Video Transcript: Thoughts from Dr. Roels about Christian Basics

Thoughts from Dr. Roels about Christian Basics (Video 2)

Dr. David Feddes  

I'm David Feddes the provost of Christian leaders Institute and I'm here with Dr. Edwin Roels, the author of the Christian basics curriculum that we're using in a particular course titled Christian basics. Welcome Dr Roels.

Dr. Edwin Roels  

Thank you very much. It's a delight for me to be here.

Dr. David Feddes  

We are excited about the Christian basics course and we are so thankful that you're willing to share that with our students at Christian leaders Institute. There's a kind of an interesting history behind how you wrote the Christian basics book that we're using in the course was you tell us just a little bit about how that came to be.

Dr. Edwin Roels  

Yeah, you know, David I had written what I would call it the precursor of this course. Long time ago, I was ministering to people in Africa. And, you know this course of simple Christian basics covered the field and I thought, you know, might be helpful for them, and the organization I was with at the time said you know we want to translate this into various other languages, because we think it's simple but direct and helpful and biblically based. So, a couple of years ago when I was serving in India, a group there had been blessed by God in a marvelous way and in 1000s of baptisms, for people who had come from Hinduism or other backgrounds, but they knew very little about the Bible and so the director of the organization said, could you prepare something that might make it possible for people in a systematic, but simple way of understanding what the Bible says. So, I went back to that previous course that I had written, it really wasn't a course then just some teachings, and I thought this might be a good foundation. So, he asked me if I could possibly prepare something for their people who really didn't know much about Jesus, or the Bible of the Christian history or the Christian doctrines. And so, I said you know I think I can build on what I'd done before, And I started that, but this time I added a lot more scriptures. And I also added questions and the kind of thing that I thought maybe this would be helpful for people who don't really understand what Christianity all is about. So, we started out, the first chapter in the Bible, why is the Bible, considered such an important book. We work off that to saying now what does the Bible teach, and again with some simple truths to people who've always been in the church and known Jesus for a long time, but if they didn't. Here was an attempt to make a systematic approach to the fundamental teachings of the scriptures, and to put them in a way that they could be used by many organizations, because there are many Christians who don't agree on everything in the Bible. So, it's not written from the point trying to push this or that specific church, or that specific doctrine, but I think it's the kind of thing that gives somebody an overall view of what the Bible is teaching in a practical way systematically and founded solidly in what the Scriptures teach. so that it's not just well here's an idea that this church has, but it grows out of what Jesus said what the Bible says, what God teaches in His Word. And that's what this course is all about.

Dr. David Feddes  

Yeah, well that's what we call sometimes the historic Christian faith what the Bible has always taught and what most Christians most of the time have heard the Bible saying you're not trying to pick out the, the one thing Christians have disagreed or bickered about, you want to first of all just get across. Once Christianity what just not all Christians have heard the Bible saying right throughout the centuries,

Dr. Edwin Roels  

and I know that for some people, this would be a very elementary course, because it's basic it's fundamental they know the fundamentals. And yet, even for these people to be able to share with those who don't know Christ, who haven't had the Bible in their history very much to be able to say hey, here's one possible way of going through the Scriptures, trying to understand it, apply it to your life and to share it with others.

Dr. David Feddes  

Well, I obviously agree with you that it's worth studying not just by person who is not yet a Christian or a brand-new Christian but a longtime believer because some longtime believers say well, I know that my answer will be, well, can you show me where in the Bible, you've got that idea from, and then it's worth taking this course because it'll show you some places in the Bible. There are others who perhaps you may know how to explain things at a very high and complex level but have never mastered the art of simplicity, you're a person with a doctorate degree, and have been president of a Bible college and you're trying to explain things at a very simple, basic level for new believers or non-believers in India and Africa initially. So, there is tremendous value in having somebody who knows his stuff, and yet is trying to be very clear, and basic and presenting it.

Dr. Edwin Roels  

Well thank you that's a wonderful way of putting it, and that's what we've tried to do.

Dr. David Feddes  

Well, I'm very grateful, Dr Roels, and, you know, again, just a reminder to students. This is not prepared just for people in one locale or another it started out with a ministry in Africa. of a god it's kind of. Second version while working on communicating the Bible to people in India, and I find it works pretty well for people here in North America as well. So, thanks so much.