About the PURE course
Question:
What can get over one hundred students out of bed at 7:30am on a rainy Monday morning in the middle of November?
Answer:
PURE – a six week interactive course looking at what God has to say about sex and relationships.
Sexual chaos among our young people
SEX! SEX! SEX! Walk onto any university campus during freshers week (or any other week for that matter) and you will likely see some such title for any number of activities that students might be involved in – and it’s quite effective! The average student will usually stop, look and listen.
Yay for condoms, we love them! The SU has lots and lots and lots of free condoms – get them from reception in the SU building, or from the Nightline flat, or from the porters…they’re everywhere. You can barely move withoutstepping on a condom. Student Union safe sex leaflet
The area of sex and relationships is one of the biggest pressure points facing young Christians today. Many have felt both overwhelmed and under-equipped to deal with life in a culture that tells them that if they’re not doing it then they are missing out.
There is a desperate need to provide solid biblical teaching and practical guidance to a generation who are drowning in a sea of confusion and uncertainty. Some of our young people may well have received one session in a year at their local church youth group and some keenies may even have read a book or two. The reality is that it is unlikely that they have been provided with adequate opportunities for discussion, or been allowed to delve deeper into issues of a more personal nature. Even those who may have an idea of what we ‘should and shouldn’t do’ may not necessarily have thought through the biblical reasons why!
UCCF Team Leader Linda Marshall developed the PURE course to help young Christians think clearly and biblically about what it means to live as redeemed people under the lordship of Christ. When the course was first introduced to the students of Nottingham University Christian Union back in 2003, over one hundred of them made an effort to drag themselves out of bed to take part every Monday morning at 7:30am!
Since then hundreds of CUs across the UK have taken part in the PURE course. Many young people have benefited massively from the practical wisdom and biblical content that the course material provides, and have commented positively.
The first two weeks of PURE were amazing. Learning that God created men and women to be different, and that this was to be celebrated, was really liberating. The practical advice about how to love our brothers, and also how to avoid temptation, were immensely helpful to me. Student at Nottingham University
There are two things which make PURE particularly distinctive:
Interactive format:
The course format provides support from both older male and female leaders and encourages opportunities for discussion in both large mixed groups and smaller single sex groups as well as using a variety of teaching styles.
Gospel focus:
Participants are led through a creation-fall-redemption framework in which they are encouraged to think about how the truth of the whole gospel should impact and apply to their lives.
“As evangelical Christians we always talk about the gospel impacting every area of our lives – when it comes down to practicalities though, many struggle to understand how the gospel affects areas such as work, relationships, thought life, etc. Pure is just trying to apply the gospel to that old chestnut, sex and relationships. Linda Marshall, UCCF Team Leader and author of PURE
We hope and pray that you enjoy running the PURE course and find that your young people are encouraged and strengthened by what they learn about living a life submitted entirely to the Lord Jesus.
Course overview
Stylistically, PURE uses a variety of teaching methods to suit all learning styles, from up front didactic teaching, individual reflection, group work (mixed and single sex) to brainstorming. It is fast paced and so hopes to keep everyone’s concentration.
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Week 1 |
We look at the way God has created humans perfectly as male and female, relating perfectly to God and one another. |
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Week 2 |
We look at the Genesis 3 and the effects of the Fall- especially its consequences for sex and relationships. We will look at the evidence of this in our own lives, and try to understand how sin works and how Satan tempts us. |
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Week 3 |
We look at how God is reversing the effects of the Fall in His plan of redemption. We look at the differences between men and women, examining ‘Mars and Venus communication’; how can
we help each other to be pure men and women? |
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Week 4 |
We look at grace and godliness, aiming to understand what it means in practice to sexually pure as men and women- whether single or in relationships. |
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Week 5 |
We look at the way the Bible presents both marriage and singleness as gifts from God. We also aim to understand how God would like us to consider these gifts in the context of our own lives, and how we can be content with these gifts whatever our situation or circumstance. |
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Week 6 |
We look at what happens if we go wrong or mess-up. We look at the grace and forgiveness that is offered at the cross- with particular reference to our relationships and love lives. This week includes a question and answer session, evaluation and follow-up arrangements. |
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