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Assessing Changes In Beliefs And Practices Of Christlike Living At The Southwest Campus Of The Darby Creek Church Of The Nazarene, Steven Charles Suttles Sr.

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Jesus And Tiberius: An Examination Of Source Reliability, Timothy B. Chrisman

Liberty Theological Review

Since the introduction to the critical method of studying the Old and New Testament in the nineteenth century, doubt has been thrown on the historical reliability of the biblical narrative accounts, especially the four Gospels. Yet, far less scrutiny and denigration have been applied to historical sources written during the time of the Roman Empire. A comparison, then, is proposed. It would be beneficial to compare the sources that detailed the life and ministry of Jesus of Nazareth, namely, Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John and the four sources which chronicled the life of Tiberius, emperor of the Roman Empire during …

Planting, Transitioning, And Growing Multiethnic Churches, Gloria Young-Eun Kim Fowler

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Spiritual Practices And Effective Christian Leadership, Jonathan Morton

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Developing Alternative Leadership Training Model For Evangelical Church Leaders In Ethiopia : An Evaluative Study In The Hiwot Berhan Church, Endale Gebremeskel Ousman

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

Establishing A Solid Foundation Through An Identity In Christ, Matthew S. Pedersen

Senior Honors Theses

An identity in Christ is the only solid foundation on which adolescents or adults can build their life. Identity is a major building block in a person’s life. Individuals with an unhealthy identity as a result of the culture will need to make many changes to this foundation in order to keep an accurate view of their lives. The definition of identity can show examples of negative consequences of an unhealthy identity. An identity based on the views of culture can show areas of weakness. Examining what the Bible says about man before and after a relationship with Christ will …

Two's Company But Three's A Crowd: A Study On The Crowd In The Book Of Acts, Dylan Eagle

Senior Honors Theses

The book of Acts is an entity of its own. While it is a part of the canonical Bible as one of the sixty-six books, it is unique in that it presents the continuation of God’s plan from Jesus Christ to the growth of the early Christian church. More than that, in the book of Acts God further develops his plan of restoration to include not only the Jews but also the Gentiles. With Acts being a unique work of literature, each component of the work uniquely moves the story along. One component is that of the crowd, specifically the …

Entrepreneurship As A Sign Of Common Grace, Bruce D. Baker

SPU Works

Entrepreneurship benefits society in many ways. It delivers obvious and tangible economic blessings. The spiritual blessings of entrepreneurship are harder to see, and yet these are essential in order to arrive at a more complete understanding of the role entrepreneurship plays within a virtuous society. This paper considers common grace as a helpful lens through which to view the spiritual reality of entrepreneurship and to discern the intangible contributions it provides to economic shalom. Viewed from the perspective of common grace, we can see that entrepreneurship bears witness to the beauty, creativity, power and the responsibility bestowed upon God’s image …

Irenaeus Of Lyons: A Defense Of Recapitulation, Mathew Thomas Hollen

Seminary Masters Theses

Abstract This work sets out to explain the atonement theory of Irenaeus of Lyons. Irenaeus’ atonement theology is often described simply as “Christus Victor” but I argue that is simply a narrow sliver of the wider atonement theory of recapitulation. In this thesis I systematically try to expound what it is Irenaeus believed and why he believed it. In the first chapter I explain the problem at hand and a short biography of the bishop. In the second chapter I seek to summarize the Gnostic school of Valentinianism, which is the key opponent against Irenaeus writes in his best-known work …

The Uneasy Pulpit: Carl Henry, The Authority Of The Bible And Expositional Preaching, Kevin King

Eruditio Ardescens

No abstract provided.

Calvin Theological Journal (Vol 50 No 1 - April 2015), Calvin Theological Seminary

Calvin Theological Journal

EDITORIAL: "Why We (Still) Speak" Calvin Theological Journal: Vols. 1.1 to 50.l, by decades by Arie C. Leder - 6 / ARTICLES: Dating John Davenant's De Gallicana controversia sententia in the Context of Debate over John Cameron: A Correction by Richard A. Muller - 10 / Spiritus Propheticus: Spirit and Prophecy in Calvin's Old Testament Exegesis by Keith D. Stanglin - 23 / Protestant Preaching: Its Strengths and Weaknesses by H. de Leede and F. Stark - 43 / The Worship of the Reformed Church and the Creation of Its Service Book by Abraham Kuyper - 59 / …

The Form And Function Of Mark 1:1-15, Bradley T. Johnson

ATS Dissertations

No abstract provided.

"Make My Joy Complete": The Price Of Partnership In The Letter Of Paul To The Philippians, Mark Avery Jennings

Dissertations (1934 -)

My study challenges the consensus that there is no discernable, single purpose that shapes the entire epistle to the Philippians. I argue that Paul writes Philippians with the sole intent of persuading the church to maintain its exclusive partnership with him and his gospel mission. I examine each section of Philippians using standard historical-critical methods, rhetorical criticism, and social-scientific methods. Special attention is given to those passages where the majority of scholars have argued that Paul has changed subjects. The grammatical imperatives (especially those in 1:27; 2:2, 12, 14, 29; 3:17) factor significantly in this analysis. After surveying the scholarship …

Community-Edifying 'World-Construction' In Paul And 1 Clement As A Resource For Theological Deliberations About Human Origins, Benjamin J. Lappenga

Faculty Work Comprehensive List

Recognizing that the rhetorical context for the cosmological reflections of both Paul and one of his earliest interpreters is the promotion of community-building, this paper proposes that the “world-construction” of these early believers offers a model for the contemporary church’s discourse concerning human origins. The paper, then, is an exercise in theological interpretation of Romans 5 and 1 Corinthians 15, read alongside one of the earliest interactions with these texts in the letter known as 1 Clement.

How Jesus Became God: One Scholar’S View, James F. Mcgrath

Scholarship and Professional Work - LAS

Dr. James McGrath's brief analysis of early Christology. Originally presented as a seminar paper at the University of Michigan, March 19, 2015.

Journeying With Jesus: A Transformational Discipleship For Canadian Chinese Churches In Toronto; A Paradigm Shift, Suzan Kam-Shan Ho

Doctor of Ministry

Before Jesus ascended to heaven, He charged His disciples in Matthew 28:18-20, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Bill Hull comments that in a fast-food, instant-access generation, true discipleship is often substituted by a superficial community experience and a program-driven approach to faith which requires …

Disillusionment: An Unexpected Friend Of Spiritual Formation, Alicia Britt Chole

Doctor of Ministry

Is spiritual disillusionment a foe or a friend? Avoidable or inevitable? A failure or a teacher? Our answer will greatly impact our spiritual journeys. This dissertation defines spiritual disillusionment as the act (-ment) of removing (dis-) false spiritual ideas (illusions), and explores the origin, substance, and purpose of spiritual disillusionment through the insights of scholars and Christian writings. Far from being a foe, spiritual disillusionment is a welcome, ancient ally of spiritual formation.

Throughout the ages, mystics have viewed disillusionment as a wise mentor toward intimacy with God. By abrasively removing layers of inaccuracy and self- protection, spiritual disillusionment can …

Covenant Relationships And The Editing Of The Hebrew Psalter : An Investigation Of The Relationship Between The Davidic Covenant And The Abrahamic And Mosaic Convenants As Reflected In The Editing Of The Psalter, Adam Daniel Hensley

Doctor of Philosophy Dissertation

Hensley, Adam, D. "Covenant Relationships and the Editing of the Hebrew Psalter: An Investigation of the Relationship between the Davidic Covenant and the Abrahamic and Mosaic Covenants as Reflected in the Editing of the Psalter." Ph.D. diss., Concordia Seminary, 2015. 386 pp.

This dissertation examines the relationship between the Davidic covenant and Abrahamic and Mosaic covenants as it is reflected in the editorial shape and shaping of the Masoretic Psalter. It hypothesizes that editors understood these covenants as a theological unity, whose common fulfillment centers on the anticipated royal successor of David. The promises and obligations of the covenants would …

The Buzz About The Church: Re-Imagining Discipleship Through A Theology Of Beekeeping, Matthew Todd Thomas

Doctor of Ministry

"The Buzz About The Church: Re-Imagining Discipleship Through a Theology of Beekeeping", creates and awareness of the root problems of why the church has not passed on its sacred faith to future generations. Historically, some contributors to non-transmission have been Gnosticism, the Enlightenment, Consumerism and Moralistic Therapeutic Deism. The dissertation also focuses on movements which have sprung up in response to a declining church like the Emergent Church Movement and Missional Church Movement.

This dissertation argues the solution to the problem is reestablishment of the practice of discipleship as Jesus modeled. Beekeeping is used to reimagine the model of discipleship. …

Did William Penn Diverge Significantly From George Fox In His Understanding Of The Quaker Message?, T. Vail Palmer Jr.

Quaker Studies

Melvin Endy argues that George Fox and William Penn shared similar goals for Quakerism, and that in light of their close working relationship, scholars who argue for significant differences between Fox's and Penn's views of Quakerism must account for Fox's failure to criticise Penn's views. This paper proposes that the lynchpin of Fox's understanding of Quakerism was an empathetic reading of the Bible, so that the authority of Scripture was internalised. In Penn's writings, the Bible is appealed to as an external authority. Because Fox lacked sophistication in the relevant areas of thought, he was unable to identify the core …

2015 Ncod Pastoral Week Program

National Catholic Office for the Deaf (NCOD) Conferences

Documents from the 2015 NCOD Pastoral Week held in San Diego, CA in 2015

• Conference program

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When Esther And Jezebel Write: A Feminist Biblical Theology Of Authority., Cameron B. R. Howard

Faculty Publications

No abstract provided.

Evangelism And Diakonia In Context, Rose Dowsett, Isabel Phiri, Dawit Olika Terfassa, Hwa Yung, Knud Jorgensen

Regnum Edinburgh Centenary Series

Evangelism and diakonia belong together in the perspective of the Great Commission. Evangelism is sharing one’s faith and conviction with other people and inviting them to discipleship. Diakonia is the gospel and our faith in action and is expressed through loving our neighbor. Evangelism and diakonia are like the two blades on a pair of scissors. They give the church identity and they are functions of the church. This is not just a matter of doing evangelism and diakonia in balance and alongside each other. Rather, evangelism and proclamation have social and diaconal consequences as we call people to discipleship …

Eco-Glossolalia: Emerging Twenty-First Century Pentecostal And Charismatic Ecotheology, A.J. Swoboda

Faculty Publications - Portland Seminary

This study sets out first to chart developments in an emerging and growing body of research in the field of Pentecostal and Charismatic Ecotheology. This literature is grouped within three main trajectories characterized as Pentecostal and Charismatic Social Justice Theology, Pentecostal and Charismatic Spirit/ Creation Theology, and distinctively Pentecostal and Charismatic Ecotheology. Second, this study experiments with a possible pneumatological metaphor that can remedy the growing need for Pentecostal scholarship in the area of ecotheology: the Spirit baptized creation.

Imagining The Scandal Of The Cross With Graphic/Novel Reading, Elizabeth Rae Coody

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

For countless adherents to the Christian tradition, the Cross functions as a symbol of divine power. For the earliest Christians, however, this overwhelmingly positive valuation of crosses would have been unintelligible. Living under Roman rule, their immediate understanding of crosses would have been as instruments of execution and thus symbols of the power and victory belonging to a foreign empire rather than to the Lord they worshipped. For them, the crucifixion was a traumatic event in which the Messiah died shamefully. It is for these reasons that the scandal of the Cross is a prominent theme in the New Testament, …

Conversion: A Reflection On The Influences Involved In The Personal Eternal Change Event Within The Global Community, Edward Charles Nelson

All Electronic Theses and Dissertations

What is conversion? For many, conversion is defined psychologically, sociologically, anthropologically and culturally, philosophically, or religiously and theologically. No matter how conversion may be defined academically, that definition becomes rather confining. It could be that in focusing on human inducements, the dynamic of the real Source of conversion can be missed. It has been disclosed that while the human factors involved in a decisive event can be initiated by the divine dynamic, it is only when there has been a response of humility and repentance with faith that God seems willing to complete his global “new birth” work of conversion.

Intercultural Hermeneutics: A Word Of Introduction, Lalsangkima Pachuau

The Asbury Journal

No abstract provided.

“Souls Under The Altar”: The ‘Soul’ And Related Anthropological Imagery In John’S Apocalypse, Larry L. Lichtenwalter

Journal of the Adventist Theological Society

No abstract provided.

Schleiermacher's Doctrine Of Biblical Authority: An Alternative To Content-Based/Supernaturalist And Function-Based Rationalist Models, Kerry W. Holton

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This dissertation examines Friedrich Schleiermacher’s understanding of biblical authority and argues that, as an alternative to strictly supernaturalistic and rationalistic models, his understanding allows the New Testament to speak authoritatively in Christian religion in an age of critical, historical awareness. After classifying Schleiermacher’s position in a typology of the doctrine of biblical authority, this dissertation explores his conception of divine revelation and inspiration vis-à-vis scripture. It demonstrates that although he did not believe there is warrant for the claim of a direct connection between divine revelation and scripture, or that scripture is the foundation of faith, he nonetheless asserted that …

The End Of The Natural Law: Dietrich Bonhoeffer's Christological Ethics., Jordan J. Ballor

CTS PhD Doctoral Dissertations

Dietrich Bonhoeffer (1906-1945) has often been understood as articulating an occasionalistic, divine-command theory of ethics. In this regard, he is often seen as aligned with Karl Barth (1886-1968). This study challenges this view by demonstrating that Bonhoeffer’s own ethical project was aimed at resuscitating and reviving a distinctively Protestant form of natural-law thinking. Bonhoeffer’s approach was characterized by an emphasis on the origin, formation, and goal of natural mandates in, by, and toward Jesus Christ. Bonhoeffer’s early teaching concerning orders of preservation and laws of life was developed into a mature doctrine of divine mandates in his Ethics, which are …