Overview Of Biblical Theology And Systematic Theology

Essay 1 – Activity Log

Introduction

Theology is the “study of God” and his revelation of himself in his Word (Syllabus. 2016. p. 8). It is the student’s attempt to “understand the God revealed in the Bible and to provide a Christian understanding of reality” (Erickson. 2013. p. 3). M3 Biblical Theology allows a student to begin the process of developing the means and methods to conduct such a study.

There are different models of theological study: Biblical Theology is concerned with the “development of ideas over time” (Syllabus. 2016. p. 6). Systematic Theology makes an “examination of vital topics identified in the biblical text in an organized manner” (Syllabus. 2016. p. 6). Systematic theology also takes those vital topics and examines them within a coherent whole.

In order to accomplish the study of Biblical Theology and Systematic Theology, a student must collect data, make analysis and form a synthesis of the material (cf. Syllabus. 2016. p. 11). Much as a scientist tests a hypothesis in a lab,

Here too, the student looks for key words, phrases, repetition of words and phrases, and literary structure. However, more importantly, one must be able to identify central themes that run through the entirety of the book of the Bible being examined. The syllabus describes this approach as analyzing “separate biblical books to ascertain what particular insight they may render toward understanding God and his work” (p. 24). For example, Genesis presents God, his creation, his interaction with man, and the first covenants (Noahic and Abrahamic). Exodus continues the story of God calling out a people unto himself. The initial promise to Abraham is applied to the “children of Israel”. Here, the promise goes from the individual level to the corporate level. The Mosaic covenant is introduced. Many theological ideas about God’s interaction with man can be drawn from these two books