Bible College SA Newsletter: February 2023

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As we begin our 99th year of teaching here at Bible College SA, we are so thankful that we have been able to train many generations of labourers for God’s harvest. As we see our classrooms filled again, we are reminded that it is not just for these students that we exist, but also for the many churches and ministries where they will serve Jesus in the years ahead.

Yet training these individuals takes great cooperation, it is not a job the College can do alone. We are so thankful for all our partners who serve our Kingdom cause through prayer, financial giving, and advocacy of us among their friends and networks. Paul teaches us that together, Christian brothers and sisters are a single body, with each part working in its own particular way as part of the life and service of the whole (Romans 12; 1 Corinthians 12). Although this can feel like something of an abstract notion, it’s very real to us as we know we would be useless without you! Thank you for the part that you, our partners, play in our work of helping the gospel flourish in our state by equipping faithful and able workers.

Your prayers are especially valuable to us and our first prayer meeting for the year is tomorrow, Tuesday 21st February, at 7:30am in the College chapel. We would love you to join us as we give thanks and pray for our needs for the semester and beyond. There will be coffee and a light breakfast on offer, which you can register for using the link below. (If you forget to register, that’s ok – please come and pray with us anyway!)

It is very true that the staff of Bible College SA work hard all year round, including in those times between semesters when there are no classes on and so few students about the place. There’s still lots of preparation, lots of administration, a lot of projects, and lots more that always needs attention.

And yet—when classes are up and running, and students are on deck, the College really comes alive, and we especially love these times. It is just brilliant to see minds focussed in lectures, to share in the buzz of the lunchroom during the breaks, and to be able to build special relationships that can be both personally rewarding and spiritually significant. There’s a real sense that this is what we are here for.

We have a great intake of new students this year who come to us with clear passions for the Lord and his work, and great commendations from their pastors too. As ever, we feel the privilege of being entrusted with this significant part of their formation as servants of the gospel.

In these first few weeks with us, the new students will not only need to get their heads around the formal parts of studying—and the reality of things like required readings and assessments!—but many will also be finding their way into the weekly rhythms of chapel devotions, their faculty-led Formation Groups, the Ministry Formation Program, and prayer triplets too. Then, as we move further into the semester, they will also come away on Formation Retreat, which is always a real highlight of the year.

All of this can amount to a very new experience—even for those students who have studied at university before—because the closeness and intentionality of the College community is something that is not found in many places. It is not guaranteed at uni—although some of the campus Christian groups do a magnificent job of fostering great faith communities—and it is certainly not something anyone comes close to when studying online. But we are convinced that the whole package of College life is part of what makes it so precious and so valuable, and we hear the same from many of our past students as they reflect on their time with us.

So, as the teaching year gets going, can I ask you to please give thanks with us for our great group of new students (as well as those great students who are returning), and also to ask God that he would give them an excellent experience of the fulness of life at College as they grow more into the likeness of Christ, and become more equipped to live for his glory.

If you are thinking about studying with us, you are welcome to come for a class so you can get a taste of learning here at Bible College SA. Also, in addition to sampling the lectures, you can also share in some community time by joining us for lunch or perhaps chapel too. To find out more, or to register your interest to attend, please contact the office on 8291 8188 or admin@biblecollege.sa.edu.au

Once a month, Bible College SA hosts an online prayer meeting with a single sharp focus: asking the Lord of the harvest to raise up workers for the harvest, and also more shepherds for the sheep (Matthew 9:35–38).

As thankful as we are for our new students this year, we are acutely conscious that Adelaide and South Australia (and the wider world) need more people heading into a wide range of vocational gospel ministries if we want to see the church sustained, healthy, and even grown in the generations ahead. In God’s economy, the future of the church depends upon its leaders.

If this is on your heart too, and you have half an hour of your time to give to prayer (we don’t even chat about what we’re going to pray for in these meetings, we just get to praying), then please join us if you can. Everyone and anyone is welcome.

Here is the link:
Join Zoom Meeting
Meeting ID: 846 1037 3692
Passcode: 250006

2023 schedule:

Can you please tell us a little about yourself?
I’m Dutch born, Mount Gambier grown up, and now living in Adelaide for University. I’ve been studying Medicine the last five years but am taking this year off to be at Bible College SA before I complete this degree in 2024. My church is Norwood Presbyterian (which I love!) and I live with my brother, two housemates, and two cats.

What are you currently studying?
A Graduate Diploma of Divinity – hopefully in one-year full time. This semester my subjects are New and Old Testament, Biblical Theology and Interpretation, and Leadership in Christian Ministry.

What do you like most about studying at Bible College SA?
Cop out answer: All of it! The community is vibrant and exciting and I’m enjoying meeting everyone; and the classes are stimulating, fascinating and I can already see applications for them in ministry.

In what ministry do you hope to work when you finish at Bible College SA?
While I see myself working as a doctor in the future, I try to hold it with an open hand, being ready for whatever plans God has for me. One reason I’m doing this year is to equip me broadly for ministry in my church and other para-church organisations. I would love to live rurally and be a support and encouragement to less well-resourced churches in my community. Theological training will also benefit me in the workplace – being able to better appreciate things like the value of life and where our healing and comfort truly comes from, and sharing that with those around me.

What is one thing you are learning at the moment that is particularly insightful?
You’d think with it only being week one it might make this question hard to answer – but no! My first few classes have already shown me there is much more to this than I’d expected. One thing that stood out to me was drawing and annotating a map of the Ancient Near East, appreciating the historical context of the stories we read in the Bible. That has already added so much colour to what I read and I’m excited to build on this!

• Give thanks for all the students that have commenced study with us this semester. Please pray that they will adjust to the rhythms of study quickly and that they will develop excellent, lifelong relationships with their fellow classmates and lecturers.

• Please pray for our faculty as they have started teaching for another semester. Pray that they will effectively orientate their students to their classes and that what they teach each week will be highly formational and spiritually significant.

• Give thanks for the many wonderful partners that financially support us each month. We are deeply thankful for their generosity. Pray that God would abundantly bless them for this kindness towards us, and that he would continue to grow this important group of people.

• Please pray for our sister school in London, Oakhill College and its principal Johnny Jukes, as they train workers for the harvest in the United Kingdom and beyond.

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