Transcript Evangelism in the 21st Century

Evangelism in
st
the 21 Century
David Schoen
Eden Theological Seminary
Evangelism in the 21st Century
– What do you think when you hear the word
Evangelism?
Evangelism in the 21st Century
• Biblical Understanding of Evangelism
– Evangel
gospel
“eu” good
“aggelion” tiding, news
good news, good word, good tidings,
gospel of God’s realm, gospel of God, gospel of Christ,
gospel of peace
– Evangelize euaggelizio To preach, to declare
Bring glad tidings, preach the gospel
– Evangelist
euaggelistes, advocate of the good news, ambassador
aggel, angel, messenger
– Evangelism - of the good news, embodiment (living out) of the evangel
Evangelism in the 21st Century
• Biblical Understanding of Evangelism
• Small Group Bible Study
– John 2:35-51
– Matthew 28:16-20
– Acts 1:6-11
– Jeremiah 1:6-9
– Acts 8:26-35
Evangelism in the 21st Century
• Biblical Perspectives on Evangelism
– Walter Brueggemann
• Group Discussion
– What stood out to you as an “aha”?
– What challenged you?
– What questions would you ask?
– How did Brueggemann define evangelism?
Evangelism in the 21st Century
• Biblical Perspectives on Evangelism
– Walter Brueggemann
• Evangelism is doing the texts again.
– evangelical task of the church to invite people into this daring
drama and revolutionary conversation
• Evangelism is no mere survival technique.
It is a world concern.
• Evangel is Message of God’s alternative world.
• Not just a question of good news, it’s what do we do with
the good news.
– We are ultimately the tellers, the hearers and the livers.
Evangelism in the 21st Century
• Biblical Perspectives on Evangelism
– Walter Brueggemann
• Audience for Evangelism
– Outsiders become Insiders
– Forgetters Made Rememberers
– Beloved Children become belief-ful adults
• Main issue for the U.S. church is to recover the
nerve (courage and freedom) to say boldy and
straightforwardly that the embrace of the
evangel is pervasively transformative.
Evangelism in the 21st Century
• History and Theology of Evangelism
• Small Group Discussion
– Evangelism Definitions
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What are the primary foci of definitions?
How do they vary?
Which definition speaks to you?
How will you define evangelism?
Evangelism in the 21st Century
History and Theology of Evangelism
• Jesus’ ministry
– Gospel was about the realm of God among us
• New Testament/Apostolic/Early Church
– Evangelism is act of obedience- “Go Forth”.
– Focus on the world into which church was called
– Church was called as sign and instrument of God’s
realm
– God’s reign recognized in Jesus’ life, death and
resurrection
– Jesus becomes the message
Evangelism in the 21st Century
History and Theology of Evangelism
• Jesus’ ministry
– Gospel was about the realm of God among us
• New Testament/Apostolic/Early Church
– Evangelism is act of obedience- “Go Forth”.
– Focus on the world into which church was called
– Church was called as sign and instrument of God’s
realm
– God’s reign recognized in Jesus’ life, death and
resurrection
– Jesus becomes the message
Evangelism in the 21st Century
History and Theology of Evangelism
• Christendom (after Constantine)
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– From apostles to Priests (Early Church to Empire)
– Church and culture are one,
– Place and birth define Christian identity
Mission of church and kingdom was to ensure that every person
within boundaries of the kingdom is part of a local congregation.
The task and authority of priests is the administration of sacraments
and standing in church and culture
Church exists to serve the religious needs of members and kingdom
Evangelism became outreach to whatever place was out of
kingdom/culture
Evangelism in the 21st Century
History and Theology of Evangelism
• Celtic Evangelism
• In The Celtic Way of Evangelism: How
Christianity Can Reach the West . . .
Again, George Hunter writes about the
difference between what he describes
as the evangelism approach in Roman
and Celtic Christianity.
Evangelism in the 21st Century
History and Theology of Evangelism
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Roman Model
Presentation
Decision
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Fellowship
Celtic Model
Fellowship
Ministry and
Conversation
Belief, Invitation
to Commitment
Evangelism in the 21st Century
History and Theology of Evangelism
Celtic Evangelism
Christianity is more caught than taught! As
Professor Robin Gill observes, belonging
comes before believing. For this reason,
evangelism is about helping people to
belong so that they can believe.
Evangelism in the 21st Century
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History and Theology of Evangelism
From Priests to Pedagogues (Reformation)
Church remained the static server of religious grace and power
within Christian society
Reformers did challenged and reform the priestly understanding of
ministry to create a more pedagogical identity for the clergy.
Teaching and preaching, the oversight of right doctrine and proper
administration of the sacraments became the normative form of
protestant leadership
Proclamation and teaching became the task of leadership and sign
of authority
• Some radical reformers and free church movements tried to create
alternative organic communities based on neither the priestly or
pastoral, but lay led leadership
Evangelism in the 21st Century
History and Theology of Evangelism
• From Pedagogues to Professional
• Enlightenment to Modernity
• Scientific competence pressured church
– Preachers became professionals
The Leader as Counselor
The Leader as Manager
The Leader as Technician
The Leader as Evangelist
Evangelism in the 21st Century
History and Theology of Evangelism
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From Pedagogues to Professional (Enlightenment to Modernity)
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Religion became positive science,
a formula for making people and world better
Revivals
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Great Awakening, Wesleyan, Finney, Moody, Sunday, Graham
Rule of God (good) realized in personal experience
Absent is idea of community
Eschatology (hope) is based on future not present
Social Gospel
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Rule of God realized in social order
Rule of God (good) realized in social context
Absent is idea of individual
Eschatology (hope) is based in present context
Evangelism in the 21st Century
History and Theology of Evangelism
• From Pedagogues to Professional
– Enlightenment to Modernity
• Evangelism becomes professionally and
institutionally driven
• Church growth movement
– growth of church around the world
– a church in every new community
Evangelism in the 21st Century
Post Modern World
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Maintenance of Christian tradition,
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(A new worldview coming into being) currently a difficult mix
servicing churched people’s needs
perform the religious chaplaincy of culture
Missional movement/theology
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Return to Missio Dei of apostolic age , gospel and culture movement
Return to go forth, because that’s who God calls us to be “sent” Communities shaped and
excited by missional identity, church finds identity and joy in mission/outreach ministries
God’s called out, sent out people
Ecclesiology and missiology merge, purpose of the church is to serve God’s mission
Mission starts at front door, wraps around the world and come back
Evangelism is central to God’s mission
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Critique of Missio Dei
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Church as sign and instrument of God’s reign
to much doing, not being
Evangelism in the 21st Century
Logic of Evangelism
• Evangelism raises very fundamental questions
• What the essence of Christianity is concerning:
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conversion, faith, and repentance;
the nature of the gospel,
the nature of the reign of God,
the place of the reign in the ministry of Jesus
the nature of baptism and of Christian initiation,
The relationship between the intellect and the
emotions in Christian commitment
– the faith of the early centuries expressed in the
modern world
– the place of Christianity in a multi-faith world
Logic of Evangelism
• Abraham begin theological review with Ministry of Jesus
and Gospel
• Begins with Eschatology (hope) of Jesus’ Message
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Jesus proclaims a Gospel of God’s Realm
The rule of God was present and still to come to fulfillment
God’s future hope is realized in the present in lives and in world
God’s rule is seen and known in the life, death and resurrection
of Jesus
– God’s realm is still to come in fulfillment
Logic of Evangelism
Message and Ministry of Evangelism
• Proclamation is a message of the rule of God,
– the present and still to come activity of God into the world
– seen and known in the life, death and resurrection of Jesus
• Return to the message work of the apostles which he
said was more than proclamation
– Formation into the community of God’s reign
– Nurture of new beings
– Living in a new world where injustice is out of date
Logic of Evangelism
• Abrahams’ Definition of Evangelism
• Evangelism is that set of intentional activities which is
governed by the goal of initiating people into the
kingdom (realm) of God for the first time.
• A recovery of apostolic teaching and spirit, seeing
evangelism as intimately related to the coming reign of
God.
• To be initiated into the rule of god is to encounter a
transcendent reality that has entered history and to find
oneself drawn up into the ultimate purposes of God for
history and creation.
Logic of Evangelism
• Evangelism includes but cannot be collapse into
admittance into some religious institution,
• It is distinct from psychological and social formation that
takes place when one embrace a specific cosmic or
historical narrative.
• Cannot be reduced to acquisition of some creed or body
of knowledge that is intellectually mastered
• More than appropriation of a particular moral vision
• Distinct from certain rites and ceremonies
• Goes far beyond some spiritual or emotional
experiences, even positive
• Cannot drained into activism that seeks to change the
world for the better
Logic of Evangelism
• Whose involved in evangelism
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Triune God – primary agent
The church
Evangelist
The person evangelized
• Evangelism calls for multiple agents, it is never a solo
performance
• It is more like farming and educating than raising one’s
arms or blowing a kiss
Logic of Evangelism
• Abraham’s definition seeks to be response
to:
• Revival Movement
– Proclamation with little idea of community
– Individualization of Gospel
– Eschatology (hope) is based on future not
present
– Justice witness absent
Logic of Evangelism
• Abraham’s definition seeks to be response to:
• Church Growth Movement
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Church growth about research not theology
Based on homogeneous demographics
Personal invitation instead of confrontation
Focus on numbers and institution survival
Focused on church membership not discipleship
Diminishes focus on Justice
Logic of Evangelism
• Evangelism involves:
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Proclamation
Basic instruction
Prayer
Ensuring that those who respond are brought to baptism or
confirmation
Acts of mercy, patient conversation, stern rebuke, mass
meetings
Sharing ones personal spiritual pilgrimage or an act of silence,
listening
Ministering special rites of exorcism, catechesis, laying on hands
Mass media or small groups
Logic of Evangelism
• Evangelism involves:
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Proclamation
Basic instruction
Prayer
Ensuring that those who respond are brought to baptism or
confirmation
Acts of mercy, patient conversation, stern rebuke, mass
meetings
Sharing ones personal spiritual pilgrimage or an act of silence,
listening
Ministering special rites of exorcism, catechesis, laying on hands
Mass media or small groups
Logic of Evangelism
• What makes the actions of evangelism is
that they are part of a process governed
by the goal of initiating people into the
realm of God.
• Unless such acts are intimately related to
a process of intentionally bringing people
into the realm of God they are something
other than or less than evangelism.
Logic of Evangelism
• Critiques of Abraham’s definition and work
– Too much like Christian Education
– Jones critique
– Realm of God confined to Church
– Evangelism can be harmful
Logic of Evangelism
• Abraham’s re-definition and work
Evangelism is that set of intentional activities
governed by the goal of initiating persons into
Christian discipleship in response to the reign
of God for the first time.
Jones redefinition
Evangelism is that set of loving, intentional
activities governed by the goal of initiating
persons into Christian discipleship in
response to the reign of God.
Evangelism Definitions
• One beggar telling another beggar where there is food.
• Evangelical task of the church to invite people into this
daring drama and revolutionary conversation.
• Evangelism is helping people belong so that they can
believe.
• Evangelism is that set of intentional activities governed
by the goal of initiating persons into Christian
discipleship in response to the reign of God for the first
time.
• Evangelism is that set of loving, intentional activities
governed by the goal of initiating persons into Christian
discipleship in response to the reign of God.
Evangelism in the 21st Century
– How do you respond to the evangelism
definitions?
– What is your definition
of evangelism for
your ministry and
discipleship?