Learn what it means to “do theology” and how scholars and students integrate it into Bible study. This course introduces students to why systematic theology is important and what “doing theology” means. Drs. Ronn Johnson, Carl Sanders, and Mike Heiser challenge students to think about the roles of divine revelation, the Bible, Christian tradition, logic, and philosophy in articulating doctrine. Examine major topics, essential ideas, doctrinal issues and disagreements, and more.
This is the audio only version of TH101 Introducing Bible Doctrine I: Theology, Divine Revelation, and the Bible. To purchase the full course, click here.
Dr. Sanders is well liked by his students for his down-to-earth presentation of Bible doctrine. Students quickly learn that he enjoys talking about theology and has a quick wit. Among his strengths as a lecturer are his ability to distill information to essential elements, as well as his good-natured way of fairly explaining differences in theological positions. Dr. Sanders has a keen interest in urban ministry and has served for many years in racially diverse urban congregations. His interest in local-church experience helps him practice theology in ways that reflect the diversity present in the body of Christ. He strives to make theology interesting and practical.
Dr. Ronn Johnson, lecturer in biblical studies at the University of Northwestern St. Paul, Minnesota, has been the senior pastor at his church, Coon Rapids Evangelical Free, since 2006. He previously taught in the Bible departments at Pillsbury Baptist Bible College (1991–1994) and The Master’s College (1994–1996).Dr. Johnson is well known by his students for demanding that they think about what they believe instead of being passive listeners. His approach is the opposite of proof-texting—simply quoting Bible verses without consideration of what they might mean in context. His goal is to drive home the point that the Bible is more than a collection of verses to be memorized and thrown into play—it’s a message from God that had a clear, coherent purpose that we need to hear without imposing our own traditions on the text. That approach of loyalty to the Bible above all else comes through in his Mobile Ed sessions on Bible doctrine.
He and his wife, Susan, have three teenage children. His pastimes include reading and giving too much attention to Kirby, the family dog.
As academic editor for Logos Bible Software, Dr. Mike Heiser currently focuses on Logos Mobile Education courseware and producing academic content for Logos. His varied academic background enables him to operate in the realm of critical scholarship and the wider Christian community. His experience in teaching at the undergraduate level and writing for the layperson both directly contribute to the company’s goal of adapting scholarly tools for nonspecialists.Dr. Heiser can do translation work in roughly a dozen ancient languages, including Biblical Hebrew, Greek, Aramaic, Egyptian hieroglyphs, and Ugaritic cuneiform. He also specializes in Israelite religion (especially Israel’s divine council), contextualizing biblical theology with Israelite and ancient Near Eastern religion, Jewish binitarianism, biblical languages, ancient Semitic languages, textual criticism, comparative philology, and Second Temple period Jewish literature.
Dr. Heiser has an active ministry to people whose worldviews are molded by occult, paranormal, and esoteric beliefs. He observed that many who have adopted “alternative” worldviews were formerly traditional theists and Christians who left the faith when their difficult questions went unanswered, or when spiritual leaders failed to address their experiences. Dr. Heiser seeks to fill these gaps as a Christian scholar, and has become well known in these circles through writing, speaking, and numerous radio appearances.
Dr. Heiser is originally from Lebanon, Pennsylvania. He and his wife, Drenna, married in 1987, and have four children.