Bethlehem Bible College — We Wait in Hope

In our waiting and grief over our tremendous losses, sometimes we cannot help but cry out with the psalmist, “Relent, Lord! How long will it be? Have compassion on your servants. Satisfy us in the morning with your unfailing love, that we may sing for joy and be glad all our days” (Psalm 90:13-14). Our hearts long for the joy and gladness of Christmas and the celebration of our Lord and King. We do live daily in a deep reverence for the wonder that is the Christ Child, that He was given to us here, even in our hometown!

Middle East, Partnership, ProjectsThe Outreach FoundationDecember 28, 2023Bethlehem Bible College, Bethlehem, Israel, Palestine

Bethlehem Bible College - December 2021 Update

Graduates Making a Difference in Christ’s Kingdom

Baseel and Ghaida Daibes are Bethlehem Bible College (BBC) graduates. Baseel graduated in 2016 and Ghaida in 2017, both from the Biblical Studies program. They met at the college, fell in love, and got married in 2015. They now have a beautiful boy named Iyad, and they live in a small town north of Palestine called Zababdeh. They shared:

Bethlehem Bible College had a huge effect on our lives; we learned incredible things about the Bible, and we grew in our faith. But mostly we loved the atmosphere and the relationships between the students, faculty, and staff!

Bethlehem Bible College - June 2019 Update

Greetings on behalf of Bethlehem Bible College, dear friends!

Summer is upon us, and another academic year is nearly finished at Bethlehem Bible College (BBC). We give thanks for BBC’s 40 years of service to Bethlehem, Palestine and around the world.

Ongoing Journey of Faithfulness: Overcoming the Challenges!
Was it easy to start a Bible college from scratch, and build it to be one of the most important Christian educational institutions in the region? What kind of challenges have we faced? How did we manage to overcome them? We endured two Intifadas, several wars on Gaza, lack of money, increasing emigration, and much more. How did we survive? “He was faithful,” answered Dr. Bishara Awad, founder of Bethlehem Bible College.

Middle East, ProjectsThe Outreach FoundationJune 24, 2019Bethlehem Bible College, Bethlehem, Palestine, Israel

Bethlehem Bible College - April 2019 Update

This year marks the 40th anniversary of Bethlehem Bible College (BBC). They recently shared the following stories about their ministry and involvement in the local community in God’s mission in the world.

After the resurrection, Jesus met his disciples in Galilee where he gave them the Great Commission “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations ...” Matthew 28:16-20

The classic cross, pictured here, is seen throughout the Holy Land and is known as the Jerusalem cross. It is made from locally sourced olive wood and crafted by artisans in the Bethlehem area.

The shape of the cross has a deep historical and spiritual significance. The large cross represents Jesus. The four smaller ones represent the four gospels of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John – going out to the four corners of the world.

Middle East, ProjectsThe Outreach FoundationApril 15, 2019Bethlehem Bible College, Bethlehem, Israel, Palestine

Bethlehem Bible College - April 2018 Update

In February of this year, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre was temporarily closed by Jerusalem’s Christian leaders in protest of a new taxation imposed upon the Christian institutions by the city of Jerusalem. This was an unexpected break in the status quo going back to the Ottoman era which had previously granted tax-free status to the city’s religious institutions. The shocking announcement included a century of back taxes, totaling almost $200 million; an expense that would have forced many ministries out of the land. Some leaders felt this imposition was a way to continue to weaken the presence of Christians in the city. In protest, the Church of the Holy Sepulchre, one of Jerusalem’s most-visited sites was closed.

Because this event took place about a month before Easter, there were worries that the church would remain shut during our holiest season. Thankfully, after three days of closure the situation was at least temporarily resolved, and the doors of one of the world’s oldest churches were swung back open.

Middle East, ProjectsThe Outreach FoundationMay 3, 2018Bethlehem Bible College, Bethlehem, Palestine

Bethlehem Bible College - March 2017 Update

I was a stranger and you did not take me in, I was naked and you did not clothe me, I was sick and in prison and you did not visit me. Matthew 25: 43

Dear friends of Bethlehem Bible College,

What we do for one, we do as if we are serving Jesus. This was the mentality of a group of BBC staff who visited the governmental hospital in Bethlehem to spend time with patients in need of dialysis. The staff spent time sitting, talking and laughing alongside those that were undergoing treatment.

This BBC group was the first to visit the dialysis section in the hospital. It was a big room with around twenty-two patients that undergo the process three times a week for five hours each time. In the Bethlehem area alone, there are one hundred patients including children.

Middle East, ProjectsThe Outreach FoundationMarch 2, 2017Bethlehem Bible College, Israel, Palestine, Bethlehem

Bethlehem Bible College - November 2016 Update

Dear friends of Bethlehem Bible College,

We trust that the end of the year is wrapping up well for you! As the year 2016 comes to an end, we reflect on where we have come from but also plan for where we are headed. The past year has been full of amazing opportunities for BBC to reach out to our community through our students and staff, our faculty and those that partner with us from abroad or by coming and volunteering locally. Our hope and focus is that what is taught and modeled here at BBC will extend beyond the classroom, and that our students will be ambassadors to whatever workplace or ministry they work in on behalf of the kingdom of God.

Middle East, ProjectsThe Outreach FoundationNovember 23, 2016Bethlehem Bible College, Bethlehem, Palestine

Partner Updates