Course Review: Devotion to Jesus

 Information about the Course

This is an advanced Lay Ministry course offered by BeADisiciple.com called Devotional to Jesus: Divinity of Christ in Early Christianity.  This is a course offered as part of the Wesley Academy for Advanced Christian Studies, created in partnership with Wesley Theological Seminary and BeADisciple.  The course instructor is Rev. Dr. Scott Pickering, and it is based on material written by Dr. Larry Hurtado.  The course is eight weeks long. Each week involves a small amount of Bible Study, viewing about 20 minutes of video of Dr. Hurtado speaking about the current topic for that week, answering four questions each week (and posting the answers) and participating in online discussions.

The course can be part of a certification called Certificate in Advanced Christian Study.  The certificate involves completion of six courses such as this one.  The course can also be taken as a stand alone option.

Summary

From the website: Dr. Larry Hurtado contends that worship of Jesus was a very early, widespread and radical practice for 1st century believers. A renowned professor at Edinburgh College, Hurtado is an expert in Christian origins. In this course, Hurtado utterly refutes those skeptical scholars that propose that belief in the divinity of Jesus grew incrementally over time. The more plausible explanation is that Jesus believed he had a unique relationship with God and that he was God’s decisive agent in human history.

Impressions

I wasn't sure what to expect when I started this course.  I chose this one to get a feel for the courses offered for the certification and this one in particular because of the time it was offered (October through December of 2022).  I had never really considered the underlying question of the course: when did Christians begin to worship Jesus?  Why did that happen?

I've written earlier about the book recommended (but not required) for the course.  See the review of Lord Jesus Christ, by Dr. Larry W. Hurtado, here.  For me, reading the book really increased the depth of the course.  I've very grateful I was able to read the book as I took the course.  The course itself is well designed and was interesting; it was much enhanced by the book.  Having said that, I would recommend the course even if you are not interested in reading the book.

I can see the impact of the course in my faith.  When I participate in worship, my experience is enhanced by what I learned in the course.  The course strengthened my understanding of parts of the New Testament.  It also enhanced my faith, especially when I consider the potential role revelation played in creating an understanding among early Christians of the divinity of Jesus.

On the practical side, I was glad the entire course was posted at the beginning of the eight weeks it was offered.  This allowed me to work ahead to fit the course more into my schedule.  Note: while I could work ahead, I also needed to be aware that each week has deadlines to meet - working ahead is ok; getting behind is not. 

I highly recommend this course.

Posts about the Class

Posts about the class will have the tag DevotiontoJesus