Russell Haffner
In 2 Timothy 2:2 Paul wrote, "And the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also." James said, "My brethren, let not many of you become teachers, knowing that we shall receive a stricter judgment (James 3:1). So which is it? Should we be teachers or should we not be teachers? We know the Bible does not contradict itself, so what does this mean?
In Matthew 28:18-20 we find, "And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, 'All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.' Amen." This passage clearly shows the importance of teaching others the way of salvation and also teaching them to obey the commands of our Lord. If we love the souls of men, the way we should, we will want to spread the truth of God's word. However, here is the catch, we must know the truth in order to teach the truth. This concept helps us to better understand the warning from James when he wrote "let not many of you become teachers." In other words, we should not try to be a teacher if we don't know the truth because we will "receive a stricter judgment." We must first dedicate ourselves to learning God's word and then we can accurately teach it to others.
There are many false teachers in the religious world today, just like there were in the first century (Matthew 7:15; 2 Peter 2:1-3; 1 John 4:1). If we don't know the Scriptures we could easily be teaching something which is contrary to the truth. A little bit of knowledge can be a dangerous thing. Therefore, we must always seek to accurately interpret and understand God's word. This means we must study the Bible to learn what it truly teaches. It really doesn’t matter what some preacher or religious group may think or say; it only matters what the Bible actually teaches. We must stay true to what the Scriptures teach and dedicate ourselves to believing and teaching only those things which can be proven to be true from God's word.
It could be that you have enrolled in the school to learn the Bible so you will be able to teach others correctly. If this is your reason let me assure you that you have come to the right place. The level of work required by the WVBS Online Bible School is equal to and even superior to many degree granting Bible colleges and universities. The school faculty have had years of study and experience teaching these courses in a classroom setting. Every instructor who teaches in the school is presently, or has been, an instructor in a Bible training school. These men are among the finest teachers available today. We are honored to have them as a part of the school faculty and bring to you instruction from God’s word. Any graduate of the WVBS Online Bible School will be fully qualified to teach the Bible to others.
I would like to take this opportunity to invite you to upgrade your enrollment from Auditing to Informal or Formal Student status. I want to thank you for making use of the videos provided by the school, but I encourage you to consider the advantages of upgrading your enrollment. If you upgrade your enrollment you will not only have access to the video Bible lessons, but you will also have free online viewing access to the teacher’s course notes, exams and some course books.
Formal Students follow a set course order which is designed to make the progression through the Bible easier. The assignments include viewing all video lessons, taking exams and writing research papers. Formal Students are issued a certificate of completion when they fully meet the requirements of a course. They receive a diploma when they have successfully completed all required courses.
Informal Students have the same requirements to meet for each course and cover the same material but they are allowed to take the courses in any order they desire. Informal Students receive certificates for each course but no diploma is awarded.
If you would like to change your status you will need to click on ENROLLMENT which is on the blue menu bar at the school website. When you have reached the enrollment page please select either the Formal or Informal Student Registration button. This will provide you with the form to fill out to change your status.
I completely understand if you have no interest in upgrading your enrollment. I commend you on your hard work and devotion to learning more about the Bible. God bless you as you continue in your studies. If I can answer any questions for you about the school please let me know.