BACHELOR OF ARTS AND MASTER OF ARTS
Grow as a disciple of Christ while studying our Sovereign God and Sacred Book in an in-person degree program that accommodates the demands of work and family.
Spend the next four years relishing this great truth as you mine the treasures of the Bible in the company of a small band of brothers and sisters who desire, as you do, to grow as a disciple of Jesus Christ and refine your witness to those around you.
You will learn in an extraordinarily small school where a tightknit community of fellow students, professors, pastors, and church members shares a deep personal interest in your academic performance, spiritual growth, and equipping for gospel ministry in every sphere of life. But you won’t have to be a full-time student, at least in the sense that you won’t have to be on campus every day.
Still, you’ll be here in-person one evening a week where you will be challenged and pushed beyond your sense of your own abilities. You will cultivate a life-long learner’s habits of mind and heart as you are rigorously engaged to ensure that you are better able to stand firm and contend for the truth in the home, church, and world.
And you will leave here without a burden of student loan debt. Generous disciples of Christ affirm the quality of this “Education in Serious Joy” by providing a $10,000 annual scholarship to all students, so that you may launch into ministry without debt immediately upon graduation.
This education is rooted in the Scriptures. You will be equipped with the tools necessary to study God’s word in the original languages, in conversation with the best theological minds God has given the church throughout the ages. We are not content to merely instruct your mind. We also want to awaken your affections leading you to exclaim, “O how I love your law!”
The program is a very demanding one. It represents no escape from hard work and academic responsibility. You will more than likely read more than you have ever read in your life. Your conversations will be deeper, more substantive, and more searching than any you have ever shared. You will be forced to think about why you believe what you believe and made better able to write and speak your opinions with clarity, conviction, and grace.
Arcing is a Bible study method that will help you to see how every single proposition in a passage fits together to support the main point of the text. The BibleArc app that you will use was developed by a Bethlehem College and Seminary student and is today used and recommended by serious Bible scholars throughout the world.
Romans 3:21-26
ESV
15 I am eager to preach the gospel to you also who are in Rome.
16a For I am not ashamed of the gospel,
16b for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes,
16c that is, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.
17a For in it the righteousness of God is revealed from faith for faith,
17b as it is written, "The righteous shall live by faith."
You are already committed to a vocational assignment, obligations to family, or even pastoral ministry that preclude your being able to navigate a schedule of daytime classes 9 to 5. But that doesn’t mean that you aren’t able to drink from the fountain of Bethlehem’s Bible-saturated, academically rigorous, “Education in Serious Joy.”
Perhaps you started a college education once, then life happened and you weren’t able to complete your degree. Here’s your opportunity to finish that degree, not only with newfound purpose, but with the flexibility to accommodate your work and family commitments.
Or maybe you are already well-degreed, even well-credentialed and content in your vocational field of choice, but lack the equipment to be more influential among “the priesthood of all believers.” This is your chance to gain mastery, from masterful professors, humbly submitted to the master of all.
Bethlehem Evening Degree students grow as a disciple of Christ while studying our Sovereign God and Sacred Book in an in-person degree program that accommodates the demands of work and family.
Christian Hedonism Students become Godenthralled men and women who gladly embrace the truth that God is most glorified in them when they are most satisfied in Him by mining the treasures of the Bible and considering the wisdom of the Christian tradition.
Intentionally Small Students learn in a tight-knit community of students, teachers, pastors, and church members who share a deep personal interest in both the students’ academic performance and spiritual growth.
Church-Based Students study in the context of a globally-minded church in the midst of a multi-ethnic urban center with significant opportunities for equipping and ministry.
In-Person, Not Online
Students enjoy the best of in-person instruction with the convenience of on-line education, without being online. One in-person class session a week is married to a manageable program of reading and reflection, all leading to a degree that will be well-earned, respected, and by God’s grace serve to yield abundant fruitfulness.
Debt-Free
A committed community of generous contributors demonstrate their confidence in our education by ensuring that every resident student receives a Serious Joy Scholarship that enables them to be equipped for a more intentional, personal Christian ministry without the burden of student loan debt.
The Bachelor of Arts in Theological Studies is designed to help working adults complete a once-started but unfinished undergraduate education by transferring as much previously earned academic credit as possible and then focusing the remaining degree work on biblical theology and Christian discipleship. The tuition rate for 2023–2024 is $235/credit.
The Graduate Certificate in Theological Studies equips working adults with a strong grasp of the Bible’s unfolding storyline and a robust foundation in God-centered reformed theology. The tuition rate for 2023–2024 is $375/credit.
OBJECTIVES
• Students will demonstrate the six habits of mind and heart in collegiate-level studies: observing accurately, understanding clearly, evaluating fairly, feeling in accord with the truth, applying wisely, and expressing winsomely.
• Students will demonstrate basic proficiency in original language exegesis and evaluate and synthesize biblical truth in light of the unfolding story line of Scripture.
• Students will understand and affirm historic Christian theology and gladly embrace the truth that God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him.
• Students will provide evidence of maturing in Christian discipleship and preparation to serve Christ effectively in every sphere of life.
OBJECTIVES
• Students will demonstrate the six habits of mind and heart in graduate-level studies: observing accurately, understanding clearly, evaluating fairly, feeling in accord with the truth, applying wisely, and expressing winsomely.
• Students will evaluate and synthesize biblical truth in light of the unfolding storyline of Scripture.
• Students will understand, affirm, and articulate historic Christian theology and gladly embrace the truth that God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him.
• Students will provide evidence of mature Christian discipleship and be prepared to serve Christ effectively in every sphere of life.
The Master of Arts in Exegesis and Theology is a 42-credit, two year, one night a week graduate program for working adults, men and women, who are interested in gaining biblical Greek language skills and a better understanding of God-centered reformed theology. This program is not designed to build the foundations for pastoral ministry, but rather to encourage effective workplace ministry, flourishing family life, and more theologically minded pastors, ministry staffs, and missionaries. The tuition rate for 2023–2024 is $375/credit.
• Students will demonstrate the six habits of mind and heart in graduate-level studies: observing accurately, understanding clearly, evaluating fairly, feeling in accord with the truth, applying wisely, and expressing winsomely.
• Students will demonstrate proficiency in original language exegesis and evaluate and synthesize biblical truth in light of the unfolding story line of Scripture.
• Students will understand, affirm, and articulate historic Christian theology and gladly embrace the truth that God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him.
• Students will provide evidence of mature Christian discipleship and be prepared to serve Christ effectively in every sphere of life.
The call to be a Christian was not a call to leave your jump to the conclusion, my job must change. Rather display his worth in this job.
John Piper, Don’t Waste Your Life
Fall
Biblical Theology 1: Old Testament Law and Former Prophets
Biblical Theology 2: Old Testament Latter Prophets and Writings
Beginning Greek 1 Elective Weekend Seminar
Spring Biblical Theology 3: New Testament
Historical Theology
Beginning Greek 2 Elective Weekend Seminar
Summer
Various Summer Electives
Fall Principles of Biblical Interpretation
Systematic Theology 1: God, Scripture, and Man
Intermediate Greek Elective Weekend Seminar
Spring
Systematic Theology 2: Christ, the Spirit, and Salvation
Systematic Theology 3: The Church and Last Things
Greek Exegesis
Elective Weekend Seminar
Course Options (21 Credits Needed)
Systematic Theology 1: God, Scripture, and Man
Systematic Theology 2: Christ, the Spirit, and Salvation
Systematic Theology 3: The Church and Last Things
Biblical Theology 1: Old Testament Law and Former Prophets
Biblical Theology 2: Old Testament Latter Prophets and Writings
Biblical Theology 3: New Testament
Historical Theology
Principles of Biblical Interpretation
Beginning Greek 1
Beginning Greek 2
Intermediate Greek
Greek Exegesis
Foundations of Christian Hedonism
Foundations of Discipleship
Foundations of Church Leadership
Foundations of Christian Leadership Weekend Seminars
Fall Biblical Theology 1: Old Testament Law and Former Prophets
Biblical Theology 2: Old Testament Latter Prophets and Writings
Beginning Greek 1
Elective Weekend Seminar
Spring Biblical Theology 3: New Testament
Historical Theology
Beginning Greek 2 Elective Weekend Seminar
Summer
Various Summer Weekend Electives
Fall Principles of Biblical Interpretation
Systematic Theology 1: God, Scripture, and Man
Intermediate Greek Elective Weekend Seminar
Spring Systematic Theology 2: Christ, the Spirit, and Salvation
Systematic Theology 3: The Church and Last Things
Greek Exegesis
Elective Weekend Seminar
secular vocation…when we are converted we should not our thought should be, God has put me here, and I should now
UNDERGRADUATE STUDENT LOAN DEBT IS A SHACKLE ON GOSPEL AMBITION.
Adults already committed to life’s financial commitments ought not be required to take on student loan debt to grow in Christian discipleship. The Serious Joy Scholarship is a glad work of the church for the sake of spreading a passion for God’s supremacy in all things for the joy of all peoples through Jesus Christ. Please join in completing this act of grace. To learn more visit www.bcsmn.edu/contribute.
The Serious Joy Scholarship is not available to Evening M.A. students, but tuition remains unusually affordable.
THE BURDEN OF DEBT IS IMMENSE.
As the price of higher education has risen, so has the amount of debt required to fund it, leaving many burdened with substantial financial obligations well beyond the college years.
44 MILLION AMERICANS NOW OWE $1.4 TRILLION DOLLARS IN STUDENT LOAN DEBTS.*
AVERAGE U.S. STUDENT DEBT * UNDERGRADUATE GRADUATE $26,230 $82,800 PERCENTAGE OF U.S. STUDENTS GRADUATING WITH DEBT * 2000 2020
28% 66% AVERAGE YEAR TO STUDENT LOAN DEBT RETIREMENT * YEARS AGE 21 42
* Board of Governors of the Federal Reserve System, Wall Street Journal, et al.
READY CASH FROM LOAN PROCEEDS CAN DISTRACT ATTENTION FROM THE TOTAL COST OVER TIME.
Interest on a student loan ultimately makes the total cost of undergraduate education higher. The Serious Joy Scholarship makes an already affordable education even more affordable and eliminates interest cost altogether.
EVERY RESIDENT UNDERGRADUATE STUDENT RECEIVES THE SERIOUS JOY SCHOLARSHIP.
Two-thirds of tuition at Bethlehem College is paid by someone other than the students or their parents. Generous contributors have rallied to make this robust, academically rigorous, high-quality education available and affordable.
Graduates without debt are free to answer immediately God’s call on their lives and are made affordable to churches and ministries that need them.
Student pays only $7,250
The Great Commission directs us all to be wholly engaged in making disciple-makers with Jesus. Academics fit into this work. Study is rewarding, refreshing, and engaging—but it can be exhausting and sometimes, it may seem like a distraction. Still, study and preparation is, according to Jesus' example and Paul's command to Timothy, an essential part of that work.
To this end, we have small cohorts which provide rich discipleship opportunities with other students and professors. We also invite students to participate in weekly "Brown Bag Discipleship" gatherings over supper, the hour before class each week. Together, over our food and before God, we talk and pray together about our work of discipleship with Jesus. We pray for each other for God's strength, wisdom, and perseverance in this Great Work with him.
Evening Classes are held at our spacious, easily accessible location at The North Church in Mounds View.
Bethlehem College enjoys global distinction for the quality of the theological education it delivers: deep, thoughtful scrutiny of God’s word, and meticulous, prayerful analysis of the biblical authors’ intent. All summed up as: Sovereign God, Sacred Book, Serious Joy.
A truly world-class faculty gladly embraces the Bethlehem Elder Affirmation of Faith, a robust statement of doctrine that draws deeply from the Bible, the ancient creeds, and the Protestant Reformation, with the serious joy of Christian Hedonism woven throughout.
The task of learning is life-long. So, come along with us, now. Make your next lap of learning one that focuses newly on the joy set before you, the hope of the nations, and the glory of our great God.
If you are a working adult in vocation or at home who desires to grow in Christian discipleship, request more information or apply today at bcsmn.edu/evening
If you are the pastor, relative, co-worker, neighbor or friend of a working adult in vocation or at home who desires to grow in Christian discipleship, please refer them, or let us know about them at bcsmn.edu/refer, and we will reach out.
