Adult Sunday School 2017-2018
Sundays, 9:45-10:30am during the school year
Doctrine Overview
Pastor Brad Johnson & Jason Fitzgerald
Do you ever feel that you’re a Christian, but you’re not sure what you believe? Do you have a desire to understand the beliefs of the Christian faith a little better? In this class, we will look at each of the major doctrines that are part of the Christian faith – the doctrines of God, the Bible, Christ, the Holy Spirit, Man, Sin, Salvation, the Church, and Future Things. We will study each of these briefly in this overview class. This topical way of looking at the Bible will include discussion, handouts, and multi-media presentation. Pastor Brad will be the primary teacher, with Jason Fitzgerald assisting. If you have a student in the senior class, they will parallel the adult class, making this an excellent way to have opportunities for discussion with your child.
Westminster Shorter Catechism
Pastor Dan Kasey
Who is God? What is the meaning of life? What is the remedy for sin? The Westminster Shorter Catechism will ask and answer these questions and more. This class will be full of lively discussion as we wrestle with these questions found in the Shorter Catechism and any other questions the class would like to ask. The goal for the class is to draw us to a closer relationship with our creator by growing in knowledge and love for God’s Word.
1 and 2 Thessalonians
Mike Young
Paul did not just preach the gospel and make converts to Christianity. He took seriously Jesus' command to make disciples, teaching them to observe His commandments. When he planted churches, he would stay long enough to make sure they were well established in the faith, and had sound leadership in place to help them grow and persevere. But in Thessalonica, he did not have such luxury. After spending only a few weeks with the fledgling church, he was forced to flee because of intense opposition. Paul was understandably concerned for the welfare of the new believers there, so he sent Timothy and Silas back to encourage and instruct them while he waited in Athens.
When Timothy and Silas finally caught up with Paul in Corinth, he was so encouraged by their report that he wrote two letters to them, the earliest of his letters that we have collected in the New Testament. His letters show the heart of a spiritual father toward his children, and his concern and joy that they are walking in the faith. We get a glimpse of what Paul considered of first importance that he wanted every church and every believer to master – right belief and right behavior in the face of opposition from the world and in light of Christ's imminent return. These are things of which we must always remind ourselves, if we wish to be established "blameless in holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints” (1 Th 3:13).
We will be taking an inductive, discussion-oriented approach to the text, gleaning what it says, what it means, and how it applies to us in our daily walk. Come prepared to be challenged by the Word of God!
Jim and Casper Go to Church: Frank Conversation about Faith, Churches, and Well-Meaning Christians by Jim Henderson
Sally Abbott
Do you remember when you first went to church? How do we appear to outsiders when they visit? Have you wanted to bring a friend to church but were nervous about how things would appear to them? Why is attending a worship service so important to us that it gets us up early every Sunday? And ultimately, how can we tell others what church means to us without scaring them?
Jim Henderson wanted to make his own church better. He hired an atheist named Casper on eBay for $21 an hour to join him at church services with his laptop, and fill out a survey with his reactions. The survey included how they were greeted, what the music was like, how the offering was taken, what the sermon was like, if there was any call to social action, and so on. Jim wanted to get a skeptic’s point of view. In the process, he saw how churches were perceived from the outside – both what worked and what didn’t work (By the way, our church would rate very well on his survey).
In this book discussion class for women we will read and discuss Jim and Casper Go to Church: Frank Conversation about Faith, Churches, and Well-Meaning Christians by Jim Henderson (copies will be available for $12.50). We will look at the elements of our church services, how outsiders might view them, and what they mean to us. We will hold up a mirror to ourselves so we may better see and explain to others what happens during church. The goal is to better communicate what we love about church to friends and family in terms they will understand and find compelling. It will help us explain to Living Nativity visitors and VBC parents what church is like, and why we are drawn to come here every week. The goal is to better equip us to “go and tell…”
We will spend 2-3 weeks on each chapter, followed by a week of praying for our church and our needs. My overall goal is better communication with others. We look at why we do what we do, grow in our ability to tell people what’s important to us, so we will better represent Jesus to our world.
Sundays, 9:45-10:30am during the school year
Doctrine Overview
Pastor Brad Johnson & Jason Fitzgerald
Do you ever feel that you’re a Christian, but you’re not sure what you believe? Do you have a desire to understand the beliefs of the Christian faith a little better? In this class, we will look at each of the major doctrines that are part of the Christian faith – the doctrines of God, the Bible, Christ, the Holy Spirit, Man, Sin, Salvation, the Church, and Future Things. We will study each of these briefly in this overview class. This topical way of looking at the Bible will include discussion, handouts, and multi-media presentation. Pastor Brad will be the primary teacher, with Jason Fitzgerald assisting. If you have a student in the senior class, they will parallel the adult class, making this an excellent way to have opportunities for discussion with your child.
Westminster Shorter Catechism
Pastor Dan Kasey
Who is God? What is the meaning of life? What is the remedy for sin? The Westminster Shorter Catechism will ask and answer these questions and more. This class will be full of lively discussion as we wrestle with these questions found in the Shorter Catechism and any other questions the class would like to ask. The goal for the class is to draw us to a closer relationship with our creator by growing in knowledge and love for God’s Word.
1 and 2 Thessalonians
Mike Young
Paul did not just preach the gospel and make converts to Christianity. He took seriously Jesus' command to make disciples, teaching them to observe His commandments. When he planted churches, he would stay long enough to make sure they were well established in the faith, and had sound leadership in place to help them grow and persevere. But in Thessalonica, he did not have such luxury. After spending only a few weeks with the fledgling church, he was forced to flee because of intense opposition. Paul was understandably concerned for the welfare of the new believers there, so he sent Timothy and Silas back to encourage and instruct them while he waited in Athens.
When Timothy and Silas finally caught up with Paul in Corinth, he was so encouraged by their report that he wrote two letters to them, the earliest of his letters that we have collected in the New Testament. His letters show the heart of a spiritual father toward his children, and his concern and joy that they are walking in the faith. We get a glimpse of what Paul considered of first importance that he wanted every church and every believer to master – right belief and right behavior in the face of opposition from the world and in light of Christ's imminent return. These are things of which we must always remind ourselves, if we wish to be established "blameless in holiness before our God and Father at the coming of our Lord Jesus with all his saints” (1 Th 3:13).
We will be taking an inductive, discussion-oriented approach to the text, gleaning what it says, what it means, and how it applies to us in our daily walk. Come prepared to be challenged by the Word of God!
Jim and Casper Go to Church: Frank Conversation about Faith, Churches, and Well-Meaning Christians by Jim Henderson
Sally Abbott
Do you remember when you first went to church? How do we appear to outsiders when they visit? Have you wanted to bring a friend to church but were nervous about how things would appear to them? Why is attending a worship service so important to us that it gets us up early every Sunday? And ultimately, how can we tell others what church means to us without scaring them?
Jim Henderson wanted to make his own church better. He hired an atheist named Casper on eBay for $21 an hour to join him at church services with his laptop, and fill out a survey with his reactions. The survey included how they were greeted, what the music was like, how the offering was taken, what the sermon was like, if there was any call to social action, and so on. Jim wanted to get a skeptic’s point of view. In the process, he saw how churches were perceived from the outside – both what worked and what didn’t work (By the way, our church would rate very well on his survey).
In this book discussion class for women we will read and discuss Jim and Casper Go to Church: Frank Conversation about Faith, Churches, and Well-Meaning Christians by Jim Henderson (copies will be available for $12.50). We will look at the elements of our church services, how outsiders might view them, and what they mean to us. We will hold up a mirror to ourselves so we may better see and explain to others what happens during church. The goal is to better communicate what we love about church to friends and family in terms they will understand and find compelling. It will help us explain to Living Nativity visitors and VBC parents what church is like, and why we are drawn to come here every week. The goal is to better equip us to “go and tell…”
We will spend 2-3 weeks on each chapter, followed by a week of praying for our church and our needs. My overall goal is better communication with others. We look at why we do what we do, grow in our ability to tell people what’s important to us, so we will better represent Jesus to our world.