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The direction of research for this topic included surveying all the major literature concerning the doctrine of the perspicuity of Scripture during the history of the Church, especially from the time of the Protestant Reformation to the present. Those who have written significantly about the perspicuity of Scripture, whose writings have been reviewed, include the reformers Luther, Zwingli, and Hubmaier. Also reviewed are the enlightenment evangelicals Francis Turretin and John Owen, and modern theologians Wayne Grudem, Mark Thompson, Greg Allison and Michael Stallard. A special emphasis was made to report from these writings any recognized levels of objective clarity as well as any associations made between Biblical clarity and the application of its authority. Next, a survey was made of the Scripture concerning its own perspicuity, plus a careful exegesis added of significant passages in which perspicuity was directly discussed. The views of Christ, Moses, David, and Ezra concerning the clarity of OT Scripture and OT texts such as Deuteronomy 30:14-"But the word is very near you"4 and Psalm 19:7-"The testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple" have been given special attention. NT texts such as John 5:39-"Search the Scriptures" and 2 Corinthians 1:13-"For we are not writing any other things to you than what you read or understand" have also been exegeted as primary texts concerning the perspicuity of Scripture. And 1 Corinthians 13:8-12 and 2 Peter 3:14- 16, which mention "now we see in a mirror, dimly," and "some things hard to understand," were exegeted in reference to the occasions of evident obscurity found 4 All Scripture quotations unless otherwise noted from the New King James Version, Nashville, TN: Nelson, 1981. xv in Scriptures. Finally, three main passages relating authoritative categories in Scripture are also analyzed. They are 1 Corinthians 15:3-4 concerning the gospel, Titus 1:5 and 9 concerning sound doctrine, and Romans 14:1 concerning doubtful matters. And this survey of Scripture included a discussion of the implied perspicuity found in the literary genres of history and command that Scripture uses abundantly. Next, a useful grid or formula has been sought, attempted, and developed that can be used to assess the perspicuity level of any passage in Scripture, and by inference, any doctrinal issue mentioned in those passages. Tools like the Flesch Reading Ease diagnostic or the Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level readability test have been considered. An attempt has been made to develop a reasonable method of attributing degrees of clarity to various genres of literature, word frequencies, and context integration found in Scripture. The English text of Scripture was mainly utilized for such testing, providing only a framework, and making necessary the future research which will test the perspicuity of Scripture in editions made from original language texts. The assessment tool that has been manufactured is only a prototype that hopefully will be modified and improved upon by succeeding generations. However, it is also hoped that it may immediately begin to help as an objective, unbiased judge for the evangelical community concerning the "doubtful things" (Rom. 14:1) that presently divide it (i.e., where opposite sides both claim to have "clear" Scriptural support), which according to the law of non-contradiction is impossible. Finally, this dissertation included research that used a few practical examples where the doctrine of Scripture's objective clarity aided in identifying 1) a doctrine xvi that should be excluded from the gospel that some have included, 2) a doctrine that should be included as sound doctrine (a qualification criteria for elders in the church) that some have excluded, and 3) an example of an objectively unclear doctrine that should be excluded from sound doctrine that some have included. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to sustain lasting leadership at "The Experience," this project will establish a new leadership paradigm that will be implemented through biblical education and by integrating a new communal leadership model. The Experience is a postmodern worshipping community that has grown out of the Lutheran tradition. Its ministry began in 2001 as an outreach community to the young adult culture in Aurora, Colorado. Over the last nine years of ministry the church has grown but has encountered challenges in finding a lasting leadership structure. In order for The Experience to recalibrate its current and future ministries based upon a communal style of leadership, the first part of this paper will examine present cultural transitions and the challenges confronting leaders. It will consider the new emerging culture in Aurora and evaluate the issues that arise from it in light of how they affect the leadership of the worshipping community. The second part of this paper will engage the biblical and theological data relevant to the specific ministry challenge at The Experience. The discussion will begin with a biblical survey of Jesus' leadership style and the writings of St. Paul. The theological inquiry will study the historical nature of leadership in the Lutheran tradition. In order to integrate communal leadership into the life of the ministry at The Experience, a pilot project will be created. This will be the focus of the third part of the paper. The pilot initiative will serve as a test of the new model by allowing the governing body to explore community-driven leadership. Careful consideration will be given to the structure, timeline, personnel, and assessment of this new strategy. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Believers in Christ have a tendency to avoid parts of the biblical laws imposed by God; especially the Ten Commandments. It is the goal of this author to interpret and apply each of these commands to Christian living today. The Ten Commandments, and the entire Law section of the Old Testament for that matter, are topics about which most Christians do not want to talk. Believers in Christ are to follow the Ten Commandments not because we are to obey them as laws, but because obeying is one aspect of following or imitating Christ. The bottom line is that believers are to emulate their leader; He being Jesus Christ. Jesus the Messiah not only obeyed these commandments but also raised the bar of obedience to a much higher level. It is this high standard of obedience that will be discussed in the following chapters as each of these commandments are applied to the life of a Christian through the context of the New Testament. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This project's goal is to help the first generation (Korean Ministry, or KM) and the second generation (English Ministry, or EM) of Korean-American Christians in the denomination of the Korean-American Presbyterian Church, who are at a crossroad of choosing between staying together or parting ways, to consider interdependent coexistence as a viable option. The project is presented in three parts. The first section retraces the history of the immigrant Korean-American Church. It takes a close look at the past and the present and then looks towards the potential for a collaborative future. The second section surveys the Old Testament and New Testament. It reveals a gathering God who brings his people together and provides resources for them to achieve the marks of a believing, loving, hoping, and patiently waiting community. This section will lay the groundwork for Korean-American Christians to emulate what God desires for the Church to be in Scripture. The final section applies the above biblical marks to current Korean-American churches to make the necessary changes to become more like the Church God envisions. It uses Korean Central Presbyterian Church as a case study, where the first and the second generations of Korean Americans are striving to interdependently coexist. Then it presents how both the denomination and local churches can use the Bible as a mirror to find the goals and means to set forth denominational directives to boldly embrace change, courageously come to the table of dialogue through Appreciative Inquiry, and include the laity on a local level to project a possible future for Korean Ministry and English Ministry interdependently coexisting. Though the scope of this project was limited to the Korean-American Church, the greater hope is for the broader Church to overcome conflict and interdependently coexist. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The overarching premise of this paper is that the way ministry to adolescents is shaped should be intentionally connected to the fundamental task of adolescence: identity formation and discovery, and that this connection should be a theological task guided by the richness found in being created in the image of God. Adolescents, by definition, are trying to resolve the internal, developmental question, "Who am I?" and this drive is as much theological as it is a psychosocial. Those who work in various aspects of ministry to adolescents, whether in a local congregation or in a parachurch ministry have a unique opportunity to profoundly influence the adolescent's emerging, core self in the shape of the image for which they were made. This task of shaping the self, however, is complex and easy to underestimate. The contemporary assumptions about the "self" are deeply embedded in the consciousness of our culture and are rarely examined. This paper seeks to uncover the history of our understanding of the self as well as the influence of psychosocial identity theory to place them in proper perspective, while making the case that being created in the image of God is truly the "first word" in identity and that this first word has enormous implications for shaping ministry praxis theologically. Adolescents long to know who they are, that it is safe and good to be "uniquely me" and that their decisions matter in the world. Ministry should take these longings seriously and shape ministry accordingly. This paper is not meant, however, to serve as a model or strategy for youth ministry as much as a paradigm that encourages theological reflection on current ministry structures or new ministry ideas such that they are theologically faithful to the identity shaping dimensions of the image of God. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Numerous studies have postulated the value of contextualisation for healthy congregational life. However, the focus in field research studies has been on the role of senior leadership, with little attention to broader systemic patterns. Uncritical approaches to culture have also been problematic. The current study has examined the hypothesis that "healthy church life in the Arab world is reflective of critically contextual systemic patterns of congregational leadership." A "family systems" model of congregational life was used as the base theoretical framework for the field research. Parsons and Leas' (1993) Congregational Systems Inventory was completed by 201 Arab Protestant Church members, and data compared with that received in 1992-3 by Parsons and Leas among Protestants in North America. Responses from numerically growing, stagnant and declining Arab congregations were also compared and discussed. Interviews were conducted with ten Arab church leaders to supplement the results. The field research found that two clusters of behaviour were typical of numerically growing Arab churches. Either within the study itself or in research elsewhere elements of the first cluster of planned strategy, mandatory process, and collegial relatedness were found to be somewhat characteristic of the broader Arab society. However, the second cluster of dispersed authority, visionary pastoral and lay leadership, and metamising learning patterns was found to be atypical of Arab society. A dialogue with biblical-theological reflections on leadership suggests that both typical and atypical characteristics of healthy Arab churches find affirmation in Scripture, pointing to the significance of critical-contextual patterns of leadership. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this project is to teach a smaIl group of church members a method of Bible study that aIlows them to identify the actions and character of God in Scripture and then use that ability to transform their lives and teaching. The method of Bible study was compiled and then taught to a group of lay church members using classroom presentations, smaIl group practice sessions and by requiring each participant to prepare and present a Bible study independently. This project demonstrated that average church members can study Scripture independently if church leaders wiIl equip them for the task. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose for this project was to formalize One-on-One Discipleship Training at Mt. Zion Baptist Church, Ontario, California by using core values. I contend that one-on-one discipleship is the choice method for core values transference and that it produces optimal long-term results when it utilizes multiple intelligence, brain learning, and emotional intelligence theories. The use of this method produces leaders who motivate others to reach their full potential and strengthens the long-term stability of organizations. Fifteen participants completed training, and thirteen engaged in one-on-one discipleship as agreed. The spark from this project has potential to make II Tim. 2:2 a reality throughout Mt. Zion and beyond. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study presents an attractional and incarnational strategy to help members of International Pentecostal Church (hereafter, IPC) to reach out and enfold some of the local Korean population into its congregation. The strategy focuses upon the church working together with students of the Cerritos Community College (hereafter, CCC) Christian Student club to influence Korean students into fellowship, Bible study, and Pentecostal worship gatherings. Ultimately the goal of this study includes Korean students experiencing their personal new birth experience. In three parts, this paper addresses the IPC ministry context, theological foundation, and strategies to enfold some Korean students from CCC into its congregation. Upon describing the need and challenges of IPC to reach into the Korean community, the first part of this paper discusses the Bellflower and surrounding area's demographics, with special attention given to the Korean community. A discovery of IPC's strengths and weaknesses provides insights and potential modifications. A subsequent section discusses the CCC, its characteristics and demographics with particular focus given to the Korean student population that builds the basis for the strategies described later in the paper. The second part of this paper examines the theological basis for the focused thrust to reach and enfold students of the Korean community. It evaluates the biblical and theological considerations for the project. The paper then addresses the missiological and ecclesiological backdrops for the endeavor. The third part of this paper discusses the strategy for accomplishing the goals. After clearly defining the goals, the paper presents the project's strategic overview that includes the pastor's responsibility, IPC's responsibility, CCC's roles, as well as defines what the church should expect to see when a student is enfolded into IPC's worshipping community. Subsequently, the specific strategy is addressed and an assessment section helps to evaluate the success of the focused ministry project. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this ministry focus paper is to implement a strategy for the development of personal spiritual transformation traits among parish members of The Way Christian Fellowship in Vista, California through preaching, utilizing the traditional church year, and the common lectionary. The paper will contain three major sections. The first section of the project will address the cultural landscape, profile, and analysis of the Vista area and The Way Christian Fellowship (hereafter, The Way), which is affiliated with the Anglican Mission. The Way is a new church plant that is liturgical, sacramental, evangelical, and charismatic. The parish is also intentional in developing the church around spiritual practices instead of church programs. The first section of the paper will offer a broad summary of the parish and its Anglican ethos, describing the church's people, its diocese, and its history, including its contemporary values and beliefs. The second section will develop the critical biblical and theological assumptions for the development of Christlike character. The conclusions drawn from the theological reflections based on the literature review will weave the three components of character formation, lectionary utilization, and preaching into an integrated whole in developing a strategy for The Way. The concluding section will address the strategic role of the rector as the chief liturgical servant leader and primary pastor-teacher of the parish concerning the communication and transference in word and deed of Christlike character. Utilizing the lectionary as a model for preaching, this section will identify themes concerning the specific text used through the church year that will assist the rector in identifying practical life applications for his or her parishioners. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

To help Presbyterian Church (U.S.A.) churches in San Diego Presbytery (SDP) to discern and be prepared to address problems within their leadership, which the leaders are not addressing, this paper will present a presbytery-based strategy that provides resources and training and a means for presbytery-church-member interaction and feedback. Since 2000, at least one-third of SDP has experienced public church conflict. Consequences include church splits, membership loss, and pastors removed or resigning. The strategy proposed here prepares members and churches to discover and begin to face challenges before they become public conflicts. This discussion will be presented in three sections. Part One describes general, harmful, and self-preserving leadership problems and the consequences of these issues for the members who face them. A recent history of church conflict in the last ten years in San Diego Presbytery provides specific context for examples of the three leadership problems in three SDP churches. This includes my own Rancho Bernardo Community Presbyterian Church (RBCPC) and two others referred to as "Church Y" and "Church Z." Part Two will introduce three biblical concepts central to preparing members and church for discovery: the concept of "environment" from Jesus' Parable of the Sower, the concept of "community" from the encounter between Peter and Cornelius in Acts 10, and the concept of true versus symptomatic problems from 1 Corinthians. Additionally, four theological principles based in the Presbyterian heritage will be set forth in order to guide the process of confronting leadership problems. Part Three will provide a ministry strategy for preparing members to discover and address leadership problems, before they become public conflict in churches in San Diego Presbytery. Implementation and evaluation of the strategy will be accomplished in RBCPC and will be introduced to the other two congregations as well. The results will be presented and analyzed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In order to build up a former Word-oriented, Hong Kong immigrant, non-denominational, discipleship church in Toronto, Canada, into a praying congregation, this paper explores the effects of implementing a spiritual literacy project for the spiritual formation and life transformation of the church. My vision as a pastor is to build up my congregation (GSCCC) to be "a house of prayer for all nations" (Mark 11:17), where together the church becomes a nurturing environment for whoever comes to encounter God and to continue in their lifetransformation process. As the congregation is more theologically than spiritually trained, this paper focuses on implementing a spiritual literacy project to assist their balance in knowing God. Spiritual literacy refers to learning the language of God in order to communicate with God, to keep hearts attentive to the inward teaching of the Holy Spirit, and to allow the Word to transform them to be more Christ-like. Thus they may enjoy a closer walk with God. This paper firstly defines the issues of the congregation seen as stagnation in their spiritual growth. It contains a cultural and spiritual exegesis on the background and history of GSCCC showing that their lack of Christian spirituality training and practices relates to the lack of joy and vitality in their Christian life. Secondly, it reflects on the biblical and theological grounds and implications of this project. It studies Mark 11:17 to confirm this vision, and examine the concepts and importance of on-going conversion in this pilgrimage, balanced spiritual and theological literacy in enhancing the life-transforming effect of the Word, and the pitfalls of hypocrisy when the life-transforming process comes to a halt. Thirdly, this paper reports on the ministry strategy and outcomes of this project. Based on current outcomes, I reflect on project continuation to realize the vision, and the importance of character formation for a pastor to implement such a project. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this ministry focus paper was to design an effective model for intentional discipleship at St. James United Methodist Church in Tampa, Florida, that strategically helps individuals to become disciples of Jesus Christ for the transformation of the world. The motivation behind this purpose is that St. James, along with many evangelical Protestant churches, has not been as strategic about fulfilling this mission as it should have been. While church systems are not solely responsible for the spiritual growth of each person, systems produce what they were designed to produce. It was argued that one of the leadership tasks in this church is to create systems and environments where the shaping of Christian disciples can take place in compelling and sustainable ways. The demographic and psychographic characteristics of the people in the primary ministry area and relevant historical events in the church's history were considered. Next, a theological understanding of discipleship was developed by reviewing influential literature, examining United Methodist theology and praxis, and studying the biblical theology of discipleship. A clear definition of discipleship was established: A disciple of Jesus Christ is one who chooses to adopt Christ's way of living as the way of living in this world as demonstrated by loving one another and bearing fruit. It is a person who is committed not only to Jesus' way of life but having a personal allegiance to Jesus himself, evidenced in living a life of radical hospitality, passionate worship, intentional discipling, risk-taking mission and service, and extravagant generosity. As a result, a model of intentional discipleship was developed using The Methodist Way as a paradigm. This model follows school calendars, has defined starting and ending points, and was implemented across children, youth, and adult ministries so families can participate together. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The argument of this thesis is that Christian formation is a biblical idea and the God-ordained strategy by which God accomplishes his mission in the world through his church. Chapter one identifies the problem of not properly understanding the nature, place and role of Christian formation and describes the ministry context of Beverly Heights Presbyterian Church. Chapter two examines the biblical foundation for Christian formation and chapter three explores its theological framework. Chapter four includes the field research on Christian formation at Beverly Heights Church and chapter five offers conclusions on the project. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The increased movement of people around the globe means that major cities have become multi-ethnic in nature. This fact of multi-ethnicity in the Anglican Diocese of Sydney has led to the planting of ethnic-specific congregations based on McGavran's Homogenous Unit Principle. This thesis challenges the HUP model by examining the biblical theological framework of Christ's new humanity and understanding evangelism, conversion and church-planting within that framework. Field research shows that ethnic-specific church planting brings immaturity, ethnic insulation and frustration for Anglican rectors. A multi-ethnic church-planting strategy is God's solution, pursuant to the eschatological picture of Rev 7:9. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This project demonstrated that collaborative art can significantly aid in the spiritual development and formation of individuals and groups. The Project Director designed curriculum to demonstrate this idea, and tested it on a group of six Christian artists in Marin County, California. The project followed the activities and progress of the group, both in their production of art and in their spiritual development. The participating artists provided feedback through instruments employed by the Director to measure their development and how that development grew out of their collaborative art. The project results show the effectiveness of such curriculum, both for the participants in this project, and for those who may use the curriculum in the future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study compares membership loss from 1968 - 2008 at Monroe United Methodist Church, Monroe, Wisconsin to losses during the Assyrian and Babylonian exiles of assimilation and alienation. Lamentations is used to understand the loss, (e.g., cultural accommodation, God's sovereign work). The theme is carried through to Jesus' laments over Jerusalem and on the cross. The systematic analysis compares the denomination's definition of membership to membership outside the church. Interviews and surveys with current members and former members reveal five reasons people left: limited pastoral care, problems in worship, domineering pastoral administration, closed lay leadership, and content of pastor's teaching. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This thesis evaluates the sustainability of inner healing as evidenced by transformed lives through Christ, reflecting new behaviors. Some people who receive healing for emotional hurts through inner healing prayer relapse into past wounding behaviors. The affect relapse has first is on the one who relapses. The second affect is on the healing community, especially those in healing ministry who pray with them. In this paper, the theological perspectives of Barth, Luther, Leanne Payne, Thomas Oden, and Miroslav Volf on relapse are considered. As well, the problem of relapse in inner healing was examined through the journaling of ten people who documented their experiences. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this project was to help a dying church grow. Working with a ten-member team from Litz Manor Baptist Church, we journeyed through eight distinct phases of transformation, utilizing questionnaires, group coaching and teamwork principles to elicit open and transparent feedback. By focusing on outward ministry possibilities, this team discovered several options for future growth, implementing three. Their work has led to a transformation within the church, a more open and accepting attitude among the members, resulting in growth of more than thirty percent since the project. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author's purpose for this research was to explore Paul's methods, practices, and strategies as evidence for new church development. This research was an evaluative study that focused on shared vision for a multicultural, interdenominational, and diverse congregation that transformed a dream into reality, and vision into victory. The findings gathered from this qualitative, descriptive, and exploratory study served as effective working tools for new church development. Hence the main purpose of this study was to give expression to Paul's concept as a model for Christ International Community Church to culturally incarnate the "Good News" to God's people in God's world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This project focused on how the local church can help impact the disparities in equal access to legal representation for the poor by launching a pro bono legal ministry in the local community. The author engaged three churches in three different cities to serve as pilot settings to establish a pro bono legal ministry in the local community. This project concluded that it is possible for any church to create a sustainable pro bono legal ministry with the appropriate guidance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Models exist in the Bible to describe the recent new church start story in the Rocky Mountain Conference of the United Methodist Church. These models could be useful in energizing existing churches to participate in planting new churches. Limiting the focus to post 1979 starts, research was a combination of historical, quantitative and qualitative reviews augmented through interviews with pastors and laity possessing specific knowledge of individual church stories. Two potential models were examined: Elijah (2 Kings 2) for closing/merging and Antioch (Acts 13: 1-4) for sending out. Models were applicable to appropriate successful church plants in the conference. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Designing and implementing a three year interreligious educational study, the author examined the impact of interreligious programming on a university campus as a resource for preparing students to live in a globalized world. The study was evaluated through participation, observation, and survey that helped the author conclude that people benefit from a deeper understanding and greater education of others in community. More specifically, the author found that universities provide structured and safe opportunities to challenge foundational systems of belief and to teach students the value of diversity in the world thereby preparing them to be global citizens. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The main thrust of this thesis lies in developing a program of recovering the image of God through seeking the holistic wholeness. As happiness had been experienced while seeking wholeness, so I came to develop a program of recovering the image of God using the process. Based on a model of the seven dimensions of Clinebell, ten practical methods of promoting the holistic growth were ironed out. These methods are easy to use for everyone because they are related to loving God and one's neighbors. My church members have experienced the increased happiness, the heightened self-esteem, and the enhanced intimacy with God resulting from following the seven-week program. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

A new Church is emerging in Sweden with the temporary name, The Joint Future (X- Church). The vision for the Church is to become a church "where the meeting with Jesus Christ transforms me, you and the world, and to become a church for ones entire life." My thesis is founded in the needing for a new role of pastoral leadership for this Church. Interviews have been done in nine congregations. The conclusion from the research is the pastor's role is to be a Servant Leader who helps others becomes healthier, wiser, freer, more autonomous. A leader such as this is therefore able to be part of every aspect of life. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The thesis has been founded in the declining or static situation where most Western churches exist. The question is how the church can support members to be more comfortable in their sharing of faith and the view of the impact of the secularity in society. The research consisted in conversations between the author and the board members in Mission Covenant Church of Vanersborg, Sweden. The research can be concluded in the discovery of bad spiritual confidence among the members and the lack of spiritual pathways to mature. Theological foundations and life storytelling are of highest priority, especially when its context is secular. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper was first written with vitalizing the class meetings of Korean churches in mind. "Gae Chuck Sok Hui"(planting Class Meeting) begins with one leader who forms his own class meeting. Touching on etymological, Biblical and ecclesiological influences, Hwa Cheon First Church was the subject of research. The findings show that after "Gae Chuck Sok Hui"( planting class meetings) were instituted, there were significant changes in the church, including positive attitudes among the class leaders, increase in number of members, doubling of special offerings to maturity of leaders who brought many disfranchised people back to church by caring and sharing of love and faith. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This thesis is a study of a church model of diakonia as a new ministerial paradigm for the Korean church in Germany. This is intended to help churches and church members to grow through the pastoral transformation towards diaconal ministry which is able to increase to be aware and inspired about the need of the social justice, by listening to a series of sermons and participation in social service activities. To revive Korean churches, which do not have practices, I would like to suggest the practical church model of diaconia as an alternative hope. It is required for the Korean church to take care of suffering neighbors and actualize the community of the Kingdom of God with justice and peace. Diaconia as a practice of love and faith is the only solution for the Korean church in the 21st century. Diaconia is a desirable fruit from the Bible and theology. Diaconia is the final goal of practical theology. The Diaconia movement was the most important purpose of the faith community from the early church. This dissertation is made up a theological part and a pastoral practical part. In the theological part, I will explore the Biblical understanding of Diaconia and modem theological understanding. In the practical part, I would like to suggest and practice diaconia ministry by renewing all areas of ministries. In other words, I want to transform the essential practices of church community: kerygma (sermon), liturgia (liturgy), didache (christian education), koinonia (fellowship), and diaconia (social services). Hopefully more and more churches will become interested in diaconal ministry and ministerial transformation for that in order to make God's teachings and intentions come true in the world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This thesis is intended to help churches to grow as an independent player which is able to increase social welfare conditions in their community by running a community children center. Churches should understand their growth by their running a community children center as God's favor and share God's blessing with others because they are only delivers and followers of God's teachings. Therefore, churches should run a community children center with their mission in mind: to spread the gospel; to build an intimate relationship with others; and to recognize their responsibility to serve others in need. Churches can run a community children center better than any other social welfare institute or group for good reasons. Hopefully more and more churches will become interested in child welfare initiatives in order to make God's teachings and intentions come true in the world. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article offers information on the differences between churched married couples and unchurched married couples. Topics include maintenance of sacredness of the ceremony, mission school and church for the Nansemond Indian Tribe and biblical, historical and liturgical theologies of marriage. It also talks about works of theologian, John Wesley.

The purpose of this project is to introduce a way of transitioning a church from a church growth movement attractional model into a missional church. The author researched the church growth movement and the growing idea of the missional church. He also researched small groups and decided to create and use a small group study as the main transitional vehicle. After going through the study, the author concluded the study was successful in beginning the missional transition, but he also discovered the transition is a slow process that should not be rushed. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The author researched how narrative theology might play a part in creating health for both pastors and the multiple point appointments they serve. She was in dialogue with clergy of multiple point appointments and laity in their congregations. The author also used an exercise of sharing the church's story as a timeline of events to create space for storytelling to happen. While each church responded differently to the idea of this exercise, it was beneficial in each church setting to see how storytelling creates community. The exercise also allowed each church to enter into God's greater story, which they are a part of. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This paper examines much discussed topics of Korean churches "maturity" and the declining District Bible Classes programs. The first chapter raises the two problems and states the purpose. The second chapter consists of theological understanding of maturity based on Biblical Theology, Church Historical Theology, John Wesley's concepts of maturity and means of grace, Early Korea Bible Classes, and how they can apply to today's "Bible Classes Programs for Maturity of Local Church Congregations." The remaining chapters consist of application of programs developed by the author and its findings, analysis and ways to address the futures challenges based on the results. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The project offers an effective leadership model during a church relocation process. The author addresses issues related to a failed relocation process, deteriorating facilities, and disunity. The goal of the project was to lead the church toward a missional focus, unity and lay leadership development with a Wesleyan emphasis on the "world as parish." The project is designed to provide detailed accounts of the church and pastor's leadership work together. Effective leadership helped resolve major conflicts, re-define the mission, adapt ministry to the existing facilities and continue the plans for a future re-location. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Worship can be a place for dialog, learning and engagement with people from other traditions and faiths without loosing our own traditions or compromising our faith. The author describes the design and experiences related to a series of intentional worship events focused on personal, congregational, community, national and international engagements of ecumenical and interfaith dialog. At each level the setting is analyzed and interpreted as it relates to the specific worship opportunities. Several new models of using worship as a form of ecumenical and interfaith dialog were developed and a pattern of faith engagement was established at several levels. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In a post-Christian context, a congregation's viability depends upon the capacity of its laity to approach ministry with a theological imagination framed by the scriptural themes of the church's missionary nature. The author explored the implications of missional ecclesiology for leadership and the connection between leadership and imagination. The author formed and led a six-month group for lay leadership development in which participants considered claims of missional ecclesiology vis-a-vis the congregation's context. He also led the congregation's nominating body to engage group participants in key leadership roles, showing that the congregation's ministry focus changed significantly through the group's influence. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This purpose of this study is to train lay leaders as a partner for the Ministry. In order to rehabilitate the church and to help all the members of the church to grow to the fullness of Christ, we have to fight against a lot of difficulties. We need a ministry essence and steady ministry philosophy which our Lord has taught us ifwe want to go through all the spiritual fights. Rather than following the trends, but to hold on to the essence would make out a good result. The responsibility of a minister is not to stay in an honored place, but to serve church members to let them perform their own parts well. God always pays attention to one person, train him (her) and achieves His work through the person. It's the way how God works. As God pays attention to one person, a minister should also pay attention and serve each member of the church. And as Jesus Christ has shown a serving example, a minister should also devote himself to the church. A minister should be the servant of church, and only Lord should be glorified. We are only tools for His glory and service. Ifwe hold on to the essence and devote ourselves in serving, then churches and believers will recover from corruption. And we could praise for the hopeful future. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This thesis is a research on effective short-tenn mission trips, and its structure and administration. For effective short-tenn mission trips, theological foundation towards the mission should be established and detailed manuals are essential. Therefore, the research has been based on the theological foundation of "Konvivenz Mission." And hence a short-tenn mission trip manual has been compiled. This manual has been used to conduct a short-tenn mission trip at Baekwoon Church. Anonymous surveys have been done among participants. The questionnaire was focused on the changes of attitudes before and after short-tenn mission trips. The results show, when the short-tenn mission trip were conducted using the manual presented in this paper, "Konvivenz Mission" has been accomplished most of the time. Also this manual is proven to be very effective for short-tenn mission trips. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The goal of this project was to create a digital ministry platform to enhance the church's ability to provide care and services to the community. The platform seeks to erase the digital/energy divide for the impoverished. That platform, developed and implemented here, is named "Restore Together Community." It is dynamic, collaborative, multilingual and accessible to individuals with disabilities, and enhances the organization's gifts/resources, ability to provide holistic counseling, discipleship, sharing of best practices, and ability to organize community action. Introduction into the community has proved that the platform works and is of value to the users. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In 2008 I left a position as the preaching minister for a congregation in southern Louisiana in order to begin the ministry of planting churches in the Dallas/Fort Worth metroplex in Texas. I began this ministry by joining the leadership team of Christ Journey Church, a three year old church plant, working with the spiritual formation and leadership development processes. Through the development of various retreats, house church leader training sessions, house church curriculums as well as personally connecting with the unchurched in our community I began to discern the need for more practical forms of missional disciple and leadership formation strategies. House churches and small missional communities rarely have the funds to hire seminary trained ministers, nor can they afford (financially or logistically) to send potential local leaders to a four year academic training context. What might it look like to cultivate effective leadership training, including theological development, practical ministry tools and spiritual formation without isolating or removing participants from their local community? The purpose of this practicum is to consider the use of an online training platform, with lessons, dialog and spiritual practices, in conjunction with guided local practice in a local cohort format for the purpose of training missional disciples and leaders. I began the planning phase by studying our own experiences in leadership formation in church planting, the work of our church planter equipping network, Mission Alive, and several other training and equipping organizations. I recruited two groups to complete a pilot program: seven members of our local church plant in Burleson, Texas, The Gathering, and five young adults from a community group in San Antonio, Texas. The Burleson group was asked to complete only the online components, with a weekly face-to-face meeting. The San Antonio group participated in these same components with the addition of daily missional practices and a weekly group missional challenge. In order to evaluate the impact of the course, I employed a pre and post inventory, a final evaluation, and observation of the weekly online and face-to-face discussions. This practicum provided incredible insight into the strengths and weaknesses of the proposed structure, as well as the content of the curriculum. While further studies are needed to determine the long term effects of such a process, the participant reports suggested that the program had a significant impact on both thinking and actions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The purpose of this project is to explore the unprecedented disengagement of faithful believers from the current institutional forms of the North American Christian Church and to seek a theological causation, rationale, and perspective to explain its occurrence and meaning. Moreover, the ultimate purpose is to bring a ministry of reconciliation to bear on the lives impacted by said disengagement popularly labeled a "flight of the faithful," but in turn described by this project's author as a "modern exile". The hypothesis of this project is: If believers understand and internalize a dynamic Trinitarian-centered Theology of Exile, then reconciliation at all levels (within the individual re: toward alienating and disorienting experiences and toward God and across the faith-community between believers and others and leaders) will be empowered. The dominant research question for this Professional Ministry Project is, "can a dynamic Trinitarian-centered Theology of Exile be presented to individuals experiencing modern exile in order to empower reconciliation in individuals (internally within themselves and toward God) and between these same individuals and the extant faith-community?" Accordingly, the following research sub-questions invite Biblical/Theological explanation and support and become directive of the learning outcomes for said Project: 1. If the "image of God" held individually and collectively is a common sub-symptomatic core of the problem informing the attendance declines and disengagement, what exactly has gone wrong with the general apprehension of the "image of God" ? 2. Are there specific deficiencies in the collective overall Trinitarian apprehension of the true nature of God as He has revealed Himself in His "image", especially as pertains to suffering and evil? 3. Is there something missing in the collective understanding of the dynamics of God's person and presence in the Godhead (perichoresis) as God engages with history and also the life of believers today? 4. What caused the Exile of Israel, what key role does it play in theology, what resulted from it for the people, and why might it be relevant to believers today, especially those dealing with or participating in the current attendance declines and disengagement? 5. Can the Exile of Israel be understood as more than just an O.T. event - even as a paradigmatic template and/or a metaphor for spiritual experience, should it be? And, if so, how should it be interpreted? 6. What are the precise reasons why people are leaving the contemporary Christian Church in America and what conclusions are there to draw from these events? Is there an overall "sense" to be made of these trends? What are the most important things to learn? Is God in any way involved in inspiring these attendance declines and disengagement, and, if so, how and why? 7. Beyond any divine activity, what other historical forces, societal changes, and cultural shifts are significantly contributing to the current attendance declines and disengagement, and, what observable effects may they be rendering in the lives of believers still attending or partially or completely departing from church? Extensive research was conducted from 2010 to 2012 establishing the data supporting the statistical documentation of the declining trends of attendance and engagement gathered from the quantitative research that has been executed over the last thirty years by over twenty national (secular and faith-based) statistical polling organizations. In the Autumn of 2011, several workshops were conducted by the project author in Tehachapi and Santa Clarita, California, involving over twenty participants. Additionally, twenty personal interviews were conducted and transcribed documenting the experiences of individuals directly impacted by this "modern exile," about half of the interviewed were (then) currently engaged and the other half disengaged with the institutionalized church. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The intention of this project was to equip, mobilize and assist Christian couples to have missional impact on marriages in the community and in so doing prevent or minimize the negative impact of family dysfuntion for community couples. While many churches have adopted programs in support of marriages, very few have embraced a missional orientation to marriage ministry. As a result the need for compassionate ministry directed toward community couples is immense. More specifically, the intent of this project was: to investigate whether a church could have missional impact on community marriages; to learn how to equip Christian couples for missional marriage ministry; to discover how to effectively engage community couples; to investigate the impact engaging in missional marriage ministry has on the Christian participants as it relates to their own marital health, and; to investigate how engaging in missional praxis enhances the missional consciousness of a congregation. The project methodology was to enlist, equip, engage, monitor and observe a group of participants from The Olive Branch Community Church, (Markham Ontario, Canada) in missional marriage ministry over an 18 month period. Using qualitative analysis the participants were interviewed post process and their experience was evaluated. From this assessment a model and principles of missional marriage ministry were derived. While the outcomes are location-specific certain implications from this pilot project may be drawn for other ministries. Through this project it was discovered that there is good evidence to suggest that community some couples are open to receiving marital help from a church that is missionally sensitive. This project revealed that some Christians are interested in being equipped for this kind of ministry. This project also provided data to suggest that a significant way to help Christian couples thrive in their own marriage is to engage them in missional expressions of marriage ministry and that a praxis oriented pedagogical approach is effective in gaining a deeper understanding missional ministry. Helping community couples in their marriage may open a significant portal through which the good news of the Kingdom of God can enter and transform [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This research project explores and illuminates ways that practices of communal discernment can be interwoven with organizational planning processes to help a church or organization gain greater clarity around missional direction, a heightened sense of unity around shared purposes, and assurance of God's leading presence. A qualitative research methodology was utilized to field-test an integrated approach to prayer and planning in three different settings. The research indicates that the adoption of interweaving, inclusive and incarnational approaches to missional direction-setting, with emphasis on Scripture-focused listening prayer, can help churches and organizations overcome the divide between "spiritual" and "worldly" practices that often hampers planning efforts, and also cultivate learning communities that seek to follow God's direction into God's mission. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The thesis Toward an 'Ageless Thinking' Congregation uses ethnographic research techniques to understand the leadership culture of a congregation in order to be able to steward its heritage ethos into a discontinuous future. The theological rationale underpinning the project focuses on the nature of the church as old and new and the congregation as a complex adaptive family. The literature review focuses on understanding the culture of a congregation, a survey of the transitional leaders' attributes and actions, and a basic understanding of the learning organization. A comparison of one congregation's historic vs. current leadership culture was conducted so as to understand the trajectory of its leadership culture. The historic leadership culture was determined through a group interview with long-term attendees and questionnaires sent to former clergy and lay leaders. The current leadership culture was determined through a group interview of current attendees and questionnaires sent to a group of current attendees. The research was coded and several themes of both the past and present leadership culture were established. A process to implement the findings was determined and one example of implementing a finding using the pattern was conducted. Conclusions in the form of themes for the church's main leadership bodies to consider are included for further discussion and implementation. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study investigated the role, if any, that narrative research, appreciative inquiry, and missional experimentation have in helping people in a local church to understand their participation in the mission of God. The church engaged in this study was King of Kings Pentecostal Church, a church of approximately 75 people located in Kings Point, a rural Newfoundland and Labrador community. This project employed the use of a Church 360 Survey from the Roxburgh Missional Institute, focus groups, and planned missional experiments, to gauge people's perception of their involvement in missionallife as well as attempting to lead them forward in that life. Upon completion of this process, it was discovered that mission was indeed a core value in the lives of many of the people of the congregation. Powerful, vibrant, stories of past and present mission came forth as representing a theme that both main demographics (over and under 50) were very passionate about. The planned missional experiments revealed a difference in understanding of people's perception of mission. This variance was a major theme that emerged in the post-experiment surveys. The results displayed a non-uniform understanding of mission between the over and under 50 groups. The surveys revealed that both groups deemed missional living as a necessary component of Christian living, but the people over 50 years of age connected mission with a verbal sharing of the Christian faith, whereas those under 50 years of age discerned their involvement in mission as they served the unchurched in more social manners. The study concludes with a summary of the significant findings of this project and some important missional postures that may aid a rural congregation in successfully introducing them to aspects of missionalliving. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This project focused on moving a traditional church to being a missional congregation. The Missional Change Model (MCM), developed by Alan Roxburgh and Fred Romanuk (2006), was used as a guide to that process. The Missional Change Model is designed to assist a congregation in implementing change from the bottom up. As a methodology, it incorporates two other methodologies, action research and appreciative inquiry. To determine missional readiness at Victoria United, a congregational 360 assessment and a pastor/leader 360 assessment were completed. An analysis of the congregational 360 revealed a church that was prepared to engage the missional discussion while the pastor 360 showed a trust in the pastor to lead missional change. Following this, the implementation of the Missional Change Model-occurred over an eight-month period. Fifty people met once a month at the church to hear missional teaching, to talk, to listen and to discuss it. In the process missional awareness and understanding was created. From there, participants explored what they could do to become acquainted with their neighbourhood. As a result, nine missional experiments were initiated involving twenty-five people. Eight of those people wrote about their experiences. The missional experiments and the participant experiences demonstrated participants were motivated to move into their neighbourhood to be the presence of Christ. A by product of these results demonstrate that the MCM has been shown to be an effective tool in leading a church into its neighbourhood and enabling it to grow in its missional identity. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This project addresses a gap between pastoral leadership training and the demands upon leadership in Ontario Church of the Nazarene parish ministry. Through Action Research analyzed using Grounded Theory this project identified the essential leadership qualities and competencies for effective Nazarene pastoral leadership by emphasizing the importance of life-long learning. This study is unique in that common attributes from three relational leadership theories were applied specifically to Ontario Nazarene pastors resulting in an equipping method with a high degree of success. A review of leadership, adult learning and cultural change literature, semi-structured open-ended interviews and a focus group provided data that was analyzed using Grounded Theory to identify five essential leadership quality and competency themes: integrity, honesty, trustworthiness, understanding culture, and people skills. Equipping in four of these themes, in a postmodern cultural context and applying adult learning theories as a method for equipping pastors proved to reduce the gap between training and demands on Nazarene pastors. Among the key findings: the existence of a gap was confirmed, leadership qualities were deemed more important than competencies, notwithstanding the importance of both, and that equipping is desirable. These findings indicate the potential value for the development of a unified, personal equipping track for Nazarene pastors, which could prepare and sustain them as effective 21 5t century pastoral leaders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The Bible is filled with demonic activity. From Genesis to Revelation the reality of Satan and demons is obvious. However, the Western Church lacks a healthy understanding of the demonic and fails to give detailed consideration as to how Satan and demons fit within the Christian worldview. Some may dismiss the notion of the demonic as fantasy. Others are clueless to its existence altogether. Still there are some that take their understanding of Satan and demons to unhealthy extremes. In The Screwtape Letters, C.S. Lewis finds that individuals will typically fall into one of these classifications. Consequently, there are very few that hold to a healthy, biblical understanding of the truth about the demonic. Therefore, this thesis will give a detailed presentation as to what Scripture teaches about Satan and demons. In addition, this study will also shed light on cultural beliefs and trends within the Western world, analyzing and comparing them with the teachings of the Bible. In doing so, the reality, origin, names, power, tools and fate of Satan and demons will be clear, as will the Christian's response to such matters. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Recidivism is a growing problem today, sadly even among Christian female teens and young single mothers. Recidivism is the tendency to relapse into a previous undesirable type of behavior, especially crime. Recidivism adversely affects those inmates, their families, and their communities when they continue to commit crimes and behave badly after being released from incarceration. They are returning to prison at an alarming rate. There is a real need for pre-counseling these young women while still in jail or prison and post counseling when they are released to help them escape the cycle of recidivism through the power of the Gospel. They should be helped to find their identity in Christ, not in their former friends and former activities. The church will be fulfilling a valuable part in the Great Commission. The church is the best arena in which to teach young returning inmates how to aggressively pursue holiness as God progressively sanctifies them by His Word and His Holy Spirit. They need the foundational truths of the gospel which is the basis of hope to these young women who have lost all hope. They need to know before they are even released that they can be set free from their lives of "presenting their members as slaves to impurity and lawlessness..." and trained to "present their members as slaves to righteousness, resulting in sanctification" (Rom 6:19). While there are many parachurch organizations that have faith-based programs and fill a genuine need for rehabilitation for young women, it too often happens that once out of the rehabs many young women return to their former friends and bad habits. It appears that they fall through the cracks at that crucial point of being let out of the structured environment and are dumped into an unsupported void. We need to help capture these hearts that have been beaten down by the "system" and are ripe for redemption and the transforming grace of God. This thesis is designed to awaken the church's awareness for ministering to these young women who are greatly loved by God, who need His transforming power practically seen and actively practiced through the outreach of His Church-the body of Christ. His Church should reflect God's life, especially in meeting the needs of those in prison and those who are trying to return to Him after messing up their lives. The church needs to extend forgiveness that has that sweet aroma of Christ's love as seen through His forgiveness. This thesis offers a resource for biblical counselors who will be counseling in a prison ministry or in their church's biblical counseling center who have the privilege of rescuing one of these young ex-prisoners. It can also serve to be a resource for anyone working in church-related prison ministries desiring to confront the ex-inmate with life-changing gospel truths. Christian parents, grandparents, siblings and other family members could use it to offer encouragement and follow-up to their former inmate family member who is being counseled by biblical counselors. The Church can be involved in the wonderful ministry of helping break the pattern of recidivism of young women and single mothers who have been incarcerated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents author's views regarding his involvement in motion pictures and its relationship with recreation due his increased engagement in the activities of the Church. Topics include vital aspect of God's design for salvation, Jesus Christ's proclamation of the gospel which was considered as interactional and relational in nature and author's reconciliation and increasing intimacy with Jesus Christ.