What is Christian Living University?
Based in the principles offered through God’s Word, this ongoing curriculum of Spiritual Growth classes seeks to build and strengthen our Christian faith. Developed by the Mebane Presbyterian Church family, this curriculum provides a deliberate approach to identifying and fulfilling our needs as Christians individually and as the body of Christ. The Christian Living University is open to all who seek the comforting arms of Jesus Christ and learn his everlasting message of Love, Faith and Hope. There are four areas of Christian Living. They are:
Foundations Studying the Bible, and biblically-founded subjects, is essential to spiritual growth. We need this discipline to build our knowledge and understanding of the Word.
Sharing God Developing the skills and disciplines that will enable us to effectively minister to others and share the Gospel. Demonstrating Christ’s love and witnessing our faith is an essential part of being a disciple.
Living Strong Learning to live in His Spirit according to His Word in all areas of our lives. Discover how to be good stewards of our time, talents and treasures, and to live life free of the pressures that burden our souls. These disciplines strive to bring Christ’s presence into our everyday lives.
Walking Together Enabling us to live in harmony with family, church family, coworkers, and the community. The formula to understand the complexities of our social networks.
COME TO SUNDAY SCHOOL AT 9:45!
Adult Sunday School Classes
Men’s Fellowship Class: "Crazy Love Overwhelmed by a Relentless God"Topical Study (Main building lower level) Is there an answer to religious complacency? Surely being a Christian is more than going to church once or twice a week, singing songs and trying not to cuss. Francis Chan, in his book “Crazy Love - Overwhelmed by a Relentless God”, suggests the answer is not working harder or doing more as a Christian but really falling in love with God. The greatest commandment is to “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. And the second is like it: “Love your neighbor as yourself.” (Matt.22:37-40) Loving God wholly will change us and the way we relate to others. We all believe in God but do we really love Him? Giving to the needy at Christmas or after a disaster is the Christian thing to do; it’s expected of us. But sacrificing your own comfort and welfare for another out of your love for God is another story. Come study “Crazy Love” with the men!
Cornerstone Class: Psalms (Baker Building-Corner Room) We will study the book of Psalms during the months of June, July and August, using a teaching guide developed by Mark A. Copeland who is a Gospel preacher and Bible teacher in Florida. The classes will include readings, PowerPoint and video. Bob Graham and one or two others will lead each class. Unlike our study of Isaiah, Psalms will be "easier". Our Isaiah study, while valuable, often took us deep into "seminary level" theological discussions that many of us were not prepared for. Mark Copeland summarizes our study of Psalms thusly:
As Christians, we are commanded to utilize the Psalms. The Psalms are useful for singing praises to God, teaching and confirming that Jesus is the Christ or Messiah. It has been said that in the Psalms one finds "expressed the eager yearning and longing for God's presence." It certainly contains "prayers and songs of joyous trust and praise."
Indeed, every emotion known to man is expressed in beautiful and inspired terms (e.g.,
joy, anger, praise, repentance, trust, even doubt).
Are you filled with some emotion for which you cannot find the words to express it? It is
likely you will find it expressed in the book of Psalms!
THE AIM OF THIS STUDY
As we study the book of Psalms we will accomplish the following goals: Become more familiar with Old Testament poetry - This is essential to getting more out the Psalms, and important if we are to avoid misinterpreting them.
Develop an appreciation and working knowledge of the Psalms - So one may utilize them for his or her own comfort and encouragement, and in counseling and comforting others.
Glean a clearer picture of God's character - To better understand His love, mercy and deliverance towards the righteous, but also His wrath and judgment against the wicked.
Learn more of the Christ in prophecy - To note descriptions of His suffering and glorious
reign found in the Psalms, some of which are not found elsewhere in Scripture.
Consider examples of fulfilled prophecies - To see in fulfilled prophecy irrefutable arguments for the inspiration of the Scriptures, and for the claim that Jesus of Nazareth is the Messiah.
These are just a few of the reasons why the Book of Psalms should be read and studied by every Christian, and hopefully this study will help to meet these objectives. I would therefore suggest that the Psalms are capable of serving as:
The Christian's "hymnal" to assist us in our praise to God.
The Christian's "prayer book" *in which we learn how to approach God in prayer.
The Christian's "book of evidences" to strengthen our faith in Jesus Christ.
The Christian's "training guide" for living holy and righteous lives before God.
Maranatha Class: Hope Again (Baker Building-Parlor) When life hurts and dreams
fade Jesus renamed Peter “the rock” – a name befitting his bold character. He was
referred to as “the first” among the twelve disciples, and was the man God used to pen
the dynamic epistle that we know today as 1 Peter. He is a person we can definitely
relate to today. He tasted the extreme highs and lows of life – from days spent in blessed fellowship with Christ to the heart-wrenching test of loyalty when he denied his Lord three times in the temple courtyard.
This study in 1 Peter unites the timeless words of the apostle Peter and the wisdom of
Charles Swindoll to bring us hope even in the midst of the most challenging trials.
What is hope? What is our hope? Jesus Christ in his great mercy has given us a new
birth into a living hope. How does that relate to us today when we go through times of
suffering, temptation, guilt, unfairness, bitterness….?
· When the worries of life and uncertainties of the future drain our joy, we can have
hope ·
When we struggle with temptation and stand against Satan’s attacks, we can
have hope
· When life just isn’t fair and we suffer injustice at the hands of others, we can
have hope
· When our marriage or family life appears to be unraveling, we can have hope.
Women’s Classes: The Present Word (Main building lower level) The International
Sunday School Lessons for the summer quarter explore Joshua, Judges and Ruth.
Lesson topics for the month of June cover the Israelites entering the land God promised
them under the leadership of Joshua, the land of Canaan. The Israelites learned to live
in community and enjoyed many victories as they obeyed God. That obedience was
learned only by exercising faith and courage. They learned that God keeps His promises, expects obedience, protects His people, gives victory and responds to disobedience.
Small Groups and Bible Studies
GriefShare: The GriefShare Class meets each Monday June 6th - August 29th at 7:00pm in the Baker Building Historical Room (B1). Registration fee is $15 (scholarship available).
The weekly video seminar features some of the nation's foremost experts on grief recovery topics. The group is for people grieving the death of loved ones such as children, grandchildren, spouses, siblings, parents, grandparents and friends Each meeting has a grief support group discussion to allow participants to talk about the content of the video and how it applies to them.
GriefShare video sessions:
1. Living with grief
2. The journey of grief
3. The effects of grief
4. When your spouse dies
5. Your family and grief
6. Why?
7. The uniqueness of grief, Pt 1
8. The uniqueness of grief, Pt 2
9. God's prescription for grief
10. Stuck in grief
11. Top 20 lessons of grief, Pt 1
12. Top 20 lessons of grief, Pt 2
13. Heaven
The Alpha Course: is a video based course designed to answer questions about the
Christian faith in an informal setting. It is taught by Nicky Gumbel who is a pastor in the
Anglican Church and a former lawyer. The following questions are addressed in the 14
session series.
Christianity: Boring, Untrue, & Irrelevant?
Who is Jesus?
Why Did Jesus Die?
How Can I Be Sure of My Faith?
Why and How Should I Read the Bible?
Why and How Do I Pray?
How Does God Guide Us?
Who Is the Holy Spirit?
What Does the Holy Spirit Do?
How Can I Be Filled with the Spirit?
How Can I Resist Evil?
Why and How Should I Tell Others?
Does God Heal Today?
What About the Church?
How Can I Make the Most of the Rest of My Life?
Alpha Classes will be on Sunday night from June 5th - Sept. 4th at 7:00 at the Manse 619 S. Fifth Street.
Blue Like Jazz: High School Grads & College Students located in the sanctuary building, Pastor Jeff’s Office. Remember those crowded days of confirmation class in Pastor Jeff’s office? Well, the second phase of this class is going to be offered this summer beginning June the 5th, and yes, it will once again be held in Pastor Jeff’s office (at least to start with!) during the Sunday School hour. It will be open to all who are college age, and will address questions and experiences of young adults seeking to apply their faith to their life. The book, Blue Like Jazz by Donald Miller, will be the spring board for discussions.