Nicholas Bhengu Theological college

Historical Background
The College is named after the founding father of the African work of the Assemblies of God in South Africa, namely, Nicholas Bhengu. He conceived the idea of a Bible School as early as 1963, when he challenged believers in Transkei, to give towards the building of a Bible School. In 1966 he spoke to the late Bill Kirby, a British Assemblies of God Missionary, to go for training so that he would start the School. Kirby studied at London Bible College and returned to South Africa in 1969. However, the School did not begin until long after Nicholas Bhengu had passed on. Kirby went to Swaziland at the invitation of Dr Lukhele & others in that country, to open a Bible School in 1991. The School later moved to Ladysmith in 1992; and again moved to Henley on Klip in 1994. The College now occupies some of the premises of the Assemblies of God Centre, at 1922 Regatta Road, Henley on Klip; near Meyerton in the Midvaal area of Gauteng. The College exists to train aspirant ministers of the Assemblies of God; and any other ministers, person interested in and hungry for the enriching study of the Word of God; and those wishing to prepare themselves for work of the Ministry in whatever form.


Vision Statement (Main Goal)

To realize a Church that is
• Well established on the foundations of the Gospel of Jesus Christ and Biblical faith;
• Well-fed and matured by the ministry of the Word, to live a victorious life; well cared for: spiritually, emotionally, socially and intellectually;
• Well equipped to reach out with the Gospel of Love, through word and deed, to its surrounding world; by the Ministries of well-trained men and women.

Mission Statement (Main Objectives)

• To empower learners with knowledge of God’s word, with which they will be able to equip the Church
• To prepare learners to face to the new world: of business, economics, politics, information technology, communication and related others
• To develop in the learners the desire to study/learn ; search Scriptures; reasoning skills; critical thinking (learn, unlearn and relearn)
• To equip learners with skills of interpretation, preparation and presentation of messages of the Word of God
• To work in collaboration with other organizations that mainly deal with Christian theological training and education, as well as other related fields/disciplines
• To offer accredited and registered qualifications on a variety of academic levels
• To conduct the administration of the college completely to continuously review, upgrade and improve the quality and methods of education and training
• To develop and provide accessible training for Christian Ministries – lay, pastoral, theological, youth missions, women’s ministry and children’s ministry
Statement of Faith: We believe...
• The Bible is the inspired and only infallible and authoritative written Word of God (2 Timothy 3:16)
• There is one God, eternally existent in three persons: God the Father, God the son, and God the Holy Spirit (Deut. 6:4; Matthew 28:19)
• In the deity of our Lord Jesus Christ, in His virgin birth, in His sinless life, in His miracles, in His vicarious and atoning death, in His bodily resurrection, in His ascension to the right hand of the Father, in His personal, future return to this earth in power and glory to rule one thousand years (John 1:1)
• In the blessed hope – the rapture of the Church at Christ’s coming (Titus 2:13)
• The only means of being cleansed from sin is through repentance and faith in the precious blood of Christ (John 14:6)
• Regeneration by the Holy Spirit is absolutely essential for personal salvation (Titus 3:5)
• In water baptism by immersion (Matthew 28:19)
• The redemptive work of Christ on the cross provides healing of the human body in answer to believing prayer (1 Peter 2:24)
• The baptism in the Holy Spirit, according to Acts 2:4, is given to believers who ask.
• In the sanctifying power of the Holy Spirit by whose indwelling the Christian is enabled to live a holy life (Galatians 5:15 – 21)
• In the resurrection of both the saved and the lost, the saved to everlasting life and the lost to everlasting damnation (Revelation 20:11 – 15)

Mode of Delivery

• The courses are offered at the main campus, Assemblies of God Conference
Centre, Henley on Klip; as well as at other venues where a good number of students are able to organize, and invite the College to go to them. If a session cannot be conducted in a Regional venue due to few numbers, students are responsible to complete their work at the main venue (HOK).
• The courses are offered in 4 sessions of one week each over the 4 terms of the year. Attendance is compulsory. (We do not run correspondence courses for now.) Each session is able to stand alone as a unit. Students may attend sessions of their choice until the 4 sessions are completed. Students must, however, note that a session is offered only once a year. If a student misses a session, he or she will only be able to take the same session the following year. Each session is governed by the rules in the prospectus of the respective year.
• Each week comprises, at most, 5 intensive days, Monday to Friday, from 8h00 to 17h00. Work: interactive classes; participation in group work and discussions; assignments to be completed overnight and submitted the following morning; and exams.