Overview and Objectives
Lesson Overview
Faithful Christians have always recognized the importance of the progress of biblical history, especially as it relates to humanity’s fall into sin and to God’s redemptive work. The discipline of biblical theology arose as a means to study this progress in responsible ways. Much like systematic theology, biblical theology organizes theological ideas in ways that increase our understanding of Scripture. But whereas systematic theology organizes its ideas according to topics, biblical theology organizes its findings in historical periods or epochs. Used rightly, biblical theology is a powerful and helpful tool for interpreting and applying the Bible.
Lesson Objectives
When you complete this lesson, you should be able to:
- Express their attitude toward New Testament biblical theology
- Identify the following: a) the unique characteristics of New Testament biblical theology, b) the perspective of the first century Jews regarding eschatology, and c) the New Testament perspective regarding eschatology
- Show an ability to apply the teachings of the lesson to their own lives and to new situations
Personal Reflection
As you proceed through this lesson have the following question in mind.
How does your understanding of the kingdom of God shape the way you do your ministry? In what ways might your ministry change by applying the concept of God’s kingdom to all aspects of life?