institute continues

July 30, 2008

Over the past few days, I have been concerned about two things. First, am I teaching at a level appropriate to these people? Should it be deeper or not? John and I spoke this morning and assured me that my teaching level is correct. Second, will the knowledge we are imparting result in pride? I fall into this trap too. I will address it at the end of Romans 11 where Paul just starts praising God from all the heavy doctrine he has just taught. Since Paul said he has not arrived, neither should we.

Yesterday, I received a couple of interesting questions. One was, if we are to baptize in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, why did Peter say in the “name of Jesus” in Acts 2:38? I think the reason is that there were other baptisms done at that time (like John’s in Acts 18). This baptism may be referred to as “Jesus’ baptism” opposed to other baptisms. The second question is why did Jesus say he had no place to lay his head but in John 1:38-39 he had a place to stay? I’ve never heard this question before! The answer is that Jesus said he had no place to lay his head to mean he did not own anything. He often stayed with friends, so he had a place to sleep. But, he did not own it.

The Romans section today covered the idea of sanctification (growing in our relationship with Christ). Paul starts off explaining that we do not need to serve the old master; we can say “No!” to sin. So, why give in to it? He then practically explains that there is a struggle the believer experiences between our internal desire to do right but the other desire is to do wrong. He wants to know who will set him free from this conflict. He answers his own question with Jesus Christ. The Spirit then provides us the power to live as we should. He reminds us that there is no condemnation in Christ and that nothing can separate us from the love of God. Frankly, while this material is very good, I had trouble keeping focus, and I’m not sure why.

I’ve been thinking and praying about Zion of Petroleum Valley today. As I write, one of the men covering for me is meeting right now with the group. I’m confident he will do well, but I’m also asking God to help him.

In the second session today, we flew through theology. In fact, I’m way behind where I should be. I am going to fly through the rest as much as possible without sacrificing content. I covered the rest of bibliology, Christology, and started the Holy Spirit. Not bad for ninety minutes. And while it was right after lunch, the students were much more engaged, and I felt better too. We all really enjoyed the lesson, and I had several come up with good questions later.

The worship is fantastic. Their zeal would put most of the US churches to shame. Dancing in the aisles is just fine!

Pastor Joe

July 31, 2008
People are usually curious about the living conditions in other nations. So, let me tell you about Zambian food and shelter. The food, pleasantly, has been ok. There are times when the meat would be better suited as shoe leather, but it has been good. Other food is standard rice, meat, and vegetables. There is a starch dish that is very popular called mnshea (sp?). It has the consistency of dense mash potatoes. It has virtually no taste. Our hotel is ok. It seems a little expensive for what we get, but it is far cheaper than other places. It is clean, but the hot water and electricity are sporadic. The staff is very polite and friendly. One of the guards escorted us a few blocks down the street to the internet café. He stayed with us the whole time. We draw too much attention on the street, so it’s nice to have a local keep the unscrupulous at bay.

I’ve told you about my courses, but these are not the only ones we are teaching. The students come for the entire day. Our missionary, John, works with TPI, Training Pastors International. He is teaching some courses on preaching style to make our messages more interesting and biblical. He is also teaching them a Walk Thru the Bible seminar on the New Testament. His wife, Jennifer, is teaching a course on Church Administration. The pastors really appreciate this. She is covering organization, planning, budgets, buildings, scheduling, and resources.

Today in Romans, we covered chapters 9-11. These explain Paul’s heart for his countrymen, the Israelites. It seemed to make an impact on the students to see that he would be willing to give up his salvation for their salvation. He then explains the plan God has for his people of the Old Testament (Israel) and his people of the New Testament (Church). We discussed his example of a grafted olive tree and our responsibility to spread the news about Christ.

In Theology, we finished the Holy Spirit, ran through angels & Satan, and started anthropology. Yes, we are moving fast and there is not enough time. Even though it was fast, we covered the spiritual warfare that all believers face. I wanted to assure them that while Satan is not one to take lightly, we have great victory available to us. When I finished, the pastor acting as MC, asked if I can stay a month to cover the material more completely. I don’t think I will have permission to do that.

One more day to go on this institute. We will finish with a graduation for the students as we hand out their certificates. They have been so thirsty, cooperative, inquisitive, and responsive. I gained far more than they have.

Pastor Joe