Written about 300 years after the birth of Christ, the Apostles’ Creed summarises foundational Christian beliefs. It contains the main Christian teachings about God, Jesus and the Church. This course explains the history and use of the Apostles' Creed, as well as the details and significance of each of its articles of faith.
Modern evangelical theology is flooded with conflicting viewpoints. Many of these disagreements arise between denominations, while others arise within denominations and individual churches. With so many different ideas competing for our loyalty, how are followers of Jesus to determine what to believe? And how committed should we be to specific doctrines and traditions?
Throughout the history of the church, faithful Christians have used systematic theology to communicate the teachings of our faith. Systematics has proven to be a helpful tool for expressing ideas clearly, and for organising them in ways that increase our understanding of Scripture. At times, this approach to theology has been misused, but when employed in submission to Scripture, systematic theology provides Christians with a reliable method for understanding and teaching biblical truth.
Unfortunately, many modern Christians lack a firm understanding of the theology and significance of the Old Testament. As a result, they are inadvertently attempting to live their Christian lives based only on the New Testament.
Yet, Jesus and his apostles taught that the Old Testament is very important for Christians. As a matter of fact, when Paul told Timothy that all Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, he was referring primarily to the Old Testament.
The first four books of the New Testament - Matthew, Mark, Luke and John - are commonly known as "the Gospels." These books explain the life and ministry of Jesus, and are the basis for most of the distinctive doctrines of Christianity.
Learn about the background, primary message and applications of the Gospels.