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Articles 31 - 60 of 1021
Full-Text Articles in Entire DC Network
Biblical Leadership And Gender: Balancing Cultural Context And Theological Conviction, Lorie Lynn Heath
Biblical Leadership And Gender: Balancing Cultural Context And Theological Conviction, Lorie Lynn Heath
Doctoral Dissertations and Projects
God originally made male and female in His image, imparting to them a shared authority over creation. They were co-heirs equal in purpose, mission, and value. However, cultural practices and patriarchal traditions have long obscured this original biblical design. Consider a qualified young woman in a local church, called, talented, and valued by her congregation, yet repeatedly overlooked for preaching and teaching positions because of her gender. Her story is not unique. This misapplication of Scripture not only harms women but also weakens the body of Christ and impedes the church’s testimony to the gospel. Accurate comprehension of the Bible …
Creating An Adaptable Discipleship Training Guide To Address The Absence Of Young Adult Ministry Leaders At Church A, Braeden Fleck
Creating An Adaptable Discipleship Training Guide To Address The Absence Of Young Adult Ministry Leaders At Church A, Braeden Fleck
Doctoral Dissertations and Projects
This guide was designed to address a lack of young adult ministry leaders within the researcher’s local church. This thesis project serves as a witness to the development and implementation of an adaptable discipleship training guide. The project proclaims that a flexible discipleship curriculum is the key to cultivating spiritual formation in young adults, specifically those belonging to the Z generation. The primary strategy behind implementation was to use short term intervention through a period of five consecutive weeks to assess spiritual growth of young adult congregants who attend a hybrid satellite church campus. The research project was catalyzed by …
A New Testament Theology Of Evangelistic Prayer, Preston Gagnon
A New Testament Theology Of Evangelistic Prayer, Preston Gagnon
Doctoral Dissertations and Projects
Evangelistic prayer is widely assumed to be appropriate, but the biblical basis for the practice has been insufficiently argued. Some evangelistic resources assume evangelistic prayer is necessary. Others overlook the practice, and many discuss evangelistic prayer by making minimal arguments for the practice. Due to the lack of comprehensive arguments for evangelistic prayer, some authors have been able to claim that prayers for the lost are unbiblical. This dissertation enters the conversation by arguing that the New Testament presents evangelistic prayer as a biblically mandated, exemplified, and theologically supported practice. This argument is made by expositing twelve key New Testament …
The Development And Leadership Implementation Of Strategies Promoting Church Health In The Presbytery Of The Central West, New South Wales, Australia, Mark S. Armstrong
The Development And Leadership Implementation Of Strategies Promoting Church Health In The Presbytery Of The Central West, New South Wales, Australia, Mark S. Armstrong
Doctoral Dissertations and Projects
Many Churches in the Presbyterian rural landscape have plateaued or are in decline. Little research has been done to address the causes and provide strategies for remediation. This study examines this problem in the Presbytery of the Central West, New South Wales, Australia. The purpose of the project is to identify factors causing church decline in rural areas and develop revitalization strategies for ministers and elders across the Presbytery. The research consists of two layered responses. The first layer identifies factors causing church decline and develops five strategies suitable for implementation. The second layer utilizes Mezirow’s transformative learning framework to …
Sacred Geography And The Restoration Of Divine Presence: The Garden Of Eden, Egypt, The Wilderness, And The Promised Land In The Theology Of The Torah, Gary Ryan Perry
Sacred Geography And The Restoration Of Divine Presence: The Garden Of Eden, Egypt, The Wilderness, And The Promised Land In The Theology Of The Torah, Gary Ryan Perry
Doctoral Dissertations and Projects
This dissertation argues that the Torah presents redemption through a progressive spatial framework in which sacred geography reveals the restoration of God’s dwelling among His people. The narrative movement from the Garden of Eden to Egypt, the Wilderness, and finally the Promised Land forms a theological arc that structures the Torah’s presentation of covenant, priesthood, and divine presence. The Garden of Eden establishes humanity’s original royal priestly vocation within sacred space. Egypt functions as an anti-garden, where abundance and provision exist apart from a covenant relationship with God. The Wilderness represents a redemptive restart, in which Israel is formed through …
An Eschatological Investigation Of Fatherlessness Through A Christological Lens: Exploring Identity, Hope, And Restoration In A Fatherless Generation, Derrick Marshall
An Eschatological Investigation Of Fatherlessness Through A Christological Lens: Exploring Identity, Hope, And Restoration In A Fatherless Generation, Derrick Marshall
Doctor of Ministry (DMin)
This dissertation analyses the relationship between fatherlessness across generations and selected indicators of cultural development and social stability in contemporary society. It also evaluates how a local church context may function as a site of intervention to address the relational, emotional, and spiritual consequences associated with father absence. The study is conducted within LIFEchurch in El Paso, Texas, and is situated within theological reflections on sonship, identity, and restoration. The research employed a multi-method descriptive design and utilized a single Qualtrics survey instrument comprising both structured quantitative items and open-ended qualitative questions. Participants were adults affiliated with the LIFEchurch community. …
A Kingdom-Centric Spiritual Formation Model: Developing Churchwide Strategies For Forming People Into Christlikeness, Justin Adams
A Kingdom-Centric Spiritual Formation Model: Developing Churchwide Strategies For Forming People Into Christlikeness, Justin Adams
Doctor of Ministry (DMin)
This dissertation explores how churches can better form people by examining the central research question: “What strategies can churches use to develop a Kingdom-centric spiritual formation model that prioritizes shaping individuals into Christlikeness as the church’s primary vision and mission?” Drawing on Paul’s desire to see Christ formed in the Galatian church (Gal 4:19), as well as exploring Jesus’s mandate in Matt 28:19 in connection with Acts 2:42-46, these texts show the connection between the spiritual formation of early believers and the Church. The researcher employed a quantitative methodology at The Worship Center in Leesburg, Virginia. Research revealed significant perceptions …
Developing A Church Growth Strategy For Church Revitalizations In Suburban Communities Within The U.S. Assemblies Of God, Thomas A. Galban
Developing A Church Growth Strategy For Church Revitalizations In Suburban Communities Within The U.S. Assemblies Of God, Thomas A. Galban
Doctor of Ministry (DMin)
Suburban communities are experiencing demographic and socioeconomic shifts that have presented challenges for the local church. These changes have correlated with the decline and plateau of many suburban churches within the U.S. Assemblies of God. This dissertation explores which successful models of church revitalization can be adapted, learned from, and created for suburban church contexts within the U.S. Assemblies of God. Using a qualitative research approach utilizing interviews, this study examined seven suburban churches and the pastors who successfully led through a revitalization process. Each pastor was interviewed concerning their leadership approach, strategies that were employed, contextual realities, funding models, …
Haitian Protestant Leaders’ Perceptions Of Social Media Use For Discipleship, Cherubin Dorcil
Haitian Protestant Leaders’ Perceptions Of Social Media Use For Discipleship, Cherubin Dorcil
Doctor of Ministry (DMin)
This qualitative descriptive study explores how Haitian Protestant church leaders in a large urban area of the northeastern United States describe the influence of their use of social media on promoting discipleship. The study addresses a gap in understanding how digital ministry practices are interpreted within Haitian Protestant diaspora contexts and how these practices inform both theory and ministry application. Using a qualitative descriptive design, data was collected through semi-structured interviews with 12 Haitian Protestant church leaders selected through convenience sampling. The data was analyzed using thematic analysis, which resulted in the identification of five primary themes: social media as …
Digital Discipleship And Whole-Person Flourishing: A Mixed-Methods Study At Celebration Church, John W. Wyatt
Digital Discipleship And Whole-Person Flourishing: A Mixed-Methods Study At Celebration Church, John W. Wyatt
Doctor of Ministry (DMin)
This study examines how digital participation influences whole-person flourishing within the context of Celebration Church, a contemporary American megachurch, addressing a critical gap in empirical research on digital discipleship and its theological implications. Using a convergent mixed-methods design, quantitative data from the Barna ChurchPulse survey compared in-person and online participants, while qualitative data from semi-structured interviews with leaders from eighteen American megachurches were analyzed thematically. Findings indicate that flourishing outcomes are largely comparable across digital and in-person cohorts, challenging assumptions that embodied participation is inherently superior for spiritual formation; however, statistically significant differences emerged in leadership involvement, serving, and engagement …
Patterns, Pressures, And Pathways : An Ethnographic Study Of Discipleship In Nepali-Speaking Immigrant Churches In The United States, Ram Kumar Budhathoki
Patterns, Pressures, And Pathways : An Ethnographic Study Of Discipleship In Nepali-Speaking Immigrant Churches In The United States, Ram Kumar Budhathoki
ATS Dissertations
No abstract provided.
An Unfolding Vision Of Transformation: A Comparison Of The S/Spirit Motif In Romans 8 And Jubilees 1:19-26, Lemuel J. Godinez
An Unfolding Vision Of Transformation: A Comparison Of The S/Spirit Motif In Romans 8 And Jubilees 1:19-26, Lemuel J. Godinez
Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology
This study compares the role of the s/Spirit motif in Paul’s writing and that of a Second Temple Jewish theologian’s. The books of Romans and Jubilees, respectively, appear to develop their language of renewal within a developing trajectory motifs in the Hebrew Scriptures, including “heart circumcision,” “new covenant,” and “the s/Spirit.” One would be hard-pressed to prove intertextuality between Romans and Jubilees (which this study does not claim). Yet, the renewal description in Romans 8 is evocatively similar to Jubilees 1:19–26. Paul may therefore have developed his portrayal and narration of the Spirit in the vein of Second Temple thought. …
Hope, Liberation, And The Search For Shalom: Embracing A Spirit-Led Mission As The Cornerstone Of Hispanic Pentecostal Missiology, Misael Cornelio-Arias
Hope, Liberation, And The Search For Shalom: Embracing A Spirit-Led Mission As The Cornerstone Of Hispanic Pentecostal Missiology, Misael Cornelio-Arias
Spiritus: ORU Journal of Theology
This study examines the critical missiological contributions of three influential Hispanic Pentecostal theologians: Eldin Villafañe, Samuel Solivan, and Sammy Alfaro. It also explores the work of two additional notable figures, Darío López and Bernardo Campos, whose impact extends beyond traditional missiology into practical faith application. Each of these individuals has uniquely fused his distinct cultural contexts and biblical understanding with the broader mission of the Hispanic Pentecostal faith, guided by the Holy Spirit. Their work has significantly shaped and expanded the landscape of Hispanic Pentecostal missiology, demonstrating a truly contextual approach to understanding and engaging in the kingdom’s mission. Through …
Designing A Grief Intervention To Address The Religious Problem Of Evil, Charles Lee Burris Jr.
Designing A Grief Intervention To Address The Religious Problem Of Evil, Charles Lee Burris Jr.
Doctoral Dissertations and Projects
Christian fellowships should have grief ministries. The problem is the Greater Morning Star Baptist Church lacks a clear and practical intervention to support adult congregants coping with grief. The purpose of this DMIN action research project was to equip adult congregants of the Greater Morning Star Baptist Church through a biblically designed grief curriculum that provided training and encouragement to improve quality of life. This DMIN action research project applied qualitative and quantitative methods that included a pre-grief curriculum interview, a pre-grief curriculum survey, a post-grief curriculum focus group, and test assessments (pre-grief curriculum, mid-grief curriculum, and post-grief curriculum) for …
The Unashamed Plan: Expository Methods For Reconciling Unchurched Young Adults At The Friendship Baptist Church Of West End, James Daniel Spencer Ii
The Unashamed Plan: Expository Methods For Reconciling Unchurched Young Adults At The Friendship Baptist Church Of West End, James Daniel Spencer Ii
Doctoral Dissertations and Projects
Young adults are absent from the pews of churches within the urban African American community. Churches within the community face dissolution because a generation no longer seeks to solve its problems by connecting with the household of faith due to shame-based alienation. There is a need to reconcile young adults into the citadel of invincible grace, God’s church, to fulfill the Great Commission and ensure a generation is not lost. Therefore, this action research project teaches church members through expository preaching and teaching The Unashamed Plan to educate them to reach youth for Christ. The Unashamed Plan is a theological …
Determining The Efficacy Of A Digital Small-Group Formatted Spiritual Care Program In Increasing Ministry Volunteer Resiliency And Retention At Groundwire, Andrew J. Ondo
Doctoral Dissertations and Projects
This project examined the efficacy of biblically informed, trauma-aware, peer-to-peer spiritual care systems within the solely digital ministry context of Groundwire. The study addressed the growing need for effective pastoral care in digitally mediated environments, where formation and fragmentation occur simultaneously and traditional leadership structures are often absent. The purpose was to design, implement, and evaluate a protocol that could cultivate the core concepts of resilience, intentionality, and wisdom among participants, reinforcing both practical resilience and retention. An action-oriented, primarily qualitative methodology was utilized. The final sample population consisted of eleven Groundwire participants engaged in peer-to-peer care on Discord, with …
Book Review: Bearing Witness In Acts And Today By Troy M. Troftgruben, Christopher Robershaw
Book Review: Bearing Witness In Acts And Today By Troy M. Troftgruben, Christopher Robershaw
Witness
No abstract provided.
Training Christian Men To Effectively Lead Their Families While Deployed To Guantanamo Bay, Cuba Using An 8-Step Family Leadership Deployment Plan, Lucas Arthur Baker
Training Christian Men To Effectively Lead Their Families While Deployed To Guantanamo Bay, Cuba Using An 8-Step Family Leadership Deployment Plan, Lucas Arthur Baker
Doctoral Dissertations and Projects
This thesis project examined the result of the author’s 8-Step Family Leadership Deployment Plan on the effective leadership of ten Christian husbands and fathers deployed to Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. The project’s goals were to mitigate family stress during separation and warfighter reintegration, to prevent role reversal within the family, and to prevent a pause in the headship and leadership roles of husbands and fathers. The project extrapolated eight principles from Ephesians 5:22–6:4 and was designed to fill an identified resource gap within the United States Military, particularly at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. It guided participants in creating their own personalized family …
From Transactional To Transformational: Cultivating A Theologically Robust Learning Experience For Upper School Senior Bible Classes, Linus Nguyen
Doctoral Dissertations and Projects
The problem at Holy Ground Christian Academy is that its approach to senior-level Bible classes is transactional rather than transformational for life and godliness. With parents feeling pressured to find effective educational options for their children and teachers facing growing demands from administrative duties, education urgently needs a new vision. Parents want their children to succeed and leave a lasting impact on society, while educators seek purpose in their careers. Modern educational trends push schools toward a utilitarian, transactional approach to learning, and private Christian college-preparatory schools are no exception. Within the Christian college-preparatory setting, Bible classes often struggle with …
Discovering An Effective Disciple-Making Method For Men, Clifton J. Hefley
Discovering An Effective Disciple-Making Method For Men, Clifton J. Hefley
Doctor of Ministry (DMin)
This dissertation explores the development of an effective disciple-making method for men by integrating insights from early church discipleship practices and modern missional strategies such as Disciple Making Movements (DMM) and Church Planting Movements (CPM). Rooted in biblical theology and the teachings of the Patristic Fathers, the study evaluates how obediencebased, relational discipleship shaped early Christianity and compares it with contemporary missional frameworks promoted by leaders like David Garrison, Alan Hirsch, and Steve Addison. Against the backdrop of a sharp decline in church attendance and male engagement in Western Christianity, this research identifies the need for a reproducible, movement-oriented model …
Book Review: Bearing Witness In Acts And Today By Troy M. Troftgruben, Christopher Robershaw
Book Review: Bearing Witness In Acts And Today By Troy M. Troftgruben, Christopher Robershaw
Great Commission Research Journal
No abstract provided.
Stewardship, Generosity, And Percentage Giving Changing Attitudes On Financial Generosity Through Bible Study Concerning The Tithe For The New Testament Christians Of Good Shepherd Lutheran Church In Kingman, Az, Timothy A. Barkett
Doctor of Ministry Major Applied Project
The Church today finds itself navigating a landscape shaped by economic uncertainty, generational shifts, and a growing sense of spiritual indifference. Within this context, generosity continues to serve as a profound expression of both faith and mission. The research presented in this project affirms that when generosity is taught with a spirit of grace, rooted in Scripture, and exemplified by leadership, it has the power to bring renewal—not only to individual believers but also to entire communities. In an era characterized by financial anxiety and spiritual consumerism, the biblical and theological foundations of stewardship and generosity provide both a necessary …
Biblical Church Governance: Returning To Plural-Elder Congregationalism From Policy-Based Governance Models, Jacob R. Ray
Biblical Church Governance: Returning To Plural-Elder Congregationalism From Policy-Based Governance Models, Jacob R. Ray
Liberty Theological Review
This paper critiques the growing adoption of policy-based governance models in local church contexts and argues for a return to plural-elder congregationalism as the most biblically faithful and historically rooted model of church government. While policy-based governance, derived from John Carver’s framework for nonprofit leadership, offers administrative strengths such as consistency, accountability, and efficiency, its application within the church often results in the diminishment of biblically mandated roles—particularly the deacon—and fosters a corporate rather than ecclesial culture. The author contends that such models misunderstand and misapply the New Testament offices of elder and deacon, violating the biblical pattern of shared …
Deuteronomy And Ane Worldview Apologetics In A Postmodern Context, Eric Mcconnell
Deuteronomy And Ane Worldview Apologetics In A Postmodern Context, Eric Mcconnell
Liberty Theological Review
Postmodern Christianity seeks to divorce the miraculous and divine elements from Scripture and shape biblical morality in a way that relates to postmodern culture. Responding to Postmodern Christianity’s errors requires a consistent literal hermeneutic in one’s exegesis and a sound biblical framework in one’s apologetic method. The message of Deuteronomy presents a possible paradigm for this task, as its contents present a culturally-relevant polemic against false maxims and errant religion that God’s people faced within their own milieu. Moses’ polemic in Deuteronomy 4 presents a paradigm that would be employed by the prophets to counter the faulty syncretistic worldview that …
A Teleoisrael And The Μυστήριον Of Mercy: The Identity Of Πᾶς Ἰσραήλ And The Apocalyptic Realignment Of God’S Covenant People In Romans 9–11, James Matthew Nowotny
A Teleoisrael And The Μυστήριον Of Mercy: The Identity Of Πᾶς Ἰσραήλ And The Apocalyptic Realignment Of God’S Covenant People In Romans 9–11, James Matthew Nowotny
Doctoral Dissertations and Projects
This dissertation explores the meaning of Paul's assertion in Romans 11:26 that "all Israel will be saved," situating it within the broader theological and literary context of Romans 9–11. The study addresses the complex question of Israel’s identity in Paul’s writings, arguing that Paul envisions a future eschatological salvation for ethnic Israel that coheres with God’s covenantal promises while incorporating Gentile believers into the redemptive plan through union with Christ. Utilizing exegetical analysis, intertextual engagement with the Old Testament, and investigation of Second Temple Jewish conceptions of Israel, the study proposes a nuanced model termed TeleoIsrael—a theological construct reflecting the …
Hearing The Call: The Need For An Evangelical Theology Of 'Intentional Christian Community' And Consecrated Life At Taylor University In The 21st Century, Hank Voss
Presentations
Taylor University's Life Together Covenant calls the university "a covenant community of Christians . . . intentionally joining together for academic progress, personal development, and spiritual growth." This paper presented at the 2025 Intentional Christian Communities Explorer's Gathering argues for a theological understanding of Taylor University's intentional Christian community as a consecrated Christian sodality with a specific second-order commitment, a community rule, symbolic vestiture, leadership structures, and a specific charism for the larger church.
Dominion Shifts In Biblical Apocalyptic Literature: A Narrative Reading Of Daniel 7 And Revelation 12–14 Vis-À-Vis Genesis 1–3, Flavio Prestes Iii
Dominion Shifts In Biblical Apocalyptic Literature: A Narrative Reading Of Daniel 7 And Revelation 12–14 Vis-À-Vis Genesis 1–3, Flavio Prestes Iii
Andrews University Seminary Studies (AUSS)
This is a dissertation abstract.
“You Must Prophecy Again”: The Mission Of God’S People In Revelation 10–14, Adenilton Tavares De Aguiar
“You Must Prophecy Again”: The Mission Of God’S People In Revelation 10–14, Adenilton Tavares De Aguiar
Andrews University Seminary Studies (AUSS)
This is a dissertation abstract.
The Clarity And Obscurity Of Inspired Writings: A Historical Survey From Late Antiquity To Early Nineteenth- Century America, Denis Kaiser
The Clarity And Obscurity Of Inspired Writings: A Historical Survey From Late Antiquity To Early Nineteenth- Century America, Denis Kaiser
Andrews University Seminary Studies (AUSS)
Throughout Christian history, pastors, scholars, and church leaders have discussed whether, or to what extent, Scripture is clear or obscure. This article surveys the views on the clarity and obscurity of Scripture as advocated by Christian writers in five eras from late antiquity to early nineteenth-century America. Writers in the Protestant tradition have generally objected to the common notions among Roman Catholics that Scripture is obscure, consists of a four-fold sense, and that normative teaching authority is in the hands of the magisterium. Lutheran, Reformed, and Pietist scholars have generally emphasized the importance of having an educated clergy that understands …
Dry Bones Can Live Again : Best Practices For Replanting Independent Christian Churches, R. Steve Bolin
Dry Bones Can Live Again : Best Practices For Replanting Independent Christian Churches, R. Steve Bolin
ATS Dissertations
No abstract provided.