Category: Religious studies

Jesus and His disciples went on to the villages around Caesarea Philippi. On the way he asked them, ‘Who do people say I am?’
They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets.”
“What about you?” He asked. “Who do you say I am?’
Peter answered, “You are the Christ.” (New International Version Bible, 1973/2017, Mark 8:27-29 (new tab))
Faith Integration Message
In the first 8 chapters of the book of Mark, the following miracles are recorded:
Jesus healed Peter’s mother-in-law and many others (Mark 1).
Jesus healed a paralyzed man who was let down through the roof of a house (Mark 2).
Jesus healed a man with a withered hand (Mark 3).
Jesus calmed the storm (Mark 4).
Jesus heals a woman with a bleeding condition (Mark 5).
Jesus fed the 5,000 with five loaves and two small fish (Mark 6).
Jesus healed many people including a man who was deaf and could hardly talk (Mark 7).
Jesus fed the 4,000 with seven loaves and a few fish (Mark 8).
Despite all the miracles that Jesus had performed up to this point in his ministry, Mark 8:11 states that the Pharisees still asked Jesus for a sign from heaven. What did they consider these miracles to be if these examples were not signs from heaven? The Pharisees refused to believe that Jesus was the Son of God despite all their religious training.
When it comes to religion and spirituality, one key point is the question Jesus asked of his disciples: “What about you?’ He asked, ‘Who do you say I am?’” (New International Version Bible, 1973/2017, Mark 8:29).
How would you answer this question?
Upon successful completion of this discussion, you will be able to:
Identify who Jesus Christ is in your life.
Instructions
Review the rubric to make sure you understand the criteria for earning your grade.
Read the devotional and passage in the Getting Started section.
Respond to the following prompt:
Who do you say Jesus is? Provide reasoning for your response.
Submit/Post by the end of the workshop.
You are not required to respond to any posts.
https://www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Mark+8%3A27-29&version=NIV

Week 3

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Welcome to Week 3. This week you will study the strategies for growing a missional church. A missionary would certainly fail if he or she was to go to another country and never learn the language, customs, culture, and context of the ministry. Yet, pastors and leaders fail to adapt their methods to the ministry context of their own target demographic. We can learn from Apostle Paul’s example. Effective strategies for growing a missional church begin with understanding the culture and its implications on evangelism and growth, identifying the emerging culture, and developing and applying a sound mission/incarnational model and evangelistic methods.
To prepare for this week’s learning, read/watch the items below:
• Read Chapters 9, 10, & 15 in your textbook.
• Read Alan Hirsch’s article: Defining Missional (Sign up for Christianity Today for free access to the article)
• Watch the video by Alan Hirsch: Why Evangelism Cannot be our Focus
WK3 Devotional

16 While Paul was waiting for them in Athens, he was greatly distressed to see that the city was full of idols. 17 So he reasoned in the synagogue with both Jews and God-fearing Greeks, as well as in the marketplace day by day with those who happened to be there. 18 A group of Epicurean and Stoic philosophers began to debate with him. Some of them asked, “What is this babbler trying to say?” Others remarked, “He seems to be advocating foreign gods.” They said this because Paul was preaching the good news about Jesus and the resurrection. 19 Then they took him and brought him to a meeting of the Areopagus, where they said to him, “May we know what this new teaching is that you are presenting? 20 You are bringing some strange ideas to our ears, and we would like to know what they mean.” 21 (All the Athenians and the foreigners who lived there spent their time doing nothing but talking about and listening to the latest ideas.)
22 Paul then stood up in the meeting of the Areopagus and said: “People of Athens! I see that in every way you are very religious. 23 For as I walked around and looked carefully at your objects of worship, I even found an altar with this inscriiption: to an unknown god. So you are ignorant of the very thing you worship—and this is what I am going to proclaim to you.
24 “The God who made the world and everything in it is the Lord of heaven and earth and does not live in temples built by human hands. 25 And he is not served by human hands, as if he needed anything. Rather, he himself gives everyone life and breath and everything else. 26 From one man he made all the nations, that they should inhabit the whole earth; and he marked out their appointed times in history and the boundaries of their lands. 27 God did this so that they would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him, though he is not far from any one of us. 28 ‘For in him we live and move and have our being.’[a] As some of your own poets have said, ‘We are his offspring.’[b]
29 “Therefore since we are God’s offspring, we should not think that the divine being is like gold or silver or stone—an image made by human design and skill. 30 In the past God overlooked such ignorance, but now he commands all people everywhere to repent. 31 For he has set a day when he will judge the world with justice by the man he has appointed. He has given proof of this to everyone by raising him from the dead.”
32 When they heard about the resurrection of the dead, some of them sneered, but others said, “We want to hear you again on this subject.” 33 At that, Paul left the Council. 34 Some of the people became followers of Paul and believed. Among them was Dionysius, a member of the Areopagus, also a woman named Damaris, and a number of others.
Acts 17:16-34
After reading this passage, note the effort the Apostle Paul went to in understanding the culture and context of each city in which he ministered. While some communities were more receptive than others, Paul made every attempt to observe culture, contextualize his message and preach the truth of Jesus Christ.
Note his missional intent by first being provoked in his spirit. It is from his spirit and the work of the Holy Spirit in him he was sent to do what he was called to do. Next, note his missional bridging strategy of talking about the meaning of things daily with anyone all the way to having the opportunity to address the whole city in a public forum. Was this Paul’s plan from the beginning or an accident? Maybe Paul was a missional strategist.
How often has a church been planted or a ministry carried out with no real strategic plan for outreach and evangelism? Do you believe ministry happens by accident and you are naively waiting on God to do something first? While we should not plan without prayer, remember He has given you a brain and an ability to use it. Abraham lifted the knife to sacrifice Isaac and then a Ram appeared, Moses struck the rock and then water flowed. Use what you have, strategize, and move on it. How have you seen this pattern in your life? God moves when you move in faith!
WK3 Growing a Missional Church Discussion

Objective 1: Summarize proven strategies for growing a missional church.
David Barrett, missionary and strategist, was founder-editor of the World Christian Encyclopedia and the World Christian Database. He predicted in the mid-80s, of a shift in missions: the countries American missionaries went to, would themselves become the dominant missionary-sending countries with a primary focus on North America. This prediction came true and has influenced world missions today. Yet we as Americans have not seriously considered our ministry as missionary work to the “melting pot of the nations.” We will discuss why it is important to understand culture in growing a missional church.
It is important to learn cultural factors in growing a missional church. This forum speaks to that issue.
• Read Chapter 9, 10 and 15 of your textbook by Stetzer (2006).
• In an initial post, answer this question: “What factors in understanding your ministry culture are important for growing a missional church and why are they important?” Refer to Stetzer, biblical precedence, and your experience as you do so.
WK3 Missional – Incarnation Model Response

Instructions
Objective 2: Develop a missional/incarnational model for engaging the emerging culture.
Many in the church today are trying to raise awareness that Americans are not all the same. This country may be as divided and different as it ever has been. Surprising, the difference is not necessarily in one’s language, food, or dress, but more importantly in how one thinks and arrives at truth. The problem is, many Christians believe everyone thinks and believes just like they do, or at least they should. It’s time the church takes emerging culture seriously, learns to contextualize the Gospel (not compromise), and develops a model and culture for Missional/Incarnation ministry.
Understanding our ministry philosophy shapes our methodology and practice. Chapter 10 of your Stetzer textbook provides research as well spiritually proven tenets for a “Culturally Relevant Ministry in a Postmodern World” (p.133). Develop your own Missional/Incarnational Model for ministry, integrating class content.
• Review Chapter 9 and 10 of your textbook.
• Write a 2-page response using Stetzer’s material on pp. 135-143. Define as well as state the importance of each key model value:
o Being unashamedly spiritual
o Promoting incarnational ministry
o Engaging in service
o Valuing experiential praise
o Preaching narrative expository messages
o Appreciating and participating in ancient patterns
o Visualizing worship
o Connecting with technology
o Living community
o Leading by transparency and team
All written assignments should be formatted using APA.
WK3 Evangelistic Methods Paper

Instructions
Objective 3: Explain the importance of sound evangelistic methods.
How will they believe if no one goes and tells them the good news? How can they hear if no one speaks into their language and life? How will they preach if they are not sent? How beautiful it is for those who share the good news (Romans 10:15). There is much we can learn from Scripture on how to practice effective evangelism methods. Examine the importance of sound evangelistic methods for your ministry.
Develop sound evangelistic methods by writing a paper you can use in your ministry.
• Review Chapter 15 of your textbook by Stetzer (2006).
• Follow this link and view the video by Hirsch (2016) Why Evangelism Cannot Be Our Focus: http://churchplants.com/articles/3685-alan-hirsch-why-evangelism-cannot-be-our-focus.html
• Write a 2-3 page as follows:
o Develop an introductory paragraph on why evangelism should not be the focus and develop your own proposition on what should be the focus.
o Complete a paragraph for each of the following arguing their importance for establishing sound evangelistic methods (p.191):
 Understand the issues in the worldview
 Address those issues (misperceptions or rejections) with redemptive witnessing opportunities based on where the listener is.
 Encourage the listener to consider the truth claims of Christ.
 Invite the listener to journey with the faith community as they live out the truth claims (invite “conversion to community”).
 Invite the listener to make a faith commitment (invite “conversion to Christ”).
Provide at least two sources. Citations to the dictionary should be provided on top of the required two sources. The Bible does not have to be listed in the References page, but does have to be cited in-text.
All written assignments should be formatted using APA.

Preparation of eight 1-page responses to questions based on the assigned primary source readings for the week and discussion questions provided. Space limitations prevent extensive quoting from primary sources, but you should indicate where important points supporting your answers are found with parenthetic page, section, or paragraph numbers, as appropriate.

Upload a Word document with your response to at least two of the following questions. Your response should be at least 200 words, but no more that 250. You must upload your response. Students who enter text in the box below will not receive credit.
Questions:
From Patrick’s Confession, what can you gather about his biography? What role do the scriiptures play in his narration of his life story?
Compare and contrast the “earthly city” and the “heavenly City” in Augustine’s writing. What are the ends or purposes of each?
In the account of the Evangelization of Nubia, what role does Christianity play in diplomacy and statecraft?
Please submit all papers double spaced in Times New Roman, 12-point font, with 1 inch margins.
Papers that do not meet or exceed the word limits will be marked down. Late papers will lose one
percentage point for each day late. Papers must include complete footnotes for all references and a
bibliography. Please use the Turabian footnote-bibliography style.
read
Gonzalez, pp. 241-294; chs. 24-27
Peter Brown, The Rise of Western Christendom: Triumph and Diversity, A.D. 200-1000, Tenth Anniversary Revised ed. Malden, MA: Wiley-Blackwell, 2013), 123-141.
RWCH:
Patrick, Confession (pp. 221-228)
Augustine of Hippo, City of God (pp. 195-206)
The Evangelization of Nubia (pp. 188-192)

Draw a Family Genogram Map (hand-drawn or computer-generated): 40 points
Does the genogram show sufficient detail, making use of symbols provided on the sample
sheet?
Family of Origin Genogram and Analysis.
The assignment has two parts. Participants develop a
genogram (family map) and analysis in conversation with key
family members.
Storytelling and story listening is part of the
exercise and can be a deeply enriching experience.
See Appendix A for example of the form.
The genogram may behand-drawn or computer-generated. It needs to include at
least three generations of your family.
Learning Objectives for Family Genogram
You will be able to:
identify key patterns within their own family of origin
make connections between experience in their own family and the practice of pastoral care
draw on experience and theory to suggest potentially positive and negative implications for care ministry
Generations to include: If possible, please include three generations preceding your own (i.e. great grandparents, grandparents, and parents). If this is not feasible given age and availability of information, please include information on two preceding generations (e.g. grandparents and parents) and a successive generation (e.g. children). If you have a large family, it is not necessary to include information about everyone; that might be too burdensome. Focus on the significant relationships.

Tillich argues “faith precedes all attempts to derive from something
else because these attempts are themselves based on faith.” How does this point of view relate to the
idea that it is meaningless to ask if God exists. How does the unsuccessful attempt at describing “God” relate to the limits of symbols and the types of faith? How is faith (and its associated phenomena) expressed in Lame Deer’s Vision quest?

Final Paper
Below are some thoughts and clarification for the final paper due at the end of Unit 7.
Here is the prompt:
From your study of the kingdom of God, God’s covenants, and “Temple” (God dwelling with his people), write a 5-6 page paper on the following topics:
How do these themes help us understand and interpret the Bible?
How are these biblical themes related and interconnected?
How are these themes developed in Scripture (the growth and expansion of the kingdom of God; the use of covenants to administer and expand the kingdom; the expansion of Eden to the ends of the earth)?
From your study of these themes, what can you apply to your life?
Please note the final paper represents a capstone or summative assignment for this course. You should interact with and cite all the required materials from the course (the three textbooks, course videos, and Scripture).
These are questions to get you going and to help direct your paper. You do not need to answer them woodenly or one by one in your paper, but your paper should touch on all these issues and questions in one way or another. Please make sure you have a clear purpose statement.
Here are some reminders of the major criteria I use when grading:
1) Is the submission on time?
2) Does the paper meet the minimum number of pages (not including title page and works cited page)?
3) Is the formatting correct? Please remember we use Chicago style with footnotes. Ibid should not be used. Abbreviated notes should be used after the first citation of a source. Scripture should be in parentheses in the body of the paper. Please make sure to use and consult the style guide.
4) Is there a clear purpose statement for the paper? I’m happy for you to use, “The purpose of this paper is _____________________.” This is one of the most important things for me. A clear purpose statement guides and directs you as the writer and others as readers. A clear purpose statement organizes the paper for the writer and readers as well. For a paper of this sort of length, the purpose statement should be on the first page (but should not be the first sentence in the paper – introduce the topic first). Please make sure to use clear purpose statements in your papers. So important.
5) Does the paper frequently interact with and cite the assigned sources?
6) Does the author reflect well and properly on the course content?
These sorts of things guide my grading.

Draw a Family Genogram Map (hand-drawn or computer-generated): 40 points
Does the genogram show sufficient detail, making use of symbols provided on the sample
sheet?
Family of Origin Genogram and Analysis.
The assignment has two parts. Participants develop a
genogram (family map) and analysis in conversation with key
family members.
Storytelling and story listening is part of the
exercise and can be a deeply enriching experience.
See Appendix A for example of the form.
The genogram may behand-drawn or computer-generated. It needs to include at
least three generations of your family.
Learning Objectives for Family Genogram
You will be able to:
identify key patterns within their own family of origin
make connections between experience in their own family and the practice of pastoral care
draw on experience and theory to suggest potentially positive and negative implications for care ministry
Generations to include: If possible, please include three generations preceding your own (i.e. great grandparents, grandparents, and parents). If this is not feasible given age and availability of information, please include information on two preceding generations (e.g. grandparents and parents) and a successive generation (e.g. children). If you have a large family, it is not necessary to include information about everyone; that might be too burdensome. Focus on the significant relationships.

Tillich argues “faith precedes all attempts to derive from something
else because these attempts are themselves based on faith.” How does this point of view relate to the
idea that it is meaningless to ask if God exists. How does the unsuccessful attempt at describing “God” relate to the limits of symbols and the types of faith? How is faith (and its associated phenomena) expressed in Lame Deer’s Vision quest?

Final Paper
Below are some thoughts and clarification for the final paper due at the end of Unit 7.
Here is the prompt:
From your study of the kingdom of God, God’s covenants, and “Temple” (God dwelling with his people), write a 5-6 page paper on the following topics:
How do these themes help us understand and interpret the Bible?
How are these biblical themes related and interconnected?
How are these themes developed in Scripture (the growth and expansion of the kingdom of God; the use of covenants to administer and expand the kingdom; the expansion of Eden to the ends of the earth)?
From your study of these themes, what can you apply to your life?
Please note the final paper represents a capstone or summative assignment for this course. You should interact with and cite all the required materials from the course (the three textbooks, course videos, and Scripture).
These are questions to get you going and to help direct your paper. You do not need to answer them woodenly or one by one in your paper, but your paper should touch on all these issues and questions in one way or another. Please make sure you have a clear purpose statement.
Here are some reminders of the major criteria I use when grading:
1) Is the submission on time?
2) Does the paper meet the minimum number of pages (not including title page and works cited page)?
3) Is the formatting correct? Please remember we use Chicago style with footnotes. Ibid should not be used. Abbreviated notes should be used after the first citation of a source. Scripture should be in parentheses in the body of the paper. Please make sure to use and consult the style guide.
4) Is there a clear purpose statement for the paper? I’m happy for you to use, “The purpose of this paper is _____________________.” This is one of the most important things for me. A clear purpose statement guides and directs you as the writer and others as readers. A clear purpose statement organizes the paper for the writer and readers as well. For a paper of this sort of length, the purpose statement should be on the first page (but should not be the first sentence in the paper – introduce the topic first). Please make sure to use clear purpose statements in your papers. So important.
5) Does the paper frequently interact with and cite the assigned sources?
6) Does the author reflect well and properly on the course content?
These sorts of things guide my grading.

Draw a Family Genogram Map (hand-drawn or computer-generated): 40 points
Does the genogram show sufficient detail, making use of symbols provided on the sample
sheet?
Family of Origin Genogram and Analysis.
The assignment has two parts. Participants develop a
genogram (family map) and analysis in conversation with key
family members.
Storytelling and story listening is part of the
exercise and can be a deeply enriching experience.
See Appendix A for example of the form.
The genogram may behand-drawn or computer-generated. It needs to include at
least three generations of your family.
Learning Objectives for Family Genogram
You will be able to:
identify key patterns within their own family of origin
make connections between experience in their own family and the practice of pastoral care
draw on experience and theory to suggest potentially positive and negative implications for care ministry
Generations to include: If possible, please include three generations preceding your own (i.e. great grandparents, grandparents, and parents). If this is not feasible given age and availability of information, please include information on two preceding generations (e.g. grandparents and parents) and a successive generation (e.g. children). If you have a large family, it is not necessary to include information about everyone; that might be too burdensome. Focus on the significant relationships.