The Bethlehem Institute is the non-credit program division of Bethlehem College and Seminary. In other words, Bethlehem Institute provides rigorous, God-centered Bible and theology classes to men and women living in the Twin Cities area, whether they attend Bethlehem or not.
Classes are available at the three Bethlehem campuses during the Fall and Winter/Spring semesters, and at the downtown campus during the summer. We have both 6- and 12-week courses. We charge a small fee (usually $60 for a 12-week course and $45 for a 6-week course) in order to enable us to continue to develop new courses. If finances are a problem, we have a pay-what-you-can-afford policy.
Register for classes.
Foundation Series
We have four core courses designed to lay a solid foundation for understanding the whole counsel of God and to teach the necessary skills to study the Bible. It is our hope that every regular Bethlehem attendee will take each of the four Foundation Series courses. These courses are:
- Mining God’s Word: How to Study the Bible
- God-Centered Living
- Theological Foundations 1
- Theological Foundations 2
Each course in the Core Foundation Series is 12-weeks long.
TBI Essentials
Bethlehem Institute also offers TBI Essentials, a two-year class that covers the same material as the Core Foundation Series under the tutelage of a Bethlehem elder or seasoned teacher. This course is cohort-based, meaning that the same group of students work through the material together over the length of the course.
Biblical Languages
Each year Bethlehem Institute offers a series of courses in Greek and Hebrew. First, second, and third-year Greek classes are offered at the downtown campus every year. First-year Hebrew is typically offered, given enough registering students.
Additional Courses
In addition to the courses mentioned above, Bethlehem Institute offers a variety of courses that are available on a dynamic basis. These additional courses vary from campus-to-campus and year-to-year. Included are courses in church history, racial harmony, manhood and womanhood, the biblical basis for pro-life, doctrines of grace, and the pleasures of God. Courses are either 6- or 12-weeks long.
Weekend Seminars
Bethlehem Institute offers a variety of weekend seminars throughout each academic year. These weekend seminars are free to everyone, and typically last for two hours on Friday night and three hours on Saturday morning. Pastor John Piper leads three to five of these seminars each academic year.
Over a two-year period, Pastor John leads ten seminars including:
- Desiring God: The Pursuit of Joy in Life and Ministry
- Future Grace
- The Pleasures of God
- Suffering for the Sake of the Body: The Pursuit of People Through Pain
- Biblical Eldership: Shepherd the Flock of God Among You
- Gravity and Gladness on Sunday Morning: The Pursuit of God in Corporate Worship
- Prayer, Meditation, and Fasting: The Pursuit of Communion with God
- Sexual Complementarity: The Pursuit of Biblical Manhood and Womanhood
- TULIP: What We Believe About the Five Points of Calvinism
- Why We Believe the Bible: The Inspiration, Inerrancy, and Authority of the Bible
Audio and video from past seminars may be downloaded.