Author Archives: J.P. Poveda

About J.P. Poveda

I'm part of the Rolling Hills Covenant Church community where I serve as the Director of the Rolling Hills Bible Institute and as the Director of Global Mission Development. I'm also a student at Talbot Theological Seminary at Biola University, where I'm finishing up my MA in Philosophy of Religion and Ethics.

Year of Spiritual Formation 2012: Dallas Willard, John Coe, Steve Porter, J.P. Moreland

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The RHBI theme for 2012 is Spiritual Formation. What is Spiritual Formation? Bruce Demarest, in his book Satisfy Your Soul, sums up Spiritual Formation as:

“the shaping of our inner character and outer conduct, in cooperation with the work of the the Spirit, so that we are gradually being conformed to the likeness of Jesus Christ” (38).

The RHCC Discipleship Commission desires to create opportunities to help us connect the development of our minds with the development of our hearts (Rom 12:1-2). Singing to our Lord together is beautiful, but the totality of our lives (both individually and in community) are meant to be our act of living and worshipful sacrifice to our Lord.

To help kick off this year of Spiritual Formation, we’re bringing in three amazing speakers: Dr. Dallas Willard, Dr. John Coe, and Dr. Steve Porter.

Dr. Dallas Willard

Dr. Willard is an international lecturer and a professor in the School of Philosophy at the University of Southern California where he has taught since 1965. In addition to his academic publications and research, Dr. Willard has a heart for Christian formation which is reflected in his published books, some of which are: “The Divine Conspiracy: Rediscovering our Hidden Life in God,” “The Great Omission: Reclaiming Jesus’ Essential Teachings on Discipleship,” “Renovation of the Heart: Putting on the Character of Christ,” “Knowing Christ Today: Why We Can Trust Spiritual Knowledge,” and “Hearing God.”

Dr. Coe is Professor of Philosophy and Spiritual Theology at Talbot Theological Seminary where he also serves as the Director of the Institute for Spiritual Formation. He is currently working on a new book titled: “Making Sense of Our Spiritual Dark Nights: Ancient Wisdom for our Evangelical Journey.” In addition to being the RHBI guest preacher in the Canvas Worship services at Rolling Hills Covenant Church, Dr. Coe will teach a four week RHBI class on Spiritual Formation.

Dr. Steve Porter

Dr. Porter, a graduate of the University of Oxford, is Associate Professor of Philosophy and Theology at Talbot’s Institute for Spiritual Formation and Rosemead School of Psychology (Biola University). He has written numerous published articles in various philosophical and theological journals as well as his book “Restoring the Foundations of Epistemic Justification” (2006). Dr. Porter will be the RHBI guest preacher in the main worship services and the Gathering service at Rolling Hills Covenant Church.

Schedule of Events:

  • Dr. Steve Porter, guest preacher:
    • Main Worship Services:
      • Saturday, 1/21, 5:00pm, Worship Center
      • Sunday, 1/22, 8:00am & 9:30am, Worship Center
    • The Gathering:
      • Sunday, 1/22, 11:15am, Room 290
  • Dr. Dallas Willard, special free RHBI kickoff event
    • Tuesday, 1/24, 7:00pm, Worship Center. Childcare is available with reservation (see below)
  • Dr. John Coe, guest preacher
    • Canvas Worship Services
      • Sunday, 1/29, 9:30am, Room 290
      • Sunday, 1/29, 11:15am, Worship Center
Childcare is freely available during the Main Worship Services, the Gathering, and the Canvas Services, without reservation. Childcare will also be freely available with reservations during the special Dallas Willard RHBI kickoff event on January 24th (call 310.519.9406 for childcare reservations).

 

Dr. J.P. Moreland

Dr. J.P. Moreland will be kicking off our Spring Session in April as well as teaching a four week class on the Kingdom Triangle. We’re also working hard to book a great speaker for the fall session in September. We have some exciting options, but nothing solidified yet. Stay tuned to this blog for upcoming details!

As always, if you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to call me at the church!

You can register/RSVP by visiting www.RHBI.org/rsvp.

Blessings! – jp

Reflections on RHBI 2011

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2011 has been a great year! We’ve had Dr. Craig Hazen, Greg Koukl and Dr. Scott Rae speak at various events or classes for RHBI. RHBI also worked with Global Outreach to bring Dr. J.P. Moreland and Dr. Walt Russell as guest speakers to bless our missions community. Additionally, we’ve had a great lineup of our in-house instructors teaching various RHBI classes throughout the year (Rob Orr, Glen & Judy Johnson, Andy Noch, Nate Aanderud, Michael Cochrane, Pat Bennett, Sam Evans, and Steve Bunyard).

We had a great lineup of classes, including: Prayer, Value Packed Parenting, Discipleship, Introduction to Genesis through Esther, Christianity and Cultural Hot Buttons, Marriage Revival, Church and Society, Life’s Healing Choices, Introduction to New Testament, Introduction to Job through Malachi, Overcoming Your Fear of Evangelism, and Affirmations of the Faith.

We’ve received great feedback from our students as well as some encouraging suggestions that will help us make the Bible Institue even more helpful for you. 2012 is going to be an exciting year… I’ll post the upcoming events shortly.

If you ever have any suggestions, please don’t hesitate to email me or contact one of the members of the Discipleship Commission. You can also give us feedback on classes you’ve taken by visiting: www.RHBI.org/survey.

Alternatively, you can contact us on facebook: www.Facebook.com/BibleInstitute

Thanks for making 2011 a great year for RHBI! – jp

 

 

 

Jesus and Modern Culture

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Why Study Theology

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You are a theologian, a bible interpreter, and a philosopher. I’m certain about this because I know that you have thoughts about God, about what the bible says, and about the world around you. Even an atheist has thoughts about God, namely, that He doesn’t exist. It’s not a question of if you will be doing theology, biblical interpretation or philosophy. It’s a question of whether or not you’ll be any good at it.

In Jesus’ day, the public had wrong thoughts about him. They thought he was John the Baptist, Elijah, or some other prophet from the past. Jesus asked his disciples a profoundly simple question, “but who do you say that I am.” Peter answered, “The Christ of God” (Luke. 9:18 – 20). The crowd got it wrong; Peter got it right in mind and heart. That made all the difference in the world. Things have not changed. People think Jesus is a prophet, a guru, one of many ways to God, a wise man, a political revolutionary, a fairy tale, etc. But the question remains, who do you say that he is? Truth matters to Jesus; it should matter to you as well.

Getting good at thinking about God shouldn’t be thought of as a callous academic discipline. Sure, it requires some thinking and some effort; but it’s more than that. Getting good at thinking about theology and the bible can be an act of worship. Think about what we believe: God humbled himself, took on the form of a servant, lived a perfect life, was executed and rose from the dead so that we can have life (Philippians 2:1-11)! That’s amazing! Why wouldn’t you want to learn as much as you can about what God has to say through his written word?

Learning about God, however, isn’t just about truth and getting smarter. It’s about learning to love God and one another. When Jesus was asked what the greatest commandment is, he answered without hesitation, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets” (Matthew 22:34-40). Learning about God is about developing your mind as an act of loving Him. It should also be something that transforms your heart and your soul, which naturally translates to you loving your neighbor as yourself.

The Rolling Hills Bible Institute (RHBI) is an opportunity for you to learn to worship and love God with your mind. It’s an opportunity for you to develop thoughts that are true about God. It’s an opportunity to learn to love God and one another more deeply. I hope you’ll take some time to prayerfully consider taking a class this year.

I look forward to hearing how God works though you as you engage your mind for his glory!