Transcript A Biblical Theology for Ministry Dr. Byron D. Klaus Day Four “Can the church tolerate the separation of the theoretical task from the.

A Biblical Theology for Ministry
Dr. Byron D. Klaus
Day Four
“Can the church tolerate the separation of
the theoretical task from the concrete
situation of its own existence? Will
theologians be permitted to do their work in
cool absentia while pastors sweat out their
own existence in the steamy space of the
Church in the world? When theological
thinking is practiced in abstraction from the
Church in ministry, it inevitably becomes as
much unapplied and irrelevant as pure.
Ray Anderson Theological Foundations for Ministry
“When the theological mind of the minister
is educated primarily through experience,
an adhoc theology emerges which owes
as much (or more) to methodological and
pragmatic concerns as to dogma. The
task to work out a theology for ministry
begins properly with the task of identifying
the nature of and place of ministry itself.”
Ray Anderson Theological Foundations for Ministry
The Achilles Heel of Pentecostals
Pragmatism

Leviticus 10:1 – “Strange fire”

“Aaron’s sons Nadab & Abihu took their
censers, put fire in them and added
incense; and they offered unauthorized
fire before the Lord, contrary to His
command.”

A divine task attempted with reliance on
human design alone.

“Not by might, nor by power, but by my
Spirit,” says the Lord Almighty (Zechariah
4:6).
– Might – human resources
– Power – human resoluteness
– Spirit – divine initiative and power for God’s
eternal purposes

The temptation to offer our resources to
the service of God believing that they are
an adequate substitute for God’s eternal
resource.
“Not everyone who says to me, Lord, Lord,
will enter the Kingdom of heaven, but only
he who does the will of the Father who is in
heaven. Many will say to me on that day,
Lord, Lord did we not prophesy in your
name and in your name drive out demons
and perform many miracles? Then I will tell
them plainly, I never knew you. Away from
me you evildoers!”
Matthew 7:21-23
 Success is rejected by the Lord as
having no kingdom legitimacy.
 Human efforts don’t even get a pat on
the back.
 We can actually think our usage of
strange fire/might-power/sign ministry
carries with it God’s seal of approval.
Success is viewed as selfauthenticating.
So What?
 How do we counteract bifurcation?
 How do we resist pragmatism?
 How do we challenge our culture’s
immunity to the Gospel?
Biblical Clues
 God is at work! (John 5:17)
 God continues to empower His
redemptive mission. (Acts 1:6-8)
 Pentecost is the guarantee that the
Jesus of the Gospels is the Jesus who
continues His ministry empowered by
the Holy Spirit. (Acts 2:22-24)
 Our ministry is the continuing ministry
of Christ working through us by the
presence and power of the Spirit of
Christ. (II Cor.5:20)
 Discernment as an act of Church
Leadership is the minimal
expectation for our 21st century
church leader (Acts 2:11-21).
 Discernment–spiritual maturity to
know the difference between works
of human effort and the continuing
ministry of Jesus empowered by
the Spirit.
Discernment (cont.)
 Discernment assumes the present tense
of Jesus’ redemptive ministry.
 Discernment assumes that Christ’s
Kingdom rule extends over all human
structures and efforts.
 Discernment strives to “see” the presence
of Jesus in all ministry actions &
structures. (Not as an act of piety, but as
a biblical necessity.)
Discerning True Ministry
Requires…
 A connectedness to the life of
Jesus (John 15)
 An affirmation that holiness and
ethics are never mutually
exclusive (II Cor. 5:20)
Discerning True Ministry
Requires…
 A willingness to exegete ministry
contexts with the same rigor we exegete
biblical texts (Mt. 7:21-23)
 A commitment to evaluating ministry
methodology by whether or not it
facilitates Jesus’ continuing redemptive
ministry.
Key Considerations



Ministry action as “poiesis”.
An action that produces a result.
The end product of the action completes the
act regardless of what the future of the
product may be i.e. a ministry action can be
viewed as effective simply because it added
more people or people were supportive
(fiscally) or people were “blessed,” or it most
effectively facilitated a program’s success.
Key Considerations (cont.)
 Ministry action as praxis-telos
(discernment of ultimate purpose.)
 A ministry action that includes the
ultimate purpose of that action as part
of the action. i.e. no ministry action,
program or ministry structure is
incidental. It either reveals the
redemptive purpose of Jesus or it has
no contribution to make to God
eternal concerns (Mt. 7:21-23).
Challenges Facing Ministry
Effectiveness
 Pragmatism is the result of a willingness
to be tempted like Nadab & Abihu to
substitute our “stuff” for God’s design.
 Pragmatism in ministry is a function of a
culture where consumerism is accepted
as normal and choice is a divine right.
 Dissonance between a missional
heritage and a plateauing present reality.
Crucial Questions
 Will theologians be permitted to do their
work in cool absentia while pastors
sweat out their existence in the steamy
space of the Church in the world?
 Does theological training end where
practice begins?
Dangers

When theological thinking is practiced in
abstraction from the Church in ministry, it
inevitably becomes as much unsupplied and
irrelevant as pure

When the theological mind of the minister is
being educated primarily through experience,
and ad hoc theology emerges which owes as
much (or more) to methodological and
pragmatic concerns as to dogma.
Theology for Ministry
 The task of working out a theology for
ministry begins properly with the task of
identifying the nature and place of
ministry itself taking the Bible
authoritatively and the context seriously.
Nature of Ministry
 Ministry precedes and produces
theology, not the reverse.
 All ministry is God’s ministry
– Every act of revelation is a ministry
of reconciliation
Nature of Ministry (cont.)
 The act of God is the hermeneutical
horizon for the being of God.
 The Incarnation signals that every
ministry activity has theological
objectivity in and of itself
Assumptions in
Theological Reflection




Making sense of this mess? How?
God’s Word is authoritative
– It reveals God’s character and His mission
The context must be taken seriously
– It is legitimate because it is the place that
God revealed Himself most clearly in Jesus
Christ
That revelation has eternal intent-reconciliation
Assumptions in
Theological Reflection (cont.)


Ministry must be an act of God to be
legitimate
– All ministry is God's ministry
– It cannot be taken on a life/purpose of its
own
The mission of God comes most clear in
Jesus Christ and its continuation is
guaranteed by Pentecost
Assumptions in
Theological Reflection (cont.)
 The ongoing ministry of Jesus Christ
exemplifies God’s purposes
– That ministry (it’s purpose,
power/pattern/character) is the
standard we are co-missioned to
participate in
What has God done?
VISION
II Cor. 5:17-20
 Capacity to acknowledge
the significance of Christ
in the world
 To make sense of life
What is my purpose?
What is God doing?
DISCERN
John 5:17; Acts 1:8; 2:4
 The process of
affirming the Christ of
Scriptures at work in
our local contexts
 Agent of
Transformation
What is the source
of my power?
Theology for Ministry
 Takes Scriptures authoritatively
 Views the context seriously
 Affirms that God is at work in ministry
contexts
 Acknowledges that orthodox doctrinal
conceptualizations do not guarantee
ministry effectiveness or orthodoxy
 That ministry has theological
objectivity in and of itself
Theology for Ministry (cont.)
 John 1:12
– Revealer of God and His mission
– Jesus legitimates the context with
His presence
– It is worthwhile; it counts.