Old Testament
OTS5121 Deuteronomy and Biblical Ethics
This course introduces you to the book of Deuteronomy by exploring models for the interpretation and reading the book as narrative. The history and present applications of Deuteronomy will offer a firm grounding in Biblical ethics as well. You will also acquire exegetical skills to exegete and study selected passages of the book. By the end of this course, you will be able to:
- Demonstrate familiarity and competence with the appropriate academic disciplines, including exegesis and academic debate.
- Demonstrate familiarity with the contents of the book of Deuteronomy, using the English text and literary models like Narrative Theology.
- Demonstrate familiarity with the social, historical, legal and theological context of the book of Deuteronomy.
- Demonstrate competence in the field of Biblical ethics, its history, and present applications, with application to the book of Deuteronomy.
- Demonstrate competence in the exegesis of selected chapters of the book of Deuteronomy in line with key academic commentaries on the book.
- Unit 1: Introduction to the Study of Deuteronomy.
- Unit 2: Models for the Interpretation of Deuteronomy
- Unit 3: Reading Deuteronomy as Narrative: Characters, Plot, and Narrator.
- Unit 4: Biblical Ethics in Deuteronomy, Including Care for the Marginalised
- Unit 5: The Theology and Exegesis of Deuteronomy
- Required Reading
OTS5122 Nehemiah and Christian Leadership
Nehemiah lived during the Jewish Exile (587-538BC). The Babylonians carried them away in captivity and plundered their city. This was a direct result of their disobedience to God. Nehemiah found favour with king Artaxerxes. In his capacity as cupbearer for king Artaxerxes of Persia, he was assigned a lot of authority and managed the king’s place. The Nehemiah that we encounter in the biblical account was a godly man who feared God. He was humble, had a burden for the well-being of his people, was diligent in serving the king, was wise, diplomatic, encouraging, goal-driven, unmoved in his convictions, firm in his stance against their opponents and he had absolute faith in God. He was a visionary, who knew the Torah and who was able to win the favour of both his own people and king Artaxerxes. He was willing to follow through on his convictions and took action to restore the fallen city of Jerusalem. He was ready to act when the right opportunity presented itself. He managed to gather the support of his fellow-Jews and motivated them for the work. He associated with their corporate guilt and interceded for them. It is rare to find a figure with such a good balance between pragmatism, unclouded vision, interpersonal and negotiation skills, prayer and dependence on God’s guidance. Many books have been written on Christian leadership, and many of them should be commended for their insight and wisdom. Our desire is not to repeat all those useful leadership principles in this course. We would rather look at the book of Nehemiah and focus on some of the prominent leadership qualities he displayed. By the end of this course, you will be able to:
- Explain the structure of the book of Nehemiah and its historical context.
- Critically compare different author’s views on biblical leadership and how it relates to Nehemiah.
- Design a ‘Nehemiah leadership model’ for your context.
- Prioritize the different spiritual aspects of Nehemiah’s leadership.
- Examine valuable inter-personal communication skills in Nehemiah.
- Describe principles from Nehemiah for communicating with secular, religious and hostile people.
- Demonstrate why it is important for leaders to depend on God.
- Unit 1: Introduction to the Book of Nehemiah and its Historical Context
- Unit 2: Different Views on Nehemiah and Biblical Leadership
- Unit 3: Contextualising a ‘Nehemiah Leadership Model’
- Unit 4: Different Spiritual Aspects of Nehemiah’s Leadership
- Unit 5: Inter-Personal Communication Skills in Nehemiah
- Unit 6: Communicating with Secular, Religious and Hostile People
- Unit 7: Leaders Who Depend on God
OTS5123 Judges and Narrative Preaching
This course will explore the history, theoretical underpinning, and primary models of narrative preaching as a foundation for equipping preachers to learn narrative methods of preaching. The heart of the course involves students applying selected approaches, being required to prepare and deliver sermons from the book of Judges using narrative models. The course ends with the preacher (student) undertaking an evaluation of their narrative sermons from the book of Judges, both a self- assessment and a congregational assessment. By the end of this course, you will be able to:
- Discuss the influences (forces at work) and influencers (people) driving the recent rise of narrative preaching.
- Articulate and defend the theoretical underpinnings, both theological and practical, that justify narrative preaching.
- Describe the major models of narrative preaching, giving attention to the strengths and limitations of each model.
- Interpret narrative texts in the book of Judges for preaching purposes.
- Prepare and preach first-person narrative sermons from the book of Judges.
- Prepare and preach third-person narrative sermons from the book of Judges.
- Evaluate the experience of preaching narrative sermons from the book of Judges.
- Unit 1: Introduction to Narrative Preaching
- Unit 2: Interpreting Narrative Texts from Judges
- Unit 3: First-Person Narrative Sermons in Judges
- Unit 4: Third-Person Narrative Sermons in Judges
- Unit 5: Evaluation of Narrative Preaching from the book of Judges
OTS5124 Psalms and Christian Spirituality
Throughout the centuries the book of Psalms has been at the heart of Israelite and Christian spirituality. This can already be seen in the New Testament, which quotes the Psalms more than any other book of the Old Testament. The Psalms featured prominently in the theology and spirituality of the church fathers and the Protestant reformers ensured a privileged position for the Psalms in their own time, as well as in the centuries that followed. Since the end of the nineteenth century, there has been a marked decline in the liturgical singing and praying of the Psalms. However, they continue to inspire the prayer and worship of God’s people, both personally and corporately. The purpose of this course is to introduce you to the Psalms, resources for and trends in the study of the Psalms, as ways to enhance its application in Christian living today. By the end of this course, you will be able to:
- Effectively engage with scholarly resources relevant for studying The Psalms
- Demonstrate an understanding of the literary characteristics of The Psalms
- Identify different Psalm types and their associated social contexts
- Identify and explain key theological emphases in The Psalms
- Assess and appreciate different contemporary applications of The Psalms, both individually and corporately
- Unit 1: Introduction to the study of The Psalms
- Unit 2: The Psalms as prayer and liturgy
- Unit 3: The Psalms as theology
- Unit 4: The Psalms as literature
- Unit 5: Special themes in Psalm studies