishers

Do you really appreciate the New Testament, and have a hard time reading or understanding the Old Testament? Does a lot of it seem boring, irrelevant, or dry? You probably have not been finding the treasures which are in the Old as well as the New Testament. Perhaps you were not even aware that they were there, or do not know how to search for and discover them. The Old Testament is not primarily about ancient Middle Eastern history, obscure events, or long, hard-to-pronounce foreign names. These provide background information for a much more important focus: Jesus Christ Himself! You do not have to wait to get to the New Testament to learn about Him. Learn about prophecies, foreshadowing, Christophanies, and much more. We will also look at how the New Testament views Christ in ways that you might have missed. These few hours of introduction to genuine Christ-centered Bible study can revolutionize your whole view of, understanding of, and experience with Scripture. Come and learn more of what Paul referred to as “God’s Mystery, Christ Himself, in Whom, are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge.” If you like mysteries, you will thoroughly appreciate the Mystery of the Bible! 5 Tuesdays 6-8:30 PM, 6/29- 7/27. 1 credit hour.

This course has been designed to deepen and broaden the student’s understanding of leadership through the review of literature during class discussions and participating in a wide variety of hands-on exercises and case study analyses. The literature and exercises are chosen to address leadership theory and place them in a real-world context where students will be able to apply various skills and techniques deemed to be essential for successful leadership in the organization and broader societal setting. Students in this course will learn about leadership broadly defined, primarily within the context of the profit and non-profit sectors. 5 Thursday’s, 6-8:30 PM, 07/01-07/29. 1 credit hour

Imagine that someone discovered ancient tablets by an unknown person that gave us a genealogical and chronological record that goes back to the very beginnings of humanity. The world would hail that as one of the greatest archaeological finds ever. We already have that finding and much more, in God’s inspired Word. In fact, of the resources available around the world, only the Bible contains information on events prior to a few hundred years B.C. Genealogy and chronology are inseparably linked in Scripture and are very worthwhile areas of Bible study. These two subjects provide a skeleton for the body of Scripture and serve the very special purpose of following the steadfast course of Adam to the ultimate destination, the Person of Jesus Christ. Students in this course will learn key concepts, gain intriguing insights to this area of study, diminish the challenge that is sometimes presented when studying genealogy and chronology. 5 Mondays 6-8:30 PM, 7/5- 8/2. 1 credit hour.

There is more to learning than memorizing, but memorizing is essential to the learning process. As disciples of the Master Teacher, there is much about the Christian life that involves learning and remembering. It is most useful for Bible students, preachers, and teachers to have a quick and accurate recall of Scripture references, memory verses, and much more. This course is designed and intended to be immensely practical. We will give careful attention to obstacles, principles, attitudes, skills, tools, and many other matters that affect our success at memorizing. One day Saturday Seminar, July 10, 9:30 am-1:30 pm, .25 credit hours.

Human Trafficking is a horrific crime against the basic dignity and rights of the human person. This seminar will provide an introduction to the crime of modern-day slavery and the complicated issue of immigration and migration from a Christian perspective. The movement of people across boundaries is part of a collective human experience. However, there is an element of this experience that must be eradicated; the trafficking of human beings through the use of force, fraud, and coercion for the purpose of forced prostitution and forced labor. The global community, including the United States, is only beginning to comprehend the scope and impact of the selling of human persons in the world. This workshop will educate, empower and encourage a faithful response as we seek to protect the vulnerable and serve “the least of these”. Date and time TBA, 4 CEU or .25 credit hours.