Letter From the Chancellor

Dear friends of Bethlehem College and Seminary,

God is volcanic in his exuberance about spreading a passion for the glory of his name. That is the foundation and origin of the mission of Bethlehem College and Seminary—to spread a passion for the supremacy of God in all things.

The implications of this foundation for our mission are endless. Let me mention five.

• The universe is not an end in itself. Only God is. The universe was created by God to help us know. But the reason God tells us about his glory in the created world is not merely that we be intellectually aware of him through his creation, but that we love him—that is, to know and treasure supremely the greatness of his glory.
• All education should aim, therefore, at helping people know God and love God through the study of some part of the created world—from the biggest galaxy, to the bards of history, to the behaviors of bulimia, to the sixty-six books of the Bible.
• Therefore, all such education—all true education—is an act of love toward people. This is true because there is no greater gift we can give anyone than to help them know and love God.
• The educational aims to know God truly and treasure him duly are inexhaustible tasks. That is, for human beings, they never come to an end—not in this world or in the world to come. Formal education therefore aims to equip for (eternal) life-long learning.
• The key that unlocks the treasures of wisdom and knowledge is found in the words of our mission statement, “through Jesus Christ.” Without the life and death of Jesus in our place, covering our sin, providing our righteousness, reconciling us to God, we would remain blind and hopeless in all our educational efforts and in eternity.

Therefore, the word of the cross will remain the educational key to all Christ-exalting truth, that is to all True Truth. Which is the only kind we pursue.

Thank you for your interest in BCS. Please pray with us that God would raise up generations who know and love God as he is revealed in his Son and in his world.

John Piper
Chancellor