1. Kingdom Theology
Begin developing an initial theology of the Kingdom of God and contrast the Kingdom of Heaven.
General Instructions
An important part of Jesus’ message concerned the Kingdom. Consider for a moment, however, that there may be a difference between the Kingdom of God and the Kingdom of Heaven, a phrase unique to Matthew’s gospel. What did Jesus mean, and how does this affect our understanding of the Bible?
According to Chafer in Systematic Theology, the Kingdom of God refers to “the sphere of God’s rule in the universe … manifested in political governments and their rulers [and in] a spiritual government, in which God rules in the hearts of men” (pp XXXXXXXXXXBaker of the New Testament Commentarynotes that the Kingdom of Heaven referred to by Matthew is not a kingdom in heaven but a kingdom originating from the heavens and ruling over the earth, the Messianic rule of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, referred to often in Old Testament prophecy.
Your task is to begin theologizing about the Kingdom of God and the Kingdom of Heaven. To begin, interview various people to learn what they mean by the phrases Kingdom of God and Kingdom of Heaven. Note that some persons will have well developed theologies, while others’ theologies will not be developed and will be more-or-less unstructured and without foundation (i.e., anecdotal theologies). In the interview, identify that which appears to be developed theologies from that which appears to be anecdotal theologies.
To receive full credit, be sure to do the following.
Interview three students or collegiate peers n
2.
Bible & Theology Knowledge
List knowledge of assigned parts of the Bible and theology. General Instructions
The knowledge a person already has forms the basis for continued learning. Identifying your knowledge base clarifies when you are confronted with new knowledge and the need to add meaning to it, and then to apply it in some way. You will clearly see yourself grow because you will know where you began.
This exercise requires you to identify what you know about various Bible categories and how you apply the knowledge. Without referencing any Bibles or other texts, complete the matrices titled BIBLE KNOWLEDGE and THEOLOGICAL GRID. For example, in the BIBLE KNOWLEDGE MATRIX, the far left column contains the Bible categories. In the second column from the left, “Related Bible Passages,” add specific Scriptures from the Gospels you can recall. In the middle column, “Related Theology,” add what you understand about this truth. In the column titled “Associated Beliefs,” insert personal beliefs elicited by the passage. In the far right column, “Resulting Behaviors,” describe how the passage affects how you behave, i.e., how you live and act. Do the same for the THEOLOGICAL GRID, this time focusing on how you approach and understand the Bible. This will help you to identify your basic assumptions as you study Scripture.
To receive full credit, be sure to do the following: Complete all cells. Be thorough. Be clear. The exercise should result in 1-11/2pages.
Online Instructions
Access the matrix in the section titled Workshop One Supplementals. Submit your exercise to your facilitator as an attachment to the drop box titled
Knowledge Exercise