The Portable Seminary: A Master's Level Overview in One Volume [Hardcover]

David Horton (Editor)

Book Description

Publication Date: September 1, 2006

In this one-of-a-kind book, lay people and pastors will find the major topics included in a typical seminary masters program, including surveys of the Old and New Testaments, systematic theology, c

Editorial Reviews

From the Back Cover

"David Horton's Portable Seminary is a truly unique work, which I'm glad to recommend. It's Bible survey, theology, biblical languages, hermeneutics, church history, missions, apologetics, ethics and more, all in one volume, drawing on top experts in each field. Along with its amazing coverage of essential subjects, it's well written, concise, and contains helpful recommendations for additional study. What's not to like?" Randy Alcorn, Bestselling Author & Director of Eternal Perspective Ministries

About the Author

David Horton is a former businessman, missionary, and mission executive whose publishing experience began nearly twenty years ago. A graduate of Oregon State University, he is currently editorial director at Bethany House Publishers and the author of three previous books, including Boys Life Adventure Bible Storybook.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 784 pages
• Publisher: Bethany House Publishers; Reprinted edition (September 1, 2006)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0764201603
• ISBN-13: 978-0764201608
• Product Dimensions: 9.6 x 6.5 x 2.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 3 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.2 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (12 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #46,990 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

63 of 63 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Portable Seminary, November 12, 2006

By 

Wesley L. Janssen (San Diego, CA USA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Portable Seminary: A Master's Level Overview in One Volume (Hardcover)

Envisage taking classes in systematic theology, apologetics, Biblical studies, church history, comparative religion, missiology, and ethics from professors such as Alister McGrath, Mark A. Noll, John R.W. Stott, Dallas Willard, and similarly noteworthy Christian thinkers. Imagine gaining an introductory but solid, basic understanding of Biblical languages that is enjoyed by a relatively small number of Bible readers. Imagine knowledgeable guides explicating contentious interpretations and theories without getting recklessly caught up in dogmatic sectarianism. This is the premise and promise of The Portable Seminary, edited by David Horton. Given the premise, this volume could obviously be an extensive series of volumes, but in roughly 700 pages, the promise is generally realized. Simply stated, the concept here is a stroke of genius. No, it's certainly not as comprehensive as working your way through a Master's level course of studies would be, but the reader who critically assimilates the material here and augments it with some of the reference works cited, may come to know as much about some of these disciplines as a seminary graduate is likely to have long retained.

The second and third chapters alone (Biblical languages and hermeneutics/exegetics respectively) might be worth the price of the book for many Christians interested in not merely reading the Bible, but actually understanding it better. Recall that the Sadducees (a sect of fiercely literalistic "Bible-thumpers") knew all the words of the Torah exceedingly well, but that Jesus told them they failed so completely to understand those words that they really didn't know scripture at all. It is frequently apparent to this reader that 20 centuries later this same circumstance persists. These two chapters in particular can be a valuable starting point for the individual who is ready to see deeper.

This rather large book need intimidate no potential reader; the selected writings are generally directed toward what might be called a 'popular level.' Works are referenced for further study and these are, so far as I can see, not really "specialist" level resources either (for example, "Interpreting the Old Testament: A Guide for Exegesis" by Craig C. Broyles, is a far more robust book on Old Testament exegesis than what you'll find in this book, although it treats the same themes). This book's stated premise is to present "a Master's level overview in one volume." Bearing in mind that this is indeed an overview, it seems that it does just that. I was happy to see the concise, non-sectarian treatment of eschatological theories. On this topic the editor has but briefly sketched the landscape of contending views. Given how stridently dogmatic (and yes, even `nutty') some Christians are prone to addressing these contentionable issues, I think this was wise, although these few paragraphs are perhaps too brief.

Some of the selected essays are not as strong as others, but I tend to overlook the weaknesses in this book's case and instead appreciate the breadth of the collected writings. The book's perspective is 'evangelical' (in the best sense), and the material here could interest and inform non-evangelical Christians as well. This volume is certainly worthy of the library of any armchair theologian.

40 of 40 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent OVERVIEW of a typical seminary education, March 19, 2007

By 

Harold McFarland (Florida) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Portable Seminary: A Master's Level Overview in One Volume (Hardcover)

Since receiving this book the most common question I get is whether or not it is really equivalent to a Master's Level education. The first thing to note is that it does not claim to be equivalent to a Master's Level education. The subtitle calls it a Master's Level Overview. It is a summary of important points and details and never claims to be an actual Master's Level detail education.

The Portable Seminary: A Master's Level Overview in One Volume is a great resource for those who would like to know the basics of what one learns in a Seminary program. The areas covered include the doctrines of Scripture, God, Christ, the Holy Spirit, Humanity, Sin, Salvation, the Church, and Last Things, the subjects of Biblical Languages, Scripture Interpretation, the Old Testament Survey, the New Testament Survey, and the time between the Testaments, Apologetics, World Religions, Church History, Missions, Church Leadership, Christian Ethics and Christian Education.

Remembering that this is an overview the Biblical Languages section gives a good example of the level at which this is written. Obviously in 20 pages you are not going to learn to read Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek. However, it does provide the alphabet in both Hebrew and Greek, examples of translational problems, examples of unique aspects of the language, historical information, grammar, style, figures of speech, and other items of interest related to the language. This in turn brings a much greater respect for the language and the problems of translation. The chapters on church history are excellent and include many of the early church heresies as well as important individuals and movements.

The primary items you will learn at a typical seminary but are not included in this book are things like how to pastor a church, church finances, performing church functions, church human resources, Christian counseling, and similar items related to the running of a church. The focus is much more on classic Bible doctrines, history, and other educational items directly related to understanding and applying the Bible and not church administration. That makes this an excellent resource for those who want to deepen their knowledge of the Bible, the history of the church, comparative world religions, and applying Biblical principles in everyday life.

The book is written in a style that allows the average reader to understand concepts easily. A thoroughly enjoyable read and an excellent high-level overview of a typical Master's level seminary education, The Portable Seminary is highly recommended to all Christians.

34 of 35 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Overview of "seminary" education?, March 21, 2007

By 

Charles A. Wootten (Petersburg, VA) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: The Portable Seminary: A Master's Level Overview in One Volume (Hardcover)

I'm delighted to see that a previous reviewer said, "The first thing to note is that it does not claim to be equivalent to a Master's Level education." That was the opposite of what I thought when I bought the book. I run a Bible College and was curious as to what others are doing in the field. Most of the material in this book is what my students should know and be able to articulate by the time they begin their fourth year. The writing level for such esteemed colleagues, as another reviewer stated, "... is written in a style that allows the average reader to understand concepts easily." My opinion is that this book is written for those not yet involved in serious theological study, and actually should be aimed at the average person in the pew. This is simple, basic material that every mature Christian should know whether in the Five-Fold Ministry or the Ministry of Helps. This book is worth the effort on the part of the general editor and those who wrote the various essays. It is well worth the money spent.