Overview
Isn't it a shame that as believers we often treat our brothers and sisters in Christ worse than we would treat our most vicious opponents? Rather than reflecting God's love to the world, we often compromise our biblical witness when we contend over theological and socio-cultural issues.
Anyone who sees this as problematic for a church called to be one (John 17:20-21) will be interested in this course, as we will learn how to deal with disagreements by avoiding the hostility and derision that so often accompanies today’s disagreements. This course is designed to help you walk away with a biblical perspective on disagreements—why we have them, why it’s okay that we have them and how to exemplify Christian unity in spite of them.
Eric Oldenburg is the Administrative Coordinator of Extensions and Online Education at Talbot School of Theology, as well as Adjunct Professor of Biblical & Theological Studies. He is currently working on a PhD in Systematic Theology through Melbourne School of Theology. He is married to his talented and energetic wife, Josie, and they have three dialed-to-11 boys: Dietrich, Lev and Max. Eric earned a BA in Biblical and Theological Studies (‘95), an MA in Theology (‘02) and an MA in Christian Apologetics (‘02) all from Biola University’s Talbot School of Theology. From 2004 to 2016, Eric, Josie and their boys lived and served in Kyiv, Ukraine, teaching theology and apologetics at Kyiv Theological Seminary and administrating Talbot’s Kyiv Extension there.
Talbot School of Theology is a theologically conservative, evangelical seminary in Southern California near Los Angeles. With over a 60-year heritage of biblical fidelity, the seminary couples solid evangelical scholarship with spiritual formation to prepare students for a lifetime of relevant, effective ministry. The seminary's master's degree programs and doctoral degree programs are led by a faculty of nationally renowned, widely-published and actively engaged ministry leaders.
Course FAQ
Each lesson is designed to take approximately 2-4 hours, depending on how deeply you engage the assignments. Since this is a self-paced course, the time it will take you to complete it will depend on the speed with which you want to progress through the course.
No. The course contains everything you need to successfully complete this course. There are resources recommended at the end of the course that you are free to purchase if you wish to pursue further study on the course topic.
Since this course is designed as a completely self-paced experience, you will not have any interaction with the professor during the course.
Isn't it a shame that as believers we often treat our brothers and sisters in Christ worse than we would treat our most vicious opponents? Rather than reflecting God's love to the world, we often compromise our biblical witness when we contend over theological and socio-cultural issues.
Anyone who sees this as problematic for a church called to be one (John 17:20-21) will be interested in this course, as we will learn how to deal with disagreements by avoiding the hostility and derision that so often accompanies today’s disagreements. This course is designed to help you walk away with a biblical perspective on disagreements—why we have them, why it’s okay that we have them and how to exemplify Christian unity in spite of them.
Eric Oldenburg is the Administrative Coordinator of Extensions and Online Education at Talbot School of Theology, as well as Adjunct Professor of Biblical & Theological Studies. He is currently working on a PhD in Systematic Theology through Melbourne School of Theology. He is married to his talented and energetic wife, Josie, and they have three dialed-to-11 boys: Dietrich, Lev and Max. Eric earned a BA in Biblical and Theological Studies (‘95), an MA in Theology (‘02) and an MA in Christian Apologetics (‘02) all from Biola University’s Talbot School of Theology. From 2004 to 2016, Eric, Josie and their boys lived and served in Kyiv, Ukraine, teaching theology and apologetics at Kyiv Theological Seminary and administrating Talbot’s Kyiv Extension there.
Talbot School of Theology is a theologically conservative, evangelical seminary in Southern California near Los Angeles. With over a 60-year heritage of biblical fidelity, the seminary couples solid evangelical scholarship with spiritual formation to prepare students for a lifetime of relevant, effective ministry. The seminary's master's degree programs and doctoral degree programs are led by a faculty of nationally renowned, widely-published and actively engaged ministry leaders.
Syllabus
| Given that we coexist among a myriad of... Overview |
|---|
| Course Introduction Video |
| Basic Facts of Disagreement: History, Scripture, and Culture Video |
| Sources of Theological Disagreement: Theology is Big Video |
| Sources of Theological Disagreement: Humanity is Limited Video |
| Sources of Theological Disagreement: Each Person is Biased Video |
| A Positive Perspective on Theological Disagreement Video |
| Lesson 1 - Quiz Quiz |
| Reflecting on Disagreement Reflection |
| "All truth is God's truth." While this... Overview |
|---|
| First and Second Steps Toward Disagreeing Well Video |
| Hosea 6:6 - Loyalty and Compassion Over Sacrifice Video |
| Matthew 23:23-24 - The Weightier Matters of the Law Video |
| Galatians 1:6-9 - No Other Gospel Video |
| Romans 14:1-23 - Fully Convinced in Your Own Mind Video |
| Lesson 2 - Quiz Quiz |
| Reflection Activity Reflection |
| Prioritizing Theological Truth Lesson 3 |
|---|
| Is Scripture our only source for theology? What... Overview |
|---|
| An Introduction to Theological Prioritization Video |
| Sources of Theological Truth Video |
| Theological Method Video |
| Categories and Criteria for Theological Prioritization Video |
| Lesson 3 - Quiz Quiz |
| Reflection Questions Reflection |
| What do we do now? Because disagreement is all... Overview |
|---|
| How to Follow Jesus when we disagree Video |
| Proverbs 15:1 - Christian Character in Disagreement Video |
| Matthew 7:12 - Christian Character in Disagreement Part 2 Video |
| Titus 3:1-2 - Christian Character in Disagreement Part 3 Video |
| I Peter 3:8-9 - Christian Character in Disagreement Part 4 Video |
| Virtuously Navigating Disagreements Video |
| Lesson 4 - Quiz Quiz |
| Application Question Reflection |
| Recommended Resources Resource |
| Course Evaluation Resource |
Course FAQ
Each lesson is designed to take approximately 2-4 hours, depending on how deeply you engage the assignments. Since this is a self-paced course, the time it will take you to complete it will depend on the speed with which you want to progress through the course.
No. The course contains everything you need to successfully complete this course. There are resources recommended at the end of the course that you are free to purchase if you wish to pursue further study on the course topic.
Since this course is designed as a completely self-paced experience, you will not have any interaction with the professor during the course.