About the NZ Correspondence School of the Bible
The New Zealand Correspondence School of the Bible was founded in 1992. The original goal of the programme was to provide sound Bible teaching to Kiwis in the many rural areas of New Zealand without sound Bible preaching and teaching churches.
Soon after the NZCSB went public, the tremendous response showed that people up and down our country were hungry for a structured, verse-by-verse approach to Bible study. Over 6500 Kiwis have enrolled in the NZCSB and we certainly count it an honour that you have found our website and are considering joining in!
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The entire course was written over a span of almost eight years by Dr Jeff Williams - a Baptist pastor with over 30 years experience in teaching the Bible and in helping to start new churches throughout the South Island. While striving to take a non-denominational tone to our Bible instruction, we unapologetically stand on the authority of the word of God. We believe in the importance of rightly dividing the word of truth (II Tim 2:15) and that the best interpreter of the Bible is the Holy Spirit using the Bible itself (I Cor 2:13). If you have any further questions about what we believe, feel free to look at our doctrinal statement.
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In 2021 Dr Williams embarked upon a total rewrite of the course material and began transitioning the lessons to an online format. Not only are the new lessons considerably more in depth, but the online format opened the door for the use of better charts, illustrations and media. The online format also enables us to supply the increasing demand for this course that we have had from people all over the world.
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The NZCSB is a ministry of the Marlborough Bible Baptist Church in Blenheim, New Zealand. Because we are a small, faith-based ministry, we are not approved by the New Zealand Qualifications Authority. The upside of this however is that our costs are minimal and therefore the postal version of our programme is tuition free - the only cost to our students is postage!
About the NZ Correspondence School of the Bible
The mission
of the
New Zealand Correspondence School
of the Bible
is to teach and preach
Jesus Christ
from the
Word of God alone!
Our Mission Statement & Purpose
We will strive to provide a forum where the Bible alone is held up as God’s final authority in all matters of faith and practice.
We will challenge you to read, study, and compare scripture with scripture, all the while putting the emphasis upon what God actually said. To the best of our ability, we will emphasize the literal truths of God’s word in their proper context.
We will make our chief priority your personal walk with Jesus Christ.
To fill the head without reaching the heart would be to no avail. The key to all of life here on earth and further on into eternity is our relationship with our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To this end, we will strive to ensure that every student knows Jesus Christ as their Saviour and has total confidence about their eternal destiny. Likewise, we will emphasize the importance of a daily walk with Christ.
We will attempt to teach you the word of God.
We do not presume to know it all – only in Christ can be found all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge (Col 2:3). But to the best of our ability, we will provide tried and proven tools and a study format that will assist you in learning from the Holy Spirit what God intended for us through His word.
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Although complete neutrality and lack of bias is a utopian figment of the imagination, we have striven to provide our students with a course that encourages them to learn from the Bible itself rather than some denominational catechism. We have no axe to grind or agenda to push. If the teachings of the Bible and the NZCSB contradict, then by all means please put our material aside and STICK WITH THE BIBLE!
About the Author - Dr Jeff & Debby Williams
Dr Jeff Williams has been in the ministry since 1987. He has helped to plant Bible-believing churches in Dunedin, Reefton, Blenheim, Timaru. He and Debby are currently attempting to establish a new church in Queenstown. Through the Blenheim Bible Institute, Dr Williams has helped to train Kiwis currently serving in a number of churches throughout New Zealand and on the foreign mission field.
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Jeff has a Bachelor of Science degree in Theology from Baptist Bible College in Springfield, Missouri (1987), a Master of Biblical Studies degree (1989) and a Ph.D. in Religion (1992) from Bethany Theological Seminary in Dothan, Alabama, USA. He would be the first to claim however, that the greatest schooling he has ever had has been his personal study in the word since coming to the Lord Jesus Christ as Saviour in 1972.
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Jeff is the author of several books and many dozens of tracts and gospel pamphlets. The entire NZCSB course is also available in print form or as a digital resource for immediate download elsewhere on this website.
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Jeff and Debby have four children – Caleb, Luke, Grace and Beth – and several grandchildren.
Blenheim Office Staff - Ben, Chelsea & Pauleen
These folk handle most of the grading, questions, correspondence, computer work, paperwork and printing that makes the NZCSB possible. They are the unseen faces behind the comments on your lessons and the marks at the top of your papers!
Dunedin Office - Dr Robert and Diana Rutta
Since 2000 the NZCSB has run a Dunedin office to cope with the large numbers of Otago and Southland students God has blessed us with. Dr Bob Rutta and his wife Diana have run this extension of the NZCSB.
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Bob grew up in West Virginia in the USA. He trusted Christ as his personal Saviour at eight years of age. At the age of 18 he surrendered to the Lord's call to the ministry and transferred from a state university that he was attending so he could begin his training at Bible college. While there, he met and married his wife Diana.
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Bob has served in full-time ministry in New Zealand since 1988. He first planted a church in New Plymouth and then shifted to Dunedin in 1998 to serve at the Community Baptist Church where he still pastors today.
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Bob has a Bachelor of Science degree in Pastoral Theology (Hyles-Anderson College, 1986), as well as a Master of Arts degree in Bible (2000) and a Ph.D. in Theology (2003) from Landmark Baptist Seminary in Haines City, Florida, USA.
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Bob and Diana have four children: Robert Jr, Benjamin, Elisabeth, and Sarah.
