Course Catalog

THE320E Doctrine of Angels (3 credits) 9276

COURSE DESCRIPTION
An in-depth study of the doctrine of angels as to their origin, fall, nature, past and present activity, and their role in the future.

LEARNING RESULTS
The learner will be able to:
• Demonstrate an understanding of the concept of Yahweh's divine council.
• Recognize the importance of the divine council for properly comprehending the hierarchical relationships of God's heavenly host.
• Grasp the significance of the Angel of the LORD for the Trinitarian theology of the New Testament.
• Comprehend the theological purpose of the primeval history of Genesis 1-11 against the backdrop of the divine council in Eden, the rebellion of some of one of council's members against Yahweh in Genesis 3, and the subsequent sin of still more council members in Genesis 6:1-4.
• Demonstrate an understanding of the theological importance of resisting the temptation to treat Genesis 3 as unhistorical and Genesis 6:1-4 in completely human terms.
• Summarize the biblical teaching on Satan.
• Summarize the present and future role of angelic beings in God's plan for humanity.
• Articulate and evaluate the variety of positions held by believers on the matters of spiritual warfare and demonic possession.

REQUIRED TEXTS AND MATERIALS
• Arnold, Clinton. 3 Crucial Questions About Spiritual Warfare (Baker, 240 pp); hereafter abbreviated as "3Q's"
• Page, Sydney. Powers of Evil: A Biblical Study of Satan and Demons (Baker, 295 pp); hereafter abbreviated as "PE"
• Noll, Stephen. Angels of Light, Powers of Darkness : Thinking Biblically About Angels, Satan & Principalities (Intervarsity, 250); hereafter abbreviated as "ALPD"
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You must also have a Bible (it is advisable to consult more than one version) AND A CONCORDANCE to do many of the assignments. The concordance at the back of your Bible is NOT sufficient.

You may also need to consult commentaries and other material. See the bibliography at the end of the learning agreement for suggestions.

INTEGRATION OF FAITH AND LEARNING
The integration of faith and learning is evidenced in this course through the required readings and the interaction of the student with those readings. Each reading informs the student about specific areas and passages relating to angelology. Assignment questions focus on seeing how the interpretation of one passage is important for interpreting others, and require students to sift through the readings to answer questions specific to the Learning Results. Throughout the learning experiences the student is required to think through biblical texts, the goal being to ground one's belief in angelic beings in Scripture as opposed to popular misconceptions so prevalent in today's new age spirituality. The assignments also focus on the bigger picture of God's overall plan for humanity and the assurance that the deity of Jesus Christ is not a New Testament invention.

LEARNING DOCUMENTATION
To determine if the course learning results have been attained, students document their learning by submitting the following items:
• Assignment #1 Paper on the Divine Council
• Assignment #2 Paper on Angels and Creation
• Assignment #3 Paper on Satan, his fall, and the fall of other divine beings
• Assignment #4 Paper on the Angel of the Lord and other “deity figures”
• Assignment #5 Paper on Functions of Angels
• Assignment #6 Paper on Principalities and Powers, Spiritual Warfare and Demonic Possession
There are 6 lessons and 0 examinations for this course.

LEARNING EVALUATION
Evaluation is on a point system:
Assignment #1 100 points
Assignment #2 50 points
Assignment #3 100 points
Assignment #4 100 points
Assignment #5 50 points
Assignment #6 100 points
Total Possible 500