ASSEMBLIES OF GOD THEOLOGICAL SEMINARY Degree Completion Program Springfield Missouri BTHD 533 THE HOLY SPIRIT IN THE NEW TESTAMENT CHURCH February 7 March 14 2005 3 credits Cheryl A Taylor D Min ctaylor agseminary edu Office 417 268 1043 Tuesdays Home 417 889 5123 COURSE SYLLABUS COURSE DESCRIPTION Students who take this course will gain an increased understanding of the role of the Holy Spirit in the New Testament Church providing them with the foundation for sound theological thinking about the nature and role of the Spirit the Holy Spirit s involvement in the life of the individual believer and the corporate worship of the Church as well as a fresh appreciation of the practical application of the working of the Spirit in their daily Christian lives COURSE OBJECTIVES Upon completion of this course you should be able to 1 Demonstrate a clear understanding of the biblical teaching on the person and work of the Holy Spirit including his role in the individual believer as well as corporate worship 2 Identify the scriptural foundations for key Pentecostal teachings regarding Spirit baptism and analyze how various expressions of Christian faith have resulted from this 3 Connect a biblical understanding of the Holy Spirit to practical Christian living on an individual and daily basis in order to experience an increased dependence on the Holy Spirit and living in the fullness of the Spirit 4 Recognize your personal spiritual gift s and how to exercise them effectively for the edification of the Body of Christ 5 Integrate a biblical understanding of the Holy Spirit into the contemporary corporate worship of the Church allowing the Holy Spirit to minister to and through you like never before 6 Design relevant tools resources to assist you in the process of communicating sound teaching about the Holy Spirit to others COURSE METHODOLOGY The purpose of this course is not to merely present a set of facts but to equip students with the tools necessary to think critically from a theological perspective To this end class sessions will combine lecture discussion interviews interactive exercises case studies examinations and other instructional techniques Regular and vigorous student participation is expected COURSE TEXTBOOKS The Bible preferably NIV or NASB Palma Anthony D The Holy Spirit A Pentecostal Perspective Springfield MO Logion Press 2001 258p Fee Gordon Paul The Spirit and the People of God Peabody MA Hendrickson Publishers 1996 192p Stronstad Roger The Charismatic Theology of St Luke Peabody MA Hendrickson Publishers 1984 83p Deere Jack Surprised by the Power of the Spirit Zondervan 1993 292p Select from the following Menzies Robert P Empowered for Witness The Spirit in Luke Acts Grand Rapids Zondervan 2000 211p Keener Craig The Spirit in the Gospels and Acts Peabody MA Hendrickson 1997 216p Turner Max The Holy Spirit and Spiritual Gifts In the New Testament Church and Today R rev ed Peabody MA Hendrickson Publishers 1996 at least 211 pages of the 359p COURSE REQUIREMENTS 1 Attend class regularly Regular and vigorous student participation is a key component to a successful academic experience The class atmosphere is to be personal and collegial When appropriate questions comments and discussion are both welcome and expected with the understanding that they are part of the learning process in a group setting In respect to others it is assumed that cell phones pagers etc will remain off in the classroom AGTS s degree completion attendance policy will be followed 2 Complete weekly scheduled reading The nature of the Degree Completion Program requires that class sessions move through a significant amount of material in a relatively short period of time Consequently to maximize our time together diligent preparation will be expected of each student Students are required to follow the schedule below Students should complete the reading prior to the class session since the class experience will complement the reading assignments Students will verify each week that they have completed that week s reading Reading due Week 1 Feb 7 Palma Week 2 Feb 14 Fee and the book of Acts Week 3 Feb 21 Stronstad Week 4 Mar 7 Deere Week 5 Mar 14 Menzies Keener or Turner 3 Complete weekly homework assignment Beginning with the second session you will complete and submit a homework assignment that corresponds to material covered during the previous week s class session and reading Homework due Week 2 Feb 14 Read the book of Acts and complete worksheet distributed in class Week 3 Feb 21 Write a 2 3 page personal Pentecostal reflection paper Week 4 Mar 7 Complete Spiritual Gifts and Fruit of the Spirit assessments and write a 1 2 page reflection paper Week 5 Mar 14 Complete a take home final examination 4 Complete a final project Each student will design a final project that assists him her in integrating materials from the course in their personal context Each project should be the equivalent of at least 15 pages and should demonstrate thoughtful and thorough research The project should be well written and free from grammatical error Project options include Multimedia project Using the course as a starting point develop a brief multimedia presentation PowerPoint Video Music Web based etc designed to effectively and relevantly communicate an aspect of the Holy Spirit to a specified target audience A written manuscript should accompany the electronic presentation Respond to a Postmodern challenge of classical Pentecostal teaching on the Holy Spirit Select a theological issue currently being challenged stretched by Postmoderism and provide a written response This response should outline the major divergent view s then provide a scriptural balanced well researched response Internet Project research quality Christian resources available via the Internet relative to life in the Spirit spiritual gifts assessments fruit assessments teaching etc and prepare a written summary of your findings This report should include recommendations and implications for the Church today Sermons Lessons using insights gained from the course write a series of at least four manuscript messages designed to clearly communicate sound theological understanding regarding some aspect of life in the Spirit These messages should be contextualized and relevant to a specified target audience Research paper prepare a well researched paper on some aspect of life in the Spirit pertinent to the course that would be helpful to you Self designed project