Courses for Churches
Below are some sample courses with descriptions that Dr. Ramey can lead in person or online for your church group. Alternatively, if you have a topic or idea for a course that you'd like to have designed and taught for your church, please don't hesitate to ask!
"Rabbi Jesus: Jesus’ Sermons in the Gospel of Matthew"
Course Description:
Come and learn at the feet of the Master Teacher, Jesus of Nazareth! In this eight-week study, we will explore Jesus’s most famous sermons from the Gospel of Matthew (a.k.a. the “Five Matthean Discourses:
• “The Sermon on the Mount” (Matthew 5-7): Practicing the Greater Righteousness by Loving God and Neighbors
• “The Missionary Discourse” (Matthew 10): A Call to Discipleship
• “The Kingdom of God Parables” (Matthew 13): Envisioning the Kingdom
• “The Community Discourse” (Matthew 18-20): Living Together as the Family of God
• “The Apocalyptic Discourse” (Matthew 24-25): Living in the End of an Age
Be refreshed by Jesus’ words of comfort, challenged and critiqued by his penetrating insight, and renewed by his vision for a different world order. But most importantly, just be present and ready to learn from Rabbi Jesus.
Course Description:
Come and learn at the feet of the Master Teacher, Jesus of Nazareth! In this eight-week study, we will explore Jesus’s most famous sermons from the Gospel of Matthew (a.k.a. the “Five Matthean Discourses:
• “The Sermon on the Mount” (Matthew 5-7): Practicing the Greater Righteousness by Loving God and Neighbors
• “The Missionary Discourse” (Matthew 10): A Call to Discipleship
• “The Kingdom of God Parables” (Matthew 13): Envisioning the Kingdom
• “The Community Discourse” (Matthew 18-20): Living Together as the Family of God
• “The Apocalyptic Discourse” (Matthew 24-25): Living in the End of an Age
Be refreshed by Jesus’ words of comfort, challenged and critiqued by his penetrating insight, and renewed by his vision for a different world order. But most importantly, just be present and ready to learn from Rabbi Jesus.
"The Churches of Revelation"
Course Description:
Why bother learning about ancient Greco-Roman cities or the letters written to Christian communities there? What could they possibly have to do with modern life and Christians today? Much more than you would think!
Join us for this eight-week Bible study as we delve into the ancient past and find relevant lessons for the church today. Using the tools of archaeology, geography, and biblical exegesis, we will excavate the seven ancient cities of Asia Minor and interpret the letters written to them in Revelation 2-3. It promises to be a truly apocalyptic event!
Course Description:
Why bother learning about ancient Greco-Roman cities or the letters written to Christian communities there? What could they possibly have to do with modern life and Christians today? Much more than you would think!
Join us for this eight-week Bible study as we delve into the ancient past and find relevant lessons for the church today. Using the tools of archaeology, geography, and biblical exegesis, we will excavate the seven ancient cities of Asia Minor and interpret the letters written to them in Revelation 2-3. It promises to be a truly apocalyptic event!
“The Word Made Film”
Course Description:
While the Word was “Made Flesh” in Galilee over 2000 years ago, for over a century in Hollywood, the Word has been “Made Film.” To date, more than a hundred Jesus films have been produced, and that’s before we even start talking about all the TV mini-series and animated versions! While these re-presentations of Jesus are as varied as their writers, directors, and actors, what they have in common is a fascination with presenting the “Savior on the Silver Screen.”
In this course, we will survey the different genres of Jesus films, examine the historical and cultural contexts that helped to shape them, and discuss the divergent theologies conveyed through these films. Join us for this seven-week series to learn more about these “Celluloid Saviors” as we screen several of the most significant Jesus films together.
Course Description:
While the Word was “Made Flesh” in Galilee over 2000 years ago, for over a century in Hollywood, the Word has been “Made Film.” To date, more than a hundred Jesus films have been produced, and that’s before we even start talking about all the TV mini-series and animated versions! While these re-presentations of Jesus are as varied as their writers, directors, and actors, what they have in common is a fascination with presenting the “Savior on the Silver Screen.”
In this course, we will survey the different genres of Jesus films, examine the historical and cultural contexts that helped to shape them, and discuss the divergent theologies conveyed through these films. Join us for this seven-week series to learn more about these “Celluloid Saviors” as we screen several of the most significant Jesus films together.
"St. Paul and All the Leading Ladies"
Course Description:
For centuries, Christians have alternatively used St. Paul’s words to both empower and suppress women. But what did Paul really think, both about the particular women around him and about females in leadership in the church in general?
In order to interpret his writings well, we first have to understand more about the cultural world in which Paul lived. And in order to understand his views on women in leadership, we also have to examine what Paul was SAYING in light of what he and the women in the early church were actually DOING.
Come and join us as we travel back in time to learn more about St. Paul’s world and all the “Leading Ladies” who worked with him to spread the good news.
Course Description:
For centuries, Christians have alternatively used St. Paul’s words to both empower and suppress women. But what did Paul really think, both about the particular women around him and about females in leadership in the church in general?
In order to interpret his writings well, we first have to understand more about the cultural world in which Paul lived. And in order to understand his views on women in leadership, we also have to examine what Paul was SAYING in light of what he and the women in the early church were actually DOING.
Come and join us as we travel back in time to learn more about St. Paul’s world and all the “Leading Ladies” who worked with him to spread the good news.
"Philippians"
Course Description:
During this five-week course, we will be studying Paul’s most joyful letter, which he wrote to his friends in Philippi (northern Greece today). In our lesson, we’ll learn about the letter’s background. For the next four weeks, we will focus on each of the letter’s four chapters in turn. We will discuss Paul's theology, the struggles and successes of that early church living in the Roman Empire, and the way that letter still speaks to our lives and churches today. Go ahead and read or, even better, listen to the letter in its entirety in one sitting. It only takes about 15 minutes! I promise that you'll find both blessing and inspiration within this brief letter.
Course Description:
During this five-week course, we will be studying Paul’s most joyful letter, which he wrote to his friends in Philippi (northern Greece today). In our lesson, we’ll learn about the letter’s background. For the next four weeks, we will focus on each of the letter’s four chapters in turn. We will discuss Paul's theology, the struggles and successes of that early church living in the Roman Empire, and the way that letter still speaks to our lives and churches today. Go ahead and read or, even better, listen to the letter in its entirety in one sitting. It only takes about 15 minutes! I promise that you'll find both blessing and inspiration within this brief letter.
"Sermon on the Mount"
Course Description:
The “Sermon on the Mount” in Matthew 5-7 is arguably the most famous of all of Jesus’ speeches. In three chapters, Jesus teaches us how to live in God’s kingdom, a realm that requires practicing a “greater righteousness” of loving kindness towards God and our neighbors. Join us for this five-week study as we meditate on what’s been called the “Torah of Jesus” and discuss how we may apply it in our worship and communal lives today.
Course Description:
The “Sermon on the Mount” in Matthew 5-7 is arguably the most famous of all of Jesus’ speeches. In three chapters, Jesus teaches us how to live in God’s kingdom, a realm that requires practicing a “greater righteousness” of loving kindness towards God and our neighbors. Join us for this five-week study as we meditate on what’s been called the “Torah of Jesus” and discuss how we may apply it in our worship and communal lives today.
"The Cross in the Wilderness: Bracketing Lent from the Temptation to the Crucifixion"
Course Description:
In this four-week series, we will be practicing something that I like to call an “Academic Lectio Divina” by diving deeply into the two texts that bracket Lent—the Temptation (Matthew 4:1-11) and the Crucifixion (Matthew 27:31-44). We will explore their literary settings, tradition histories, and various theological interpretations as we read these stories with a backward gaze toward the Old Testament and in the forward shadowing light of later passages in Matthew’s Gospel. By prayerfully reflecting on Jesus’s trials in the wilderness and at Golgotha through various types of readings, we will see how these stories complement one another and what they highlight in our own lives and spiritual practices today.
Course Description:
In this four-week series, we will be practicing something that I like to call an “Academic Lectio Divina” by diving deeply into the two texts that bracket Lent—the Temptation (Matthew 4:1-11) and the Crucifixion (Matthew 27:31-44). We will explore their literary settings, tradition histories, and various theological interpretations as we read these stories with a backward gaze toward the Old Testament and in the forward shadowing light of later passages in Matthew’s Gospel. By prayerfully reflecting on Jesus’s trials in the wilderness and at Golgotha through various types of readings, we will see how these stories complement one another and what they highlight in our own lives and spiritual practices today.
“History of the Bible”
Course Description:
This ten-week series on the “History of the Bible” starts with its origins in the ancient Near East over 3,000 years ago and goes all the way to how it ended up in your hands today. We’ll be tackling many of the big questions about the Bible that you may have always wondered, such as:
• Who wrote the Bible? How, when, and where were the original texts written, and what happened to them?
• How were copies of these texts made and transmitted, and how accurate are they?
• Why were some books included while others were left out?
• Why do Catholics, Protestants, and Orthodox Christians have different books in their Bibles?
• And what’s the deal with so many different translations? Are some better than others?
If you’re curious about any of the above questions, then please consider scheduling this study for your group.
Course Description:
This ten-week series on the “History of the Bible” starts with its origins in the ancient Near East over 3,000 years ago and goes all the way to how it ended up in your hands today. We’ll be tackling many of the big questions about the Bible that you may have always wondered, such as:
• Who wrote the Bible? How, when, and where were the original texts written, and what happened to them?
• How were copies of these texts made and transmitted, and how accurate are they?
• Why were some books included while others were left out?
• Why do Catholics, Protestants, and Orthodox Christians have different books in their Bibles?
• And what’s the deal with so many different translations? Are some better than others?
If you’re curious about any of the above questions, then please consider scheduling this study for your group.