COURSE CATALOG
Christian Leaders Institute presents this current course catalog. These courses are all designed to be taken with the help and accountability provided by local mentors. We highly recommend that you are connected to local mentors and sponsors to open even more doors in your ministry training.
Getting Started Class: Reproducible Walk With God and Christian Basics: CLI Professors (7 credits)
Requirement for: Christian Basics Certificate and all higher award levels
Get your on-line study going with this getting started class. This is the core orientation to Christian Leaders Institute (CLI), where you meet some of the leaders of CLI and get your computer ready for study. You will also learn about discipleship, evangelism and basic biblical doctrine. This course secures your scholarship. You will study how to get a reproducible walk with God! After you complete this class you will have full standing at Christian Leaders Institute and you will receive your first certificate, the “Christian Basics Certificate. ”
Old Testament Survey: Dr. David Graves and Dr. David Feddes (3 credits)
Requirement for: Christian Leaders Bible Certificate and all higher award levels
Gain a new understanding of God’s work in the Old Testament in this course. This class explores God’s Word in the Old Testament, paying particular attention to literary, historical, and theological dimensions. Your ministry will benefit from Old Testament Survey.
New Testament Survey: Rev. Pedro Aviles, Dr. Jeff Weima, and Dr. David Feddes
Supervisor: Dr. David Feddes (3 credits)
Requirement for: Christian Leaders Bible Certificate and all higher award levels
This class explores God’s Word in the New Testament, paying particular attention to literary, historical, and theological dimensions. Your ministry will benefit from New Testament Survey. Once you complete both the old and new testament survey classes, you will receive the Christian Leaders Bible Certificate (new).
Church History: Dr. David Feddes (4 credits)
Requirement for: Christian Leaders Certificate and all higher award levels
The church is almost 2000 years old. A significant ministry training emphasis is church history. This Bible School course looks at major events and key persons in the history of the Christian church. Such study helps you to see God’s faithfulness in the past and to better understand the church’s present challenges and opportunities.
Pastoral Care and Marriage: Rev. Henry Reyenga Jr., Mr. Brian DeCook, Esq., and Dr. Drew Brown (3 credits)
Requirement for: Christian Leaders Certificate and all higher award levels
This ministry training course is essential for being an effective pastor. This Bible School course will cover listening skills, important relationship boundaries, conflict resolution, marriage issues including preparing couples for marriage. This important ministry training course can be taken with your spouse if you have one. You will greatly benefit from this Bible School seminary style class.
People Smart for Ministry: Rev. Henry Reyenga Jr. (3 credits)
Requirement for: Christian Leaders Certificate and all higher award levels
This course discusses people intelligence for life and ministry. This class will help you identify that common principles for effective communication and how to improved in your effectiveness. This course also will help you minister to people better as you learn to hear what they are really saying. This course is designed for you learn how to express your love in ways that people will understand.
Church and Ministry: Rev. Henry Reyenga Jr. (3 credits)
Requirement for: Christian Leaders Certificate and all higher award levels
This ministry training course explores some key aspects of pastoring a church: praying, setting priorities, training other leaders, delegating, visiting, handling pressure, and more. It also offers guidance for dealing with important transitional events, such as baptisms, weddings, and funerals. Learn how to leverage your Bible School training for practical ministry.
Theology I: Dr. David Feddes (4 credits)
Requirement for: Christian Leaders Diploma and all higher award levels
Important for ministry training is sound doctrine. This course considers key biblical doctrines about God, humanity, Christ, the Holy Spirit, and salvation. This Bible School seminary style course is very popular for advanced ministry students. (Can be taken either before or after Theology II)
Theology II: Dr. David Feddes (4 credits)
Requirement for: Christian Leaders Diploma and all higher award levels
Ministry training must include understanding of sound doctrine. This course considers core biblical doctrines about Scripture, the church, and the future. This course is part 2 of the very popular in-depth theology class.
Preaching Methods: Rev. Steve Elzinga (3 credits)
Requirement (as an alternative to Sermon Construction and Presentation) for: Commissioned Pastor’s Diploma and all higher awards
This class aims to help you “fan into flame the gift of God” (2 Tim 1:6) in order to proclaim the Word faithfully and effectively. Areas of emphasis include: (1) blending accurate biblical interpretation with contemporary relevance; (2) preaching as an overflow of personal holiness; (3) sharpening communication skills; and (4) integrating weekly preaching at church with daily Bible reading by the congregation at home. This is a ministry training class that will enhance your ministry. This course also gives some basic instruction on worship issues as well. This will be a fun class in your Bible School journey with us.
Sermon Construction and Presentation: Rev. Henry Reyenga ( 4 Credits)
Requirement (as an alternative to Preaching Methods) for: Commissioned Pastor’s Diploma and all higher awards
This preaching class will strengthen your preaching as you learn basics of communication, study how to prepare and preach sermons, and watch a variety of preachers and teachers in action. You will access teaching from preachers and communicators from all over the world. You will do two messages in this course. The course is will also meet preaching core requirements.
Hermeneutics and Exegesis: Dr. David Feddes, Dr. Jeff Weima, and Dr. David Graves (3 credits)
Requirement for: Commissioned Pastor’s Diploma and all higher awards
How to interpret the Bible is an advanced part of your ministry training. This Bible School course deals with key issues in how to interpret the Bible. Students learn steps for studying a passage and practice using various study tools, including computer software, to become more skilled in understanding biblical passages and preparing sermons.
Christian Ethics: Dr. David Feddes (3 Credits)
Requirement for: Diploma of Ministry and all higher awards
This Bible School course focuses on living according to God’s pattern for you. You will study biblical commands and their wise application to various life situations. You will expose demonic strategies of temptation and learn about spiritual warfare. You will seek ways to express the Christ-life within you by the power and guidance of the Holy Spirit. You will find this Bible School class important for how you live and lead as a ministry leader.
Christian Apologetics: Dr. Voddie Baucham and Dr. David Feddes (3 credits)
Requirement for: Diploma of Ministry and all higher awards
This Bible School seminary style course is designed to introduce students to basic issues in apologetics (defending and contending for the faith). The course will emphasize Biblical Worldview and Cultural Apologetics, the application of apologetics to contemporary cultural issues.
Biblical Greek I: Dr. David Feddes (4 credits)
Requirement for: Diploma of Divinity
Only available 1st Semester
(Outside Book Needed) This is the first in a sequence of three courses on the basics of New Testament Greek. This course takes your ministry training deeper as you study the original language the New Testament was written in. These Greek classes are Bible School gems!
Biblical Greek II: Dr. David Feddes (4 credits)
Requirement for: Diploma of Divinity
Only available 2nd semester
Prerequisite: Biblical Greek I
(Outside Book Needed) This is the second in a sequence of three courses on the basics of New Testament Greek. This course takes your ministry training deeper as you study the original language the New Testament was written in.
Biblical Greek III Dr. David Feddes (4 credits)
Requirement for: Diploma of Divinity
Only available 3rd semester
Prerequisite: Biblical Greek II
(Outside Book Needed) This is the third in a sequence of three courses on the basics of New Testament Greek. When you make it this far in your Biblical Greek expertise, you will be able to read the New Testament in Greek. This would be beneficial in your ministry training. When you make it through Greek 3, you demonstrate a high level of academic excellence.
Missions and Revivals: Dr. Bruce Ballast and Dr. David Feddes (4 credits)
Elective Credit
In this way the word of the Lord spread widely and grew in power. (Acts 19:20) This class looks at mighty things the Holy Spirit has done at various times and places, causing the church to grow in holiness, power, and numbers. By examining major mission advances and revivals, we gain insights for mission and revival in our own time and place. This class will examine the gospel cultivation cycle to give insights in how to spread the growth of Christianity everywhere. You will see how important your Bible School training is for sustainable revival.
Personal and Family Godliness Rev. Joel Miller (3 credits)
Elective Credit
An important part of your Bible School seminary style ministry training is having a walk with God that is worth reproducing and a family life that is worth multiplying.
Church Planting Rev. Steve Elzinga, Rev. Henry Reyenga Jr., Dr. Ron VandeGriend and Mr. Rich DeVos (3 credit)
Elective Credit
This course helps gives you the principles of church planting. Church planting begins with the church planted in you own life, marriage, and family. This course looks at the intentional efforts necessary to plant reproducible and sustainable churches. This Bible School seminary style class will actually help you plant a new church.
Challenges in Counseling Dr. Drew Brown (3 credits)
Elective Credit
This Bible School course’s approach to counseling blends Scripture and the soul. Starting with issues of self-discovery for the counselor himself, the course then offers a model of counseling which combines “soul care” and “spiritual direction”. Finally, we will examine how to approach some common and difficult problems in the lives of people who seek pastoral counseling: alcoholism, depression, pornography, parent-child conflict, doubt, and more. For those who are studying advanced ministry training this will be a fine addition in your course selection
Missiology Dr. David Feddes (3 credit)
Elective Credit
(Outside books required) This ministry training course takes you into advanced missiology. This seminary style class studies the culture of missions as the gospel is proclaimed throughout the world
C. S Lewis and His Influence Dr. David Feddes (elective) 3 credits
Elective Credit
This ministry training course advances your knowledge of one of the great thinkers in Christian tradition. Get ready to be challenged. This is not a traditional Bible School Class, but you will deepen your appreciation of God and His Word.
Evangelism: Presenting Grace: Ren Broekhuizen and Dr. Ed Roels
Elective Credit
This class looks at mighty things the Holy Spirit does in the thought, work, and practice of presenting God’s grace to others through evangelism. Each week provides practical guidance for witnessing and biblical teaching about grace.