No, these are not academic theological studies and they are within the capabilities of the vast majority of people. Each course is aimed at making you familiar with the content of the Bible itself as you study through it with your course materials, so that you become skilled in handling this written revelation from God. A sound knowledge of the Bible’s teachings will be a very valuable asset you carry with you in your life and service to others, and it will be a well-spring of godly wisdom.
Through personal, diligent study of God’s Word using these materials you will develop a strong spiritual foundation, and you will find that your gifts have been cultivated and you have acquired more capacities. You will also find that your heart’s motivations and desires are becoming more aligned with the wisdom of God’s revelation. These courses can be challenging but not difficult. As with many things in life, what you receive from them is proportionally related to how much effort is put into them through personal study and reflection on what has been learned.
These learning programs have been developed for people who are the “grass-roots” of the kingdom of God, who are hungry to learn the ways of God and apply these principles in their own lives and ministries. They do not require you to read dozens of books to complete a course/subject as an academic level theological subject does. In a way the study programs are designed for you to “learn a little and use it a lot”. This itself gives you further understanding, gained through practical experience. Then if you desire later to study theology at an academic level you will have already laid a sure foundation of personal knowledge and understanding of God’s Word through your consistent studies with Sage Bible Institute (and you will not be ‘biblically illiterate’ as you embark on such a difficult venture).
The only pre-requisites are that you have a desire to learn; you can read and write in the English language; and you have access to a computer and the internet. Some subjects and programs have additional pre-requisites which are shown in the lists of subjects/courses available and programs available.
No. You must apply effort and do the work required for each program’s curriculum. We offer no awards without diligent study. “Although there is instant coffee there is no such thing as instant education.”
(I don’t want to use them as credit transfers inward, as I’d like to do the full 30 credits of work for my award.)
Yes, if you’ve already completed some similar courses and are not transferring them in, you can choose to substitute courses that are relevant to your award. They should comply with the rules for elective courses, whether they are substitutes for core courses or for elective courses. (E.g. If you are enrolling, say, in the Diploma of New Testament Studies and have previously studied James, you may substitute another course from the NT courses or relevant BL courses – but not from the CD, MN, OT, TH, or WS courses.)
Just send us an explanation and a copy of documentation of the studies already completed, and we will assess it and let you know our decision.
(In some circumstances we may allow courses to be substituted outside of these rules if your explanation is clear and reasonable – however this is not guaranteed as they are decided on the merits of the individual case.)
Distance education is an attractive alternative for people who are geographically isolated, or have a disability, or have 24 hours care of others at home (e.g. of children or frail, aged relatives), or whose occupations require shift-work or regular travel. Its flexibility is also ideal for anyone with a busy schedule who just enjoys learning independently.
Distance education is a way of structured learning which does not require a student to frequently travel to a campus for lectures and tutorials. It is a method which cultivates a student’s personal competencies by drawing on their internal motivations, time management, persistence, and self-discipline for their achievements through independent learning. In Australia in 1999 there were more than 150,000 people studying for tertiary awards by distance education. Today there are many more doing this, and world-wide there is an enormous movement of people educating themselves by using their learning abilities to work independently to achieve their goals.
It is not a new way of Christian training, as the apostle Paul was involved in distance training when he wrote to the early churches in Turkey and the Mediterranean regions (where these letters were circulated and publicly read). Paul recognised the power of the written word and taught this way in addition to his face-to-face ministry.
The popularity of the internet has provided many more opportunities where ‘the teacher can come to the student’ in economical ways, and people can pursue their life-long education in an online environment. With our courses you can equip yourself by easily accessing them on your computer at any time and anywhere – for a fraction of the cost of attending on-campus colleges and institutes, and without the need to spend time regularly travelling to and from a campus for lectures, etc. You can enrol with us at any time of the year.
Yes, if they are relevant to the award you are enrolling in. Transferring credit into your program will speed up the completion of your award’s program as there will be less work to do through us.
You will need to provide documentary evidence of the subjects/courses completed (preferably with Transcript copies) as well as written proof of the amount of work involved (stated in clock-hours) in the subjects for which you are seeking credit. Send copies, if you already have them on hand, together with your Enrolment Form by email or by airmail post. If you need to obtain them from previous colleges it will be quicker for you to arrange for them to send these direct to us (by email or airmail) and to write this in the relevant space on your Enrolment Form.
There is no charge for credit transfers. We will generally accept up to 75% of a program’s curriculum by credit transfers, of courses with similar content to our courses. We accept these transfers at our own valuation of the work required for them.
If you have done any structured studies anywhere and can provide copies of the required documentation, we will give your application a fair assessment and advise you of the outcome. We may waive some program requirements if there is sufficient similarity with the credits being transferred into the program for the award you would like to achieve.
This website serves as both of these. New students will receive our Handbook after enrolment, which includes this information as well as details of other matters.
It’s a straightforward process: just download and save a copy of the Enrolment Form, fill in the details and email the form back to us as an attachment. Then make your payment to us through PayPal. The procedure is detailed in the question regarding How do I pay, and are there any refunds?
After these are received we will email the Handbook to you and in the following days we will send you emails with all the courses/subjects attached.
After emailing your Enrolment Form to us you should pay the fees online through the third-party payment-processing company PayPal. It’s free, fast and secure. Payment can be from a credit card, debit card or bank account and you do not need an existing PayPal account to use the facility. Sage Bible Institute does not handle or have access to your personal financial information.
If you have a PayPal account you can arrange a PayPal payment through the Sage Bible Institute Enrolment page. If you do not have a PayPal account go directly to PayPal:
Click on the “Send Money” link, beneath “Pay Online”.
This should transfer you to their secure “Send Money” webpage.
Enter our email address [equip.sages@yahoo.com.au] in the “Send Money To” area of the form.
Then complete the remainder of the form with your information.
There are no refunds made of enrolment fees, so please take your time in considering what we have available to assist you in your growth and your goals for the future. Take time to pray about which elective courses to choose, if your program has electives.
The enrolment fee currently is $500 AUD [Australian dollars] for each 30 credit program. All our courses are tuition-free and the study materials are provided without charge to students. There are no hidden fees. You pay one amount only once for the program – and then the relevant courses/subjects are emailed to you.
Enrolling in one of the Family Bible Training Certificates costs $250 AUD for the whole family unit.
You work at your own pace with all our studies so it is really up to you. For lasting benefit you need to give yourself enough time for your learning to be absorbed in your thought life and also for it to permeate your heart and spirit, in addition to the time needed for reading, assignments, etc.
Given that the whole program’s materials are emailed to the student soon after their enrolment, and given that a single subject’s total work is emailed to us in one day (not lesson-by-lesson), the Institute has the policy that if we do not receive any work from you for more than 12 months you will be considered to have withdrawn from your studies. To re-commence your studies you will then need to enrol and pay the fees again - however any work already completed will remain as credit in your progress through the program’s curriculum for the relevant award.
In view of the above, therefore, an ‘active’ student working at the slowest pace would complete the program after about ten years. This would be an unusual case, though, as it is possible to complete a 30 credit program in less than 6 months if studying full-time.
Yes. As we only require 30 credits for a Certificate you would be admitted into a diploma program with an extra 10 credits that you could transfer in, if you like. (This assumes the work value of your credits is similar to that of Sage Bible Institute.) This applies to all previous studies completed for relevant Christian awards, as well as completed work where no award was granted.
Below are some questions you should answer realistically, that will help you decide if studying by distance education is for you.
1. Which statement best describes you? (A) I am a self-starter with solid, personal motivation. (B) I need occasional prodding to accomplish goals. (C) I don’t work well independently and require constant reminders.
2. I learn best … (A) When I see the material. (B) When I hear the material. (C) When I both see and hear the material.
3. When I’m working … (A) I organise myself into tasks & complete the work by the deadline. (B) I have a hard time getting focused by myself. (C) I put things off to the last minute and beyond.
4. When I submit an assignment I like feedback from the teacher … (A) Within a few weeks, so I can review what I did. (B) Within a few days, or I forget what I did. (C) Immediately, or I get frustrated.
5. Regarding organisation of learning material … (A) I can learn even if it is not highly structured. (B) I like some structure in the work. (C) I feel very uncomfortable without structure.
6. In dealing with computers … (A) I have excellent computer-based skills. (B) I have some computer and internet skills. (C) I feel uncomfortable with a computer and ‘surfing the net’.
7. Feeling that I am part of a class is … (A) Not particularly necessary for me. (B) Somewhat important for me. (C) Very important for me.
8. Classroom discussion is … (A) Rarely helpful to me. (B) Sometimes helpful to me. (C) Almost always helpful to me.
9. As a reader, I would classify myself as … (A) Good. I usually understand the text without help. (B) Average. I sometimes need help to understand the text. (C) Slower than average.
10. When I need help in understanding the subject I approach an instructor … (A) Comfortably, to ask for clarification. (B) Uncomfortably, but do it anyway. (C) Never, to avoid admitting that I don’t understand something. _____________________________________________________________________________________
Now score these answers as follows: A = 3 points; B = 2 points; C = 1 point.
Totals of 20 or more: Distance learning is a real possibility for you. Totals of 11 to 19: It may work for you, if you make a few adjustments in your schedule and study habits to succeed. Totals of 10 or less: It may not be the best alternative for your learning. However determination is the key and the obstacles can be overcome with persistence and God’s strength at work in your life. _____________________________________________________________________________________
While there is great value in, and a great need for, sound biblical preaching and teaching (which occurs in many Bible-believing churches and colleges) there is no substitute for the individual personally nurturing their own relationship with Jesus Christ through prayer and reading the Bible. Our study courses are designed to engage you in reading and studying the written Word of God for yourself, rather than reading about it. The Scriptures are the ultimate written authority and resource for training in godly living - and therefore are worthy of our life-long study and contemplation.
“Choose my instruction instead of silver, knowledge rather than choice gold, For wisdom is more precious than rubies, and nothing you desire can compare with her.” (Proverbs 8:10-11)
Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved by him, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly explaining the word of truth.” (2 Timothy 2:15)
No. We recommend for students to use as many versions of the Bible as is possible for them when studying the Scriptures, including a recent modern language version. Some of the courses are specifically designed for use with the Authorised King James Version [KJV], or the New International Version [NIV], or the Revised Standard Version [RSV], however most courses utilise a range of versions. It is not essential that you own these to be able to complete the work – however, when answering questions or quoting the Bible please show which version has been used as well as the reference e.g. “…Everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life (John 3:16, NRSV)”.
We will certainly try to answer your question – so please contact us about it. More details on the various educational and administrative procedures are in the Institute’s Handbook which is sent to students after enrolment. For other matters email your query to us.
Or airmail it to us at PO Box 802, Beenleigh QLD 4207, Australia.
We will attempt to answer your questions as soon as possible.
When all 30 credits in a program are completed and graded we will airmail your award and transcript to you. Alternatively, if you request this, we can send the award to your pastor, vicar, rector, priest, minister, or other Christian leader, for a public presentation of your graduation award during a segment of the regular gathering of your fellowship or church.
We believe the essentials of Christian faith are encompassed in the following affirmations:
(i) The Triune God There is only one true God, who has created the Universe and its inhabitants. This one God exists eternally in three persons: God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. The Godhead is absolute and eternal in nature and attributes: holy, loving, sovereign, eternal, immutable, all-powerful, all-knowing, always present everywhere, righteous, faithful, merciful, longsuffering and just.
God is the Sovereign in creation, revelation, providence, redemption and final judgement, each person has the same nature, perfection and attributes, and is worthy of the same worship, confidence and obedience. The persons of the Godhead are self-existent and self-sufficient living in perfection of harmony and attributes, needing nothing from the creation to exist or to continue existing. It is out of immense grace alone that God reaches out to humans.
(ii) God the Father The Father created the whole Universe out of nothing, by his word. He did this freely and because of his very great love. He daily sustains, guides and governs all as the ultimate Sovereign God, ruling with wisdom. His purposes, plans and promises will be fulfilled as he has determined. He made humankind for a close, loving friendship with himself and intended that all creation would live to the honour of his glory. In his unfathomable grace the Father gave his Son for humanity’s redemption and reconciliation.
(iii) God the Son Jesus Christ is both true God and true man. He existed eternally in the Godhead prior to his virgin birth, and in the incarnation he lived a sinless life, taught divine revelation to people, and did attesting miracles by relying on the Holy Spirit. His substitutionary, sacrificial and atoning death satisfied the requirements of divine justice for others.
He was bodily resurrected from the dead, ascended into heaven, and is enthroned at the right hand of God the Father where he now intercedes for his own, and rules over all creation until they are willingly governed by him. He will return to the Earth in glory to resurrect and judge all humankind.
(iv) God the Holy Spirit The Holy Spirit is co-equal with the Father and the Son and now lives within every believer from the point of salvation, giving them a spiritual new birth. He draws people to Christ in repentance, leads them, teaches them and sanctifies them for godly living and progressive growth in Christlike character; and empowers them for works of spiritual service to God and other people.
Christ relied on the Holy Spirit to heal and do miracles throughout his earthly ministry, and to convict people of sin and bring about their regeneration.
(v) The Bible The 66 books of the Old and New Testaments are the written Word of God. The Bible is “God-breathed”, trustworthy and authoritative in all matters it addresses. It is the unique, enscripted revelation from God and is sufficient and competent in leading people to knowledge of salvation and clearly equipping them for godliness and life. By meditating on this special divine revelation and memorising portions of it, a well-spring of wisdom is placed in our lives ready to be applied.
It is important to realise that Jesus Christ is both the object and subject of the Scriptures and is the embodiment and personification of the Word of God.
(vi) Humanity Humans were created for the pleasure of God, in the image of God, possessing attributes of God that can be communicated (love, joy, peace, patience, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance, grace, mercy, forgiveness, truth, wisdom, holiness, perseverance, righteousness, justice, faithfulness). The first humans enjoyed a loving friendship with God.
When Adam and Eve chose to disobey God a great tragedy occurred and thereby sinfulness entered humanity and the image of God in them became defaced and distorted, resulting in this sinful nature being passed on to all their descendants. They were separated from this fellowship with God and became estranged, corrupt in their total being, and morally condemned. In addition to their inherent sin, humans consistently choose to actively sin in their living, which is an affront to the holy nature and character of God, their Creator.
Sin disrupts and alienates each person’s relationship with God and results in their eternal separation from God’s presence. Humans cannot restore their friendship with God by their own accord and efforts. (vii) Redemption God has taken the initiative in acting sovereignly to bridge the vast chasm that separates hostile and rebellious people from himself. Freely and unconditionally he has elected people (from out of all people groups in humanity), to receive his gracious salvation through the Holy Spirit drawing them to repentance from their sin and saving faith in Christ. Without such gracious intervention by God there would be no-one who would seek his mercy and salvation.
The eternal Son of God became a man, Jesus Christ, and took the full penalty for the sin of those who believe and trust in him. The righteous Lord suffered and died as the substitute of sinners, thus satisfying God’s just abhorrence and wrath against evil and sin – and his righteousness has been graciously credited to his believing followers, without any merit of their own involved.
This salvation is not only given by God but it is also wholly sustained by God (apart from our good works). The Holy Spirit permanently lives within each believer and seals them in salvation for all eternity.
As a consequence of this, every Christian is to actively co-operate with the Holy Spirit as he changes their lives to have Christlike character and lifestyle – a process known as sanctification. They willingly: seek to know God better, continue growing in their knowledge of God’s word, refuse to engage in violence and other destructive behaviours, daily rely on his strength, and are eager to serve others. They joyfully acknowledge Christ as the King of kings and Lord over all of their lives.
(viii) Church The church that Christ Jesus is building, and of which he is the Head, Founder and Shepherd, consists of all those who believe on his atoning death and resurrection, who are regenerated by the Holy Spirit, and who are commissioned as disciples to communicate his Good News of peace to all people in the world. This community of believers have many spiritual graces and gifts to help each other grow to be more Christlike, and to virtuously influence the neighbourhoods and nations in which they live, and lead others to Christ. They are enabled to do this through their knowledge of the Word of God and the power of the Holy Spirit.
(ix) The End of Time
Jesus Christ will return to the Earth in glory in the same manner as he departed, and every eye will see this and recognise him. There will then be a bodily resurrection of all the just and the unjust. Every person who has ever lived will be judged by him. Together these events comprise the Day of the Lord. Those who rejected him during their lives will receive justice in being eternally separated from his presence, and this will cause them conscious and endless anguish, torment and misery in hell.He will inaugurate the New Heavens and New Earth where he will continue to rule in righteousness. Those who are saved will live and reign with him forever, and will experience unbroken peace and joy forever.
It is a value given to courses (subjects) to indicate how many hours of work are involved in them.
One credit = 30 - 35 hours of learning and study.
(Some students may take longer than this when working through information they have not encountered before; whereas students who are already familiar with the concepts will find they progress at a quicker pace.)
Any information you provide to us will remain confidential and will not be shared with anyone else without your expressed permission, except if we are ordered to do so by an Australian Court.
Enquiries from third parties requesting verification of your completed studies with Sage Bible Institute must be firstly authorised by you in a letter or email direct to us, before we will answer those enquiries from others.
Our subjects are designed to deepen your faith and understanding and to strengthen your walk with God so that you may effectively serve him in all areas of your life with his wisdom. They all require study of the Bible itself in covering the broad fields of theology and ministry, as well as the individual books of the Bible.
Some subjects are comprised of several materials with different content, due to the beneficial and different perspectives they offer in teaching the subject matter. This is based on the concept that “you don’t really understand anything until you learn it more than one way”.
See the separate listing of all subjects/courses available.
They have been written by a variety of Evangelical leaders, including pastors, teachers, journalists, etc, who are involved in various contexts of ministry. Some have graduate degrees. They come from a wide spectrum of theological viewpoints including Reformed, Arminian, charismatic, non-charismatic, Baptist, Pentecostal, Church of Christ, Anglican, nondenominational, housechurch, etc. The authors are all practising Christians who acknowledge the Bible as the authoritative, divinely-inspired Word of God. They also bring a variety of international perspectives from experience in serving Christ in different parts of the world. This gives the teaching an additional practical focus.
Through encountering such differing outlooks and understanding them, our hope is that you will become skilled at weighing-up issues from various angles and be able to see them more clearly. And some teachings in non-essential areas you may find you need to hold in tension for quite a while, knowing you cannot yet favour a single view.
Overall, the courses minimise commentary and interpretation, in favour of direct interaction with Scripture itself to learn the teachings and discover vital principles of how God has designed us to live and serve him.
We can make no guarantees regarding this. However, many Bible colleges would regard our courses highly, as we emphasise that the study of God’s Word is central in pursuing the knowledge of truth and wisdom. Each institution has their own criteria on the recognition of credits earned elsewhere. Some of our courses are currently used by colleges in many countries of the world. All these courses are designed for your personal growth in wisdom and spiritual enrichment and will help you develop ministry skills you can apply in each area of your life. However no courses of study or their awards (from any educational institution) can guarantee any career or ministry openings.
It is the student’s responsibility to check if our programs are suitable for their future goals, by enquiring directly with the respective organisations.
That’s fine if you prefer that. However if you are looking for a structured way to learn more, and find that on-campus lectures don’t help you learn that much or don’t fit your schedule then maybe we can help you.
As we are a nondenominational institute our programs are not designed to meet the ministry ordination requirements of any denomination. We believe that what is known as “ordination” (or commissioning) is the function of the specific fellowship of believers with whom the leader serves - and it is not the function of any external support organisation. Our purpose is to train all Christians who enrol, for works of ministry that our Lord Jesus has already ordained for them to fulfil in life (John 15:16 KJV) – through studying the Bible in disciplined programs of relevant courses, and applying that knowledge in their lives. Bible-believing individuals and fellowships will highly value these study programs.
The New Testament teaches that every Christian is a minister, and needs to be equipped for ministering to others (2 Corinth.5:17-19; Ephesians 4:10-13) and that we can receive this training through reading and studying the word of God (2 Peter 1:3; 2 Timothy 2:15). Our various awards acknowledge the many hours of work involved in this preparation
FAQ
