Christianity Commons^™

Introduction, Alan Mcmahan

Great Commission Research Journal

No abstract provided.

A Process Model For Church Change As Reflected In St. Thomas’ Anglican Church, Sheffield, England, Bob Whitesel

Great Commission Research Journal

This article is an abbreviation of research originally presented to Dr. Eddie Gibbs, Donald McGavran Professor of Church Growth at Fuller Theological Seminary. Gibbs has been involved with the church under study for over two decades and lauded the author’s research. The research indicates a five-stage/four-trigger process model of change that may serve as an ecclesial prototype for effective change. The article is presented here in honor of Dr. Eddie Gibbs on his retirement.

Book Review: Churchmorph: How Megatrends Are Reshaping Christian Communities By Eddie Gibbs, Tom Harper

Great Commission Research Journal

No abstract provided.

The Conversations Of Our Times, Bill Easum

Great Commission Research Journal

The changes in what the church is and what the church does is explored in this article. These changes are the result of the challenges that have descended on culture in the 21st Century. In the midst of these challenges several conversations are taking place that Christian leaders can’t afford to ignore because each one challenges the fabric of Western Christianity as we know it today. With the goal of reporting what is at stake six budding movements are explored: Emergent, Incarnational, Organic, Reproductive, Missional and Sim Card. Each is summarized with a short explanation as to their potential impact …

Emerging Church Growth Oxymoron: Mcgavran And Newbigin In Dialog, David Drury

Great Commission Research Journal

The Emerging church and the Church Growth movement are presented in the article in comparison and contrast, with special attention paid to the fathers of both movements, Lesslie Newbigin and Donald McGavran, respectively. An overview of problematic critiques and unhelpful practices in the treatments of each movement is given. Current trends are noted involving shifts in both movements, leaving open a possibility for more constructive dialog and partnership. A final synergy is suggested to envision a future way forward.

Book Review: The Hip Hop Church: Connecting With The Movement Shaping Our Culture By Efrem Smith And Phil Jackson, Robert W. Strong

Great Commission Research Journal

No abstract provided.

Hispanic Ministry Where Language Is No Barrier: Church Growth Among U.S.-Born, English-Dominant Latinos, Daniel Rodriguez

Great Commission Research Journal

During the past one hundred fifty years of mission and ministry among Latinos in the United States, most denominational and local church leaders have assumed a “Spanish-speaking immigrant-church model.” This model still dominates the landscape of Hispanic ministries among evangelicals in the United States. Unfortunately, this model is generally not successful when targeting U.S.-born English-dominant Latinos. This study explores how linguistic, cultural and social-economic factors have re-shaped ministry paradigms and practices in several churches across the country that traditionally targeted foreign-born Spanish-dominant Latinos but now also successfully target U.S.-born English-dominant Latinos.

Church Growth: A Holiness Perspective, Christopher Mark Baldwin

Great Commission Research Journal

The purpose of this article is to outline the Holiness Perspective on Church Growth. Some may be tempted to think of Church Growth and Holiness as mutually exclusive ideas. This article attempts to bring these concepts together. This is accomplished through biblical, theological, and historical foundations. The biblical foundation is based on the church of Antioch and the spread of the gospel to the ends of the earth. The theological foundation focuses on three aspects: missio Dei, Incarnation, and kingdom of God. The historical foundations outline a number of church planting strategies used throughout the history of the church.

Changing Paradigms Of Evangelism: Three Generational Views, Elmer Towns

Great Commission Research Journal

This paper attempts to summarize the overarching movements of evangelism in the past 70 years in the United States, most of which this author has personally observed and influenced. While there has always been evangelism in various expressions and to some degree, certain expressions of evangelism have been more effective than others. The primary emphasis of evangelism has gone from soul-winning evangelism (pre-1950), to Church Growth evangelism (1960–1990), to missional evangelism (2000-to the present). Each of these categories will be explored with concluding observations made as to the continued import of evangelism as a priority.

Book Review: Comeback Churches: How 300 Churches Turned Around And Yours Can, Too By Ed Stetzer And Mike Dodson, Keith Stone

Great Commission Research Journal

No abstract provided.

Building Bridges Of God During Calamity: Lessons Learned From India, Gary L. Mcintosh

Great Commission Research Journal

The Church Growth Movement has historically placed a priority on evangelism over that of social action. From a church growth perspective, if social action takes priority, evangelism is eventually lost amid the numerous good things that a church can do. In contrast the thinking of the missional church declares it is possible keep evangelism and social action in balance with neither gaining a priority edge. Using a real story from the missionary life of Donald McGavran’s father, John G. McGavran, this article illustrates that when social action does, as it often must, take first place over evangelism, effectiveness in evangelism …

Faith At Work: How Churches Can Better Enable Believers To Integrate Their Personal Faith In The Workplace, Stuart D. Dugan

Doctor of Ministry

No abstract provided.

Early Stage Adult Christian Formation In Emerging Northwest Culture, Robert E. Hunter

Doctor of Ministry

The problem this dissertation addresses is that many churches, disciplers, catechists, and ecclesial leaders use lecture-based fonnats primarily when nurturing people new to the faith. The thesis of this paper is that a biblically sound, transformative model can be developed to form new disciples. The thesis provides the foundation for a ten-part curriculum presented as media artifact.

Section 2 describes other solutions and methodologies used currently to nurture people in the early stages of Christian formation. Some of the current methodologies include traditional Sunday school, sermon-based small groups, biblical discipleship, and group media discipleship. The fourth section develops the thesis …

Leading As You Were Designed: Applying A Career Assessment Tool For Pastoral Compatibility In Ministry, Cameron R. Garven

Doctor of Ministry

The thesis of this paper is that pastors must be compatible with the churches they serve in order to have fruitful and long-lasting ministries, and proper assessment of compatibility can increase a pastor's success. Many pastors leave due to an incompatibility with churches they serve, and this paper asserts that pastors must be compatible in order to lead others. Research indicates that long tenure in a church contributes to effective ministry, and a better match between church and pastor contributes to a longer tenure. This dissertation uses the PRO Development™ (PRO D) assessment tool to help pastors discern their match …

Christian Realism And Immigration Reform, Victor C. Romero

Faculty Scholarship

Drawing upon President Barack Obama’s admiration of Reinhold Niebuhr’s work, this Essay outlines a Protestant, Christian realist approach toward immigration policy, with specific focus on the role of the executive in providing providential leadership. Embracing realism in its political, moral, and theological dimensions, Christian realism offers a pragmatic, yet optimistic, alternative to secular liberalism’s faith in reason by striving instead to adhere to God’s guidance on matters, taking into account the fundamentally flawed nature of man. The specific policy prescriptions described here mirror the twin virtues of Christian realism by promoting the hope in pursuit of the peaceable kingdom and …

Young, Brigham, Terryl Givens

English Faculty Publications

Upon Joseph Smith's murder in 1844, Young, as president of the Quoram of the Twelve Apostles, was recognized as the new leader by most members of the Church of the Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints.

Latter-Day Saints, Church Of Jesus Christ Of, Terryl Givens

English Faculty Publications

The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints emerged in the 19th c. out of a Restoration* rather than a Reformation* ideology. Joseph Smith* organized the Latter-day Saints in Fayette, New York, in 1830, shortly after he produced the Book of Mormon* which, he claimed, he received from the angel Moroni and translated from an ancient record.

Smith, Joseph, Terryl Givens

English Faculty Publications

An influential 19th-c. US religious figure, Joseph Smith was a 14-year-old boy living in New York, when, by his own account, God the Father and Jesus Christ appeared to him.

In Spite Of The Fact, Roy Gane

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

South India: Ecumenism’S One Solid Achievement? Reflections On The History Of The Ecumenical Movement, Dyron Daughrity

All Faculty Open Access Publications

No abstract provided.