A four-part series instructed by Don Blosser

November 9, 11, 16, 18.  Each session will begin at 7:00 pm and be one hour and fifteen minutes long.

Dr. Don Blosser: Presenter
Don Blosser comes from Eastern Ohio, a graduate of Goshen College, AMBS and the University of St. Andrews in Scotland with a PHD in New Testament. For 23 years he was on the faculty at Goshen College, teaching Bible and Conflict Mediation. Prior to that he served as pastor at Freeport, IL and in Akron, PA. He also gave leadership in starting Berkey Avenue Mennonite Fellowship, Goshen,IN. He also served as an interim pastor at First Mennonite in Berne, IN. After retiring from teaching Don gave leadership to the Oakwood Christian Leadership Academy in Syracuse IN.  He has written five books, the last three are Pastor & Professor: A Public Faith; Meeting Jesus, Common People, Uncommon Stories and The Good News According to Jesus. Don is married to Carolyn Brooks, and they have 5 children and 7 grandchildren.

Session 1: The Good News as Taught by Jesus.
Jesus is the central figure in the Christian message of God’s Salvation. Yet Christians are not of one mind on exactly what that message is. We will let Jesus speak for himself as we focus on New Testament texts that report how Jesus himself talked about his mission as Messiah. How did the very earliest Christians remember the message & person of Jesus? Should the message of the church match the message taught by Jesus?

Session 2: How Do We Understand the Death of Jesus?
The earthly life of Jesus ended with his death on the cross. Was his death a divine act planned by God in order to save a rebellious people? Or was it the political/religious result of Jesus being fully faithful to His relationship with God in what he taught and what he did? We will look as best we can at how Jesus experienced that horrible event that ended his life.

Session 3: Paul and the Resurrection Story.
Paul was the first theological teacher in the early church, and his theology shaped how Christians remembered, then shared, the Jesus message. We will look together at events that shaped Paul’s understanding of the salvation message taught by Jesus. We will look at the issues that the early church faced and how Paul helped to give meaning in these very early formative years.

Session 4: How Does the Jesus Message Shape the Church?
Can we create a church that is a living expression of the Jesus message? What would congregational mission look like? We will explore how the God message that was incarnate in Jesus reaches out with new life for all humanity. What would determine whether or not a church is growing?