My name is Joseph Warrington. My connection with NBC? I’ve been a full-time faculty member for 28 years. Before that, I directed an NBC extension in Los Angeles for about three years. That comes to a total of about 31 years of connection.
Currently, I direct the MPP program: Ministry Preparation Program. That's a certification program preparing folks who feel called to be ordained in the Church of the Nazarene, not necessarily seeking a degree with us but preparing for ordination in the church.
I was teaching a Doctrine of Holiness class. I remember, in the middle of the class, there was a young fellow... I can't even remember his name. It’s been a long time. But we were talking about the doctrine of entire sanctification, and he raised his hand and said, “Professor Warrington, I believe God is urging me, prompting me at this very moment to get sanctified.”
There were other students there who rallied around him when he came right up to the front. Barb Bechtold, who used to work in our admissions office then. was in that class, and she just took over and laid hands on him, and all the other students and I prayed with them, and there was victory! Right in the middle of a class, that was a significant defining moment to be sanctified.
That’s what it was about for that student, a young fellow from Kentucky. I can’t remember his name, but he got a victory. That is memorable to me, and we want to see that happen again and again throughout the life of the college. We aim to see our students have life-changing experiences where they encounter God like never before.
If God calls you, a call to ministry is a call to preparation. At NBC, we believe we may not change your personality, change your culture, or those kinds of things. But we’ll change your perspective about God, about His call, and what He wants to do, how He wants to mold and shape you so you can be at the cutting edge of ministry in the 21st Century. Our academic programs are designed to prepare our students for service and leadership in an increasingly diverse world.
That’s the message. I believe NBC is a school of choice, especially for those who feel called, have felt called, as a second career, as a path. Maybe you’re thirty or forty, and you sense an uneasiness about ministry, and you’re trying to respond. We’ve had students come, and their call was affirmed in a class, talking to a professor or talking to other students. We believe that NBC can shape that, can affirm and solidify that call, so that you’ll be well on your way to fulfilling God’s mission and purpose for your life.
That’s the message I want to give. So, give NBC a second look if you’re looking for a college that is Christ-centered and Biblical. We’ll honor who you are as a person. We’re not here to deflate your ego. You feel called; you’re on fire for God, and we want to build on that. We want to have you continue that same passion for ministry that you have in your local church so that when you leave NBC and you’re prepared to either plant a church, start a church, or go on to graduate school, whatever God has in mind for you, we believe NBC is the place that can prepare you for that. When God has called you, all you need is a nurturing environment. That is what we provide here at NBC.
I believe the denomination needs a school like NBC. We have other schools. No reflection of any other school, we need all the schools in whatever field somebody feels called to pursue whatever discipline. We have this constellation of colleges that are available to us. We believe NBC is specifically raised and positioned to train pastors, counselors, and church-related ministry for the Church of the Nazarene, here and now. God calls us to do that. That’s our passion as well.
I pastor a church; I’ve been doing that for the last 25 years. We had a baptism last week in our church. I believe that’s what it’s about. NBC is not just an academic institution operating in a vacuum to do some nice things. That’s not what we are. We are an institution to help the church disciple the world, to help people find Christ. By training our students to evangelize, minister, and disciple out in the world, we fulfill the commission Christ gave all of us.
So when our graduates go out, they are ready to do the work God has called them to do. Our purpose is just that. To disciple the world, to change our world, to transform lives, no matter what culture or language they speak, NBC has found its niche in preparing folks for ministry, whatever form that ministry may take. NBC is an institution for now and the future, doctrinally and administratively.