BK502.1‒ The New Testament In Its World: Description

COURSE DESCRIPTION:

This course covers PART 1, PART 2, PART 8 and PART 9 of the textbook: Reading the New Testament, The World of Jesus & the Early Church, The Making of the New Testament and Living the Story of the New Testament.

As students of the New Testament, we’re called to make sense of the New Testament and early Christianity. One key is understanding its overall original context‒ the era of Jesus and the first Christians.

This course offers a transformative journey into the New Testament and early Christianity by exploring its historical, cultural, and theological contexts. Students rediscover the excitement of what it was like to live as Christians in the first and second centuries within the framework of Second Temple Judaism and Greco-Roman society.

Incorporating decades of ground-breaking research, the textbook authors bring the New Testament books and themes to life through historical and cultural insights and their enduring implications for the Christian faith.

While focusing on the historical Jesus, Paul’s theology, the first-century understanding of the Kingdom of God, and the development of the New Testament canon‒ the course integrates maps, illustrations, and commentary helping students experience the vibrant world of the early church.

Requirement Designation: MDiv Requirement
Prerequisite: BK501
Credit Hours: 1 Credit
Course Difficulty: Rigorous
Instructional Components: Textbook
Retention & Assessment: Workbook
Educational Material Authors: N.T. Wright, Michael F. Bird