Boyce Digital Repository (Southern Baptist Theological Seminary)
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Developing a Biblical Theology Course at Rock Springs Christian Academy in Milner, Georgia
Get PDFHigh school students at Rock Springs Christian Academy were taught aChristocentric biblical theology, with the aims of increasing biblical literacy and best
hermeneutical practices. Chapter 1 presents the purpose, goals, context, rationale,
definitions, research methodology, and limitations of the project. Chapter 2 discusses the
biblical warrant for interpreting Scripture Christo-centrically from Luke 24. Chapter 3
discusses the Christ centered interpretive perspective passed on to the disciples by Jesus
through a brief survey of key selections in the book of Acts before turning to critique of
contemporary practices of biblical theology. To close, the chapter offers a suggestion of
how to merge several practices for a more robust Christ-centered hermeneutic. Chapter 4
outlines the developed curriculum used in the project. Chapter 5 provides an evaluation
of the project. This project argues that best hermeneutical practice employs a Christ-
centered biblical theology
Irenaeus's Defense of the Old Testament as Part of the Canon of Scripture
Get PDFDuring the second century, emerging Christianity had to wrestle with its understanding of the Jewishness of both Jesus of Nazareth and the Old Testament Scriptures. Two voices emerged within the Church as it wrestled with this issue: Marcion of Sinope, and Irenaeus of Lyons. Marcion rejected the Church’s use of the Old Testament and propagated a theology which radically reinterpreted both the Old Testament and the New Testament as being existentially opposed to one another as his justification for urging the Church to abandon all use of the Old Testament. By contrast, Irenaeus of Lyons, a student of the Apostle John’s disciple Polycarp, defended the emerging Catholic Church’s use of the Old Testament and its placement within the Christian Canon itself. This thesis examines Irenaeus’s defense of the Old Testament as part of the New Testament canon through the lens of his rebuttal of Marcion’s teachings. First, an examination of Marcion of Sinope’s life and his teachings that became Marcionite Christianity will inform the reader concerning what he proposed as the basis of Christian faith in opposition to the emerging Catholic Church. Second, this thesis will examine the life of Irenaeus of Lyons. Irenaeus’s biographical temporal, geographical, and relational contexts are examined to explain why he was the prime authority to defend Catholic Christianity at large against Marcion’s heresy. It will then proceed to look at his surviving writings, and the nature of Irenaeus’s interpretive thought process which informed his understanding of Scripture. Third, this thesis examines Irenaeus’s defense of the Old Testament itself through his appeal to eyewitness testimony dating from Jesus of Nazareth himself, through the apostles, then his apostolic mentor, and finally, as preserved himself in his references back to this authority. Additionally, his defense is examined in light of its refutation of Marcionite Christianity’s key accusations against the Old Testament that are used to justify their rejection of the Old Testament. Finally, this thesis concludes with a demonstration of why Irenaeus’s Old Testament defense is still vital in the present day by assessing examples from both the twentieth and twenty-first centuries
Training Grace Bible Church in Moore, South Carolina, to Present Historical Arguments for Believing in Jesus’s Resurrection
Get PDFThis project aims to equip the members of Grace Bible Church in Moore, South Carolina, to share historical arguments for believing in Jesus. Chapter 1 presents the ministry context of GBC as well as the rationale and various goals of this project. Chapter 2 unpacks 1 Corinthians 15:3–8 and demonstrates that Jesus’s resurrection from the dead can be historically verified. Chapter 3 reviews Dale Allison Jr.’s The Resurrection of Jesus and explains that Allison’s arguments do not ultimately undermine Christ’s bodily resurrection. Chapter 4 recounts the implementation of the project itself. The implementation included conducting pre-series surveys, preaching a six-week sermon series, writing complementary six-week small group curriculum, and conducting post-series surveys to determine progress among project participants. Chapter 5 evaluates the effectiveness of the project based on the completion of the specified goals. Based on a t-test for dependent samples, this chapter demonstrates a positive statistically significant difference in the pre- and post-survey overall scores: t(60) = -10.256, p < .001
Eternal Anthropology in Evangelical Eschatology: An Assessment of Three Models and an Argument for Kingdom Theology
Get PDFBy examining three models of the anthropology of the everlasting kingdom and the biblical and theological arguments that underlie them, I argue that the Kingdom Theology (referred to as Progressive Dispensationalism for the majority of the dissertation in keeping with the history of the view) understanding of consummate anthropology, in which ethnicity is individually and corporately expressed, is based on stronger interpretive foundations than the other two models. I demonstrate this by assessing all three models according to David Wolfe’s criteria for evaluating interpretive systems taken from Epistemology: The Justification of Belief. What emerges as progressive dispensationalism is evaluated through Wolfe’s criteria and compared and contrasted to the other models, is nothing less than an understanding of the storyline of the Bible and its culmination that is straightforwardly biblical, lucid, compelling, and deeply hope-engendering for the church! Chapter 1 introduces the topic of the dissertation and its importance, followed by its purpose, thesis, and method. Chapter 2 explicates and assesses model 1A: individual ethnic identity expressed, but no national territoriality in the consummation due to Israel’s replacement by the church (classic covenantalism). Chapter 3 explicates and assesses another model 1 view (progressive covenantalism). Chapter 4 explicates and assesses model 2: classic dispensationalism and revised dispensationalism. Chapter 5 explicates and assesses model 3: individual ethnic identity and national territoriality present in a unified manner in the consummation (progressive dispensationalism). Finally, chapter 6 concludes the dissertation by offering a summary, areas for further research, and concluding reflections
Crowned with Immortal Glory: Eschatalogical Hope in the Spirituality of William Perkins
Get PDFThe doctrine of glorification is a biblical teaching that has been neglected within the Protestant church and, therefore, underdeveloped in our day. For whatever reason that may be, glorification is a doctrine that will affect every aspect of one’s overarching theology, especially the doctrine of soteriology. What one ultimately believes about the future will significantly impact their present. This study shows that this neglect or lack of development has not always been the case within the church, especially within Reformed Protestantism. Looking at one of the most influential second-generation reformers and theologians of the English Reformation, William Perkins (1558-1602), it becomes evident that embedded within the Reformed Scholastic tradition lays a robust development and understanding of the doctrine of glorification. Perkins formulated and wrote a great deal on the final state of the believer in Christ, what his rewards are in Christ, and, ultimately, his complete and final transformation and conformity into His image.What rewards have been promised and given to the believer in Christ? What will he be like? What will he look like? What will his status be in glory? I demonstrate from Perkins’s complete and collected works that the future state of man in Christ is one of the main themes driving his thoughts, doctrinal developments, and teachings. Throughout his works, whether brief statements or whether he goes into great detail, what a man is in Christ, what he receives in Christ, and what he will ultimately be in Christ is constantly addressed with renowned biblical and theological precision. Within the theology of Perkins, from his doctrine of predestination to creation, his covenant theology, union with Christ, and his soteriology, he continually points his audience to their ultimate end in eschatological glory.
At the conclusion of this study, I have not only shown, systematically, Perkins’s grand development and treatment of glorification, but also uncovered, historically, the influence this doctrine had in the formation of one of the most prominent and popular theologians of the English Reformation. Lastly, while showing how this doctrine of future glory impacted Perkins’s overall theology, I will have demonstrated how it impacted his spirituality. That is, how he lived his Christian life presently. These areas of spirituality include his polemics, personal holiness, and present hope in life and death
Training Lay Leaders At Parkway Baptist Church, Lexington, Kentucky, Using Principles Found In Nehemiah
Get PDFThe purpose of this project was to emphasize characteristics needed to be
more effective as a leader in the local church. It also was to equip lay leaders with some
of the skills needed to be more effective leaders in the church. It included biblical lessons
from Nehemiah that dealt with prayer, obedience, worship, confronting sin and conflict
resolution. The project also incorporated the importance of these relative to church
health.
Chapter 1 is an overall look at the demographics of the church, the rational,
purpose, goals, and methodology for the project. Chapter 2 is the biblical basis of the
project. Chapter 3 combines the biblical basis with church health. Chapter 4 describes the
implementation of the project. The final chapter contains the evaluation and reflections
from this projec
New Exodus, New Covenant, New Creation: The Reuse of the Old Testament in Joel
Get PDFThe book of Joel has numerous parallels with other Old Testament texts, so much so that Joel has often been described as an interpreter of Scripture rather than a traditional prophet. Often, some of these parallels have been selected to support various claims about the redaction, composition, and the date of Joel or Joel’s role in the purported Book of the Twelve, instead of analyzing the entirety of Joel’s parallels first on their own terms. Additionally, various methodological approaches, including diachronic, synchronic, intertextual, and canonical studies, yield different analyses of Joel’s verbal parallels. This study attempts a diachronic analysis of Joel’s textual parallels in which Joel, as author, has invited the reader into meaning-making largely through textual allusion in which Joel as author guides the reader through textual clues. Each verbal parallel is assessed in four steps. First, verbal parallels are identified largely based upon shared lexemes. Second, the strength of the parallel is surveyed, as indicated through sustained lexical and syntactical parallels between the two texts, to determine evidence for a literary relationship between these texts. The evidence for how authoritative texts functioned in the ancient world in an oral/textual milieu supports the hypothesis that sustained lexical and syntactical parallels are due to literary reuse—even if the literary reuse was recalled via memory. Third, in addition to the relative date of each text, literary features are assessed to determine a plausible direction of dependence for the literary relationship. Finally, the instances where Joel has reused earlier texts are analyzed for their interpretive significance within and upon Joel’s prophecy.
Joel reused authoritative historical, liturgical, and prophetic texts in a variety of ways as he crafted his message. Such reuse—the specific texts Joel reused and how he reused them in his creative process—provides insight into Joel’s theological vision. This study of reuse in the book of Joel found that Joel’s overt message regarding the Day of YHWH is undergirded by Joel’s theological vision for a new exodus leading to a new covenant and resulting in a new creation
Equipping Members for Interpersonal Discipleship at Cropper Baptist Church in Pleasureville, Kentucky
Get PDFThis research project developed a mode of interpersonal discipleship to be practiced among the members of Cropper Baptist Church in Pleasureville, Kentucky. Chapter 1 describes the ministry context of the project and the rationale behind its implementation. Chapter 2 examines the biblical and theological support for interpersonal discipleship. Chapter 3 explores the practical and theoretical for interpersonal discipleship. Chapter 4 describes the preparation, implementation, and conclusion of the project. Chapter 5 evaluates the goals of the project and offers reflections of the projects strengths and weaknesses as well as reflections of a theological and personal nature
Hope in Exile: A Diagnostic Tool for Assessing Redemptive Developmental Outcomes of Chapel Programming at Lee University
Get PDFFor over a century, Lee University has shaped the lives of students through the practice of confessional corporate worship experiences and chapel programming. This thesis has both social scientific and spiritual significance. The social scientific goals assess the advantages and disadvantages of the current chapel programmatic structure as it relates to the engagement and formation of the student body at Lee. The spiritual goals are established through a biblically faithful interpretation of metaphorical exile and the redemptive practices that lead to resilient discipleship in Generation Z. To accomplish both of these objectives, a diagnostic tool was designed to assess five essential domains in chapel programming. That instrument, the Redemptive Chapel Inventory, was created to inform and assist university administration in the pursuit of holistic development through chapel programming
Developing Personal Witnesses at Mustard Seed Church in Paterson, New Jersey
Get PDFThis project aimed to develop adult volunteers into personal witnesses at Mustard Seed Church in Paterson, New Jersey. Chapter 1 describes the context, rationale, purpose, goals, research methodology, pertinent definitions, limitations, and delimitations of the project. Chapter 2 exegetes four biblical texts to demonstrate that the Bible teaches that Christians are to be personal witnesses who proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ. Chapter 3 discusses the theoretical, practical, and historical issues that are related to being a personal witness and establishes that personal witnesses should aim to overcome spiritual, cultural, intellectual, religious, and relational barriers to personal evangelism. Chapter 4 provides project details and describes the preparation and implementation of the project. Chapter 5 examines and evaluates the entire project and supplies theological and personal reflections