Church, Ministry & Sacraments

If you believe in the gospel, you believe in the church, because the gospel creates the church. This unit is not primarily about the differences between Anglicans, Presbyterians and Baptists. It is about deepening our understanding of the gospel through study of the ways in which God uses this creation to change this creation. What does it mean to plant a church? Is the university Christian group a church? Is my home group a church? What if we discovered another way of promoting God’s mission – would we still need the church then? Can only one kind of church organisation preserve the gospel? Calvin said that we can’t have God as Father unless we have the church as our mother. For anyone aspiring to leadership in a church, this unit is essential preparation.

Content

Section A: The People of God

1. Kingdom and church
2. The church: its nature, authority and mission
3. Marks: notes, visibility and invisibility
4. The nature and forms of ministry
5. Denominations

Section B: Prayer, Worship and Sacraments

1. Word and Sacrament: efficacy and validity, the number of sacraments
2. Christian initiation
3. The Lord’s Supper
4. Christian Worship
5. Prayer