PURPOSE OF OLD TESTAMENT CLASS [0045]

The primary goal of the class is to open your thinking and life to truth. This is not a class where you will "parrot" the instructor's ideas and beliefs.

• You need to know what you believe and what you do not believe.
• You need to know why you believe and why you do not believe.
• You need to know how you come to your belief systems.

FIND YOUR LEARNING HOOKS

Atoms of the Greeks...

On cold or rainy days during elementary a row of hooks in the "cloak room" served a useful purpose. The students were able to organize their coats on the individual hooks.

 This class will focus on providing you with some "hooks" upon which you can hang biblical and non-biblical information. This class is not about cramming you full of long lists of details.

INFORMATION OVERLOAD

You will be exposed to more than you will be able to absorb and/or understand. At times the resources will overwhelm you. Often your experience will be like putting a tent up in a storm on a sandy beach. After setting one tent peg, running to the other side to set another tent peg, the wind uproots the first tent peg.

You need to be exposed to information. You need the time to process the information. You need to come to the place where what you believe is yours and not a "regurgitation" of what someone else believes. Your personal responsibility in the learning process is essential.

Part of the college experience is to be able to work with the information overload. Selective, discrimination skills are essential the college experience.

OPEN YOU TO VASTNESS OF GOD'S CREATION:

I believe that truth is to be found everywhere. God has put a vast world together and we have been provided the opportunity and responsibility to discover. All education is a process of discerning truth from un-truth.

AUTHORITY

Every individual struggles with the veracity, truth of information. Who is telling the truth?

Ultimately you are responsible for accepting and/or rejecting truth as well as un truth. Therefore, care must be taken in your search for truth.

If you accept someone's statement or conclusion about a matter just because they are in some position, I believe you are on dangerous ground. No degree of ordination, position, experience, "divine right," or charisma automatically confer a title of "authority."

An authority is one who communicates truth accurately. I have authority when I preach only if I remain close to the text. If someone accepts what I preach as authoritative based on my education, ordination, experience, or position, they are are not accepting their personal responsibility and the personal consequences of that acquired belief system.

The search for truth is not always quick and effortless.

BLENDING OF OLD and NEW TESTAMENT IN THIS CLASS

Since this class is taught in conjunction with New Testament, you will find some "blending" of the two.

24 February 2000

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