MLI Purposes
“This is a faithful saying: If a man desires the position of a bishop, he desires a good work... And the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.” 1 Timothy 3:1 & 2 Timothy 2:2
MLI Aim: “Developing biblical servant-minded leaders devoted to the Holy Scriptures.” It is the desire of the MLI leaders that the Student in Training (SIT) upon graduation would have the…
1. Ability to WALK the faith practically. Col. 1:9-10
2. Ability to DEFEND the faith confidently. 1 Peter 3:15-16
3. Ability to STRENGTHEN those of the faith positively. Proverbs 27:17
Directors: Pastor/teacher Dr. Mark Fisher has general oversight of the MLI under the auspices of Go Give Hope. Pastor/director Fred Musungu along with Pastor Benard Watenyeli have the general oversight of the MLI program in Uganda. Pastor/director Peter Lukoye along with Pastor Micah Wanyonyi have the general oversight of the MLI program in Kenya.
Biblical Training: MLI has 3 levels of Bible courses which equate to approximately 100 credit hours, equalling that of an institutional level program. Each Bible course is taught with an emphasis on leadership, and may have varying learning formats giving the SIT a general background in biblical study methods. Each level of classes will be completed in a two year span.
All lectures and study materials will be posted on the website. The SIT will be required to attend at least 80% of the class meetings for each course. Attendance will be taken by the leader or facilitator and submitted.
Participants: Whether church leaders, teachers or youth leaders, both men and women, are invited to be part of the MLI program. The MLI directors purposefully reach out to the rural villages of their communities where the servants of Christ do not have the access or the means of foundational biblical training & discipleship.
Academic and Hands-on Training: The SIT would be required to complete a sensible amount of academic work, accompanied with participation and responsibility in local ministries in which they feel called, upon the approval and under the supervision of the ministry leaders.
Website: Students have access to the MLI website where they can access audio and video lessons, documents, study materials and pastor blogs. The purpose is to make the learning process simple and accessible for the SIT.
Graduation: Those SIT who have faithfully completed all requirements of the MLI program would be eligible for graduation upon approval and recommendation of their local leaders. A ceremony would be held in honor of those approved. It may be that at the same time, if deemed appropriate by the leaders, an ordination service would be held for qualified leaders.
Commitment: Both the MLI leaders and SIT are required to read and sign their correlating MLI agreements.
Belief Statement
1. That the Holy Scriptures, the recognized and accepted 66 books of both the Old & New Testaments to be the equally inspired Word of God. It is perfect and complete in its original writings, infallible, and God-breathed. It is the final authority, and is to be obeyed for all faith, life, and practice, both within the church and individually. It is to be fully embraced and taught in its entirety in a literal, historical, grammatical context, equating to a Christ-centered perspective. (Isaiah 42:1-6; Isaiah 49:5, 6; II Timothy 3:16, 17; 4:1-5; II Peter 1:20,21; Matthew 5:18; John 1:17; 16:12,13; I Corinthians 9:17; II Corinthians 3:9-18; Galatians 3:13-25; Ephesians 1:10; 3:2; Colossians 1:24,25; Hebrews 1:2; 7:19; Revelation 20:2-6).
2. That God is One who exists in three unified persons. The Father, The Son, & The Holy Spirit. All three (a plurality) being of one essence and nature, each one possessing full and equal deity, and having the same attributes and perfections. (Deuteronomy 4:35; 6:4; Isa 6:3; 45:14; II Corinthians 13:14).
3. That God the Father, the Father of the Lord Jesus Christ, is the eternal self-existent God. He is the first person of the trinity who works all things according to His own purpose and grace. He is supreme over all, the loving sovereign creator, ruler, mover, and sustainer of all things. He is perfect in all His ways, lacking nothing in regards to His perfections. He is also the initiator of salvation. (Genesis 1; Isaiah 40; John 3:16; Ephesians 1).
4a. That the Lord Jesus Christ is the eternal Son of God. Jesus Christ, the theme of Scripture, became man, while still fully being the self-existent eternal God (Hypostatic union). He was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary, while being the only begotten of the Father. In short, His purpose was to reveal God to man and purchase redemption for sinful mankind. (Isaiah 7:14; Matthew 1:23; John 1:1,2, 18; Philippians 2:1-5; Col 1:15-17; Hebrews 1:1-10; Luke 1:35; 24:44).
b. That the Lord Jesus Christ died on the cross and arose again for all mankind. He is the representative, vicarious, substitutionary sacrifice for all mankind. God’s wrath for sin having been transferred to His Son; and that this once for all sacrifice accomplishes the redemption and justification for all who trust in Him alone; the assurance being upon His acceptance from the Father, based upon His literal, physical resurrection from the dead. (Romans 3:24,25; 4:25; II Corinthians 5:21; Ephesians 1:7; I Timothy 4:10; Hebrews 2:9; 9:26-28; 10:1-14; I Peter 1:3-5; 2:24; II Peter 2:1; I John 2:1, 2).
c. That the Lord Jesus Christ ascended to heaven and is coming again. He is now exalted at the right hand of the throne of God; where He is now acting as the saint’s high priest, representative, intercessor, and advocate; while at the same time holding all things together and carrying forth the will of His Father. As promised He will come again and restore all things and fulfill the yet unfilled prophesies of Scripture (Acts 1:9,10; Colossians 1:17; Hebrews 1:1-3; 7:25; 9:24; Romans 8:34; I John 2:1,2; Matthew 24:29-31; I Thessalonians 1:10; 4:13-18; 5:9; Zechariah 14:4-11; Revelation 3:10; 19:11-16; 20:1-6; Gen 12:1-2; 28:13-15; Jeremiah 31:31-37; Acts 1:6-8; Romans 11:25-27).
5a. That the Holy Spirit is the third person of the Godhead. The Holy Spirit convicts the world of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment; and He is the supernatural agent in regeneration, whereby all believers are baptized with the Holy Spirit into the body of Christ, thereby empowering, enlightening, indwelling, comforting, convicting, and sealing the saint, unto the day of redemption. (Matthew 3:11; John 16:8-11; Romans 8:9; I Corinthians 12:12-14; II Corinthians 3:6; Ephesians 1:13,14).
b. That the Holy Spirit is the Divine Teacher, who using the inspired Scriptures, directs believers into all truth. And that it is the joy and responsibility of all saints to walk in, and to be filled with, and not to grieve or quench the Holy Spirit. (John 16:13; I John 2:20,27; Galatians 5:16; Ephesians 4:30; 5:18; I Thessalonians 5:19).
c. That Christ has distributed spiritual gifts administered by the Holy Spirit. Jesus Christ is sovereign in the distribution of all His gifts to His Body, and that His gifts are sufficient for the perfecting of the saints within the church today. (Acts; I Corinthians 12:4-11; II Corinthians 12:12; Ephesians 4:7-12; Hebrews 2:3,4).
6. That Satan fell and became the enemy of God and His creation. Satan, the Devil, the evil one, the god of this world is one in the same, and he is called other names in the scriptures that reflect his wicked character. He is the one who instigated the fall of man. He is a liar, murderer, deceiver, tempter, accuser, devourer, master of iniquity, ruler of the fallen angels, counterfeit of truth, and the mastermind behind all evil. He and his ways are to be shunned and exposed. (Matthew 4:1-22; 25:41; John 8:44; II Corinthians 2:11; 4:1-5; 11:13-15; Ephesians 6:1, 11; Revelation 12:10; 20:3).
7a. That mankind is born sinful and completely unable to naturally please God. Man was created in the image and likeness of God, but due to Adam’s disobedience, all mankind fell into a sinful state and became enemies of God and slaves to sin. And that man is not a free being, but is corrupted by sin, and of himself is completely unable to cure his lost, sinful, and condemned condition. (Genesis 1:26,27; John 3:36; Romans 3:22,23; 5:12; 6;17, 18; Ephesians 2:1-3, 12).
b. That there is an eternal state of man. There will be a bodily resurrection of all men: the saved to eternal life and the unsaved to judgment and everlasting punishment. (Matthew 25:41-46; Mark 9:43-48; Luke 16:19-26; 23:43; John 5:28,29; II Corinthians 5:8; Philippians 1:23; 3:21;
I Thessalonians 4:16,17; II Thessalonians 1:7-9; Jude 6,7; Revelation 20:5,6,12,13).
8a. That salvation is completely the grace of God. Salvation represents the whole loving and righteous work of God whereby he rescues sinful man and frees him from everlasting destruction and the fate of sin, and bestows on him the treasures of his divine grace. This salvation to lost mankind is through God’s supernatural grace accomplished at Calvary. And the lost sinner by faith alone in the Lord Jesus Christ at the moment of believing, receives forgiveness of sins based solely on the New covenant sacrifice which is the precious blood of Christ shed at Calvary. (Romans 3:10-4:8; Ephesians 1:7; 2:8-10; Colossians 2:13; Hebrews 10:10-18; John 1:12; I Peter 1:18,19).
b. The believer in Christ is secure. Once saved, or born again, the believer in Christ is now accepted by God’s grace in Christ, and is kept secure and sanctified by God's power. (John 6:37-40; 10:27-30; Romans 8:1, 38-39; Ephesians 1:3-13; 2:8-10; I Corinthians 1:4-8; Hebrews 10: 14; I Peter 1:5).
“This is a faithful saying: If a man desires the position of a bishop, he desires a good work... And the things that you have heard from me among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men who will be able to teach others also.” 1 Timothy 3:1 & 2 Timothy 2:2
MLI Aim: “Developing biblical servant-minded leaders devoted to the Holy Scriptures.” It is the desire of the MLI leaders that the Student in Training (SIT) upon graduation would have the…
1. Ability to WALK the faith practically. Col. 1:9-10
2. Ability to DEFEND the faith confidently. 1 Peter 3:15-16
3. Ability to STRENGTHEN those of the faith positively. Proverbs 27:17
Directors: Pastor/teacher Dr. Mark Fisher has general oversight of the MLI under the auspices of Go Give Hope. Pastor/director Fred Musungu along with Pastor Benard Watenyeli have the general oversight of the MLI program in Uganda. Pastor/director Peter Lukoye along with Pastor Micah Wanyonyi have the general oversight of the MLI program in Kenya.
Biblical Training: MLI has 3 levels of Bible courses which equate to approximately 100 credit hours, equalling that of an institutional level program. Each Bible course is taught with an emphasis on leadership, and may have varying learning formats giving the SIT a general background in biblical study methods. Each level of classes will be completed in a two year span.
All lectures and study materials will be posted on the website. The SIT will be required to attend at least 80% of the class meetings for each course. Attendance will be taken by the leader or facilitator and submitted.
Participants: Whether church leaders, teachers or youth leaders, both men and women, are invited to be part of the MLI program. The MLI directors purposefully reach out to the rural villages of their communities where the servants of Christ do not have the access or the means of foundational biblical training & discipleship.
Academic and Hands-on Training: The SIT would be required to complete a sensible amount of academic work, accompanied with participation and responsibility in local ministries in which they feel called, upon the approval and under the supervision of the ministry leaders.
Website: Students have access to the MLI website where they can access audio and video lessons, documents, study materials and pastor blogs. The purpose is to make the learning process simple and accessible for the SIT.
Graduation: Those SIT who have faithfully completed all requirements of the MLI program would be eligible for graduation upon approval and recommendation of their local leaders. A ceremony would be held in honor of those approved. It may be that at the same time, if deemed appropriate by the leaders, an ordination service would be held for qualified leaders.
Commitment: Both the MLI leaders and SIT are required to read and sign their correlating MLI agreements.
Belief Statement
1. That the Holy Scriptures, the recognized and accepted 66 books of both the Old & New Testaments to be the equally inspired Word of God. It is perfect and complete in its original writings, infallible, and God-breathed. It is the final authority, and is to be obeyed for all faith, life, and practice, both within the church and individually. It is to be fully embraced and taught in its entirety in a literal, historical, grammatical context, equating to a Christ-centered perspective. (Isaiah 42:1-6; Isaiah 49:5, 6; II Timothy 3:16, 17; 4:1-5; II Peter 1:20,21; Matthew 5:18; John 1:17; 16:12,13; I Corinthians 9:17; II Corinthians 3:9-18; Galatians 3:13-25; Ephesians 1:10; 3:2; Colossians 1:24,25; Hebrews 1:2; 7:19; Revelation 20:2-6).
2. That God is One who exists in three unified persons. The Father, The Son, & The Holy Spirit. All three (a plurality) being of one essence and nature, each one possessing full and equal deity, and having the same attributes and perfections. (Deuteronomy 4:35; 6:4; Isa 6:3; 45:14; II Corinthians 13:14).
3. That God the Father, the Father of the Lord Jesus Christ, is the eternal self-existent God. He is the first person of the trinity who works all things according to His own purpose and grace. He is supreme over all, the loving sovereign creator, ruler, mover, and sustainer of all things. He is perfect in all His ways, lacking nothing in regards to His perfections. He is also the initiator of salvation. (Genesis 1; Isaiah 40; John 3:16; Ephesians 1).
4a. That the Lord Jesus Christ is the eternal Son of God. Jesus Christ, the theme of Scripture, became man, while still fully being the self-existent eternal God (Hypostatic union). He was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary, while being the only begotten of the Father. In short, His purpose was to reveal God to man and purchase redemption for sinful mankind. (Isaiah 7:14; Matthew 1:23; John 1:1,2, 18; Philippians 2:1-5; Col 1:15-17; Hebrews 1:1-10; Luke 1:35; 24:44).
b. That the Lord Jesus Christ died on the cross and arose again for all mankind. He is the representative, vicarious, substitutionary sacrifice for all mankind. God’s wrath for sin having been transferred to His Son; and that this once for all sacrifice accomplishes the redemption and justification for all who trust in Him alone; the assurance being upon His acceptance from the Father, based upon His literal, physical resurrection from the dead. (Romans 3:24,25; 4:25; II Corinthians 5:21; Ephesians 1:7; I Timothy 4:10; Hebrews 2:9; 9:26-28; 10:1-14; I Peter 1:3-5; 2:24; II Peter 2:1; I John 2:1, 2).
c. That the Lord Jesus Christ ascended to heaven and is coming again. He is now exalted at the right hand of the throne of God; where He is now acting as the saint’s high priest, representative, intercessor, and advocate; while at the same time holding all things together and carrying forth the will of His Father. As promised He will come again and restore all things and fulfill the yet unfilled prophesies of Scripture (Acts 1:9,10; Colossians 1:17; Hebrews 1:1-3; 7:25; 9:24; Romans 8:34; I John 2:1,2; Matthew 24:29-31; I Thessalonians 1:10; 4:13-18; 5:9; Zechariah 14:4-11; Revelation 3:10; 19:11-16; 20:1-6; Gen 12:1-2; 28:13-15; Jeremiah 31:31-37; Acts 1:6-8; Romans 11:25-27).
5a. That the Holy Spirit is the third person of the Godhead. The Holy Spirit convicts the world of sin, of righteousness, and of judgment; and He is the supernatural agent in regeneration, whereby all believers are baptized with the Holy Spirit into the body of Christ, thereby empowering, enlightening, indwelling, comforting, convicting, and sealing the saint, unto the day of redemption. (Matthew 3:11; John 16:8-11; Romans 8:9; I Corinthians 12:12-14; II Corinthians 3:6; Ephesians 1:13,14).
b. That the Holy Spirit is the Divine Teacher, who using the inspired Scriptures, directs believers into all truth. And that it is the joy and responsibility of all saints to walk in, and to be filled with, and not to grieve or quench the Holy Spirit. (John 16:13; I John 2:20,27; Galatians 5:16; Ephesians 4:30; 5:18; I Thessalonians 5:19).
c. That Christ has distributed spiritual gifts administered by the Holy Spirit. Jesus Christ is sovereign in the distribution of all His gifts to His Body, and that His gifts are sufficient for the perfecting of the saints within the church today. (Acts; I Corinthians 12:4-11; II Corinthians 12:12; Ephesians 4:7-12; Hebrews 2:3,4).
6. That Satan fell and became the enemy of God and His creation. Satan, the Devil, the evil one, the god of this world is one in the same, and he is called other names in the scriptures that reflect his wicked character. He is the one who instigated the fall of man. He is a liar, murderer, deceiver, tempter, accuser, devourer, master of iniquity, ruler of the fallen angels, counterfeit of truth, and the mastermind behind all evil. He and his ways are to be shunned and exposed. (Matthew 4:1-22; 25:41; John 8:44; II Corinthians 2:11; 4:1-5; 11:13-15; Ephesians 6:1, 11; Revelation 12:10; 20:3).
7a. That mankind is born sinful and completely unable to naturally please God. Man was created in the image and likeness of God, but due to Adam’s disobedience, all mankind fell into a sinful state and became enemies of God and slaves to sin. And that man is not a free being, but is corrupted by sin, and of himself is completely unable to cure his lost, sinful, and condemned condition. (Genesis 1:26,27; John 3:36; Romans 3:22,23; 5:12; 6;17, 18; Ephesians 2:1-3, 12).
b. That there is an eternal state of man. There will be a bodily resurrection of all men: the saved to eternal life and the unsaved to judgment and everlasting punishment. (Matthew 25:41-46; Mark 9:43-48; Luke 16:19-26; 23:43; John 5:28,29; II Corinthians 5:8; Philippians 1:23; 3:21;
I Thessalonians 4:16,17; II Thessalonians 1:7-9; Jude 6,7; Revelation 20:5,6,12,13).
8a. That salvation is completely the grace of God. Salvation represents the whole loving and righteous work of God whereby he rescues sinful man and frees him from everlasting destruction and the fate of sin, and bestows on him the treasures of his divine grace. This salvation to lost mankind is through God’s supernatural grace accomplished at Calvary. And the lost sinner by faith alone in the Lord Jesus Christ at the moment of believing, receives forgiveness of sins based solely on the New covenant sacrifice which is the precious blood of Christ shed at Calvary. (Romans 3:10-4:8; Ephesians 1:7; 2:8-10; Colossians 2:13; Hebrews 10:10-18; John 1:12; I Peter 1:18,19).
b. The believer in Christ is secure. Once saved, or born again, the believer in Christ is now accepted by God’s grace in Christ, and is kept secure and sanctified by God's power. (John 6:37-40; 10:27-30; Romans 8:1, 38-39; Ephesians 1:3-13; 2:8-10; I Corinthians 1:4-8; Hebrews 10: 14; I Peter 1:5).