Harbor, Pepperdine Bible Lectures

How do you preach sermons that are authentic, biblical, and culturally sensitive? Drawing from Lee’s book, Preaching God’s Grand Drama, this session explores practices of attentiveness that ground sermons in biblical theology, local context, and global realities. Teachers: Sara Barton, Ahmi Lee

In this one-hour class, Jason Locke will help participants imagine new ways of doing church in our changing world. While most churches clearly need traditional forms of gathering for worship, along with traditional forms of administration and pastoral leadership, how can churches actually make Christianity relevant to people who will never walk in the doors of a church building? How might we create new forms of Christian community and lead innovative teams to reach non-church-goers with the good news of Jesus? This session will look at concrete ideas for how to break out of existing frameworks. Teacher: Jason Locke

Two cultural currents in America are colliding: an epidemic of loneliness and highly refined, psychologically attuned algorithms designed to keep our attention through dopamine manipulation for hours. The solution may come from an unexpected place- the willful intent to become bored. Join us as we explore boredom as the means of freedom from the tyranny of slavery to screens. Teacher: Shane Hughes

You will recognize the characters in these six stories; you will smile, laugh, and feel some of the grief along the way. And you will get glimpses into the varied texture of our lives—the unexpected people who bless us, the desert experiences, the need for forgiveness, the gifts along the way, the surprises of grace. Teachers: Leonard Allen, Darryl Tippens

We are often told our bodies are a problem to solve or a hindrance to overcome, but there is another story. A better story. This story is one in which humans are invited to embrace our whole selves—including our minds, hearts, souls, and bodies—as created good and in God’s own image. Together, we will look at the Bible and theology to embrace a more holistic and embodied spiritual life shaped by the story of God from Genesis through the life of Christ. Teacher: Katelyn Brackney

Crafting a robust biblical youth ministry can often leave our students feeling like the stories we share are detached, useless, or not all that relevant to their current lives. In this class, we will explore 4 themes from stories in the Hebrew and Christian scriptures that can reorient our students to a deeper and more beautiful faith that draws them to better love God, love others, and love themselves. Teacher: Joel Foster

(Job 14:1, Hebrews 2:14-15) A search through culture and time for the "unknown god." Teacher: Allen Wei Jang

We all know the heroes of faith in Hebrews 11: Abel, Enoch, Noah, Abraham, Moses, Rahab, etc. But who are the people who “were tortured, refusing to accept release, in order to obtain a better resurrection” (Heb 11:35)? Come learn about the martyrs of 2 Maccabees 6-7 and other “forgotten scriptures” that inspired early Christians to persevere in their faith. Teacher: Nick Zola

Religion should come with a warning: promise and peril lie ahead! Some of the most beautiful stories in global history emerge from deep religious traditions. We also know the past and current horror of weaponized faith. The genius and passion of any movement remain vulnerable as faith is passed from one generation to the next, and Churches of Christ are no exception. In this session we will explore the promise, peril, genius, and passion of the American Restoration Movement and the Churches of Christ. Teacher: Don McLaughlin

In the fourteenth century, the woman known as Julian of Norwich received a series of sixteen visions which she recorded in the book, Revelations of Divine Love. Twenty years after this mystical experience, Julian wrote an expanded version of her revelations that included her meditations on the visions in the years after they occurred. In this class, we will take a brief look at Julian's theology based on her writings and consider whether it has any relevance for today. Teacher: Candace Nicolds