Our Primary Purpose is to raise up leaders within our local network of house churches.
Our Secondary Purpose is to train believers around the world to live in the love and power of Jesus while planting, growing, and multiplying effective home groups in their local environment.
Those who finish the entire 35-lesson online program will have:
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Studied and learned from the life of Christ in all four Gospels,
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Learned to effectively proclaim and minister the gospel in the love of God and the power of the Holy Spirit,
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Learned to lovingly express whatever gifts of the Spirit God leads them to express, both on the streets and in the context of a house church,
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Developed skills in money management and debt-free living, healthy relationships, leadership, group management, personal evangelism, and more,
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Learned to overcome sinful attitudes and painful life experiences to live free from the past,
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Examined the beauty of the gospel, the power of prayer, the nature of God, and the thrilling reality of the Christian’s identity in Christ,
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Participated in practical, hands-on ministry,
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And more…
What to Expect:
Your instructors will be Art Thomas and JonMark Baker. Both are authors and itinerant ministers who God has called and gifted to train and equip believers. With decades of ministry experience between them, Art and JonMark bring each topic to life with personal stories, biblical insights, and a fun sense of humor.
Every class can be completed online at your own pace and contains three parts:
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The first part is a playlist of carefully selected videos from other ministries and reading assignments that will help lay a foundation for the lesson's topic.
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The second part is a step-by-step study of the life of Christ with readings and insights from Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John.
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The third part is a topical study that focuses on some aspect of personal growth or practical ministry. Most weeks this teaching relates directly to something studied in the life of Christ portion.
In addition, we host a monthly Zoom call that is open only to active RSOM students. During this monthly call, students at various places in the curriculum can ask questions about the material
Instructors Art Thomas & JonMark Baker
Textbooks
Our primary text is the Bible. We'll study the life and ministry of Jesus in-depth with a roughly chronological journey through the four Gospels.
We'll also use the following two "40-Day" book studies, which we'll spread out over 35 weeks.
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Paid in Full (also watch movie) – Thomas, Ammon, and Loruss
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Voice of God (also watch movie) – Thomas, Ammon, and Loruss
For those who are eager to learn and love to read, we also recommend the following books, which we'll spread out in the syllabus throughout the course (these books are not required):
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The Heavenly Man – Paul Hattaway
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Unburdened – Vance Pitman
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At Work Within – Rick Osborne
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Keeping the Fire – Rolland Baker
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Family on Mission – Mike Breene
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Money and the Prosperous Soul – Stephen K. De Silva
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Limitless Hope – Art Thomas
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Adventure of Saying YES – JonMark Baker
Expectations
For each lesson, students are responsible to:
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Watch between 2 and 4 hours of required videos. This includes about 45 minutes of teaching on the life of Christ and about an hour of teaching on the week's lesson topic.
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Read approximately 1 hour of the Bible. Readings will explore the four Gospels and a few other Scriptures that cover the life of Christ, from eternity-past to eternity-future.
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Complete the assigned readings, journal entries, and "action steps." These are all found in the two 40-Day books about healing ministry and hearing God's voice.
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Engage in regular evangelism and disciple-making. In-person students can go with our weekly outreach teams or with experienced evangelists. Online students can receive coaching, training, and followup as they go out in pairs.
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Regularly attend a house church in the Roots Church network. Online students can join some of our churches via Zoom while local students will have opportunities to join in-person.
Topics
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Exegesis, & Union with Christ
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Hearing God's Voice
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Baptism in the Holy Spirit
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Inner Transformation 1
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Kingdom Finance 1
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Gospel, Grace & the Law
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Inner Transformation 2
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Sharing Your Testimony
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Evangelism Basics
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Deliverance Ministry
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Spiritual Warfare
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Intro to House Churches
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Healthy Relationships
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Making Disciples Who Make Disciples
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Kingdom Finance 2
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Conflict Resolution
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Sovereignty & Theodicy
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Manifestations of the Holy Spirit
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Gifts of the Holy Spirit
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Healthy Marriage & Romance
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Christian Sexuality
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Families and House Churches
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Planting & Growing a House Church
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Creating Culture in a House Church
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Engaging a Fallen World
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Perspectives on Eschatology
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Baptism & Communion
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Emotional Health in Ministry
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Healing Ministry
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Prophetic Ministry & Being Led by the Spirit
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Ministry to the Poor
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Spirit-Led House Churches
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Cross-Cultural Evangelism & Missions
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Multiplying House Churches
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Impartation & Commissioning
Teaching is thorough. By the end of the 35 weeks, each student will have received about 1,000 pages of outlines/notes.
Requirements & Tuition
Our curriculum is designed for adults, but minors as young as 14 years old may participate with a parent's permission (due to occasional subject matter that may not be suitable for some—see topics above).
All applicants must have adequate time available to participate in the class. (See expectations above.)
OPTIONAL COHORTS. If you're the type of person who prefers a social component in your learning, you may choose to join with a group of believers who agree to walk through the curriculum at the same pace. Usually only about a quarter of the students who join are able to maintain a pace of one lesson per week as most adults are too busy for all the reading and video assignments, but a highly focused group could probably do it. Cohorts can be formed with people you already know, or you can request to be connected with an annual cohort that usually begins in September or October.
Tuition is voluntary. We do request that people consider giving a donation of $49 per month to help us cover the costs involved in producing and maintaining the school. Mission Partners of Roots Church are invited to attend for free, since they already give regularly to our church. Voluntary tuition of any amount is considered a tax-deductible donation to our church, and you'll receive a giving receipt at the end of the calendar year.
