Units in the DBT

Core

In this unit you will look at how the Bible is structured and how it centres on and culminates with the revelation of the Lord Jesus. As such, we focus on the unfolding self-revelation of God in human history as revealed in the Bible. This unit will: help you grasp the overall content of the Bible; help you understand how to apply the whole Bible to different ethical issues; help you teach different parts of the Bible.

The perceived problem of ‘diversity'. The complex unity of the Bible.

The literary, historical, and theological dimensions of the Bible.

The kingdom of God as the key to Biblical Theology.

The epochal structure of the Bible.

The application of biblical theological understanding to Christian life and ministry, with special reference to preaching.

The application of biblical theological approach to current issues.

Sustained examination and peer discussion of the Mission of God throughout the various epochs of God’s self- revelation.

Application of biblical theological method in exposition and preaching.

Core

In this unit you will look at Mark’s Gospel in depth, and discover how it brings us face to face with Jesus Christ, the Son of God. You will look at some of the historical background to Jesus’ life and ministry. You will also explore how Mark’s narrative guides readers to put their faith in Jesus as the one who brings hope for all who live under the shadow of death. You will explore key topics in Mark, such as the Kingdom of God, parables, miracles, faith, honour and shame, Christian discipleship, atonement and resurrection.

The historical, religious, political, and broad cultural life- setting in which the events of the New Testament took place and in which it was first heard.

The life and ministry of Jesus as presented in Mark’s Gospel.

An introduction to various interpretative approaches to Mark, situated within the history of New Testament interpretation, with a focus on a narrative-reader approach.

An examination of the following themes in Mark: The Kingdom of God, parables, miracles, the titles of Jesus, discipleship, the work of the Spirit, the passion and resurrection narrative, theology of atonement.

Elective

The unit introduces the student to the Twelve Prophets of the Old Testament (Hosea to Malachi), as individual books and as a coherent collection. It helps the student to read the Old Testament prophets aware of their historical, literary and theological nature, and to understand both their meaning for original readers, and their significance as Christian Scripture. Students will develop their competence as careful readers of the text, and be able to show how these ancient texts uniquely reveal and adorn the character of God.

The historical and canonical context and coherence of the Twelve Prophets.

A concise exposition and theological analysis of each individual book.

The theology of the Twelve and their relationship with the rest of the Bible.

Elective

The unit introduces the student to the Pentateuch (Genesis to Deuteronomy), as individual books and as a coherent collection. It helps the student to read the Pentateuch aware of its historical, literary and theological nature, and to understand both its meaning for original readers, and its significance as Christian Scripture. Students will develop their competence as careful readers of the text and be able to show how these ancient texts uniquely reveal and adorn the character of God.

The historical and canonical context and coherence of the Pentateuch.

A concise exposition and theological analysis of each individual book.

The theology of the Pentateuch and its relationship with the rest of the Bible.

Elective

The unit introduces the student to the letters of Paul as individual books and as a collection. It helps the student gain an orientation to the individual letters and to repeated themes throughout the collection. The unit also orientates the student to the apostle’s life and how the letters fit into the different missionary journeys presented in the book of Acts. Students will develop their competence as readers of Paul’s letters, and be able to show how these letters deepen our understanding of God and the gospel and how they call us to live the Christian life.

The historical context and content of Paul’s letters.

A concise exposition and theological analysis of each individual book.

Contemporary application of Paul’s letters to Christian life and ministry.

Elective

The unit contributes to the DBT course by demonstrating how the biblical and theological core elements might be harnessed in engaging with people from an Islamic background with the gospel of the Lord Jesus. It focuses on providing the historical, theological and cultural background necessary to understand and engage with people from an Islamic background. The purpose of this unit is to move beyond theory and abstraction, and to give students a guided experience of engaging in personal, evangelistic ministry.

Unpacking attitudes to Muslims.

Islamic history.

Muslim belief and practice.

Interacting with Muslim culture.

Facing the theological challenges of Islam.

Presenting the gospel to Muslims.

Elective

The unit contributes to the DipBT course by drawing on biblical and theological knowledge to form convictions, skills and habits with regards to making disciples of the Lord Jesus. The purpose of this unit is to grow students in theological understanding and practical skills necessary for disciple-making disciples to maturely respond to Jesus’ Great Commission, within the context of effective church/ministry structures.

Introduction: Disciples and the Great Commission

Discipleship Convictions

Why make disciples?

What is a disciple?

How are disciples made?

Who makes disciples?

Where to make disciples?

Moving from conviction to practice

Moving People to the Right

Disciplemaking disciples

Engaging for discipleship

Evangelising to make disciples

Establishing disciples

Equipping disciples

Conclusion: Making disciples

Core

In this unit you will look at how the church grew and developed from the post New Testament era until 600 A.D. The unit explores the challenges of heresy and persecution as well as developments in articulating Christian theology in response to those challenges. There are several primary historical sources that are studied to give students a firm grasp of historical method. The unit will also give students a broad understanding of the people and movements within this period as well as some specific events that were pivotal and continue to shape how the church understands God’s self-revelation of himself through the Bible.

Studying early church history: the nature of history; ecclesiastical histories; approaches to history.

To all the nations (AD 70-200): parting of the ways; Apostolic Fathers; early persecution; deviations from the truth; the Apologists; Irenaeus and Tertullian.

Seeking a place in the world (AD 200-313): faith and philosophy; the Alexandrian ‘school’; the Monarchian controversies; periods of persecution; the problems of the lapsed and rebaptism.

Christianising the empire (AD 313-451): the Arian dispute; Constantine; Athanasius and the Nicene faith; Emperor Julian; Cappadocian fathers; Jerome and John Chrysostom; monasticism; Augustine and the Donatists; Augustine and Pelagius; alternative 'Christs' on the eve of Chalcedon; the Chalcedonian definition.

Introduction to the Middle Ages (AD 451-1500): the demise of the West; the Rise of the Papacy; the Christianisation of Europe; the Holy Roman Empire; the Great Schism; the rise of Islam; the Crusades.

Elective

The unit contributes to the DBT course by deepening the student’s understanding of the Bible as God’s powerful and personal address to his people. It focuses on providing the students with the resources to articulate the authoritative, inspired and unified nature of the Bible. The purpose of this unit is to give students confidence in the Bible as the primary source of knowledge of the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ and to equip them to answer various contemporary critical attitudes towards the Bible as the written word of God.

Modern criticisms of the Bible.

The Christian God as a communicator.

Christ the Word and the Bible.

The Spirit as the medium of word of God.

A biblical theology of the word of God.

Biblical inspiration.

The unity of Scripture.

The clarity of Scripture.

The truthfulness of Scripture.

The sufficiency of Scripture.

The authority of Scripture.

The use of Scripture.

Sola Scriptura today.

Elective

This unit of study focuses on the theological achievement of God through the crucifixion of our Lord Jesus. We will be studying the biblical teaching about the cross from both the Old and New Testament as well as exploring the theological implications of this teaching. As we do so, we will see that the emphasis the Bible places on the work of Christ in his suffering and death is at the very heart of the Christian message and theology. Throughout the unit, we will also engage with the reflections of various classical and contemporary theologians on this doctrine to clarify and categorise our understanding of the Bible’s teaching.

The centrality of the cross.

Grounding the cross in the character of the triune God.

The background to the cross in the pervasive reality of human sin.

The Old Testament preparation for God’s great act of salvation.

The Person of the Saviour.

The importance of Jesus’ life and teaching for our salvation.

The historical particularities of the crucifixion.

The many biblical images to help us understand the cross.

Penal substitution as the critical centre.

The only saviour of all humankind and the Redeemer of his people.

The triumph of the cross.

The unbreakable link between the cross and the resurrection.

The cross at the end and in the interim.

Elective

The unit contributes to the DBT course by allowing the student to engage critically with current Christian apologetic issues. It develops skills of integration as the disciplines of biblical, systematic and philosophical theology are brought together for defending and commending Christianity in the context of contemporary Western culture. The purpose of this unit is to equip students to analyse and evaluate specific contemporary objections to the Christian faith and to address these objections with the explanatory power of the gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Methods of Approach (Evidential and Presuppositional)

The Dynamics of Belief and Persuasion

Religion as a Cultural Construction

Conflicts between Science and Christianity (The Conflict Thesis)

Hypocrisy of Christians (Failures in Church History)

Errors, Contradictions and Atrocities in the Bible

The Problem of Evil (Logical, Evidential, Pastoral)

Other Religions (Islam, Buddhism, Hinduism)

The Cosmological Argument

The Fine-Tuning Argument

The Moral Argument

The Historicity of Jesus and the Bible

Conversations and Aims in the Church and in the World