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Our culture today has pretty much put God on the DO NOT TOUCH shelf for schools, teachers, and students. The Think Above the Box series was born as an aid to counter the shutting out of all things biblical in education today. These study guides are the first of hopefully a long series that will take more books into the theological realm.
When Peter Greene, the author of Warship Poseidon, asked me to read and critique his rough draft, I was honored. The book caught and kept my attention from the beginning in the dark alleys of London all the way through to the tearful and emotional final scene. Even though it was written as young adult adventure fiction, this story will touch people of all ages.
God is speaking through Warship Poseidon in so many ways throughout its nineteen chapters. As I was reading the story, Bible verses, and concepts kept shouting at me from every page! I pitched my idea of doing a Biblical study guide to Peter and he agreed. This study guide will not ask for chapter outlines, plot points, character development, or word definitions but will provide an opportunity to take a secular story and use Scriptural references, videos, essays, music, and thought-provoking questions to teach students how to comprehend a story using a Biblical worldview. Study Guides for Castle of Fire and Paladin’s War are also available, with more short stories, books and guides to come!
The Lord and His teachings are everywhere if one only knows how to look for them. May this be the beginning of a whole new way of looking at literature through a Biblical lens!
A little bit about B. C. Pietsch: I am a firm believer in Jesus Christ, the Son of God, and the Bible as His inspired Word. My desire is to see others come to Him as Savior. The EFCA Statement of Faith below reflects my beliefs.
God
We believe in one God, Creator of all things, holy, infinitely perfect, and eternally existing in a loving unity of three equally divine Persons: the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. Having limitless knowledge and sovereign power, God has graciously purposed from eternity to redeem a people for Himself and to make all things new for His own glory.
The Human Condition
We believe that God created Adam and Eve in His image, but they sinned when tempted by Satan. In union with Adam, human beings are sinners by nature and by choice, alienated from God, and under His wrath. Only through God’s saving work in Jesus Christ can we be rescued, reconciled and renewed.
The Holy Spirit
We believe that Jesus Christ, as our representative and substitute, shed His blood on the cross as the perfect, all-sufficient sacrifice for our sins. His atoning death and victorious resurrection constitute the only ground for salvation.
Christian Living
We believe that God’s justifying grace must not be separated from His sanctifying power and purpose. God commands us to love Him supremely and others sacrificially, and to live out our faith with care for one another, compassion toward the poor and justice for the oppressed. With God’s Word, the Spirit’s power, and fervent prayer in Christ’s name, we are to combat the spiritual forces of evil. In obedience to Christ’s commission, we are to make disciples among all people, always bearing witness to the gospel in word and deed.
The Church
We believe that the true church comprises all who have been justified by God’s grace through faith alone in Christ alone. They are united by the Holy Spirit in the body of Christ, of which He is the Head. The true church is manifest in local churches, whose membership should be composed only of believers. The Lord Jesus mandated two ordinances, baptism and the Lord’s Supper, which visibly and tangibly express the gospel. Though they are not the means of salvation, when celebrated by the church in genuine faith, these ordinances confirm and nourish the believer.
The Bible
We believe that God has spoken in the Scriptures, both Old and New Testaments, through the words of human authors. As the verbally inspired Word of God, the Bible is without error in the original writings, the complete revelation of His will for salvation, and the ultimate authority by which every realm of human knowledge and endeavor should be judged. Therefore, it is to be believed in all that it teaches, obeyed in all that it requires, and trusted in all that it promises.
Jesus Christ
We believe that Jesus Christ is God incarnate, fully God and fully man, one Person in two natures. Jesus—Israel’s promised Messiah—was conceived through the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. He lived a sinless life, was crucified under Pontius Pilate, arose bodily from the dead, ascended into heaven and sits at the right hand of God the Father as our High Priest and Advocate.
The Work of Christ
We believe that Jesus Christ, as our representative and substitute, shed His blood on the cross as the perfect, all-sufficient sacrifice for our sins. His atoning death and victorious resurrection constitute the only ground for salvation.
Christ’s Return
We believe in the personal, bodily and glorious return of our Lord Jesus Christ. The coming of Christ, at a time known only to God, demands constant expectancy and, as our blessed hope, motivates the believer to godly living, sacrificial service and energetic mission.
Response and Eternal Destiny
We believe that God commands everyone everywhere to believe the gospel by turning to Him in repentance and receiving the Lord Jesus Christ. We believe that God will raise the dead bodily and judge the world, assigning the unbeliever to condemnation and eternal conscious punishment and the believer to eternal blessedness and joy with the Lord in the new heaven and the new earth, to the praise of His glorious grace. Amen.
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