by Pastor Patrick Cho

Each week, during our Sunday School hour, one of the classes we offer at Lighthouse is Fundamentals of the Faith (FOF). This is a thirteen week study using a workbook that is published by Grace Community Church. In the class, we walk through the basics of Christianity covering topics such as “Introduction to the Bible,” “The Person of Jesus Christ,” and “The Church: Fellowship and Worship.” Unlike other Sunday School classes we offer, Fundamentals of the Faith is offered continually throughout the year except in the summer when we typically take a break from all classes.

FOF is a helpful tool to get the student of the Word better acquainted with basic spiritual truths. The lessons are refreshingly biblical and practical. Even walking through the exercises, the student becomes more familiar with the Bible by answering various questions from the text of Scripture. Each lesson is also accompanied by a weekly memory verse, which the students are encouraged to memorize and internalize.

At Lighthouse, we have actually made FOF a required class for membership. Even if you have grown up in the church and these lessons are very familiar to you, we still ask that you sit in the class. There a couple reasons for this. First, we don’t want to make any assumptions about a person’s salvation or familiarity with the Bible. Many people who took this class later admitted that they didn’t know as much as they thought. We are thankful that as a result of the class, some have even been introduced to the principal doctrine of the gospel. If someone wants to gain a better understanding of the Christian faith, FOF is a great class to recommend.

Second, much of the teaching at LBC assumes the lessons of FOF. Many times when the teachers of the church walk through a particular passage, they don’t have the time to sufficiently explain some of the more basic truths. By sitting in FOF, each member is given the same foundation and can learn where Lighthouse stands on each of these core doctrines. Besides these two reasons, FOF provides a wonderful environment to get better plugged into the church, meet other believers, and get to know the teachers of the class.

Fundamentals of the Faith could even be used as a helpful discipleship tool. If you are have already completed FOF, you could walk through the class again with your discipleship group. Parents might find the class as a helpful spiritual aid to shepherd their children. Think about how profitable it would be to study these things together with your children and discuss them throughout the week.

This series will walk through the lessons of FOF but more as a supplement to the class. For you members who still need to fulfill the membership requirement, this is not a viable alternative. But as we walk through the lessons together, hopefully this series will provide key insights and useful background information to make the class even more enjoyable. If you have already finished the lessons that are covered, you’re encouraged to review each lesson before reading the supplemental article. May the Lord continue to bless His church as its members uncompromisingly and unswervingly strive to grow in their understanding of His truth!