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What Do We Want NBC Students to hear?

What do we want NBC students to hear? First, I hope, is a clear call from God.  One of the texts that students can choose in the initial preaching class at NBC is Isaiah 6.  Isaiah 6:8 says “Whom shall I send? And who will go for us?” And Isaiah said, “Here am I. Send me!”

We also want NBC students to eventually hear: “In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage — with great patience and careful instruction. . . . keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry.”

We recognize these words from 2 Timothy 4 to be a part of the Ordination service within the Church of the Nazarene.  We who have been ordained, heard these words as a General Superintendent laid hands on us and gave us this charge.  We want the students here at NBC, many who are completing the educational requirements for ordination in the Church of the Nazarene, to hear these two things.    And in between these events, if they enroll and take classes at NBC, they will hear from us too.   The road to ordination in The Church of the Nazarene is never an easy road (and I am glad).  Yet we endeavor to make Theological Education as accessible as possible, and we are doing this more and more effectively (and I am glad). 

When we teach, I believe it is our hope that students will once again have a sense of confirmation that they are right in the center of God’s will answering their specific call to ministry.  We want them to become competent in the content that we instruct.  We hope that they learn the material.  We want our ministers to know some things.   I find that we at NBC are highly motivated in our roles to help the students become what God wants them to be.

I enjoy being a part of this process.  It has been a part of my ministry role in the Church of the Nazarene for nearly 30 years.  It is amazing that this length of time has passed.  The web of relationships that are woven into this ministry are rich.  As I look back, I think that NBC has been more instrumental in becoming who I am as a minister as I previously thought. 

Nazarene Bible College used to be only accessible if you traveled to Colorado Springs, CO.  In the 70s our family made several trips to NBC to visit our Uncle Les and Aunt Helen.  Uncle Les was taking courses to become a pastor in The Church of the Nazarene.   The Church of the Nazarene, with the force of character and leadership of Dr. G.B Williamson mandated that we have a place to educate ministers like Uncle Les.

 I heard many stories of the bold sinning of Uncle Les, but the Lord kept calling him to be forgiven and eventually to be entirely sanctified.  And Les received these two works of grace in glorious fashion.  He became quite a churchman in a San Diego, CA Church of the Nazarene when he was called to preach.  So, Les and Helen, who were in their 40s,  went to NBC. It was not easy.  I verified that Leslie Albert Stephens graduated with a Associate in Biblical Studies on May 22, 1978.  During graduation, they had a ceremony where they raised a torch and gave a statement of commitment to the ministry.  I don’t remember what Uncle Les said.  But I knew that whatever he said was of huge importance.  He was making a promise to God.  He went on to pastor small churches in Huntington, IN and Albany, IN, a district where I would eventually be a pastor.  There was another man who, in the 60s, went to NBC.  But the reality of having a family of five was too much for them to stay and take classes at NBC.  Don and Coralyn Davis had to move back to Southern Indiana and figure out another way for him to finish the course of study and become a pastor, which he did.

It didn’t really occur to me then, but right after Uncle Les graduated, the fall of 1978, I heard God call me to preach.  I was 14 years old.  These experiences helped to cultivate an awareness of what God wanted to do in my life.  That is: When you hear God calling, you respond and you persevere. 

Since I was only 14 when I was called to preach, I went to Olivet Nazarene College in 1982.  I entered college as a religion major.  Yet, like Dr. Bowling mentioned in his March devotional I had a fatherly chat too.  My dad told me that I should get a computer science minor, so I could have something to fall back on just in case this calling to preach thing did not work out.  I kindly listened to his advice and then enrolled in more biblical literature and Greek classes.  I had no intention of falling back on anything.  And if God called me to preach, then God would provide the opportunity to preach. I saw this intensity to fulfill the call in my Uncle Les.  I also saw this intensity to fulfill your call in the man who became my pastor right after I received my call to preach.   You see Rev. Don Davis, the man who had a short stint at NBC, became my pastor at Bloomington, IL First Church of the Nazarene and Janet, who is my wife, now came too (and I am glad). Don Davis was an awesome mentor.  He helped me understand what I needed to do to become a minister in the Church of the Nazarene.  And when you hear God calling, you respond, and you persevere.    And I did eventually hear those words from 2 Timothy 4 from Dr. Prince in Evansville, Indiana in July 1992.

 I believe the students at NBC feel as strongly as I did many years ago: you hear God calling, you respond and you persevere.    That is why they seek us out.  They have heard a call.  They want to hear from us.  And we want them to eventually hear those words from a General Superintendent  “In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage — with great patience and careful instruction. . . . keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry.”

Little did I know that in the 90s I would be helping students at NBC fulfill the call God placed on their lives.  Ironically, it was in KY.  NBC started a series of satellite Alliances to deliver NBC ministry courses to people who could not get to Colorado.  I remember making the one-way hour and a half trip from Mayfield, KY to Madisonville, KY Church of the Nazarene to teach 3 hour ministry courses to a group a very dedicated and focused people called to preach and pastor in The Church of the Nazarene.  We did something like this for years. 

Then NBC thought maybe this technology called the internet could be a viable delivery system for NBC students to fulfill the call God placed on their lives.  I remember David Phillips asking me if I would be interested in teaching online for NBC.  I said yes, got trained, and started teaching online in 1999.   It is 2025 and I am still an online instructor. It is strange that the students I teach now look younger and younger.  It is the little fact that I am 61 years old.  It’s not the 90s anymore (and I am glad). 

We mentioned a few things that we want NBC students to hear:  A clear call from God and a General Superintendent reciting 2 Timothy 4 as they are being ordained as a minister.  But as we teach, we get to hear some things as well.  We get a chance to go with them for a brief period in their ministry context.

One of the most enjoyable things about instruction in this delivery system is reading autobiographies.  We get to hear about the student's calling.  I get a chance to hear where they are coming from.   And since I still preach and pastor, I get to learn some things as I teach the class. 

Jeff Alexander,  the director of strategy for USA/Canada region took most of his course of study through NBC.  Jeff used to be a very successful software developer in Silicon Valley.  Yet, God was calling him to work that lasted longer than the latest software innovation.  The Church of the Nazarene saw his talents and asked him to lead strategy in the USA/Canada region.  He heard those words from a General Superintendent in CO in June 2023. 

I had the privilege to being the Preaching 2 instructor to Jeff Alexander, director of strategy for USA/Canada.  I asked him to give some thoughts on the learning preaching process at NBC. 

Another student is ministering in Oregon.  She was a meth addict and discovered the Life Change program.   She became a follower of Jesus, clean and sober.  Then she received a call to preach and started taking MPP classes at NBC.  She was in my Preaching the Story of God class and learning to deliver messages beyond her testimony.  I understand from her pastor she is a compassionate evangelist who has baptized a least 40 new Jesus followers.  She is also the new manager of a women’s life change program. She testifies, “This is the same program 6 1/2 years ago that I went through and encountered Jesus.”

Sometimes we get to teach online students that are not that far away from us.  There was a student in my preaching class who was a pastor of a biker church in the Kankakee, IL area.  They met in a fellowship hall of one the churches in that area.  I was able to visit a midweek service. All of these people heard God’s call, responded and persevered. 

So we in all our roles at NBC are hearing aids. This is one way we can serve them.  May the Lord empower us to do so. 

And every time we get to hear from a General Superintendent say: “In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: Preach the word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage — with great patience and careful instruction. . . . keep your head in all situations, endure hardship, do the work of an evangelist, discharge all the duties of your ministry.” I hope the Holy Spirit will use these words to help us hear what we need to hear in order to bless this ministry of Nazarene Bible college. 

 

 -- Dr. Michael Taylor serves as adjunct professor at NBC. 

Published: 04/11/2025

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