“Things No Man Can Destroy” was the continuing theme of Tennessee Bible College’s annual Renew Lectureship.
Trent Nivens of Livingston was among the many who attended Renew in late February who appreciated the numerous lessons. He particularly enjoyed a lecture by Chad Wagner of Brookland, Ark., who spoke about mission work.
“Hearing from people who have gone throughout the world really does open your eyes to things that are happening in the churches of Christ, not just in our area but worldwide,” he said. “It is very encouraging to hear about the growth of the church everywhere.”
Richmond Gyamfi, who preaches in East Hartford, Conn., and is a professor of mathematics at Goodwin University, attended last year’s Renew and was eager to return this year for part two.
“I looked forward to it because we need Bible preaching today,” he said. “We need to know that when we gather around, we’re going to talk Bible – not stories, not illustrations. What does the Bible say? What does Jesus want us to do? Anytime I see people coming together to do that I feel it is a good thing. This is what we need everywhere in the world – in America, in Ghana… wherever. When we do that we’re going to have true Christians who are ready to preach, and their lives will be evangelism to the world.”
Gyamfi, who is from Ghana and returns to Africa every summer for mission work, emphasized “not changing the message.”
“Through all the lessons, that was something that was a stamp on my mind,” he said. “With the plan of salvation, with judgments, with the soul that never dies, we have to make sure we keep to the same message and make sure we send those messages out to people.”
Jason Smith of Beckley, W.Va., who graduated from TBC with a Two-Year Diploma in 2003 and Bachelor of Religious Education in 2013, was one of the speakers at Renew. His topic was “The Coming Day of the Lord.” He enjoyed what he heard from the other speakers as well.
“A lot of things encouraged me,” he said. “I got to meet people from all over the country and world, got to hear different lessons and got to rekindle some old relationships.”
Audio recordings from all Renew lectures are available here.
Next year’s Renew is scheduled for Feb. 24-25, and the theme is “Understanding the Times” (I Chronicles 12:32).
“From all the feedback the college received, this year’s Renew was the best yet,” Mallory Huddleston, TBC Public Relations Director, said. “We are looking forward to next year’s program. I would encourage anyone who didn’t attend this year to listen to the audio we have provided.
“The main purpose of Renew is to help us grow spiritually. Should anyone have questions on the material presented, please contact TBC. Our aim in everything we do is first and foremost to help each other get to Heaven.”
-Amy Davis, TBC Correspondent
