So we’re really excited about starting this sermon series and would love to have you join us over the next few months!

I’m really excited about a class that we’re starting on July 7^th. I’m calling it the “What Christians Should Believe, but often don’t” class. The class is going to cover the basic, primary, and essential doctrines of the Christian faith. The Apostle Paul wrote that you should “do your best to present yourself to God as one approved… rightly handling the word of truth” (2 Tim. 2:15). This simply means that Christians are commended to understand the Bible and to handle it correctly.  So our class is going to help in that process. We’ll answer questions like:

• What is the Bible?
• What is God like? What is the Trinity?
• What is Creation?
• What is Prayer?
• What are Angels, Satan, and Demons?
• What is Sin?
• Who is Christ? What is the Atonement? What is the Resurrection?
• What is Election?
• What Does it Mean to Become a Christian?
• What Are Baptism and the Lord’s Supper?
• What Are Justification and Adoption?
• What Are Sanctification and Perseverance?
• What is Death?
• What is the Church?
• What Will Happen When Christ Returns? What is the Final Judgment?
• What is Heaven like?

WHO SHOULD TAKE THIS CLASS?

I really want to encourage you to take this opportunity. A couple years ago we hosted a class on Bible Study Methods that taught how we are to read and study the different Bible genres. It was an enormous help for many people. I think this class will be along the same lines. It’ll lay out the essentials in a way that you can easily understand and explain to others. Systematic Theology need not be for ivory tower scholars. It can be very, very practical. Each of these subjects are important and you’ll be able to comprehend them.This class will be good for teenagers. If you have teens, I’d encourage you to have them take this class. Historically, the process of training children and teens in the faith was done through the process of “catechizing” (teaching the principles of Christian doctrine). This was done for over 1800 years of the churches history. It is only in the last 100 years that the process has all but been abandoned. This is unfortunate. Your kids can

apply themselves to understand the Scriptures because God says so. They can also understand the Scriptures, because God says so! So take Him at His word!

This class would be great for your small group too. If you are currently involved in a small group Bible study, I’d encourage you to talk to your class about taking this class. It will help provide depth for your future studies and will be a great foundation. Talk to your group leaders or to those in your group about joining us for the next couple months.

Those interested in being in ministry. If you have a heart to either be in vocational ministry or serving in other ministry areas, this will be extremely helpful.

THE FORMAT OF THE CLASS

The class will begin at 6:30 and last until 8:15pm. There will be coffee and snacks. I plan to teach for about an hour and then provide 45 minutes for questions and small group discussions. For those interested in developing their own ability to teach, there will be an opportunity to do so too.

THE STUFF YOU’LL NEED

The class is going to be utilizing a textbook written by Dr. Wayne Grudem. Grudem is a NT scholar and has written what is arguably one of the most widely used systematic theologies that is used by Christian universities and seminaries. You’ll need one of the following text books (not all of them, just one):

Christian Beliefs: Twenty Basics Every Christian Should Know – At only 144 pages, this introductory book is a great place to begin studying Christian doctrine. It’s readable, understandable, and solid. This would be great for new Christians or teenagers. It’s only $9.99 if you click on the link.

Bible Doctrine – This is an abridged version of Grudem’s larger Systematic Theology. It contains 528 pages of well written and equally understandable explanation of Christian doctrines. The link has it on sale for $19.79, so it’s still pretty affordable.

Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Bible Doctrine – As I said, this is a standard textbook for theological students. It’s extremely comprehensive (1290 pages). I recommend this a lot. It’s not difficult to understand. It is very readable and clear. It covers a lot of topics that we won’t be covering in our class, but it would be a good book to own for your own personal study or for future studies. You can get it for $29.99 at the provided link.

You’ll need one of these books. If you’re looking for just a very brief and basic summary, go with the first, Christian Beliefs. If you want the granddaddy of them all, go with the Systematic Theology. If you want something in-between, Bible Doctrine would be great. You could probably find the books used on Amazon.com for cheaper if you look hard. You’ll need the textbook by our second class (July 14^th). The first class will be introduction and some practical ideas to help prepare for the rest of the class.

The cost, on top of the textbook, will be $25. In seminary you’d pay anywhere from $900 to $1500 for this class. Schools that offer certificate programs would charge around $300. This is a steal.

If you have any questions, please contact me by email or phone.

Please let me know if you plan on joining the class so we can prepare accordingly! We really hope to see you there!

In Christ,

Luke Geraty