The Thematic Bible Conference is no longer over the Memorial Day weekend, but over the weekend of 4 July. Registration is available.
W4CAA will hold its annual Thematic Bible Conference at St Paul ’s Anglican Church, Los Altos, this Memorial Day long weekend, 28–30 May 2022, to the theme ‘Acts: Hellenists and Samaritans, Gentiles and Antioch’ (Acts 6.8–12.24). Participation is available through your own Internet connection, wherever you are, or else at our site in Los Altos, California. Please register below on our registration form.
The 2022 Thematic Bible Conference continues a four-year (2021–24) study of the Acts of the Apostles. This study of Acts comes in turn after a three-year study of the Gospel of Luke in 2018, 2019, and 2020.
Before coming to the conference, please watch these two short lectures if you have not watched them already:
- ‘Introduction to the Acts of the Apostles by Prof. N. T. Wright’ (2:55);
- ‘Session One: Acts 1:1–8 with Prof. N. T. Wright’ (15:37).
During the conference, six more short lectures will feature N.T. Wright.
And for conferees fluent in Cantonese or Mandarin, additional exposition lectures (with consecutive interpretation) will feature Stephen Lee (李思敬) during the conference:
禱告與揀選 (使徒行傳 1.1–14)
臨在與澆灌 (使徒行傳 2.1–42)
增長與突破 (使徒行傳 6.1–7)
差遣與順服 (使徒行傳 11.1–18)
Conference Schedules and Locations
If you are taking part on site in northern California, the address is St Paul’s Anglican Church, 101 N El Monte Ave, Los Altos, CA 94022.
Bible Study Leader Training
This year, we are offering three tracks for Bible study leader training:
Track 1: How to Lead Inductive Bible Study: An Introduction
This is our basic training for a literate Christian believer to begin leading inductive Bible studies, whether at school, at work, or at home.
Track 2: Intermediate Bible Study Skills
For those who have already completed our basic training, we offer a second track to further develop Bible study skills.
2a. How to use Group Dynamics to Enhance Objectivity (Richard Yen).
2b. Word Study Techniques (Richard Yen).
2c. Evangelistic Bible Studies (Pak-Yan Liang).
Some trained inductive Bible study leaders wish to hone their skills specifically for evangelism, to help enquirers come through inductive Bible study to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ. This track is for them.
2d. Introduction to Biblical Interpretation (Michael Yung).
Track 3: Advanced Bible Study Skills
3a. Hybrid Textual Outline (Michael Yung).
3b. Setting Questions from Outline (Michael Yung).
Speaker
Keynote Lectures
Last year, we had Alastair Roberts returning as a speaker. Alastair Roberts, PhD Dunelm., is a Teaching Fellow of the Theopolis Institute and the Davenant Institute, a leading evangelical blogger and writer, and one of the hosts of the Mere Fidelity podcast. He has lectured in Christian Ethics at London Seminary, and is author of two books from Crossway: Echoes of Exodus: Tracing Themes of Redemption through Scripture (2018) and Heirs Together: A Theology of the Sexes (2019). He blogs at alastairadversaria.com and also serves as Editor of the Politics of Scripture section of Political Theology.
We can be tempted to regard the book of Acts as if it were merely a long fade-out coda to the New Testament story, entirely secondary to the narrative of the gospels, where the real importance lies. If the Gospels tell of the advent and work of Christ, however, the book of Acts narrates the advent and work of his Spirit, in a mission that arises from and continues the work of Christ in his earthly ministry. Through attention to the motifs, types, echoes, narrative patterns, and parallel structures of the opening chapters of Acts, the careful reader will be equipped to perceive the deeper significance and theology of the Church which animates much of the rest of the New Testament.
For conferees registered for the full conference, we shall revisit Dr Roberts’s “Acts: An Introduction” lectures he gave last year. See the first 3 minutes here: https://youtu.be/X8jE2pRcV6w.
Short Lectures
On each day of the conference, we’ll have multiple short lectures by the Right Reverend N. T. Wright, formerly Lord Bishop of Durham, on aspects of Acts 6.8–12.24.
Exposition Lectures
We’ll have four exposition lectures by Dr Stephen Lee (李思敬), formerly President of CGST (中國神學研究院), on aspects of Acts 1.1–12.24. See a glimpse of Dr Lee’s exposition: https://youtu.be/uQQccvn4Jgg.
Bible Study Leader Training
Besides the basic training to become an inductive Bible study leader, we also have intermediate and advanced training for Bible study leaders who are already trained and certified by W4CAA, by the following trainers:
Michael Yung. Founding member of UCLA Chinese Christian Fellowship in the 1970s, frequent speaker of the Winter Conference since the 1970s on topics related to inductive Bible study, biblical interpretations, and apologetics.
Richard Yen. Entrepreneur in biologics; founder of Fibroplate Inc.; founding member of the West Coast Chinese Christian Conference (W4C); founder of W4CAA; frequent conference and church speaker on topics in inductive Bible study, apologetics, and faith and science.
Eric (Pak) Liang. 1979 and 1980 chairman of the West Coast Chinese Christian Conference (W4C); W4C leadership trainer, 1980–1990; PhD in Aerospace Engineering from Stanford University; MBA from UCLA; pursuing an MS in Biblical Studies; information strategy consultant; guest lecturer on business administration at the Master’s University; current YouTuber for Living Water Media.
Registration
Registration for the 2022 conference is available now. Please register and pay as soon as you can! Mail cheques out by 15 May or pay online. The registration fee will be waived for inductive Bible study trainees.
| Regular admission | Bible study leaders leading at least 3 Bible study sessions | |
|---|---|---|
| Adults | $50 | $0 |
| Students and unemployed | $25 | $0 |
Note: The Bible study leader fee rate is good only through 15 May. Bible study leaders will be trained before the conference. Approved overseas Bible study leaders may be invited to come to our Northern California site to moderate the inductive Bible study sessions. If you need a formal invitation letter for travel arrangements, please let us know as soon as possible.
When you have completed the form, you will receive a response email. Please check for this confirmation email, which may have gone to your spam box. Everyone attending the conference remotely will need high-speed Internet to connect to the conference. Please make sure you have this, so that you can watch our speakers, participate in our Bible studies, and interact in our question-and-answer sessions with the speakers.