Department of Life Long Learning for non-credit church based training
SURVEY OF THE OLD AND NEW TESTAMENTS
This is the third of eight courses being offered as part of the Diploma in “Foundations of
Missional Ministry & Church Leadership." This Diploma program is being offered in
partnership with FORGE Canada. The training is prepared to serve the ministry leader
who may not have a recognized theology degree but is seeking to be credentialed within a
partner denomination.
FACILITATORS: Dr. Michael Krause (MK) & Dr. Narry Santos (NS)
I. COURSE DESCRIPTION
Understanding the content and the flow of Scripture is fundamental to understanding
God’s missional purposes for humanity. It is not just understanding the characters and
events that is important but also understanding how God consistently worked in the lives
of his people in the nation of Israel and in the church. His purposes are consistent
throughout scripture, from the creation to the consummation. We will be using Walk
through the Bible material to cover much of the content of the Old and New Testaments
and using Christopher Wright’s book The Mission of God’s People to look at God’s
missional purposes for his people.
II. LEARNING OUTCOMES
Upon completion of this course, you should be able to acquire a good knowledge of,
and/or skills in the following:
1. To recognize the unifying theme of the Old and New Testaments. We will see how the
Old Testament narrative is structured around God’s strategy in human history and is
fulfilled in the New Testament.
2. To understand the history and literature of the Old and New Testaments. Part of what
makes scripture difficult to understand is the fact that it was written to a very ancient
people. How they thought and how they lived is in many ways far different from us in the
modern world. So understanding the history and cultural forms of the Ancient Near East
will be an important part of getting to the meaning of both the Old and New Testaments.
3. To inspire a passion for reading and studying the Scripture.
4. To develop a personal philosophy of missional ministry as revealed by God’s purposes
in the flow of Scripture.
III. COURSE REQUIREMENTS
A. REQUIRED TEXTS
Wright, Christopher, J.H., The Mission of God’s People: A Biblical Theology of the
Church’s Mission, Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2010.
In addition, each student must have access to at least two modern translations of the
Bible, preferably employing different translation techniques. For example, students may
choose one of the following “dynamic” translations: NIVI, NIV, NEB, GNB; and one of
the following “formal” translations: NRSV, RSV, NASB, NKJV.
B. SUPPLEMENTARY / RECOMMENDED READING:
It would be helpful to have a good introduction text to the Old and New Testament like:
Guthrie, Donald. New Testament Introduction. Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 1990.
Harrison, R. K. Introduction to the Old Testament; With a Comprehensive Review of Old
Testament Studies and a Special Supplement on the Apocrypha. Grand Rapids:
Eerdmans, 1969.
C. ASSIGNMENTS AND GRADING
1. Class Participation – 15% Attendance, 20% Participation
Because the Foundations of Missional Ministry course incorporates a cohort learning
style, it is crucial that students attend and participate in all classes. Any class missed
reduces the participation mark by 50% (i.e. 10% of total mark). More than two missed
classes results in a fail.
2. Book Report on the Required Text – 20%
Due: Chapter 1-8 June 2nd, 2011; Chapters 9-15 June 30th, 2011
Prepare two separate two-page book reports on the Wright text (first half and second
half).
3. Reflection Paper – 30% Due July 7th, 2011 (by email)
Write a reflection paper (5-7 pages) on how God reveals his missional intent throughout
scripture and how you see God’s mission at work in your context. Reflect on how you do
mission and your personal philosophy of missional ministry
4. Reading Scripture – 15%
Students are expected to read large sections of Scripture each week in preparation for the
sections of the Bible that will be covered each week. Ideally each student will read the
entire Bible during the nine-week course.
5. Optional Online Learning – Bonus Marks (5%)
Dimensions of the Faith courses at the Ockenga Institute at Gordon Conwell Theological
Seminary called “Old Testament Survey” or “New Testament Survey.” For a fuller and
more traditional approach to understanding the contents of the Bible, students may listen
to online lectures and fill out the accompanying study guides.
Assignment
Class Attendance
Due Date
Each Class
Percentage
15%
Class Participation
Each Class
20%
Book Reports
June 2nd & 30th
20%
Bible Reading
Each Class
15%
July 7th
30%
Reflection Paper
100%
Total Grade
E. GENERAL GUIDELINES FOR THE SUBMISSION OF WRITTEN WORK
Students should consult the current Academic Calendar for academic polices on
Academic Honesty, Gender Inclusive Language in Written Assignments, Late
Papers and Extensions, Return of Assignments, and Grading System. The
Academic Calendar is posted at www.tyndale.ca/seminary/calendar.
IV. COURSE SCHEDULE (40 hours total course time including homework/readings)
CLASS DATES: Thursdays (6:30-9:30pm): beginning May 5, 2011
Date
Topic
Bible Reading
May 5:
Books of Moses: Genesis to
Deuteronomy (NS: Walk
Through the Bible [WTB],
MK: Seeing God’s missional
purposes in the Penteteuch)
May 12:
Joshua, Judges and Ruth
Genesis to Ruth
(NS: WTB, MK: Missional)
Chapters 1 & 2
May 19:
Samuel, Kings, Chronicles,
and Poetic Books
1 Sam to Song of
Songs
Chaps 3, 4, 5
May 26:
The Prophets
Isaiah to Daniel
Chaps 6, 7, 8
June 2:
Intertestamental Period
(NS: Whole Session)
Hosea to Malachi
Report # 1 due
June 9:
Luke/Acts:
(MK: Whole Session)
Luke and Acts
Chaps 9, 10, 11
June 16:
Story of Jesus: Matthew,
Matthew Mark John Chaps 12, 13
Mark, John (NS: Whole Session)
None
Textbook Reading
None
Date
Topic
Bible Reading
Textbook Reading
June 23:
Epistles:
(NS: Whole Session)
Romans to Jude
Chap 14, 15
June 30:
Apocalyptic Literature and Revelation
Class Wrap-up
(Revelation with reference to
OT Apocalyptic books,
i.e. Ezekiel, Daniel)
Report # 2 Due
ACCESSING THE ONLINE LECTURES AND STUDY GUIDES
Lectures for this course provided by the Ockenga Institutes at the Gordon Conwell
Theological Seminary website. In the institute is an online school called "Dimensions of
the Faith." You need to register to look at all the courses (but it is free). To register go to
this website: (www.gordonconwell.edu/dimensions). When you get to that page, there is
a box on the right hand side of the page that asks for your email and password (don't
enter anything there now). Below that, click on where it says "Create an Account," and
then fill in your profile information and click "submit" at the bottom of the page.
PLEASE REMEMBER YOUR USER NAME AND PASSWORD! Once you click, it
will take you to new page where you can see another box on the right that says "Welcome
to Dimensions, (your first name)." Under that are a few options. Click on "Start Course"
and it will allow you to choose which course you want to take. There will be a course
called "Old Testament Survey" or “New Testament Survey.” Click on that and it will
show you the list of lessons with study guides and audio lectures. Click on “download”
to download a PDF file of the study notes. These are the notes to help you follow the
lectures. Click on “listen” to listen to one of the lectures. Note: you should download
the notes before you listen to the lecture.