What We Believe Class—A study of the gospel of John

What We Believe: An exploration of the gospel of John 
In this 11-week class, we will be walking through the gospel of John to establish a foundation of essential Christian belief. This class is designed for anyone who has been walking with Jesus for decades or is still deciding what they believe, helping each person grow in their understanding of what it means to follow Jesus.

As a community-oriented experience, the class will be taught by a diversity of staff and volunteer teachers from the Grace leadership community, and there will be significant time each week devoted to table discussions throughout the class.

Cost
The class is free to attend. Students in advanced tracks are responsible for obtaining their own reading materials.

Class Tracks
The course is being offered in three levels of participation:

• Learning Track – Weekly devotionals and reading through the gospel of John.
• Deeper Study Track – Everything in the Learning Track plus N.T. Wright’s John: For Everyone commentary series.
• Future Seminarians Track – An in-depth seminary-style experience with advanced reading, writing assignments, and discussions led by Dr. White.

1)    Learning Track REGISTER
This is the base level for the course. It is designed for anyone interested in better understanding the gospel of John and learning more about what it means to believe in and follow Jesus, regardless of your faith background or experience. The learning track involves in-person attendance throughout the 12-week course. In addition, you will be expected to complete the following assigned homework:
•    Read weekly devotionals between classes (5 per week)
•    Read through the entire gospel of John (about 2 chapters per week)

2)    Deeper Study Track REGISTER
This track involves a deeper dive than the learning track. It is designed for those who want to grow in their personal study of the Bible alongside the classroom learning of the course. The deeper study track involves all the work of the learning track, with one additional assignment:
•    Read weekly devotionals between classes (5 per week)
•    Read through the entire gospel of John (about 2 chapters per week)
•    Read the 2-book commentary series John: For Everyone by N.T. Wright (about 40 pages per week)

3)    Future Seminarians Track REGISTER
Our final track is designed for those who would like a taste of a master’s level seminary course. Students in this track will get an authentic experience of seminary as they are led by Dr. Dan White through a much deeper experience of the gospel of John, including the following expectations:
•    Read the gospel of John in one sitting (2x)
•    Read 500+ pages of assigned commentaries
•    Participate in online discussion forums
•    Attend 11 Thursday evening Zoom calls for discussion & Q&A
•    Write five 1500-word papers 
•    Write one 2000-word paper which includes comparative research
•    Take one final in-person written exam