Classes

The relation between Christianity and Judaism is one of the most misunderstood relationships in the history of thought. Christianity is often considered to be diametrically opposed to Judaism, yet Christianity was originally a development within Judaism, a sect, so to speak. The earliest Christians were Jewish followers of a Jewish leader and conceived of themselves as faithful Jews. 

This course will introduce participants to the Jewish background of the New Testament: the geography of Israel, the Jewish customs and feasts, the people groups, cultures, literature and institutions at the time of Jesus and His followers. We will also focus on God’s plan for atonement from the Old Testament to the New. 

At the end of the course we will examine what the New Testament says about God’s promises to the Jewish people and land of Israel. This trip entails a 10 day trip to Israel aid in teaching these elements to the students.

Partner Organization

Christ Church Jerusalem

Shoresh Tours

Books I Require

Handbook on the Jewish Roots of the Christian Faith

The Real Kosher Jesus

Jesus Through Middle Eastern Eyes

Jewish Annotated New Testament

Hebrew is a 3000+ year old language. Yet, most Hebrew teachers make it hard to learn and retain. According to research less than 5% of those who study Hebrew in seminaries / Christian schools retain any of the language. My objective is to change the paradigm and to change the retention rate. Rather than teaching hundreds of paradigms I teach Hebrew through a handful of principles, high frequency vocabulary, and daily reading. 

Principles​

Aleph-Bet Principle; H-Abimelech and SUS principles; Hezekiah Principle (Verb Parsing) 

Santa Principle (Ho-Ho-Ho); Joseph Principle; Jonah Principle

Noah & Nimrod Principles; Jericho Principle; Nehemiah Principle

High Frequency Vocab​

All my students are required to learn the 300 most utilized words in the Hebrew Bible. I connect the words to already known biblical names, and english derivatives when applicable. The result is that they can pick up the above Hebrew Reader and handle the text, for the less common words are glossed at the bottom of the page.

Reading for Life​: The Hamilton System

James Hamiltion in 1829 espoused a new paradigm for learning languages, interlinear daily reading. This practice is now common among linguistic acquisition researchers. By reading interlinearly one can enjoy the text and have the translation at hand, vs spending hours thumbing through a lexicon. This method only works if the student is devoted to reading the target language, and then secondarily the english text. Furthermore, this method only works if the student learns the high frequency words of the target language.

Books I Require

70 Hebrew Words Every Christian Should Know

Exegetical Gems from Biblical Hebrew: A Refreshing Guide to Grammar and Interpretation

Hebrew Grammar: Implicit Learning by Elaborative Encoding (COMING 2023)

The Hebrew Old Testament, Reader's Edition

The Prophets are known as the Nevi'im in Hebrew. As the second section of the Hebrew Old Testament, the Nevi'im is a collection of historical and prophetic texts. Though often studied in two different classes (prophets and historical books) we will learn this section of the Hebrew bible as was intended: the religious-historical history of the nation of Israel. 

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My aim for this course is for students to read the Nevi'im in the historical order; connecting both the historical books and the prophetic books so as to grasp the message of the prophets. Only when grasped in this manner can we truly begin to discuss how to hermeneutically handle the prophetic books in our churches. A key to accomplishing this connection is the realization that every Prophetic book is the equivalent to a modern impeachment document; thus we must connect the two to see who the prophet is talking about.

Nevi'im in Eras

Early Prophets

Prophets of the Pentateuch, Joshua as Prophetic Conquest

The role of the Prophet, The role of the King, The role of the Priest

Samuel – United Monarchy

8th Century

Jonah – Assyrians, Joel, Amos, Hosea, Isaiah, Micah

7th Century

Nahum – Babylonians, Zephaniah, Habakkuk, Jeremiah

6th Century

Daniel – Persians, Obadiah, Ezekiel, 

5th-4th Century

Israelite Religion (Post Exile), Haggai, Zechariah, Malachi, Messiah

New Testament Prophecy / What is prophecy

Books I Require

The Prophets of Israel: Walking the Ancient Paths

Of Kings and Prophets: Understanding Your Role in Natural Authority and Spiritual Power

Including the Stranger: Foreigners in the Former Prophets

NKJV Chronological Study Bible

Truly grasping Scripture is often portrayed and taught as though only the educated can grasp the meaning. To correct this elitist view I introduce hermeneutics students to historical and contemporary interpretive approaches including: Pentecostal, Catholic, African, African-American, Asian, and Latino methods. We'll cover bible translation methods, and introduce students to biblical backgrounds to see the depth of the text. My objective for all hermeneutics students is to read the text and know how to drill the depths of applications!

5 Modules of Hermeneutics​

​Nature of Hermeneutics

Text of Hermeneutics

History of Hermeneutics

Application of Hermeneutics

Advanced Hermeneutics

Books I Require

How to Read the Bible for All Its Worth: Fourth Edition

Scripture and Its Interpretation: A Global, Ecumenical Introduction to the Bible

In 1960 Martin Luther King, Jr., told his interviewer on Meet the Press, "it is appalling that the most segregated hour of Christian America is eleven o'clock on Sunday morning." Sadly in the 21st century the quote remains true. Baylor University found in 2012 that only 12 percent of US congregations qualify as multiethnic (a congregation where no one ethnicity exceeds 80%). In my personal denomination, Southern Baptist, I estimate less than 3% are multi-ethnic of some 50,000 churches.

I am Filipino, Cajun French, Spaniard, English, plus I grew up around the deaf community. Though some family members are Roman Catholic, Pentecostal, or Baptist, we all seem to have the same heart struggle of not feeling like we truly belong wherever we attend. Sadly, as a result of this feeling, subsequent generations are less faithful to a local church congregation. I have learned over time that my family is not the only one to suffer in this way.

    I am often told by parishioners that we are separate for stylistic reasons. By contrast, in certain circles, forming multi-ethnic churches seems to be the “current cool” thing to do. However, there should be a biblical foundation for all ecclesiological endeavors. So, is the church mandated to become multi-ethnic? If a church does not diversify, are they disobedient? If multi-ethnicity is a biblical thrust, why is it not espoused or taught at most pastoral training schools or from most pulpits?

    Some churches that desire to diversify, have the desire but lack the resources to effectively pursue multi-ethnicity. Reality is that your church may be in an area with virtually no ethnic diversity. Other churches who have a diverse community and desire, are led by wrong motivations. The most common motivation that I have heard is Guilt. This is especially true for many white churches. The argument goes: "Whites have marginalized and oppressed blacks for so long, churches need to make it right by 'reaching out' to different races and ethnicities." If a church were to set aside political reasons, such as the mentioned guilt reason, and current cool trends, one should recognize four major biblical reasons to have ethnic unity in the church.

Reasons for Multi-Ethnic Ministry

Reason 1: It is a picture of the Gospel

Reason 2: It is a picture of Heaven on Earth

Reason 3: It Strengthens the Church

Reason 4: The Gospel to the Third Generation

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Methods for Multi-Ethnic Ministry

Step 1: Teach Biblical theology

Step 2: Practice biblical Discipleship

Step 3: Diversify Leadership (preaching especially)

Step 4: Diversify Music

Step 5: Diversify Celebrations

There are things that every believer should know, and practice. These are not learned in a vacuum but rather in relationship with an older believer like we saw Christ and his disciples. ​Every believer should have a Paul (an older believer who teaches you), Barnabas (an equal believer you share with) and a Timothy (who you are discipling). In these relationships we encourage one another in private, public and corporate worship.

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My objective for my discipleship students is for them to know the story of God, their place in the story and the habits expected of a Christ follower.

6 Modules of Discipleship​

God's Story

Your Identity

Your Private Disciplines

Your Public Disciplines

Your Corporate Disciplines

Your Corporate Responsibility

Books I Require​

The Cost of Discipleship

What Is a Healthy Church Member?

Celebration of Discipline

50 People Every Christian Should Know: Learning from Spiritual Giants of the Faith