Introduction To AusAmerica Ministries And The Net Bible Institute

Understanding The Christian Faith

(Version 1.0)

Welcome to the global classroom and to the study of the Bible with the Net Bible Institute! (NBI)

NBI is the work of AusAmerica Ministries. AusAmerica, which stands for Australia/America, is a non-profit Christian organization with the goal of reaching the entire world with sensible Christianity. We believe that the Christian faith is both reasonable and intelligent and that a person can and should use their mind when studying the Bible – God’s Holy Word.

With this in mind we have created the Net Bible Institute.

Our Vision For NBI

Our vision is that anyone, anywhere, should be able to freely and thoroughly study what the historic Christian faith stands for. Since we live in an age where technology has made it possible to reach the entire world, we want to use this technology to teach the Word of God to all those who are interested in learning what it says. We wish make available, free of charge, the main teachings of the Christian faith to everyone.

Understanding The Christian Faith

Our entire series of courses is called “Understanding the Christian Faith.” It is our desire for people to have a thorough comprehension of what historic Christianity believes and stands for. When completed, it will consist of five different series of courses: Series 1 – What Christians Believe, Series 2 – A Look At God’s Plan Of The Ages, Series 3            – Why Christians Believe, Series 4 – What’s The Difference? (Christianity And Other Beliefs), Series 5 – Answers To Bible Difficulties.

Our Intended Audience

We have written these courses for anyone who wishes to study the beliefs and practices of the Christian faith. We have not written our courses for Bible scholars. 

We have purposefully designed our courses so that everyone can benefit from them. Non-Christians can benefit from the courses because they provide an explanation of what Christians believe about the major teachings of the faith.

As far as Christians are concerned, the courses are written to allow anyone to study and learn from them; no matter what their biblical training may be. This includes those who are just beginning to study the Bible as well as those who are pastors and Bible teachers.

How To Use The Material In This CD

We have designed the material in this CD in such a way that it can be studied on a number of different levels. The material is divided three ways: by question, by topic, and by course.
 

In this CD, we have answered over 1,100 individual questions. The questions have been placed into 62 separate topics. The topics are listed under ten different courses. The Bible, God, Jesus Christ, The Holy Spirit, The Unseen World, The Afterlife, Christian Living, The Bible And Science, Answering Bible Difficulties: Genesis And Science, and Answering Bible Difficulties: Genesis 1-11).

While each question, topic, and course has been written in a logical order, it is not necessary for the student to study the material in this order.

Each question, topic, and course is self-contained. This means a particular question can be studied on its own without reference to the preceding or following question. In addition, a particular topic can be studied by itself without assuming other topics have been studied. Also an entire course can be studied without assuming the previous courses have been studied.

Consequently a student, or study group, can go from question to question to find answers to issues that are of a particular interest. Or a student, or a group study, can choose any one of the 56 separate topics and do a complete study on that particular topic. Finally there is the possibility of going through an entire course from beginning to end.

How the material is studied depends upon the desires and needs of the person or persons studying.

We have five other courses that are not written in question and answer format.  These include: The Case for Christianity, Ten Reasons To Trust The Bible, The Jews, Jerusalem And The Next Temple, In Search Of The Lost Ark: The Quest For The Ark Of The Covenant, and a commentary and translation of The Book of Matthew. They have been written in the traditional way and need to be studied from beginning to end.

This makes a total of 15 separate courses, with over 4,400 pages of material, which are available for study on this CD Rom. 

The Material Is Designed For Individual Or Group Study

The material is written for either self-study or group study. The individual questions, topics, and courses are written in such a way that one can complete them on their own without the help of anyone else.

The courses are also designed for use in some type of group setting. The individual topics have been written for groups who want to fully study a particular subject. An individual topic can be separately printed out and used as a textbook for those doing the study.

The Headings Are Written For Power Point Presentations

All of the headings under the questions are written as complete thoughts. This allows for a power-point presentation as well as other ways to logically teach through each question.

Printing Out The Material

Each of the 15 courses, as well as the introduction to series one, is in PDF (portable document format) and can be printed out. One may wish to print out an individual question, an entire topic, or a complete course.

Very Important Note:  To have the pages numbering the same as in the textbook you must set your printer to 8 ½ x 11 when you print out the page. If your paper is A4 size this will not cause a problem.

The text has been written to be printed out on either an 8 ½ x 11 or an A4 page – it will fit on either size of paper. However it you set your printer to print A 4 the page breaks will be wrong! 

Therefore, particularly for those living outside the USA, make sure the printer is set to 8 ½ x 11 when printing out any pages.

Our Perspective On The Bible And God

It is necessary to briefly explain our particular perspectives on the Bible and on the Person of God. We come from an evangelical Protestant point of view. We believe the Bible is the inerrant Word of God - the Scripture is true on whatever subject it speaks. It alone is the final authority on all matters of faith and practice. In addition, the God of the Bible is the only God who exits. He is the Creator and Sustainer of all things. It is possible to have a personal relationship with God but this can only occur through His Son, Jesus Christ.

The Scripture References

We have attempted to cite relevant Scriptures to substantiate the points that we make. We have not used any one Bible translation but rather have done our own translation of the biblical text. Sometimes we will translate a verse a little differently than we have previously translated it. This is to emphasize that the same thing can be said in a number of different ways (as can be seen in the various translations that are available). The student should compare our translation with a number of different English translations.

Each English-speaking student should own at least three different translations in doing their own study of God’s Word. We recommend The New International Version, The New English Translation (NET Bible), The New American Standard Bible, The New Living Translation and The New King James Version.

These translations should be read and compared with each other in order to gain a better understanding of what God’s Word says.

How We Deal With Difficult Issues

Christians are united on more issues than they are divided. However there are a number of issues that have divided Bible-believing Christians. When it comes to issues that have caused division, our way of dealing with them is as follows. First, we explain exactly what the particular issue is and the various solutions that Bible-believing Christians have come up with. Then we present the best possible case for the various sides. This way the student can evaluate the arguments and personally decide which ones fit the facts. There are some issues where there simply is not enough information to make a final judgment.

On the key issues of the faith we have made the historic Christian position clear. We will point out false doctrine that contradicts the clear biblical teaching on the central beliefs of Christianity. For example, when it comes to the Person and work of Jesus Christ there is no room for compromise. He is God the Son, the Second Person of the Holy Trinity. Any other viewpoint is in error.

However on secondary issues, where good Christians can have legitimate differences, we have given each side the best possible explanation that we could find. If we have not fairly represented a particular viewpoint, or have left out any strong argument that favors a particular solution, please let us know and we will correct the oversight. It is our intention to give the fairest possible presentation of the issues.

Our goal is to present an overall view of Christian beliefs that is fair and balanced. There is no intention of dictating what others should believe. 

In addition, we should disagree agreeably with those who hold a different perspective than us on these difficult issues. Let us never forget the possibility that they may be right and we may be wrong!

There Is The Desire Expose The Student To Different Christian Viewpoints

We also want to expose the student to a number of different viewpoints that are held by Bible-believing Christians. This will help the student understand and appreciate what other Christians believe as well as why they believe. In addition, there is a chance to examine and clarify ones own personal understanding of what the Scripture says. Any conclusions that are to be drawn about Christian truth should only come from a study of the Bible alone. There should be no textbook, teacher, or tradition that takes the place of the authoritative Word of God. 

Summaries

At the end of each question we summarize how we have answered that question. At the end of each topic of a particular course the summaries for that topic are all listed in order. We believe this sort of repetition will aid the student in better learning the material.

Tests

At the end of each topic there is a test that the student may take. At the end of each course there is a final exam that is offered. The tests are only available on our website. To be able to take these tests, it is necessary for the student to first register with the Net Bible Institute at www.nbible.org. Registration is free as are all the materials on the site. We never charge for anything and all personal information is kept private and confidential – we never share your information with anyone.

Once registered the student may enroll in as many courses as they desire. When the student is ready to take the test it is only necessary to go to the particular topic and click on “take test.” The test will be graded instantly on the website.

Grades

It is possible for those who have taken the tests to track how they are doing. There will be a running total kept for the tests that have been completed. Each student will be able to see how he or she has done on previous tests. When the student completes all the tests for a particular course and the final exam, a letter grade will be given for that course. Again, all of this can only be done through our website.

Certificate Of Completion

Once a person has completed an entire series of courses, such as series one “What Christians Believe” and has taken all the tests and passed them, we will issue that student a certificate of completion from the Net Bible Institute.

Accreditation

We are constantly asked if our school has any formal accreditation. The answer is no. Ours is a unique institution that attempts to provide the student with a wealth of information concerning the beliefs and practices of the Christian faith. While we believe the material in the courses is comparable to that which is offered in Bible schools it is not our vision to create an accredited institution.
 

Updates And Corrections

We understand that in a work of this size there will be some things that need updating or correcting. When these come to our attention they will be placed immediately on our website (www.nbible.org). Future versions of the courses on CD Rom will have these corrections. We would appreciate any help that can be given in making certain that all of our material is correctly stated. Thanks.

Putting The Beliefs Into Practice

These topics and courses are written as an educational tool to allow people to better understand the Christian faith. It is our goal that students will not only have a clearer picture of what Christianity stands for, but, more important, will have a deeper personal relationship with the eternal God who has revealed Himself to humanity through His Holy Word, and through His Son, Jesus Christ. Therefore this course of study will be practical as well as educational.

When one finishes, and masters, the entire course of study, they will not only know many of the basic truths about what Christians believe, they will also know how to put these beliefs into practice. This is our desired goal for each student.

One Final Word – We Need Your Help To Keep This Ministry Going

We trust that the material found in this CD will be a blessing to you. It is our desire to get this study material to as many people as possible. While we do this free of charge we need your help to continue. We are not supported by any church or organization. Our support is derived solely from the freewill giving of those who believe in this ministry. AusAmerica Ministries is registered in California as a 501C3 non-profit organization. All gifts to it are tax deductible. If you would like to invest in this ministry it would be much appreciated.  

Our address is:

AusAmerica Ministries

Box 15

Murrieta, Californian 92564

USA

Thank you.

May God bless you in your study of His Word.

Reaching the world with sensible Christianity,

AusAmerica Ministries