Bible School
Shalom Bible School will develop Christian workers to impact Cambodians (both Khmer and Tribal people groups) east of the Mekong and beyond with the Good News of Jesus Christ. It will prepare men and women to minister according to Bible teaching, both in how they spread and present the Gospel and in how they plant and serve in churches.Rom 10:14-15a, How then can they call on someone they have not believed in? And how can they believe in someone they have never heard of? And how will they hear without a preacher? And how can they preach unless they are sent ?
The Number One Challenge to the Cambodian Church is to ensure that every one of its 16.3 million people hears the Gospel.
Although there are now over 300,000 who name Christ as their Savior, we know it could be much more if there were more workers reaching out to them, and then caring for them in the churches.
Jesus Christ told his disciples:
“Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.” Matt 9:38
Why a Bible School?
SBS is committed to continue what Jesus began; to train workers in a faith filled environment and send them into God’s harvest field, to take the Gospel of salvation to the lost, to serve and lead those in the Church and to train believers to serve Jesus Christ themselves
Biblical Reasons for a Bible School
1. Jesus, the Apostles and Paul taught and trained their disciples to spread and teach the gospel
- Jesus – Matt 5:1-2 Seeing the crowds, he went up on the mountain, and when he sat down, his disciples came to him.
And he opened his mouth and taught them…..
Matt 13:11 he answered his disciples, “To you it has been given to know the secrets of the kingdom of heaven.
Luke 24:45-47 he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, and said to them, “Thus it is written, that
the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead…….”
Matt 28:18-20 All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all
nations, baptizing them…., teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you…. - The Apostles – Acts 5:42 Every day, …. they did not cease teaching and preaching Jesus as the Christ.
Acts 11:21,25-26 they sent Barnabas to Antioch. Barnabas went to Tarsus to look for Saul … for a whole year they met with the church and taught many people. - Paul – Acts 18:11, Paul stayed a year and six months teaching the word of God among (the Corinthians)
Acts 19:9b-10, Paul took the (Ephesian) disciples with him, reasoning daily in the hall of Tyrannus.…for two
years, so that all the residents of Asia heard the word of the Lord….
2. There is a great need to prepare more men and women of God who know, live and teach the Word of God to help the Church to grow and be healthy
- Acts 18:26, Apollos began to speak boldly in the synagogue, but when Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they
took him aside and explained to him the way of God more accurately. - Eph 4:11-12, These are the gifts Christ gave to the church: the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors
and teachers. Their responsibility is to equip God’s people to do his work and build up the church, the body of Christ. - 2 Tim 2:2 What you (Timothy) have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men
who will be able to teach others also.
3. There is a great need for more people to shepherd the flock of God who are motivated
by faith and love for God and his people, not financial rewards or status
- Matt 9:35-38, When Jesus saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless,
like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few;
therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.” - John 21:17 He said to him the third time, “Simon, son of John, do you love me?” Peter was grieved because he said to
him the third time, “Do you love me?” and he said to him, “Lord, you know everything; you know that I love you.” Jesus
said to him, “Feed my sheep.
How Will This Bible School Be Different?
Firstly – this will be the first Bible School in Mondulkiri. It will provide teaching and training in the students home area. This is important for several reasons.
1. It will enable students to remain in their home area and connected to their home church, instead of leaving for Phnom Penh and perhaps never returning.
Secondly – there is a need to train ministers in a biblical and practical way. Jesus’ way of training his disciples was by teaching, example and experience. They listened to Jesus, they watched him, they were sent to do the same work of the kingdom, they reported back and received further instruction. And after he had ascended to heaven they did the work! This is how Jesus gave them the understanding and confidence they needed to reach and communicate the gospel to their fellow countrymen. We want to provide the same for Cambodian believers.
Jesus Did This
Mark 3:13-15 And he went up on the mountain and called to him those whom he desired, and they came to him, and he appointed twelve (whom he also named apostles) so that they might be with him and he might send them out to preach and have authority to cast out demons.
Luke 9:2, 10 And He sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to perform healing……… When the apostles returned, they gave an account to Him of all that they had done.
Mark 16: 15, 17-18 And he said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation. And these signs will accompany those who believe: in my name they will cast out demons; they will speak in new tongues; they will pick up serpents with their hands; and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not hurt them; they will lay their hands on the sick, and they will recover.”
Paul Followed Jesus' Example
Project Description
3 years ago Shalom School of Ministries was launched. It brought pastors into Phnom Penh three times a year to give them ministry training. However, we knew many pastors and workers, who are faithfully serving the Lord, who needed more foundational teaching and who could not afford the expense or time to come to Phnom Penh.
So, while continuing the School of Ministries, we created our Building a Foundation for Faith workshops, which give sound and relevant biblical teaching and promote stronger faith in men and women who have not had the opportunity to receive much training in ministry and Bible study.
There are two exciting features of this program;
- Instead of bringing workers into Phnom Penh we go to them – to train and equip them to meet their local ministry challenges. The advantages are; they don’t have to leave their families, they don’t waste time travelling, fellowship among local workers is strengthened and this method is more cost effective.
- We did not just promote Shalom Ministries – we were delighted when we were asked if other pastors, who often felt isolated and lacking in knowledge, could participate in this program. This training helps to equip more people to spread the Gospel so we gladly included them as well.
We now propose to take the best features of these two programs to provide a comprehensive curriculum of Bible and ministry training designed to meet the needs of workers who serve the different peoples of Cambodia. We particularly will focus on people in rural and tribal areas, who have often received little formal education and experience poverty, ill health, injustice and marginalization.
Their needs are very different to those of the average theology student preparing for a life in professional ministry in a developed country. They certainly need a different program of learning compared to academically based teaching that often addresses issues that the average Cambodian pastor will never encounter.
The average Cambodian’s world-view is a confusing mixture of Buddhist, Hindu and animistic beliefs which generate fear, superstition or often apathy, as they try to survive by any means by themselves or by serving someone who can help them. Recent economic improvements have introduced many new things for people to crave and so a new materialism also drives people.
They need to hear of the God who created and loves them, who answers prayer and sets them free from their fears – a God who is relevant and understandable – who promises abundant life.
So now we plan to offer a 3 year training program based in the Shalom Dream Center, in Mondulkiri. This will consist of students from the 5 eastern provinces attending teaching modules at the Bible School alternating with periods in their home church, where they will carry out set activities which will then be reviewed when they return to school.
Curriculum
Foundational – Serving God and dealing with common misconceptions about ministry
Service
- Why and How we serve – calling and motivation to minister as servants not lords
- When, Where and Who we serve – full or part-time, inside and outside church, the saved and the lost
Leadership and Responsibility
- Who leads the church – Jesus said “I will build my church”
- What is responsibility for the church – fathers not managers, care not status
- Church roles – elders, servants and members – how they give support within the body
Resources for Service
- Natural gifts and spiritual gifts – what they are and how they are identified and nurtured
- Maintaining the presence and power of the Spirit
- God’s provision for service – partners and finance
Bible Survey
- Knowing the Bible – Overview and key books
Doctrine
- What we believe about God, Man, the Church, the World, the Spiritual Realm– focusing on truth that sets us free from ignorance, deception, the past and the power of sin
Preaching and Interpreting the Bible
- Expository and Topical preaching – how to teach the scriptures
Christian Character
The transformation that Christ brings – the fruit of the Spirit and Christlikeness in Cambodians
Holy Spirit led Ministry
- Dependency on God for wisdom and power in ministry
Church Planting
- Biblical methods applied to Cambodia
Healthy Church Life
- The marks of a healthy church and how to develop them among believers – love, faith, unity, humility, encouragement, truthfulness and forgiveness
- Identifying and resisting ways that satan uses to damage and destroy a church
Evangelism and Apologetics
- How to win the lost to Christ – presenting the Gospel in culturally relevant ways
- Handling common Cambodian objections to the Bible and Christian teachings
Christian History
- Famous Believers and what we can learn from their example
Cambodia
- Understanding Cambodia’s History, Geography, People Groups, Religion, Spiritual and Social Issues – so we know why our nation is as it is and how we overcome its problems.
- Practical Service Training in the Home Church
- Identifying local opportunities to learn while serving
- Receiving Guidance, Criticism and Praise
- Evaluating our progress
Fellowship, Worship and Prayer will be part of the students experience at the school so they;
- understand better how they should be a part of their own daily lives
- are able to show others how to practice these
How Can You Help Us?
We already have a site for the Bible School building on land purchased for the Shalom Shalom Dream Center Project. The overall cost of the project is specified in the Budget Breakdown.
In keeping with the Shalom Dream Center aim of gaining maximum use from multi-purpose buildings the Bible School will share its building with the Retreat Center and Children’s Center.
We estimate the share of costs that should be allocated to the Bible School as follows:
Construction of the meeting/classroom building
Purchase of teaching publications already available in the Khmer language
Construction of a dormitory for students
Translation of teaching publications and notes from English into Khmer
Construction of accommodations for visiting teachers and ministers
Purchase of teaching materials and equipment
There will also be onging costs as follows:
Running costs for the premises (electricity, water, food) per month/per student
Transport per student/per month
We have a network of competent Bible teachers, both Khmer and ex-Patriate partners who will form the teaching staff but we are always looking for others who can add to the variety and depth of the teaching.
We would like to talk with experienced ministers of the Gospel – as seen in Eph 4:13; Apostles (Church Planters), Prophets (Preachers), Evangelists, Pastors and Teachers – who want to pass on their knowledge, experience and good practice to the next generation of God’s servants.
Visiting teachers will be very welcome – whether it is to come at regular intervals to cover parts of our curriculum, or whenever they are available to speak on their specialist subjects.
Cambodia is still a poor country and most Cambodians have just enough to survive, especially outside the cities. These are the ones to whom we are looking to bring the gospel. Therefore we will not train students to expect an obviously higher standard of living than those to whom they minister.
God provides enough to live in a way that glorifies him and we will provide an environment that covers their material needs but also challenges their faith & faithfulness.