It seems the big gap is that in a seminary experience you are being trained by “experts” in their field. A pastor, or even a team of pastors, taking theological education seriously in their local context will never have the same expertise as the seminary experience.

But even with that, I wonder if what we would gain in seeing theological education tied to churches more directly will be a greater benefit.

Anyway, good thoughts. thanks for the post.

You are correct to remind us that not at students who attend are SBC. I simply was attempting to provide a hypothetical scenario to make a point.

The students at Boyce are undergraduate, not seminary students; however, many Boyce students take seminary level classes as electives.

About a month ago, I met Wes Pastor at a NETS luncheon held on campus. Needless to say, I was really impressed with what is going on there. Having talked to a couple of students in the program, I cand definitely see the benefits of having a ministry that instills biblical hermeneutics, practical church planting skills, and general financial and spiritual oversight. I hope to highlight their ministry in the near future.

Question: are the students at Boyce College undergraduate or seminary students? Is there a difference?

I want to point you SBCers to a wonderful church and training ministry which has a powerful vision for reaching New England and the world. It is NETS, the New England Theological Seminary, and Christ Memorial Church. The pastor, and founder of NETS and its President, is Wes Pastor. The ministry of NETS is now aligned with both the SBC and BGC. They have a comprehensive vision for church planting and leader training including biblical training for lay leaders. NETS is now also a satellite site for Southern Seminary. NETS and Christ Memorial Church are located in Williston, VT. Dr. Schreiner has spoken there and is on the Board of Reference.

The church also has unique, reformed views on such matters as weekly communion, all church training and discipleship, church discipline, preaching Christ from the whole Bible, etc. It is truly a wonderful ministry that has now planted two daughter churches in New England (one adjacent to the campus of Dartmouth College in Hanover, NH), with exciting plans for another in Cambridge, MA, near Harvard, as well as a plant in Cameroon which will be the home of NETS West Africa, and now new plans for a NETS center in Wales.

If you Southern students have any inclination toward church planting, and want to cast your biblical, gospel seed in some of the most challenging soil in America, and to be part of a truly thrilling work of God, consider talking with Wes Pastor and exploring NETS. (Disclaimer: I also serve on the Board of Reference for NETS.) The website is http://www.netsem.org

Thank you for your perspective and suggestion. I think it is a rather good one. In the near future, I hope to write more on this, providing some rationale as well as some practical ways to begin implementing theological education and training from the local church. I pray that more laypeople will share the conviction and heart you have for God’s Word with the desire to edify and build one another in the most holy faith. God bless you man.

I do as much reading as I can but would benefit greatly by a classroom setting where questions can be asked not to mention the benefit of the encouragement of being with fellow brothers who desire to teach God’s word with the care it deserves.

There are also a couple of people in our “church community” who our pastor strongly feels may have a calling to ministry. We’ve discussed teaching them here rather than sending them to the seminary or Boyce, since both of us have seminary degrees and have a love for teaching. No plans as of yet, but the very idea is exciting to us.

Exactly. The reformation does not end with the highest seminary enrollment in our school’s history. All this is preparatory. It is time to take it to the Church. Christ promised to build His Church, not the seminary, and when the seminary fufills its telos, we will find Churches doing the work of the seminary.

I agree with you sentiments completely. It would be a shame to graduate from SBTS without an understanding of and appreciation for J. P. Boyce and the Founders.

Greg,

I appreciate your thoughts on this matter. Indeed, the pace and depth of study would be much different in a local church environment. For example, when I was a student minister, I was teaching students biblical hermeneutics on Monday afternoons and went very slow. From there, I was hoping to develop a basic Greek curriculum for beginners. Back in the day, as Boyce mentioned, it was expected that you know Latin, Greek, and Hebrew before entering seminary. I am going to begin thinking about how the vision I expressed can be hashed out in the local church context. I would love to hear more of what you’re thinking in the meantime.

Brandon,

Thanks for the comment man. As far as churches go, I know of two in Alabama that are doing it: Lakeview Baptist in Auburn, AL and First Baptist Muscle Shoals (where I will be for the next four days). It would be great for me to get in touch with the leadership of these ministries and find out more specifically how they are doing it. I know that Lakeview has an internship program, similar to Capitol Hill, which is now considered an SBTS extension; however it is only available for Lakeview interns, and you cannot have another job while enrolled (you raise support). I will be looking around to see if I can find any other churches leading the way in taking up the call to educate and train their people for ministry. Let me know if you find anything out on your end.

Bill,

Guillaume is correct in that I am a student in the Graham school, so I am certainly not playing favorites with the school of Theology. There is the idea among some perhaps that the BGS is less scholarly or praiseworthy as the School of Theology, but those of us in the BGSME know that indeed is not the case. Moreover, our professors have extensive theological training not just in the disciplines of missiology, evangelism, or church growth, but also are competent to teach Greek, Hebrew, OT, NT, and the like. The point in using that statistic was merely to make a suggestion and case point. There were no secondary or ulterior intentions in my thought. Furthermore, as Mark rightly points out, there are many in the Graham school who are training to be pastors and church planters (where I fit in the equation). Essentially, there is not much difference between the schools other than the Graham School emphasizes application and more practical aspects of the theological discplines whereas the School of Theology would require more languages and theological development. Personally, I want both, so I am trying to get the best of both worlds.

There is much more I would like to say on this matter, but due to time constraints and the upcoming conference, the conversation might have to be postponed. I hope to continue talking about developing churches who are passionate about truth, passionate about the mission, and passionate about reaching the world–all for Jesus. In the meantime, feel free to continue sharing your thoughts. I know I could learn a lot from you guys.