by Mark Milioni
People often give me advice, good or bad. I was recently told, “Bible colleges are not needed. Send your students to a secular college and then train them for ministry in the local church.” I should add this came from someone who neither attended nor supports BBC.
I ponder all the advice that I am given, and this was no exception. Do we really need Bible colleges? Is there really a purpose for BBC and our friends in Boston and Shreveport? I determined that the answer was yes! I say this not for job security, but because of my experiences as a veteran pastor.
The local church is and should be a place where we receive instruction. We should be taught biblically regarding holiness, discipleship, Christian leadership, ministry, and service. But who will equip that pastor to teach these things? There is a great need for Bible colleges that teach and train leaders who are then able to teach and train the church.
The idea for setting aside a specific time to train for ministry is not new. Both the Old and New Testaments give examples of men being set apart for a time to train for what God had called them to do. The Apostle Paul spent three years in a time of intense education following his conversion. He was then able to teach and preach the gospel, win new converts, and start many churches. The time he spent learning how to “do ministry” was not wasted time, but time that gave him the ability to say boldly, “Be ye followers of me, even as I also am of Christ.”
There is no greater calling than the call to ministry. I am afraid we have downplayed the importance of what we do to the point that some have neglected the preparation necessary to do this task well. If being in ministry is such a high calling, then shouldn’t preparing for it be of the greatest priority? Who wants to go to a dentist who wasn’t properly trained or a meet with an oncologist who wasn’t taught by the best? Ministry is serious business — eternity hangs in the balance for people all over the world. That is why we need BBC.
BBC is here to train the next generation:
- In leadership, doctrine, and ministry preparation.
- In the doctrines of Bibliology, Christology, Pneumatology, Anthropology, Hamartiology, Soteriology, Ecclesiology, Eschatology, etc.
- To write books to help people understand and study the Scriptures.
- To stand in the pulpit and share the why of what we believe
- To grow spiritually and develop a heart to reach others for Christ.
BBC is not a replacement for the local church. We are simply a partner, a tool God has used to help teach and train thousands for local church ministry.
As always, thank you for your continued prayer and support. It is an honor to serve you at Baptist Bible College.