Transcript Encarnacao Alliance

Encarnação Alliance
Bringing Christ’s Love to
the World’s Slum-dwellers
Who are the Encarnação Alliance?
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A network of urban poor ministries
From Asia, Africa and Latin America
Incarnational ministry among the
poor
Servants, Servant Partners, Kairos,
Movements preparing to evangelize
3,500 cities. Seeking to mobilize
50,000 new cross cultural workers to
the slums by 2010.
Encarnação Alliance Vision
The vision of the Alliance is to see
churches established that proclaim the
Good News of the Kingdom of God
among the slum dwellers of the world’s
poorest cities and model true Christian
living on the example of Jesus Christ.
Encarnação Alliance
Training Commission
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Macro goals
To train urban poor
church planters
To train urban poor
community
development workers
To network city
leaders
To develop a Kingdom
perspective in God’s
servants
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Micro Goals
Train facilitators who
will be able to;
Provide training
Pastor and mentor
interns
Help interns become
successful in their
mission
Empower the interns
to train others
Who are the people we are training
for servanthood in the slums?
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Grass roots volunteers who want to plant
a church or commence a community
development project
Adults over 18 years of age who are semiliterate to literate
Committed Christians who may have not
yet been discipled
Men and women recommended by the city
leadership and in good standing with their
local Church leadership
What methods are used to train the
indigenous and cross cultural
workers?
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An “andragogical” method appropriate for
adult learners with experiences relevant to
the learning process
Oral methods of learning and assessment
Interactive small group learning aided by
a facilitator
Practical skills based on site learning
Can use a dvd player or video cd media
Training Goals
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An holistic
worldview
Trainers will
develop an holistic
biblical worldview
integrating the
physical, spiritual,
social and wisdom
needs of the
community
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Biblical Authority
Trainers will be
committed to the
authority of the
Bible in the
teaching of the
kingdom of God
and implementing
its mandate.
Mark 16v15
Training Foundations Cont’d
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Jesus the
embodiment
Jesus is the
example of the
person a Trainer
aspires to be and
the incarnation of
the Kingdom of
God citizen on
earth
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The Holy Spirit the
executor
The Holy Spirit is
the person of the
Trinity who
incarnates Jesus
Christ in the life of
the Trainer to fulfill
the mandate of the
Kingdom
Definition
The Kingdom of God
“The kingdom is a redemed social order under the
reign of the Christlike God in which every
relationship is Christlike, and each individual
and social group – the family, the trade
organisation, the State – comes not to be
ministered unto but to minister, as perfect as
the Father in heaven is perfect, and the whole
of humanity incarnates the love of God as
embodied in Jesus of Nazareth:”
Dr Henry S Coffin, WCC, Missions Conference,
Edinburgh, 1910
The Kingdom has a holistic impact
on human and social order
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A Person
Body, Mind, Spirit
People are creating
societies
Jesus Christ is
impacting people
through the power of
the kingdom of God at
work in their lives
There is a conflict of
powers and kingdoms
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Social and Cultural
Political, Religious,
Economic ideas
Societies cultures,
order, laws,
organizations, are
shaping people
Sin the devil and evil
powers impact society
and its people too
God calls us to
exercise authority
We are living in the midst of
Worldwide conflict & change
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Terrorism
War
Rebellion
Fear
Persecution
Corruption
Collapse of
confidence
But what is God
doing in history ?
God’s redemptive plan in history
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He has covenanted
to redeem all
mankind. .
In the O.T. it was
with Israel;
In the N.T. it is
Jesus’ disciples in a
blood covenant.
Today it is with you
in a new order
under Christ’s
rulership
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His plan is to
redeem everything
back to its created
order.
The re-creation of
social systems,
powers, creation
and mankind by
the power of His
Spirit.
The conflict with
Satan is over
authority/rulership.
Who are God’s agents for the
propagation of the Kingdom in the
world?
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Disciples of Jesus
Christ, Matt 28:18
“A kingdom of
priests..” Ex. 19:6,
Rev 5:10
You and I as the
Church of Jesus
Christ, the ecclesia
or called ones.
Matt 16:18
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The Holy Spirit as
the executor of the
will of the Godhead
Acts 1:8, Eph 1:13
Angel’s cooperating
with God in His
work, John20:12
Planting Churches, and raising up
godly communities is part of God’s
Kingdom plan
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The disciples of
Jesus Christ are to
multiply and
pioneer new
communities of
believers among
every people group
on earth. Matthew
24:14, 28:18-20
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These communities
are to redeem and
transform societies
by offering a godly
alternative the
secular/worldly
social structures of
mankind. Acts
2:41-47
A commitment to ten Church
planting principles
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A willingness to suffer,
to endure and to die
Cross-cultural
proclamation among
the unreached
Passionate, Focused
Evangelism
Working in Teams
Long Term
incarnational ministry
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Working in
Partnership
Avoid Dependency
Critical
contextualization
Women in Ministry
Leadership
Development
A theology and praxis of
incarnation among the suffering
poor
A willingness to suffer, to endure
and to die.
(developing a Theology of suffering)
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Today there is no safe place in ministry
Everyday Christians in the world are suffering
for their faith, dying and being persecuted.
Stephen Neil says in his book ”A History of
Christian Missions “
”Every Christian knew that sooner or later he
might have to testify at the cost of his life”
We need a new generation of
Christian workers who are resolved
to pay the ultimate price…
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” I have been crucified with Christ
and I no longer live, but Christ lives
in me.“ Galatians 2:20
God is looking for lives that He can
live in, lives that would let Him shine
through in compassion and mercy
”The poor must experience Jesus
when they experience us. “ l
A willingness to suffer
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“God’s finest tool in
our lives is the tool
of suffering”.
Corrie Ten Boom.
Once broken and
once renewed we are
better equipped to
understand others
and to reach others
Suffering and Endurance
”For just as the sufferings of Christ flow
over into our lives, so also through Christ
our comfort overflows” The Apostle Paul in 2
Corinthians 1:5
Willingness to suffer, to endure and
to die
This means death to:
* Pride – and a complete
dependence on the
Holy Spirit (”Do not
think of yourself more
highly than you ought.
“ Romans 12:3)
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Power – humble
yourself and become
vulnerable.
Racial and cultural
prejudice – willing to
adopt the lifestyle of
another culture
The choice is always between the
crowd and the cross
* When we choose the cross, then
eventually there will be a breakthrough
* 2 Timothy 2:12 “If we endure we will
also reign with him.”
* If we are prepared to live as Jesus did,
serve as He served, suffer as He suffered,
then it is true that we will share with Him
the joy of the harvest.
Suffering and Evangelism
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“Suffering is a normal and useful and
essential element in Christian life and
ministry. It not only weans us off the
world and teaches us to live on God,
as 2 Corinthians 1:9 says, but also
makes ministers more able to
strengthen the church and make
missionaries more able to reach the
nations with the Gospel of the grace
of God.” (John Piper)
Forces we are contending with?
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Underdeveloped Countries are exploited by
economically & politically powerful states
and endemic corruption.
Capitalism and rabid consumerism. Andrew
Kirk calls it,” Shop till you drop”, “Shop
around the clock”
Jet set, mobile lifestyles of the rich and
famous - Amsterdam Airport says,”See, buy,
fly”
Perverted and demonized societies through
drug addiction, prostitution, child
pornography, homosexuality, slavery.
Passionate, Focused Evangelism
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Without Christ people are lost, evangelism
must take place
We need to communicate the Good News
in culturally appropriate ways
We need a confidence in the story of Jesus
Incarnational living – not just
contextualizing a message but being an
incarnational messenger
Passionate, focused, evangelism
Involves story telling and drama
 Community building
 Utilization of mass media &
technology for Gospel communication
 Accessibility to the Scriptures
 Slum based presence
” If I am lifted up, I will draw all men
to myself “ John 12:32
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Working in Teams
• Team ministry is Biblical & it enables
individuals to be more effective
• Creating Church planting movements
• Strength in diversity
• Spiritual gifts & natural abilities helps
Gospel effectiveness
• Support & encourage one another
• Teams need to take risks & not just
operate in one’s own comfort zone
Women in ministry and the
community
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Empowering women to learn
language & invest time with
women
Provide increased quality care for
women
When women are involved the
Church grows
Women are vital to community
communication
Develop women theologically and
in leadership
Leadership Empowerment
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Leadership empowerment of team
members and movements
Aiming for early transfer of
leadership responsibilities
Teaching & modelling servant
leadership
Leadership understood and done in a
culturally appropriate way
The planting of Churches will bring
salt and light into the community.
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Salt is to preserve what
is good and add flavor.
Matt 5:13
Salt is good. Mark 9:50
Let your speech always
be seasoned with grace,
as it were with salt, so
that you may know how
to respond to each
person.
Col. 4:6
If salt loses its flavor
how will it be salty
again? Mark 9:50
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You are the “light” of
the world, a city set on
a hill cannot be hidden.
Matt 5:14
Walk as children of
light. Eph. 5:8
If we walk in the light
as He Himself is in the
light, we have
fellowship with one
another and the blood
of Christ cleanses us
from all sin.
1 John 1:7
Salt & Light
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“The norms of the Kingdom, worked out in
the lives of the heirs of the Kingdom,
constitute the witness of the Kingdom. . . .
For a variety of reasons, Christians have
lost this vision of witness, and are slow to
return to it. But in better days and other
lands, the faithful and divinely empowered
proclamation of the gospel of Jesus Christ
(who himself is the light of the world par
excellence) so transformed men that they
in turn became the light of the world. . .
Salt & Light
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Prison, reform, medical care, trade unions,
control of a perverted and perverting
liquor trade, abolition of slavery, abolition
of child labour, establishment of
orphanages, reform of the penal code – in
all these areas the followers of Jesus
spearheaded the drive for righteousness.
The darkness was alleviated. And this, I
submit, has always been the pattern when
professing Christians have been less
concerned with personal prestige and
more concerned with the norms of the
Kingdom. “ D A Carson
William Carey’s legacy of salt
and light in Bengali society
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Source: Vishal and Ruth Mangalwadi
Missionary
 Astronomer
Botanist
 Library pioneer
Industrialist
 Forest
conservationist
Economist
 Activist for women’s
Medical
rights
humanitarian
 Moral reformer
Media pioneer
 Cultural transformer
Agriculturalist
 Public servant
Educator
Translator – 3
tongues
Salt & Light
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“So then, we should never put our two
vocations to be salt and light, our
Christian social and evangelistic
responsibilities, over against each other as
if we had to choose between them. We
should not exaggerate either, not
disparage either, at the expense of the
other. Neither can be a substitute for the
other. The world needs both. It is bad
and needs salt; it is dark and needs light.”
John Stott
The right to change a society ?
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So many revolutions in human history
have changed societies for the worse, and
sacrificed millions of lives in the process.
For example, Diocletian of Rome, the
Crusaders, Muslims in Asia, Hitler in
Germany, Pol Pot in Cambodia, .
We must make sure that the truth of God’s
Word guides our revolutionary zeal, so the
changes we instigate are for the good of
humanity and the extension of God’s
kingdom. Change with God’s grace.
Are you ready to be salt and light?
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The slum dwellers need
your salt and light
There are 560 million
destitute poor in China
and India alone - 2006
In 2001 there were 924
million slum dwellers in
the world.
31.6% of the world’s
urban population live in
slums. United Nations
Global Report on Human
Settlements, 2003
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How will they hear
unless someone goes?
Most have no resources
and no hope.
Will you have
compassion on their
despair?
Jer. 29:7 “Seek the
welfare of the city
where I have sent you
into exile”
Will you go and live
among the poor?
Salt & Light
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“You are the salt of the earth . . .
You are the light of the world. . . let
your light shine before men, that
they may see your deeds and praise
your Father in heaven.”
Jesus Christ.
The Son of God who lived and incarnational life on
earth among the poor and needy 2000 years ago.
Acknowledgements;
The producer of the is presentation is indebted to the following persons and their
publishers;
Encarnacao Alliance. Missions Commission. Philippines.
Deitrich Bonhoeffer. The Cost of Discipleship. Unknown. UK.
John Bunyan. Pilgrims Progress. Unknown. UK.
D A Carson. Quotation from unknown source.
Frederick Catherwood. Quotation from an unknown source.
Edmund Clowney. Quotation from unknown source.
Viv Grigg. Urban Leadership Foundation. NZ
M Lloyd –Jones. Quotation from and unknown source.
Martin Luther. Quotation from and unknown source.
Stephen Neil. A History of Christian Missions. UK.
John Piper. Let the Nations Be Glad. Unknown. USA
Clive Pritchard. Photographs Central Asia etc. People International. UK.
John Stott. Perspectives on the World Christian Movement. USCM.USA
Corrie Ten Boom. Quotation from an unknown source.
United Nations. Global Report on Human Settlements. USA.
George Verwer. Out of the Comfort Zone and Into Missions. OMF. Philippines.
George Whitfield. Quotation from unknown source.
World Council of Churches. Your Kingdom Come. Switzerland.