Report from the Principal

PRINCIPAL’S REPORT 2024

Given at Graduation November 2024

Graduation is always a highlight of our academic year as we recognize and celebrate our students’ achievements. We give thanks to God for His faithfulness and sustaining grace throughout the ministry of the Bible Institute of South Africa and in the lives of our graduating students. Please join us in praying that the Lord will bless their future ministries.

This year, our students were actively involved in practical service. Alongside their class commitments, they participated in the Practical Training Assignment (PTA), engaging weekly in local church ministries. In addition, all students were part of a fellowship group which provided mentoring, support, and ministry opportunities. Our students were involved in a Ministry Week in Villiersdorp and conducted two Sunday services —one at Holy Trinity Church, Gardens, and another in Villiersdorp. Typically, the students share testimonies, teach Sunday School, and deliver the sermon. The students also visited the Villiersdorp community on Heritage Day and served the local disabled community. These ministry opportunities are supplemented by a weekly student-run Visiting Christian Workers slot that exposes our students to the blessings and challenges of both local and international missions.

We praise the Lord for a successful Winter School held over two weeks in July. The three courses offered were Biblical Counselling, Ministry to Muslims, and Synoptic Gospels. Dr. Greg Cook and his wife Nancy, visiting from the USA, were a great blessing to our students and visitors attending the Biblical Counselling course. Dr. Pete Smuts taught the Synoptic Gospels course, while the Ministry to Muslims course was taught by a team of lecturers. We are thankful for the guest lecturers who participated in the Ministry to Muslims course. The classes were well received, and we have received numerous positive reports from those who attended.

In May, we hosted a Christian Leadership Programme (CLP) conference for pastors and church leaders on our campus. The theme of the conference was Expositions from the Gospel of Luke, led by Rev. Simon Clegg and Dr. Pete Smuts as the main speakers. The conference was a blessing, attracting visitiors and leaders  from the local churches. In the second semester, we conducted two CLP seminars on 1 Peter 2:9-10 and Malachi, led by Rev. Luke Giles and Rev. Hilmar Von Fintel respectively. Both events were well-attended and much appreciated. Recently we held a special graduation ceremony at Drakenstein Correctional Facility for three inmates who successfully completed the CLP. Later this month, we will be hosting two additional graduation ceremonies at Helderstroom and Brandvlei Prisons.

This past year BISA continued to serve the wider Christian community by making our campus facilities, including our digital recording studio, available to local churches and other ministry groups and individuals for their use. The well-equipped facilities and the attractive seaside setting make the college campus a popular venue.

BISA is a close-knit community committed to God’s Word and the Gospel. Our graduates will testify that BISA is an excellent place for study and preparation for service in God’s Kingdom in Africa and beyond. You can find their stories on our alumni website (https://bisa-past-students.org.za), as well as our Facebook and YouTube channels.

Our website (www.bisa.org.za) provides detailed  information about our college ethos and study programmes. Our distance-learning BTh is becoming an increasingly popular choice for students who cannot relocate to our campus for their studies. We encourage you to prayerfully consider whether the Lord is calling you to further equip yourself for His service.

This year, two faculty members represented BISA at both local and international conferences. Mr. Maseti attended the ACTEA General Assembly in Nairobi, Kenya, while I represented BISA at the Lausanne Fourth Congress in Incheon, South Korea, having co-authored an occasional paper entitled “A Theology of the Human Person” for the congress.

Earlier in the year, we bid farewell to Mr. Neil Henry and Mr. Christo April after many years of faithful and fruitful service in our CLP. We wish them every blessing in their future endeavours. We also welcomed three new staff members to the BISA family. Mrs. Nazreen van Veyeren joined us as our receptionist; Mrs. Shanaaz Moosa joined the kitchen staff, and Mr. Brian Marimira was appointed to the position of CLP Administrator. Additionally, Mr. David MacDonald joined the BI Board of Directors. We also welcomed two new part-time lecturers to our faculty—Mr. Matthew Courtney, who taught the Homiletics course, and Mr. Pieter Pienaar, who taught the Pastoral Ministry course. Mr. Gideon Beukes will take sabbatical leave during the first semester of 2025.

At the end of this year, we will bid farewell to Mr. Geoff Jacobs who is stepping down from his role as a board member due to other ministry commitments. We are grateful to Mr. Jacobs for his faithful service to BISA over the past 12 years.

Finally, we would like to express our gratitude to Dr. Pete Smuts for ably filling the role of Acting Principal during the first semester when I was on sabbatical. We also want to extend our heartfelt thanks to our administrative staff, faculty, and Board for their outstanding service and ministry at the college. We are grateful for the dedicated service of all our lecturers—whether full-time, part-time, in distance learning, or CLP—and staff. It is a privilege and blessing to work alongside them. Please pray for us as we are currently busy completing the Council on Higher Education Self-Evaluation Report for reaccreditation purposes. Pray also that the upcoming Christmas holidays to be a restful and refreshing time for our staff and faculty, together with their families.

We also wish to thank all our students, the Student Representative Council, the Board of Directors, Trustees, friends, and supporters for their service, prayers, and support in 2024. We do not take any of this for granted; it is an honour to serve the Lord together as partners. All praise and glory to the Lord for His grace, provision, and goodness to us over the past year.

Sincerely in Christ,

Dr Daniel Simango
Principal, Bible Institute of South Africa

PRINCIPAL’S REPORT 2023

Given at Graduation November 2023

This year marks the centenary of the BISA! To celebrate God’s faithfulness to BISA, in March we had a Thanksgiving, Prayer, and Fellowship evening to express our gratitude to the LORD for sustaining the college for the past century and to pray for wisdom and guidance for the future. In July, we hosted a Thanksgiving Service which included a segment on BI’s earliest history. On that occasion, we heard from several alumni who testified to the value and impact of their BISA training on their current ministries. Our 2023 Graduation Service concludes our centenary celebrations as we commemorate God’s faithfulness and goodness not only to the college, but also to our graduating students as we celebrate their academic achievements. Join us in prayer for the Lord’s blessing upon their future ministries.

A century ago, a vision was born to establish a training institute committed to Scriptural authority, evangelical theology, and mission. The Lord has blessed and sustained this vision enabling BISA to fulfill its purpose, equipping Christian men and women with biblical truth to fulfill the Great Commission in Africa and beyond. We give all the glory to the Lord.

As we celebrate BI’s centenary, I would like to share a few thoughts on the significance of this milestone:

1. Gratitude and Reflection: 100 years is a milestone laden with innumerable memories, achievements, and challenges. It’s a time to pause, reflect, and express deep gratitude to everyone who has been part of this journey—our founders, dedicated faculty, committed staff, supporters and friends, and the many students who have studied at the college.
2. Impact and Transformation: The BI Training Programmes have been a catalyst for personal and spiritual growth. Our graduates have become ministers and Christian workers in diverse churches and institutions nationwide and internationally serving the Lord faithfully and fruitfully. Today, we celebrate the lives, churches, and institutions transformed by the Gospel through BI graduates.
3. Vision for the Future: While celebrating the past, we envision an even more impactful future. Our commitment remains to equip leaders serving with dedication, integrity, and unwavering commitment to Christ and His Church in a world desperately in need of the Gospel.
4. Unity and Community: This celebration isn’t solely about the Bible Institute; it’s about the incredible community formed around our mission. It’s about the friendships forged, the support given, and the shared dedication to God’s work.

Our students have been actively engaged in practical service this past year. Alongside their class commitments, they participated in the Practical Training Assignment (PTA), involving weekly involvement in local church ministries. Given the small student body, this year saw all students allocated to one fellowship group, offering mentoring, support, and ministry opportunities. The fellowship group conducted several Sunday outreaches, visiting various Cape Town churches where students shared their testimonies, taught Sunday school, and delivered sermons. We are grateful for the diverse ministry opportunities provided to our students this past year.

We praise the Lord for the fruitful two-week Winter School held in July, featuring the course on Trinity 1 and the Gospels. Mr. Randall Lawton from Australia taught the Trinity 1 course, and Dr. Pete Smuts taught the intensive course on the Gospels. The Winter School received positive feedback from attendees, affirming the quality of the classes.

This year, we hosted two CLP Pastors’ conferences, gathering over 60 leaders in April at Simonsberg Christian Retreat in Stellenbosch and another at Bridges Conference Centre in Franschhoek. Dr Reg Codrington spoke on “Meaningful Ministry in Difficult Times” from Ecclesiastes. Dr Bob Yarbrough and Rev Bill Shields spoke on “The Theology of the Cross in the Life of the Christian” with lessons from Jeremiah and 1 Peter. Attendees were provided with various resource materials, supported by our partnering organizations. We are very thankful to our partners who support this ministry: Covenant Theological Seminary, First Lutheran Church, Princeton, Christ for Africa, and Azusa Pacific Foundation.

We celebrated twenty years of CLP ministry on campus in September. Nearly two hundred past students gathered to hear testimonies from graduates of the programme who are serving across the length and breadth of the Western Cape.

Despite being a small college, BISA functions as a family, unwavering in its commitment to the Holy Scriptures and the cause of Christ. Our range of programmes include the Christian Leadership Programme, a Gap-Year programme, Bachelor of Theology (contact and distance modes), Bachelor of Theology Honours, and a Master’s of Arts in Language and Bible Translation.

Our online platforms provide information about the college’s ethos and study programmes. Please prayerfully consider whether or not the Lord is calling you to be better equipped for Kingdom service at BISA. Numerous past student testimonies available on our website – https://bisa-past-students.org.za, confirm the value of this training.

On a sad note, we bid farewell to Mrs. Monica Speak and Mrs. Mary-Ann Vosloo who will be retiring at the end of this year. These two women have been a valuable part of our team and have served BI for the past 25 years. They will be sorely missed by the student body, staff and faculty. We wish God’s blessings in their future endeavours. As I prepare for Sabbatical leave early next year, Dr. Pete Smuts will serve as Acting Principal for the first semester of 2024. We express gratitude to our administrative staff, faculty, and guest lecturers for their dedication, sacrifice and invaluable service to the college. We appreciate the representation of our staff and faculty at local and international conferences and value your prayers for their well-deserved holiday break over Christmas.

This gratitude extends to our students, SRC, Board of Directors, Trustees, friends, and supporters for their service and support in 2023. Serving the Lord together is a privilege we cherish. We give all praise and glory to the Lord for His grace, provision, and goodness to us this past year, indeed, to us these past 100 years!

Sincerely in Christ,

Dr Daniel Simango
Principal, Bible Institute of South Africa

PRINCIPAL’S REPORT 2022

Given at Graduation November 2022

Graduation is always the climax of the academic year as we recognize and celebrate the academic achievements of our students. We give thanks to God for His faithfulness and sustaining grace in the ministry of the Bible Institute of South Africa this past year as well as in the lives of the graduating students. Please pray with us that the Lord would bless their future ministries. Next year, we look forward to celebrating BI’s centenary.

We thank the Lord that life is slowly returning to normal after the pandemic. We resumed our Guest Chapel services in the Second Semester after the pandemic regulations were relaxed. Our students have been kept busy this past year. In addition to their class time and studies, students are involved in Practical Training Assignment (PTA) where they participate in the ministry of the local church every week. Each student is also assigned to a fellowship group. These groups provide mentoring, support and opportunities to serve in ministry. This year, we sent out two teams of students for Ministry Sunday outreach. Each team visited 4 churches within the Cape Town area and the students were involved in practical ministry such as sharing their testimonies, teaching Sunday school and preaching the Word. Apart from the Ministry Sundays, some of our second and third-year students were invited to preach in some of the churches in the Southern suburbs of Cape Town. We are thankful to the Lord for the various ministry opportunities that our students had this past year.

At the end of September, the Association for Christian Theological Education (ACTEA) granted accreditation for our Master of Arts in Linguistics and Bible Translation degree programme! This is programme is being offered in conjunction with Wycliffe Global Alliance and the Seed Company. This MA degree is a specialist programme designed to equip Bible Translators in Africa who are already in the field, to be thoroughly equipped to lead in the translation of the Word of God into the local African languages. This new programme fits well with BISA’s stated Mission to “equip Christian men and women in Biblical truth and ministry in order to fulfil the Great Commission in Africa and throughout the world” and it is to God that we give the glory.

We praise the Lord for a fruitful Winter School held for two weeks in July this year. The three courses taught were Church History, Biblical Counselling and Ministry to Muslims. Dr

Greg Cook and his wife Nancy from the USA were a great blessing to our students and those who attended the course on Biblical Counselling. Mr Gideon Beukes taught the intensive course in Church History and he also supervised the Ministry to Muslims course. We thank the Lord for the guest lecturers who participated in teaching the Ministry to Muslims course. All the Winter School classes were well received and we have received numerous positive reports from all those who attended the lectures.

This year we managed to host two fruitful conferences for pastors and Church leaders at Simonsberg and Ganzekraal, where over 60 pastoral leaders were ministered to. Dr Karl Petersen, Dr Bob Yarbrough and Rev Bill Shields were the main speakers at the conferences. The main themes of the conferences were “Godly Living for Godly Leaders”, expositions from 2 Peter, and “Enduring Hardship, Encouraging Holiness”, expositions from 2 Timothy and Titus. We thank God for “Christ for Africa”, a ministry of First Lutheran Church and other generous donors for supporting the conferences financially.

Relatively speaking, BISA is a small college and we regard ourselves as a family yet our commitment to the Holy Scriptures and the cause of Christ remains undiminished as does the need for men and women of God to be called and properly equipped to serve Christ in a difficult and challenging African context.

Currently, we offer the Christian Leadership Programme (CLP), Gap-Year programme, a Bachelor of Theology, in distance as well as contact mode, a Bachelor of Theology Honours, a Master of Arts in Linguistics and Bible Translation plus our Winter School programme. We thank God for using BI since 1923 to support the church by training men and women for ministry. Many students have testified that the Institute is a wonderful place to study and be equipped for service in God’s Kingdom. You will find their testimonies and stories on our past students’ website – https://bisa-past-students.org.za, our Facebook page and our YouTube channel.

Our website – www.bisa.org.za – provides prospective students and their parents with information about the ethos of the college and the programmes we offer. We are now on Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest and all of these platforms point the student to BISA’s study options that will equip them for Christian service, or lay a solid foundation for further theological studies.

Please prayerfully consider whether or not the Lord is calling you to be better equipped for service.

In closing, we are thankful to the Lord for our administrative staff and faculty, whose service and ministry at the college have been wonderful. Dr Pete Smuts is on Sabbatical, he will rejoin the faculty in January 2023. We want to thank all the lecturers (full-time; part-time; Distance Learning and CLP) for their faithful service at the college. We are grateful for the sacrifice they have made to serve at BI. It is a great privilege and blessing to serve alongside them. This year, some of our staff and faculty members represented BISA at local and international conferences. Please pray for a refreshing vacation period over the Christmas holidays for the staff and faculty together with their families.

We also wish to thank the students at large, the Student Representative Council (SRC), the Board of Directors, Trustees, friends and supporters of BI for their service, prayers and support in 2022. We do not take any of this for granted. It is a privilege to serve the Lord together as partners. We give all praise and glory to the Lord for His grace, provision and goodness to us this past year.

Sincerely in Christ,

Dr Daniel Simango
Principal, Bible Institute of South Africa

PRINCIPAL’S REPORT 2021

Given at Graduation November 2021

Graduation is the climax of the academic year as we recognise and celebrate the achievements of our students. We thank God for his goodness and faithfulness in their Lives. Please pray with us that the Lord would bless the graduates’ future ministries. We also give thanks to God for his faithfulness and sustaining grace in the ministry of the Bible Institute of South Africa for the past 98 years. We look forward to celebrating BI’s 100th birthday in 2023.

We are truly thankful to God that BI was able offer training throughout the year despite the challenges posed by the COVID 19 pandemic. Contact classes for the residential students continued for the most part, with all the required health protocols in place. The mode of delivery for the Christian Leadership Programme (CLP) was affected however, with lectures being audio streamed via WhatsApp. Our Guest Chapel services were put on hold but we continued with a weekly Faculty-led Chapel and Fellowship Groups.

We worked as a team to ensure that training continued. I would like to thank the students and staff for adapting well to the changes brought by the pandemic and diligently adhering to the required protocols.
A COVID casualty this year was the cancellation of Ministry Week when our students would have connected with some local churches to serve them in teams, and develop practical ministry experience. This student highlight will return as soon as lockdown allows.

As in 2020, we had a virtual Open Day with a campus tour, student testimonies, and two short faculty lectures, all on a BISA YouTube Channel playlist. The programme included a time of Q & A in an online meeting room.
In September, we received the wonderful news that the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET) granted registration for our BTh Honours programme! This fits so well with BISA’s stated Mission to ‘equip Christian men and women in Biblical truth and ministry in order to fulfil the Great Commission in Africa and throughout the world’ and it is to God that we give the glory. Beginning in 2022, students can now study an accredited Bachelor of Theology Honours degree through BI.

The annual BISA Winter School ran successfully despite power outages featuring the Understanding Islam’ course. With one fifth of the world’s population following Islam, this course fits perfectly with BISA’s stated Vision for ‘the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ to be proclaimed by our students past and present in every Church, market place and society.’ Mr Gideon Beukes facilitated the in-depth training and for the first time, the Winter School lectures were live-streamed from the BI Studio with the assistance of Nathan Courtney, one of our students. The Winter School courses are open to the public every July and I commend them to your church leaders.

The CLP held a Pastor’s & Church Leader’s Conference at Simonsberg Christian Centre in October. Dr Bob Yarbrough of Covenant Theological Seminary and Rev Bill Shields of First Lutheran Church Princeton were the guest speakers. They spoke, via ZOOM on the topic of Authentic Ministry. Faculty members Mr Neil Henry, Mr Christo April and Mr Sizwe Maseti, handled the day sessions and we thank the Lutheran Church Princeton for partnering with BI in funding the conference. Forty-eight pastors and church leaders attended over four days and feedback from the conference was consistently positive.

Regarding Staff, our former student Mr Sizwe Maseti was appointed by the BISA Board In June this year to serve as a full-time lecturer in the newly created Augustine Chair of Reformed Theology. Ms Florence Thandi resigned at the middle of the year, after serving BI for the past 25 years, she will be missed.

The economic impact of the pandemic negatively affected our donation income this past year. Despite this, we thank the Lord for a number of designated donations from churches and friends of the college that enabled us to give bursaries to several students and to function as a college. We are also grateful for a large donation received from an overseas Trust that funded the BI Studio’s project. We were able to convert our garage into a fully functioning recording-studio. Going forward, we will use this facility to record lectures for our distance /online programme.

A fact that bears repeating is the Lord’s continued goodness in sustaining BISA. Currently, we offer the Christian Leadership Programme, Gap-Year programme, a Bachelor of Theology, in distance as well as contact-mode, a Bachelor of Theology Honours, plus Evening Classes and our Winter School programme. Our training has prepared men and women for ministry since 1923. Many students have testified that the Institute is a wonderful place to study and be equipped for service in God’s Kingdom. You will find their testimonies and stories on our past students’ website, our Facebook page and our YouTube channel.

Our website – www.bisa.org.za – provides prospective students and their parents with information about the ethos of the college and the programmes we offer. We are now on Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest and all of these platforms point the student to BISA’s study options that will equip them for Christian service, or lay a solid foundation for further theological studies.

Please prayerfully consider whether or not the Lord is calling YOU to be better equipped for service.

In closing, we wish to thank the student body, SRC, Staff, Faculty, Board of Directors, friends and supporters of BI for their service, prayers and support in 2021. We do not take any of this for granted. It is a privilege to serve the Lord together as partners. We give all praise and glory to the Lord for His grace, provision and goodness to us this past year.

Most importantly, we would want to give glory to God that our commitment to the Holy Scriptures and the cause of Christ remains undiminished as does the need for men and women of God to be called and properly equipped to serve Christ in a difficult and challenging 21st century.

Sincerely in Christ,

Dr Daniel Simango
Principal, Bible Institute of South Africa

PRINCIPAL’S REPORT 2020

Given at Graduation Ceremony 2020

Graduation is always the climax of the academic year as we recognize and celebrate the academic achievements of our students. We give thanks to God for His faithfulness and sustaining grace in the ministry of the Bible Institute of South Africa for the past 97 years as well as in the lives of the graduating students.
Please pray with us that the Lord would bless their future ministries.

The year 2020 has been a challenging one for our teaching & admin staff as well as our students. Covid-19 affected the mode of our training and in March we had to move our contact classes online. Before the world heard of coronavirus, BISA had put in place an online learning platform for the distance learning BTh students, so the transition from contact-mode teaching (in the classroom) to online teaching was not too difficult. The CLP approach was different and we were able to stream audio lectures to our CLP students via WhatsApp. By the second semester we were able to resume classroom teaching with the required protocols in place.
Our Guest Chapel services and Visiting Christian Worker classes were put on hold but we continued with a weekly Faculty-led Chapel.

I want to thank the students and staff for adapting well to the changes brought by the pandemic and diligently adhering to the required protocols. Despite the challenges, we worked as a team to ensure that training continued. All this has paid off and we are thankful to the Lord for His protection with no confirmed coronavirus cases on campus.

One of the year’s casualties was the cancellation of Ministry Week when we should have sent students out in teams to local churches for ministry. This is not a permanent casualty and by God’s grace will happen in 2021.
Open Day, due to be held on campus was also a write-off but the SRC amazed and delighted us by quickly putting together an excellent virtual Open Day with a campus tour, two mini-lectures, some Q&A time and an online meeting room.

Despite these last-minute changes, we were compensated by having one of our BISA dreams come true. At the beginning of June, the Department of Higher Education and Training (DHET) granted registration for our BTh distance programme! This fits so well with BISA’s stated Mission to ‘equip Christian men and women in Biblical truth and ministry in order to fulfil the Great Commission in Africa and throughout the world’ and it is to God that we give the glory. Students can now undertake an accredited bachelor’s degree at BI through distance learning, from any location, even in closed countries if the Lord wills.
We still have a BTh Honours degree programme quietly simmering in the background, awaiting SAQA registration. Please pray for a successful outcome. Soli Deo Gloria.

The annual BISA Winter School ran successfully despite power outages this year. Biblical Counselling was a course taught by Dr Greg Cook via Zoom. He had to rise early in Texas to deliver his lectures to BISA students in real-time. Given that a fifth of the world’s population follows Islam, our alternate Winter School course ‘Understanding Islam’ fitted perfectly with BISA’s stated Vision for ‘the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ to be proclaimed by our students past and present in every Church, market place and society.’ Gideon Beukes facilitated this in-depth training and was assisted in the IT dept by his son, Martin Beukes. These courses are open to the public every June/July and I commend them to your church workers.

The CLP successfully ran two well timed Pastors’ conferences. Dr Dale Burke of Leverage Leadership was the guest speaker in March with the topic ‘Leading with Joy and Not with Grief’. In October Tim Galage and Christo April facilitated the much-needed topic, ‘Resilience in Ministry’ where Bob Yarbrough, of Covenant Seminary, St Louis, delivered the keynote lecture via Zoom.
We also ran an online seminar with Dr Frederik Mulder, a scholar on ‘The historical Jesus and authenticity of the resurrection’. The topic under discussion, attended by 100 participants, was ‘Recognizing False Teachers’, followed by a live Q&A session on Zoom.

Relatively speaking, BISA is a small college and we regard ourselves as a family yet our commitment to the Holy Scriptures and the cause of Christ remains undiminished as does the need for men and women of God to be called and properly equipped to serve Christ in a difficult and challenging 21st century. We were happy to welcome three past students to assist at the college in 2020, Ms Hannah Phillips in the Library, Mr Herman Strydom in administration and, as a part-time lecturer, Rev Sizwe Maseti who graduated with an MTh (distinction) from Stellenbosch University. Mr David Fitz-Patrick will retire at the year-end after 33 years of service at BI. We wish him well as he leaves Cape Town in March to travel to India.

The pandemic affected many of our donors which in turn affected our funding. We had to cut staff salaries by 30%, but because of designated donations from churches and friends of the college, the Lord enabled us to give bursaries to several students.

A fact that bears repeating is the Lord’s continued goodness in sustaining BISA. Currently, we offer the Christian Leadership Programme, Gap-Year programme, a Bachelor of Theology in distance as well as contact-mode, plus our Winter School programme and Evening Classes. Our training has prepared men and women for ministry since 1923. Many students have testified that the Institute is a wonderful place to study and be equipped for service in God’s Kingdom. You will find their testimonies and stories on our past students’ website, our Facebook page and our YouTube channels.

Our website provides prospective students and their parents with information about the ethos of the college and the programmes we offer. We are now on Twitter, Instagram and Pinterest and all of these platforms point the student to BISA’s study options that will equip them for Christian service, or lay a solid foundation for further theological studies.
Please prayerfully consider whether or not the Lord is calling YOU to be better equipped for service

In closing, we wish to thank the students at large, SRC, Staff, Faculty, Board of Directors, friends and supporters of BI for their service, prayers and support in 2020. We do not take any of this for granted. It is a privilege to serve the Lord together as partners. We give all praise and glory to the Lord for His grace, provision and goodness to us this past year.

Sincerely in Christ,

Dr Daniel Simango
Principal, Bible Institute of South Africa

PRINCIPAL’S REPORT 2019

Given at Graduation Ceremony 2019

Graduation is always the pinnacle of the academic year as we recognize and celebrate the academic achievements of our students and give thanks to God for His faithfulness and sustaining grace in the lives of the graduating students.

This has been a wonderful and fruitful year for all our students. In addition to their class time and studies, students are involved in Practical Training Assignment. It is here that the students often identify their gifts and develop their skills as as they participate in the ministry of the local church. Weekly fellowship groups on campus provide mentoring, encouragement and support to help students face the challenges of their studies and future service in the church.

This year, we sent out three teams of students on our annual Ministry Week. These teams partnered with churches in Villiersdorp, Scarborough and Fish Hoek. At their report-back, it was evident that the lives of our students had been challenged as they had been taken out of their comfort zone and presented with challenging opportunities for service.

It has been a great privilege and blessing to serve alongside the faculty and staff at BI. Their service and ministry at the college this year has been remarkable. Some of our faculty members represented BISA internationally in conferences, missions and preaching tours to countries such as Israel, Angola and USA.

At the beginning of this year, the Department of Higher Education and Training granted provisional registration for BI as a private higher education institution. This means BI can legitimately (and proudly) offer the Bachelor of Theology degree on campus. The BTh distance and BTh Honours still await registration.

We ran another successful and well attended Winter School in July this year. The courses were: the Old Testament Prophets, Acts of the Apostles and Understanding Islam. Drs Darrell Bock and Craig Blomberg from the USA were a great blessing to our students who attended the course on

Acts. Dr K. Peterson and I taught a course on Old Testament Prophets. A couple of students from UCT and Stellenbosch attended the Understanding Islam course this year.

Dr Matthew Elliot, the President of Oasis International, visited BI at the end of June this year. Oasis International is the publisher of the Africa Study Bible, a landmark project that involved 350 contributors (some from BI) from 50 African countries over a period of seven years. We discussed the various ways in which Oasis International can support the ministry of BI. He kindly gave me a copy of the Africa Study Bible.

This year we had two Pastors’ Conferences for the CLP (Christian Leadership Programme), in March and October. Rev Doug Dunton and Rev Jeff Gage of Leadership Resources International facilitated the first conference which focused on Biblical Interpretation. Dr Robert Yarbrough and Rev William Shields from the USA facilitated the second Pastors’ Conference dealing with Greatness in Ministry from Psalm 16 and Great Preaching. We are grateful to the First Lutheran Church of Princeton USA for sponsoring the conference. Rev Neil Henry also accompanied Dr Yarbrough to Gauteng for lectures on reconciliation and to meet with CLP partners.

BI entered into a formal partnership with Wycliffe Bible Translators (SIL) through Drs Bryan Harmelink and Sebastian Floor. This partnership allows Wycliffe South Africa to run their MA distance program at BI, twice a year, over a period of two years. BI provides the facilities and the educational infrastructure for Wycliffe South Africa. This June, Wycliffe South Africa had two weeks of classes at BI. They had 13 students who came from various countries in Africa. Our accommodation proved suitable and, with a view of the ocean, it was a breathtaking experience for them!

The practical teaching at college was enhanced through the ministry of friends, old and new, who visited us to give short seminars. Experienced Speakers led workshops on the Bible and Astronomy, Relevance of Genesis, Age of the earth, the origin of the races. We want our students to understand that the gospel has relevance to every area of human experience.

BISA continues to offer several study options: the Christian Leadership Programme (CLP), the Gap-Year Programme, the Licentiate in Theology (LTh) Programme (distance mode) and the Bachelor of Theology (contact mode). The Lord has used these programmes in preparing Christian men and women for ministry.

We are thankful to the Lord for His provision and protection this year. We received donations from churches and friends of the college that enabled us to give bursaries to a number of our students. Let me say that sowing into the life of a student at a Bible College results in a glorious harvest for God’s kingdom.

At the end of the first semester, two lecturers moved into other areas of service. Dr Timothy Churchill is now working with SATS and Rev Paul Karstens (who served on faculty for over 20 years) is now involved with the leadership training of pastors. We wish them well in their new chosen spheres of work. This has meant a restructuring of personnel. Most of the Academic Dean responsibilities have now fallen on my shoulders. I have delegated some of the responsibilities to my colleagues, Gideon Beukes, Louis Barry, and Lorna Bucklow.

Sonya Joubert, a past student who assisted David Fitz-Patrick in the library, sadly passed away in July. This news came as a shock to the BI family and she will be sorely missed.

On another sad note, we say goodbye to Mr Maurice Espin who will be taking a pastorate at Medway Community Church, in Plumstead, Cape Town. Mr Espin will be dearly missed by the student body, staff and faculty. He will, however, continue his friendship with the college. We wish Maurice God’s rich blessing as he transitions to this new area of service.

Changes come to every college and fortunately so do Sabbaticals. Rev Gideon Beukes will be taking his in the second semester of 2020; otherwise it’s all hands on deck for the new year and a new intake of students.

Current and past students have said that the Institute is a great place to study the Bible and be equipped to serve in God’s Kingdom. As the Principal, I can confirm that our commitment to the Holy Scriptures and to the cause of Christ remains resolute. Men and women need not only a calling, but to be equipped to serve Christ in the midst of all the difficulties and challenges of the 21st century. Our website (www.bisa.org.za) provides information about BISA’s ethos and the programmes which we offer. There are on-campus as well as and distance study options that will prepare students for Christian service, or perhaps lay a solid foundation for further theological studies. Please prayerfully consider whether or not the Lord is calling you to be better equipped for service.

In closing, we wish to thank the students at large, SRC, staff, faculty, Board of Directors, friends and supporters of BI for their service to the Bible Institute and for their prayers and support in 2019. We do not take any of this for granted. It is a privilege to serve the Lord together as partners. We give all praise and glory to the Lord for His grace, provision and goodness to us this past year. We are thankful to the Lord for sustaining the ministry of the Bible Institute of South Africa for the past 96 years.

Sincerely in Christ,

Dr Daniel Simango
Principal, Bible Institute of South Africa