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Christian Education News

Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me...put it into practice.     And the God of peace will be with you.”  Philippians 4:9

 

     One of the marvelous things about the Holy Spirit enlightening our study of Scripture, is how the Spirit reveals meanings within God’s word in the context of our own immediate circumstances in a way so that we can apply it to our lives.  And by doing so, we “may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.”  This practical side will be evident in two of the adult Sunday school electives being offered during the winter quarter, beginning December 7^th.  These two courses will focus on theology and Christian leadership.

     C.S. Lewis said, “Everyone has warned me not to tell you what I am going to tell you...they all say ‘the ordinary reader does not want theology; give him plain practical religion.’  I have rejected their advice.  I do not think the ordinary reader is such a fool.  Theology means ‘the science of God’, and I think any man who wants to think about God at all would like to have the clearest and most accurate ideas about Him which are available.”  With this in mind, we are offering R.C. Sproul’s “What Is Reformed Theology?”  There is something healthy about returning to one’s roots.  When it comes to Evangelical Christianity, its roots are found in the soil of the 16^th-Century Protestant Reformation.  Just as the reformers protested the corrupt teaching of the Roman church, so today evangelicalism itself is in need of a modern reformation.  In “What Is Reformed Theology?” R.C. Sproul offers an introduction to reformed theology.  Simply put, it is the theology of the Protestant reformers.  It is the heart of historical evangelicalism.  As C.H. Spurgeon once said, “Reformed theology is nothing more than Biblical Christianity.”  We at Lycoming Centre Presbyterian Church value the reformed tradition as something to be affirmed and treasured (Core Value #9).  Join us in the study of this great Biblical tradition.

     The second course offered will be a study of Greg Ogden’s and Daniel Meyer’s book “Leadership Essentials.”  Maybe you have shied away from leadership because you don’t know what it will involve, or you feel too unsure of your own abilities.  But your leadership is needed!  In every sector of society, from families to businesses to churches, leadership roles remain empty, waiting for people willing and able to step up and make wise decisions that bring positive change.  And, in a world with priorities vastly different from Christ’s, Christian leaders are especially needed to point people to Him.  Ogden and Meyers have created an interactive guide that will give you the tools you need to lead well, using your unique gifts and experience.

     In writing about the Scripture, C.S. Lewis said, “Yet it is, perhaps, idle to speak here of spirit and letter.  There is almost no ‘letter’ in the words of Jesus.  Taken by a literalist, He will always prove the most elusive of teachers.  Systems cannot keep up with that darting illumination.  No net less wide than a man’s whole heart, nor less fine of mesh than love, will hold the sacred Fish.”  We invite you to open your hearts this winter quarter as the continuing Bible study offers a course on the book of Matthew.  This study will cover Jesus’ birth, baptism, and early ministry as well as His teachings (including the Sermon on the Mount and several parables), His miracle of calming the sea, and His encounter with the Canaanite woman.  It will also include His transfiguration, His teachings on compassion and servant hood, before concluding with a look at His Passion.

     There is much to be learned, considered, and meditated upon.  We invite you to join us in this exciting journey of learning.

 

For Christian Education, John Stugrin

 

“But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have become convinced of, because you know those from whom you learned it, and how from infancy you have known the Holy Scriptures, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus.”  2 Timothy 3:14. 

 

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