I'm debating now how long I should stay in a Bible Study Methods class offered through a satellite of the Luther Rice school that is held locally. With the reading I've done on my own, Kay Arthur's book on inductive Bible study and my own reflections, I can safely say that on week 3 of 10 I have learned nothing new.
I took the course as a way to better study my Bible, and each week, the lessons on the importance and the methods of Bible study have been one side of the course, the other side has been a defense of Dispensational theology over Covenantial with Calvinists being defined as Hyper-Calvinists in all matters. I am uncomfortable in this situation and want to stick to the course that is advertised. Bible Study Methods. If the instructor is right, wouldn't staying the course and showing us in the Bible be enough to prove his point? He says that this is the only doctrine that reads the entire Bible literally, with few exceptions such as the imagery in Psalms and other places. This is said as if his is the only system that is valid in this point, and after growing up in that type of environment I can say that it is just not so.
The other students look upon me as "The Calvinist", and each of the three weeks in class, the instructor has made a jab at all Calvinists by defining them in Hyper-Calvinist terms. I tried to explain the difference last week and even brought up Romans 10:14-15 this week when he asked if creation gives us enough knowledge to both convict us and to lead us to Christ. Of course I said that it wasn't, and more than half of the rest of the class said that it was. I used that passage to support my case and he ended up agreeing with me. Then he proceeded to make a jab at Calvinism, saying that we believe that God will regenerate and save people with no need for them to even know of the gospel! I believe he has had some bad experiences with Hyper-Calvinists and does not even have a sound understanding of reformed doctrine, yet he trashes us all each and every week.
He explained that the five points of the TULIP were basically a rating system of how Calvinistic a person is, with five points representing the Hypers. I don't think he saw me roll my eyes, but I did tell some classmates last week that I am 5-point and yet I am the one pointing out the need to evangelize using the words in the New Testament (you know, the only part that defines today's people of God according to them) book of Romans. How confused my classmates must be!
And then in the class he mentions how much he likes Spurgeon and MacArthur. Um... they believe in the same points that the instructor says are incorrect. Spurgeon especially! At least MacArthur is dispensational, but he preached election, getting him thrown off the radio. Didn't my instructor, who is a pastor of over 20 years and has been an instructor at more than one Bible college, realize this?
If I take all 10 classes offered, I will be able to get a Bible Certificate that is good at many Bible colleges to complete that requirement. Each class is $150, for a total of $1500. That's not too shabby, but am I taking the classes for possible credit or to learn about the Lord? That may be the question that decides if I should continue or look into online study.
Any thoughts?
I took the course as a way to better study my Bible, and each week, the lessons on the importance and the methods of Bible study have been one side of the course, the other side has been a defense of Dispensational theology over Covenantial with Calvinists being defined as Hyper-Calvinists in all matters. I am uncomfortable in this situation and want to stick to the course that is advertised. Bible Study Methods. If the instructor is right, wouldn't staying the course and showing us in the Bible be enough to prove his point? He says that this is the only doctrine that reads the entire Bible literally, with few exceptions such as the imagery in Psalms and other places. This is said as if his is the only system that is valid in this point, and after growing up in that type of environment I can say that it is just not so.
The other students look upon me as "The Calvinist", and each of the three weeks in class, the instructor has made a jab at all Calvinists by defining them in Hyper-Calvinist terms. I tried to explain the difference last week and even brought up Romans 10:14-15 this week when he asked if creation gives us enough knowledge to both convict us and to lead us to Christ. Of course I said that it wasn't, and more than half of the rest of the class said that it was. I used that passage to support my case and he ended up agreeing with me. Then he proceeded to make a jab at Calvinism, saying that we believe that God will regenerate and save people with no need for them to even know of the gospel! I believe he has had some bad experiences with Hyper-Calvinists and does not even have a sound understanding of reformed doctrine, yet he trashes us all each and every week.
He explained that the five points of the TULIP were basically a rating system of how Calvinistic a person is, with five points representing the Hypers. I don't think he saw me roll my eyes, but I did tell some classmates last week that I am 5-point and yet I am the one pointing out the need to evangelize using the words in the New Testament (you know, the only part that defines today's people of God according to them) book of Romans. How confused my classmates must be!
And then in the class he mentions how much he likes Spurgeon and MacArthur. Um... they believe in the same points that the instructor says are incorrect. Spurgeon especially! At least MacArthur is dispensational, but he preached election, getting him thrown off the radio. Didn't my instructor, who is a pastor of over 20 years and has been an instructor at more than one Bible college, realize this?
If I take all 10 classes offered, I will be able to get a Bible Certificate that is good at many Bible colleges to complete that requirement. Each class is $150, for a total of $1500. That's not too shabby, but am I taking the classes for possible credit or to learn about the Lord? That may be the question that decides if I should continue or look into online study.
Any thoughts?
