Our beliefs are central to what it means to be a Christian. They are part of how we know God and live faithfully. This course will explore the various topics of theology and how they should shape our lives.
Lesson 1: Knowing God
- Why study theology? God has made us to know him and has clearly revealed himself to us in the world he has made. The Church's response to God's revelation through Creeds and Confessions help guide us in truth.
Lesson 2: Special Revelation & Liberty of Conscience
- Above and beyond General Revelation, God has miraculously communicated to us his plan of salvation. Scripture is God's authoritative word and is sufficient. Scripture alone has the right to bind our conscience and convict us of sin.
Lesson 3: The Character of Our Triune God
- What are God's attributes? How can God be both just and loving at the same time. God has also revealed himself as One God in Three Persons. Why is this good news?
Lesson 4: God's Sovereignty and Our Free Will
- God's sovereignty does not remove our free will, nor does it make things like evangelism and prayer meaningless.
Lesson 5: God's Providence Applied to Suffering and Contentment
- How can a good God allow suffering? Without a biblical understanding of God's providence we will not be able to make sense of suffering or find contentment in life.
Lesson 6: Humanity and Sin
- What does it mean to be human? How has sin affected us? How has our new life in Christ changed us?
Lesson 7: The Person and Work of Christ
- Who is Christ? What about his nature is essential for the work of salvation? Why did Christ die?
Lesson 8: Free Will and Regeneration
- How does conversion happen? Topics include the Order of Salvation, Free Will, and Predestination.
Lesson 9: Repentance and Faith
- What is Faith? How do you get it? We discuss common misunderstanding about repentance and faith, pointing to a more biblical way to grow the Christian life.
Lesson 10: Justification and Adoption
- We how God makes us legally right with him. We also examine how Adoption transforms our everyday experience of the Christian life.
Lesson 11: Perseverance and Assurance
- How do you find assurance of salvation? What does it mean to fall away from the faith?
Lesson 12: Sanctification and God's Law
- God has given us his law as a guide to life. We are justified by faith alone, but faith is never alone.
Lesson 13: Covenants
- God's call for us to live obediently is not nullified by Jesus, but rather fufilled by him. This is the covenant of grace: We are saved by his faithful obedience to God's covenant of works.
Lesson 14: Church and State
- What is the Christian's responsibility to the State? Should the church preach politics? This lesson explores the relationship between the institutions of church and state given by God.
Lesson 15: Church and Sacraments
- Christ gives us the sacraments of Baptism and the Lord's Supper so that he might be present with us now. These sacraments grow our faith and shape us.