Course Overview

What is the role of the church in today’s culture? This accredited graduate course will examine that question and determine the answer by establishing the appropriate definition of success for the church and by exploring the sufficiency of Scripture for practicing that role within our culture. Review will be made of current cultural issues confronting the church. Students will examine what constitutes the assigned task for the church as well as how that task interacts with today’s culture. Each student will compose a Biblical philosophy of the church and culture. This course may also be taken live online for credit or audit. 3 credit hours

Meet the Professor

Daniel Anderson, Th.D., has served as President of Appalachian Bible College since 1983. After receiving a Bible/Theology diploma from ABC, he completed undergraduate studies at Faith Baptist Bible College. He earned a Master of Divinity degree from Grace Theological Seminary while being ordained to the ministry and serving as a pastor. Dr. Anderson later earned a Master of Sacred Theology and Doctor of Theology at Dallas Theological Seminary. The passion of Dr. Anderson’s life and ministry has centered upon nurturing servants for the fields of the world. The motto of ABC, …Because Life is for Service, captures his heart.

Course Dates

• Course Work: December 9, 2024 - February 10, 2025
• On-Campus Module: January 6-10, 2025

Course Overview

This course examines the central place of the Scriptures for all of life and ministry. Included in the course is an examination of the Bible's own claims for the primacy of authoritative revelation, contemporary challenges to a Bible-based ministry, and a course project designed to foster a Bible-based ministry in the student’s setting. This course may also be taken live online for credit or audit.
3 credit hours

Textbooks

• Dever, Mark and Paul Alexander. The Deliberate Church: Building Your Ministry on the Gospel. Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2007.
• Frame, John. The Doctrine of the Word of God, in A Theology of Lordship, Vol. 4. Phillipsburg, NJ: P & R, 2010.
• Brash, Richard. How God Preserved the Bible. Scotland: Christian Focus, 2019.

Textbooks are subject to change. Consult current syllabus.

Meet the Professor

Jonathan A. Rinker is the Chair of the Bible/Theology Major at Appalachian Bible College, where he has served for fifteen years with his wife Sarah and their four children. He has also been the lead elder at his local church during this time, exercising his gift in preaching and applying a Biblical philosophy of ministry to practical issues in a local church. In this course he communicates his passion for a philosophy of ministry that is driven by the authority of Scripture, showing how this applies to every area of ministry, including family life, evangelism, counseling and preaching, and corporate worship. Dr. Rinker earned his B.A. from Appalachian Bible College, M.Div. from Virginia Beach Theological Seminary, and Ph.D. from Baptist Bible Seminary.

Course Dates

• Course Work: February 3 - April 7, 2025
• On-Campus Module: March 3-7, 2025

Course Overview

Watch a video introduction to this course.

This course will examine and compare Moses’ book of Deuteronomy with Paul’s letter to the Romans. Its purpose is to identify the place of these two books and writers in this economy of grace. Just as Deuteronomy is, what Hill and Walton call, “the charter document of Israel,” so Romans is the magna carter of “the gospel of God” (1:1b). This course will develop the continuity between the two inspired books from the Holy Spirit, as well as distinguish the shifts these provide between the economies of law and grace. Ultimately, this course is designed to draw each student to a closer walk with God, and to gain a greater appreciation for His Word, in which these two books are found. This course may also be taken live online for credit or audit. 3 credit hours

Textbooks

• Hill, Andrew and John Walton, A Survey of the Old Testament, 3rd edition. Zondervan Academic, 2009. pp. 163–176 (“Deuteronomy”)
• McClain, Alva J. McClain, Law and Grace: A Study of New Testament Concepts as They Relate to the Christian Life. BMH Books, 2001. pp. 5–80
• Moo, Douglas, A Theology of Paul and His Letters: The Gift of the New Realm in Christ. Zondervan Academic, 2022. pp. 192–243 (“Romans”)
• Rosner, Brian, Paul and the Law: Keeping the Commandments of God. IVP Academic, 2013. pp. 13–222
• Gundry, Stanley N., ed, Five Views on Law and Gospel. Zondervan Academic, 1996. pp. 9–405
• Houghton, Myron, Law and Grace, Regular Baptist Press, 2012. pp. 55–195
• Merrill, Eugene, Deuteronomy (NAC series). Holman Reference, 1994. pp. 21–65
• Thielman, Frank, Paul & the Law: A Contextual Approach. IVP Academic, 1995.

Textbooks are subject to change. Consult current syllabus.

Meet the Professor

Dr. Daniel Davey is the President and Professor of Bible Exposition at Virginia Beach Theological Seminary. He has taught students and led the seminary since its inception in 1995.

Course Dates

• Course Work: April 28 - June 30, 2025
• On-Campus Dates: May 26-30, 2025

Course Overview

Counseling III builds on the two prerequisite ABC graduate classes Counseling I and Counseling II. The trajectory of study will begin with the topic of premarital counseling and will move through such topics as communication, roles, intimacy, unsaved spouses, singlehood, and moral crisis issues. 3 credit hours

Textbooks

• Archer, Clint. The Home Team.
• Ricucci, Gary and Betsy. Love That Lasts.
• Harvey, Dave. When Sinners Say, "I Do."
• Priolo, Lou. The Complete Husband.
• Peace, Martha. The Excellent Wife.
Textbooks are subject to change. Consult current syllabus.

Meet the Professor

Dr. Jim Newcomer serves as Senior Pastor at Calvary Baptist Church of Ypsilanti, Michigan. He entered pastoral ministry in 1994 and has served as a youth pastor (6 years) and an executive pastor (11 years). He has also held two senior pastorates—one in North Carolina (5 years), and now in Michigan. In addition, Jim has been actively teaching pastoral theology and Biblical counseling on both undergraduate and graduate levels in several institutions since 2000. He serves on the boards of Grace Biblical Counseling Ministry and Freedom That Lasts. Jim is a Level II certified counselor with the Association of Certified Biblical Counselors (ACBC). He is also certified with the Association of Biblical Counselors (ABC). He and his wife Lorie have three adult children and several grandchildren.

Course Dates

• Course Work: July 7 - September 8, 2025
• On-Campus Module: August 4-8, 2025