Welcome to New Testament Basics

In this lesson you will examine the purpose and structure of the New Testament as well as how the New Testament relates to the Old Testament.

When you complete this lesson, you should be able to:

1. Explain the relationship between the Old Testament and the New Testament.
2. Identify how the New Testament is structured and the purpose of each section.
3. Reflect on your own goals for reading and studying the New Testament.

In this lesson you will discover how the gospel accounts of Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John fit together. You will learn why each gospel account is unique, even though they all point to the same reality: that Jesus is the divine Son of God.

When you complete this lesson, you should be able to:

1. Explain the meaning of “gospel” and how the four gospel accounts relate to one another.
2. Describe who wrote the four gospels, who they were writing to, and their primary focus.
3. Reflect on the key message of the gospel and what that means in your life.

In this lesson you will examine Jesus’ human and divine natures and the eternal truth they point to. You will also get a general sense of the chronology and geography of His ministry.

When you complete this lesson, you should be able to:

1. Explain how Jesus could be fully human and fully divine, and why that is important.
2. Identify the general geography and chronology of Jesus’ earthly ministry.
3. Assess your own image of who Jesus is and how that relates to what the Gospels say.

In this lesson you will learn how and why Jesus used miracles, parables, conversations, and relationships in His earthly ministry. You’ll learn from the Master Himself how these can be useful in your life and ministry.

When you complete this lesson, you should be able to:

1. Explain the biblical definition of “miracle” and “parable” and why Jesus used them in His ministry.
2. Recognize how Jesus used conversations and relationships in His ministry.
3. Identify valuable lessons about how you can teach and minister to others.

In this lesson you will examine the overarching story of Acts and its major passages that summarize how Jesus’ apostles spread the Gospel from Jerusalem to Rome.

When you complete this lesson, you should be able to:

1. Explain the purpose and story of the book of Acts.
2. Name and explain the contribution of seven key passages in Acts.
3. Reflect on the mission of the early church and how it compares with the church today.

In this lesson you will examine Paul’s life and ministry and reflect on the lessons you can learn from his example so that you can apply them in your life.

When you complete this lesson, you should be able to:

1. Explain why and how God used Paul to be His main apostle to the Gentiles.
2. Identify Paul’s four missionary journeys and how they relate to his letters.
3. Reflect on specific lessons you can learn from Paul’s life and ministry.

In this lesson you will learn about the first six Pauline letters as they appear in the New Testament: Romans, 1 and 2 Corinthians, Galatians, Ephesians, and Philippians. You will examine when, where, and why they were written.

When you complete this lesson, you should be able to:

1. Explain when, where, and why these six letters were written by Paul.
2. Describe the key messages Paul conveyed to these churches.
3. Reflect on the meaning of these letters in your own faith and ministry.

In this lesson you will learn about the final seven of Paul’s letters as they appear in the New Testament: Colossians, 1 and 2 Thessalonians, 1 and 2 Timothy, Titus, and Philemon

When you complete this lesson, you should be able to:

• Explain when, where, and why these seven letters were written by Paul.
• Describe the key messages Paul conveyed through these epistles.
• Reflect on the meaning of these letters in your own faith and ministry.

In this lesson you will examine the instruction and encouragement to the early church that is found in Hebrews and the General Epistles: James, 1 and 2 Peter, and Jude.

When you complete this lesson, you should be able to:

1. Identify the main themes and audiences of Hebrews and the General Epistles.
2. Explain how these letters instructed and encouraged the early church.
3. Reflect on how you can apply important spiritual truths from Hebrews and the General Epistles in your daily life.

In this lesson you will focus on the letters attributed to the apostle John, which include 1, 2, and 3 John and the book of Revelation.

When you complete this lesson, you should be able to:

1. Explain the theme and content of each of the letters attributed to John.
2. Describe an overview of the book of Revelation.
3. Apply spiritual truths from these inspired books in your own walk of faith.

This activity offers a brief introduction to the lesson and informs you of the lesson’s objectives.

Viewing this activity is required for course completion.

This activity provides the main teaching content for the lesson. You may choose to watch the video, listen to the audio, or read the transcript. Closed captioning is also provided for any video segments. In each case the content is the same.

This activity is required for course completion.

This quiz activity checks your understanding of the concepts learned so far. It is not a timed activity, and the quiz can be attempted as many times as needed.

Earning a quiz score of 70% or better is required for course completion.

This activity allows you to spend time in Scripture and connect it to the topic of each lesson. Spend some time carefully reading the passage provided in the activity, utilizing the simple three-step method of Receive, Reflect, and Respond.

• Receive simply involves reading the text and asking, “What does the text say?”
• Reflect challenges you to ask, “What does the text mean?”
• Respond invites you to apply the meaning of the text to your life.

Instructions for reflection

1. Get and use a hard copy journal or an e-note-taking tool such as Notion, OneNote, or Apple Notes. You can also complete these activities in the course workbook, which can be downloaded in lesson one.
2. Spend time reflecting on the questions provided in the activity. Make it a time of prayer by sharing your thoughts and reflections with God.
3. Write down your answers, thoughts, and other revelatory ideas in your journal that God reveals during your time of prayerful reflection.

For reflective journaling activities such as this one, find a quiet place in which you will not be disturbed by other people, noises, or other distractions. Silence e-devices and quiet your mind by reading Bible passages or praying before attempting the activity.

This discussion activity is designed to help you articulate what you have learned in each lesson. It may also help you collect ideas from other course participants about their understanding of the New Testament. Since this course is asynchronous (i.e., other learners complete the course at different times), you may not see many discussion submissions or receive replies to your posts. Therefore, consider your submissions to this discussion forum as a way to share your insights about what you have learned to inspire or challenge others in their learning journey, and to enable others to do the same for you.

While other learners may not see or respond to your comments in the short term, encouraging others and engaging with others enhances your learning experience.

This activity is required for course completion.

These application activities are designed to help you consider how to put your learning to use in your own context. When you finish this course you will have an action plan that will help you deepen and improve your Bible study!

Complete these activities digitally in the downloadable workbook, or write them in your own journal. Find the link to download the digital workbook in lesson one.

At the end of each lesson there are links to additional Our Daily Bread Ministries resources you can watch, listen to, or read that will enhance your understanding of the course content. This material is optional and not required for course completion.

This activity sums up the concepts learned in each lesson and looks ahead to what comes next.

This activity appears in the course wrap-up section at the end of the course. It allows you to review what you have learned in the course and identify actions you will commit to in order to implement the course concepts.