IMMERSION: 2 Conferences, 1 Weekend
The New Testament and the Same-Sex Debate
Session One
Session Two
How to Read the Bible For All Its Worth
Session One
Session Two
Disciples Making Disciples
https://vimeo.com/225278511
https://vimeo.com/225278511
Prescriptive Discipleship
https://vimeo.com/225278709
Transformational LIFE Strategy
https://vimeo.com/225278838
Love One Another
https://vimeo.com/225279037
Involved in Biblical Community
https://vimeo.com/225289161
Focus on God’s Word
https://vimeo.com/225289261
Engage the Culture
https://vimeo.com/225289388
Apprentices
https://vimeo.com/225289497
Introduction Video to New Foundations Curriculum
Living Sent
Jay Fennell interviews Jason Dukes, the Brentwood Baptist church multiplication minister and author of Living Sent, about Jason’s purpose, hope, and passion for the body of Christ discipling through engaging the lost and searching by living out the kingdom of God in service and compassion.
Part 1: What does “living sent” mean?
https://vimeo.com/212246129
Part 2: What practices might arise from this study?
https://vimeo.com/212246566
Part 3: What is significant about, come and I will make you fishers of men?
https://vimeo.com/212246817
Part 4: What could the body of Christ look like if it “lives sent”?
https://vimeo.com/212247098
Transforming Truths
Roger Severino introduces the last three Foundations Curriculum studies with an instructional emphasis on the Theological Foundations, Transforming Truths.
Audio Version:
IMMERSION: God’s Unfolding Story
with Dr. George Guthrie
We all love stories. Vivid characters. Beautiful writing. Captivating plots. Conflict and resolution. Hope and fulfillment.
The Bible is God’s great story, and it has all of these and so much more! We are invited to read this life-changing story, enter into its plot, and meet the Living God there in the pages of His Word. It’s important for believers to know the story of Scripture so we may learn how to live, know the fullness of the gospel, experience hope, join God in His mission, and find joy as the Holy Spirit makes His story, our story as well.
In this seminar, Dr. George Guthrie explains how to understand the “big picture” of the Bible. We will track the story chronologically, follow “truth threads” from the beginning of the Bible to the end, and see how the New Testament authors understood that the Old Testament was fulfilled through Christ. We will also learn how to grow in our grasp of and love for God’s story. As we see the beauty and brilliance of the way He has crafted His story, it changes us, gives us joy in His good gifts, and offers hope and vision for the future. In knowing God’s story better, we grow to know Him better and love him more.
Download Conference Study Guide
Session One — God’s Great Story
There is something about the power of a good story. Stories can change the way we view a subject or the world around us. The Bible is full of stories of all kinds, but is there a reason why so much of the Bible is told in story form? In this session, Dr. George Guthrie opens this five-part series by looking at the story of Scripture and the power biblical stories have to shape and change our lives.
Session Two — Bookends of the Story
It’s all about perspective. Sometimes we can get bogged down in certain parts of Scripture if we lose the overall point of the larger story. In this session Dr. Guthrie considers ways to get at the story of Scripture in between the “bookends” of Genesis 1–3 and Revelation 19–22 that have within them the heart of the whole story of the Bible.
Session Three — Knowing God’s Face: Made for Relationship
The story of Scripture beautifully develops and culminates in the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. One of the best ways to consider the larger story is through the lens of relationship. Dr. Guthrie unpacks what it means to “know God’s face” and the importance of relationship in the fuller biblical narrative in this session.
Session Four — Living in God Space: the “Tabernacling Presence”
For relationships to develop, they need a space. Think about your favorite coffee shop or place you like to gather with friends to talk together about life. In the story of Scripture, we find that God often creates a space for people to interact with Him. How does that idea play out today? Consider this thought with Dr. Guthrie in this session.
Session Five — Sharing God’s Grace: A People on Mission
As we reach the high point of the story of Scripture, we find two major factors together in the New Testament—Jesus and the Jewish temple. We have no indication that the Spirit of God filled the temple refurbished by Herod as He had in Solomon’s day. What did Jesus, filled with the Spirit of God, have to do with the temple in Jerusalem? Dr. Guthrie explores this fascinating question and the implications of the answer to it in this last session of our series.
Foundations Curriculum Training
God’s Unfolding Story
Roger Severino presents the vision, lesson plans and presentation ideas for the new Foundations Curriculum, God’s Unfolding Story. Karla Worley also presents Storying. This video is for all LIFE Group Leaders who plan to teach the new curriculum, God’s Unfolding Story – Venture In.
A short 15 minute wrap up segment after the group exercise.
Truth: Defending the Faith – Part 1
Even in the earliest days of the church, defenders of the faith were needed to help those outside of Christ understand His gospel rightly and to help those Christians being persecuted to defend their faith and proclaim it. Justin Martyr was among the first apologists in Rome to step up and speak out to the world about what it meant to truly follow Christ.
Truth: Defending the Faith – Part 2
Under Roman persecution in the beginning years of the early church, stories of powerful and inspiring faith emerged. The truth of the Gospel was spreading through the Roman empire and people whose lives had been transformed by Christ refused to deny Him no matter the threat. Perpetua, a young lady from Carthage in North Africa, recorded her experience as a Christian facing the might of Rome. Her story inspired many to stand firm, and inspires followers of Christ just as powerfully today no matter what opposition we might face.
Truth: Defending the Faith – Part 3
The early church not only faced persecution from Rome but even faced the threat of some people redefining the Gospel from within the church. Religious groups with competing theologies made their way into the local church and confused many by offering different views on salvation. This problem is still one we face today in the modern church. Defenders of the faith like Irenaeus helped guide the early church through dangerous waters against threats within and without.
IMMERSION: SPIRITUAL PRACTICES
HABITS TO HELP YOU BE MORE LIKE CHRIST
Going Deeper in Spiritual Practices. Guest Speaker: Don Whitney, Associate Professor of Biblical Spirituality, Associate Dean at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. How will you mature as a Christian in the upcoming year? How will you experience a more vibrant relationship with Christ? How will your character be transformed so that you look more like Jesus? This Immersion Conference will attempt to address and accomplish God’s goal for us: conform us to the image of His Son (see Romans 8:289-29). Dr. Donald Whitney, well-known author of “Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life”, presents biblical spiritual disciplines for real people. The purpose, however, is not simply to introduce you to such things as Bible Study and prayer, but to see how these, and other practices, can be a part of pursuing intimacy with and conformity to Christ. Go deeper in your relationship with Christ and develop these habits that will transform your life.
IMMERSION – SESSION 1
PRAYER
Does your mind wander while you pray? Is prayer boring and repetitive? Do you feel like a second rate Christian because you can’t pray? Is your hunger for holiness conflicting with your past experience? If the Holy Spirit lives in you, the problem is not you, but rather your method. What’s the solution? Find the simple answer in this video by Dr. Donald S. Whitney, speaking at an Immersion Conference on the campus of Brentwood Baptist Church, February 2014.
IMMERSION – SESSION 2
PRAYER METHODS
Dr. Whitney takes you on a practice journey to pray through scripture. Prayer becomes God-centered, intentional, bold, personal, different than usual, deeper and spirit-filled. Learn to pray when life is busy or when don’t feel like it.
IMMERSION – SESSION 3
INTAKE OF SCRIPTURE
When reading the Bible, do you forget what you just read the second you close the cover? Have you lost interest in reading the Bible? You’re not alone in this universal problem. Dr. Whitney examines the difference between worldly meditation vs. Biblical meditation and methods used to develop transformation, renewing your love for Scripture. He explains how reading is the simple exposure to scripture, while Biblical mediation is the absorption of scripture. The first 20 minutes of this video is devoted to personal testimonies of prayer methods discussed in Session 2.
IMMERSION – SESSION 4
MEDITATION
Where do you start meditating? We are inundated by the Information Age, but anemic to spiritual growth. It isn’t what you feel most deeply about, but rather what you think about deeply. Meditation leads to obedience, and obedience leads to God’s blessings. Dr. Whitney presents methods on where to begin meditating and how to maintain the methods.
IMMERSION – SESSION 5
MEDITATION METHODS
Dr. Donald S. Whitney continues from Session 4 with presenting the final methods (9-16) for meditating on Scripture. Practicing one or several of these methods will encourage you to become obedient, deepening your relationship with Christ.
Dr. Andreas Köstenberger
August 4, 2013 – Leadership Gathering Event
Dr. Köstenberger introduces and explains the fundamentals of Hermeneutics and the nuances of his Hermeneutical Triad. Using 1 Peter 3:1-7 as a case study, Dr. Köstenberger shows how to use the Hermeneutical Triad from his book Invitation to Biblical Interpretation.
Dr. Köstenberg’s 2-part session videos are below. To download a PDF of his handout, click here.
Download Video Guide
IMMERSION: What Child Is This?
Do you REALLY know the baby in the manger?
Dr. Ben Witherington, III
He’s a common household name in 50 states.
Nativity sets flood our homes during the holidays.
Age-old Christmas songs sing of His birth.
But does what you know match up with the real Jesus?
Led by Dr. Ben Witherington III, noted Jesus scholar, we’ll explore the mystery of the Incarnation and find out who Jesus really is, who we are, and whose we are.
Download Immersion 2012 Learner Guide
November 30, 2012
Session 1 – Backstory
“In the beginning”…this session backs up the Christmas story to before the Gospel or John explain the coming of Christ. Explore these questions: Did Jesus always exist? How did Jesus become human and what did it mean? Was God’s son becoming human deliberate? This session concludes with the poem, “Incognito”.
Session 2 – Forgotten Story
In this session, Dr. Witherington digs into the story of Zachariah & Elizabeth and the foretelling of the incarnation. Discover the parallels with Jesus’ birth. This session concludes with the poem, “The Bonding”.
December 1, 2012
Session 3 – Christmas Story
What are some questions about the Christmas story you always wanted to ask, but were afraid? Several misconceptions of the Christmas story are brought to light using scripture instead of popular culture.
Session 4 – Final Story
Dr. Witherington concludes with the reasons for the virginal birth and the purpose of Christ’s coming to earth. This session concludes with the poem, “The Mother Load”.