Study The Church

Welcome to a study of the New Testament

At the end of this study, you will have a great understanding of the background of the NT, meaning questions like who, what, when, where, why, etc.

The course will last for 8 weeks and is divided into 8 sections:

The background of the NT (the Roman and Jewish worlds plus general information about the NT)
Jesus' biography
The four Gospels
The history book of the NT (Acts) and Paul’s theology or ideas (plus, why is Paul so important?)
Paul's longer letters
Paul’s smaller letters
Hebrews, James, and I & II Peter
I, II, & III John, Jude, and Revelation

That is a lot of material, but I have taught this course over 75 times and found a way to make it easier: each of the biblical books is presented with this same, simple format. This way, you will know what to expect with each of the 27 NT books:

Author of the book
Place and time of writing of the book
What makes the book unique
Purpose of the book (why was it written)
Theme of the book (the main point or points the author tried to explain)
A discussion of some details about the book
Plus, each book will end with a timeline that places the book in the first century. You will be able to see when it was written in relation to other books.

But first, 5 notes:

I will use "NT" instead of "New Testament" and "OT" instead of "Old Testament."
This is not a devotional reading of the NT but an academic study of the NT. This is what I mean: reading the NT devotionally means focusing on how to live a life that is pleasing to God and drawing closer to God. Reading the NT academically means focusing on the purpose behind each of the 27 books while at the same time learning how the books all fit together to present one message. For the most part, personal Bible reading and sermons are devotional. Therefore, many Christians find this course exciting because it is a new and different way of looking at the NT. Plus, many Christians do grow closer to God while studying the Bible academically. I know that because I have seen it happen to many Christians in my classes, plus it happened to me.
Scholars have different opinions on most parts of the New Testament. This class will reflect my understanding as I studied many other scholars, but I will also provide the opinions of other scholars throughout the class so that you can see different opinions.
Always feel free to email me with questions about the NT or about Moodle (if you are taking the class using Moodle): I want this class to be as stress free and enjoyable for you as possible. My email address is marknickens@gmail.com
I teach this class, and all my classes, so that Christians can develop a deeper understanding and appreciation of God. I pray that you will develop a deeper love of the NT as you learn more deeply how the different parts work together to achieve God's purpose in our lives. Ad gloriam Dei: Latin for “To the glory of God.”