Free Lutheran Bible College and Seminary (FLBCS) is one institution of higher education consisting of two programs, the two-year undergraduate Free Lutheran Bible College (FLBC) and the four-year pastoral training program Free Lutheran Seminary (FLS). FLBCS is accredited through the

Transnational Association of Christian Colleges and Schools The Transnational Association of Christian Colleges and Schools (TRACS) is a U.S. based institutional accreditation organization that focuses on Christian colleges, universities, and seminaries seeking collegiate accreditation in the United Sta ...

(TRACS), a member of the Evangelical Council for Financial Accountability (ECFA), and an associate member of the

Association for Biblical Higher Education The Association for Biblical Higher Education (ABHE), formerly The Accrediting Association of Bible Colleges (AABC) is an evangelical Christian organization of bible colleges in the United States and Canada. It is a member of the International Co ...

(ABHE). FLBCS is located in Plymouth, Minnesota, near the national offices of the Association of Free Lutheran Congregations (AFLC).

Bible College

FLBC is a two-year, college accredited undergraduate institution. It was established in 1966 by the AFLC as the Association Free Lutheran Bible School. AFLC church founders sought to establish education for young

Christians Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

in the

Bible The Bible (from Koine Greek , , 'the books') is a collection of religious texts or scriptures that are held to be sacred in Christianity, Judaism, Samaritanism, and many other religions. The Bible is an anthologya compilation of texts of a ...

before college, in efforts to help believers to "win, build and equip". Current enrollment is approximately 100 students. FLBC students have attended from outside of the

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

including

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tot ...

Latvia Latvia ( or ; lv, Latvija ; ltg, Latveja; liv, Leţmō), officially the Republic of Latvia ( lv, Latvijas Republika, links=no, ltg, Latvejas Republika, links=no, liv, Leţmō Vabāmō, links=no), is a country in the Baltic region of ...

Russia Russia (, , ), or the Russian Federation, is a List of transcontinental countries, transcontinental country spanning Eastern Europe and North Asia, Northern Asia. It is the List of countries and dependencies by area, largest country in the ...

Czech Republic The Czech Republic, or simply Czechia, is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Historically known as Bohemia, it is bordered by Austria to the south, Germany to the west, Poland to the northeast, and Slovakia to the southeast. The ...

Slovakia Slovakia (; sk, Slovensko ), officially the Slovak Republic ( sk, Slovenská republika, links=no ), is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is bordered by Poland to the north, Ukraine to the east, Hungary to the south, Austria to the s ...

Ecuador Ecuador ( ; ; Quechua: ''Ikwayur''; Shuar: ''Ecuador'' or ''Ekuatur''), officially the Republic of Ecuador ( es, República del Ecuador, which literally translates as "Republic of the Equator"; Quechua: ''Ikwadur Ripuwlika''; Shuar: ''Eku ...

Tanzania Tanzania (; ), officially the United Republic of Tanzania ( sw, Jamhuri ya Muungano wa Tanzania), is a country in East Africa within the African Great Lakes region. It borders Uganda to the north; Kenya to the northeast; Comoro Islands and ...

Norway Norway, officially the Kingdom of Norway, is a Nordic country in Northern Europe, the mainland territory of which comprises the western and northernmost portion of the Scandinavian Peninsula. The remote Arctic island of Jan Mayen and t ...

Haiti Haiti (; ht, Ayiti ; French: ), officially the Republic of Haiti (); ) and formerly known as Hayti, is a country located on the island of Hispaniola in the Greater Antilles archipelago of the Caribbean Sea, east of Cuba and Jamaica, and ...

Bolivia , image_flag = Bandera de Bolivia (Estado).svg , flag_alt = Horizontal tricolor (red, yellow, and green from top to bottom) with the coat of arms of Bolivia in the center , flag_alt2 = 7 × 7 square p ...

, Germany, Mexico, and

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

. The Bible college is a member of the

Association of Christian College Athletics The Association of Christian College Athletics (ACCA) is an organization of collegiate athletics. It was incorporated to provide an opportunity for smaller Christian college members to compete on an equal level of competition with schools of like ...

(ACCA).

Deans of the bible college

*Rev. John Strand (1966–1967) *Rev. Richard Snipstead (1968–1974) *Rev. Ken Moland (1975–1984) *Rev. Donald Greven (1985–1996) *Rev. James L. Johnson (1996–2006) *Rev. Joel Rolf (2006–2018) *Rev. Dr. Wade Mobley (interim) (2018–2019) *Rev. Adam Osier (2019–present)

Seminary

The AFLC established a theological seminary committed to historic Lutheran theology that opened in September 1964. The Free Lutheran Seminary only admits men into the school. Students attend seminary classes for three years. The fourth year is an internship at one of the AFLC churches. As an institution of the AFLC, the seminary believes and teaches that: * The

is the divinely inspired, revealed, inerrant, and authoritative Word of God and as such is trustworthy in all its parts and is the supreme and only rule of faith and practice. * The

Apostles' Creed The Apostles' Creed (Latin: ''Symbolum Apostolorum'' or ''Symbolum Apostolicum''), sometimes titled the Apostolic Creed or the Symbol of the Apostles, is a Christian creed or "symbol of faith". The creed most likely originated in 5th-century Ga ...

Nicene Creed The original Nicene Creed (; grc-gre, Σύμβολον τῆς Νικαίας; la, Symbolum Nicaenum) was first adopted at the First Council of Nicaea in 325. In 381, it was amended at the First Council of Constantinople. The amended form is a ...

Athanasian Creed The Athanasian Creed, also called the Pseudo-Athanasian Creed and sometimes known as ''Quicunque Vult'' (or ''Quicumque Vult''), which is both its Latin name and its opening words, meaning "Whosoever wishes", is a Christian statement of belief ...

, the Unaltered

Augsburg Confession The Augsburg Confession, also known as the Augustan Confession or the Augustana from its Latin name, ''Confessio Augustana'', is the primary confession of faith of the Lutheran Church and one of the most important documents of the Protestant Re ...

, and

Luther's Small Catechism ''Luther's Small Catechism'' (german: Der Kleine Katechismus) is a catechism written by Martin Luther and published in 1529 for the training of children. Luther's Small Catechism reviews the Ten Commandments, the Apostles' Creed, the Lord's Pr ...

are faithful expositions of the truths of Scripture. * The local congregation is the right form of the Kingdom of God on earth. It teaches there is no authority above itself except the Word of God and the Spirit of God.

Deans of the seminary

*Dr. Iver B. Olson (1965–1971) *Rev. Amos O. Dyrud (1971–1981) *Dr. Francis W. Monseth (1981–2013) *Rev. Robert L. Lee (acting) (2013–2015) *Rev. Dr. Wade Mobley (2015–2017) *Rev. Dr. James Molstre (2017–present)

Renaming

The office of president over both programs was established in 2015. The school and seminary names were changed on June 14, 2019, to the Free Lutheran Bible College and Seminary. Soon after, FLBCS built the Student Life Center, containing a gymnasium, coffee shop, locker rooms, and classroom and office space.

Presidents

*Rev. Dr. Wade Mobley (2015–present) Office established

Accreditation

The Free Lutheran Bible College and Seminary is a member of the

(TRACS), receiving Candidate Status on October 21, 2014. TRACS is a religious-based accreditation organization focusing entirely on accrediting primarily small Christian seminaries. It was fully accredited on October 30, 2018, as a Category Ill institution by the TRACS Accreditation Commission.

References

External links

FLBC Official WebsiteSeminary Web page
{{Coord, 45, 00, 55.5, N, 93, 25, 04.6, W, type:edu_region:US-MN, display=title Lutheran seminaries Seminaries and theological colleges in Minnesota Bible colleges Educational institutions established in 1966 Universities and colleges in Hennepin County, Minnesota Association of Christian College Athletics member schools 1966 establishments in Minnesota