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Spiritual Development July 2016

I’m very excited for the rest of the year and the new emphasis that our church is putting on discipleship.  Part of this plan is a new strategy that we are going to have called The Growth Initiative.  The Life Change cycle is a model that has served our church well as we think about what genuine, Spirit-provoked life change looks like in the life of a believer.  This new push is our attempt to be more faithful to the “Grow” aspect of the Life Change Cycle. 

The Growth Initiative will replace the Life Enrichment classes that we have offered in the past on Sunday nights in the fall and spring.  Instead of meeting over a series of weeks throughout the year, we will be offering equipping sessions one weekend each month on Friday evenings and Saturday mornings in order to give focused attention to important concepts that will work to strengthen your faith and equip you to be an effective disciple of Christ.  Listed below is the schedule for this upcoming fall.

Truth: Rightly Dividing the Word of Truth - Sept. 9^th -10^th

Learn how to understand, interpret, and apply the truth of the Bible to your life and the lives of others. 

Story: God’s Grand Redemption Story - Oct. 14^th-15^th

See how the Old and New Testaments are one story of God’s workings to
redeem people from the power of sin and establish his everlasting kingdom.

Beliefs: Theological Triage - Nov. 11^th-12^th

Learn why our beliefs about God and his interactions with us are valuable and important for the maturity of our faith.

Action: How to Be a Disciple Maker - Dec. 9^th-10^th

Understand what it means to be a disciple of Jesus and learn how to effectively share your faith and disciple others.

Fridays from 6 p.m. to 9 p.m. and Saturdays from 8:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.

It is our hope that many people at Oakhill will participate in these opportunities and see the value in investing in their own spiritual life so they are more effectively equipped to minister to others.  These larger categories of Truth, Story, Beliefs, and Action are explained in Pastor Alan’s article and will be addressed on Sunday mornings through the month of July.  These categories will serve as the framework for the future discipleship opportunities that our church will offer.  Within those categories, new topics will be covered each year.  Please plan to be a part of these weekends!

Our desire behind all of this planning is summed up in the tagline of The Growth Initiative’s logo.  We want to be a church made up of disciples making disciples.  This is the mission that Jesus has left for the church to complete in the power of the Spirit.  By God’s grace, this new emphasis will aid our church in completing the Great Commission by reaching the lost and making disciples who make disciples.

Speaking the Truth in Love,

Nick

Spiritual Development June 2016

Theology.  The word itself can cause so many responses.  Some respond to it with disregard because of its perceived irrelevance to our lives.  Some instantly picture stacks and stacks of books with dust coating their well-worn covers.  Others conjure up images of ivory tower theologians that couldn’t be more socially awkward with real people.  Unfortunately, this is the reputation that theology has been given in our times. 

The reality is everyone does theology.  From the staunchest of atheists to the most fervent of Christians, everyone does theology.  Merriam-Webster defines theology as “the study of God and God's relation to the world.”  Everyone believes something about God and his relation to the world.  If you were to put this idea into a progression it could look like this: Life – Theology – Text.  This understanding of theology begins with our life experience as the basis for what we believe about theology.  After formulating something from our experience, we then encounter the text of Scripture, which in this approach is filtered by what we believe is relevant to our lives.  Our human understanding is the foundation for this model of theology.

But what about Christian theology?  One prominent Christian theologian, John Frame, defines Christian theology as “the application of God’s revelation to all of life.”  If this definition were put into similar progression it would look like this:  Text – Theology – Life.  Scripture takes its rightful place in this model as the foundation for everything that we believe.  Unlike human experience which changes from person to person, the text of Scripture is constant and unchanging in its meaning and truth.  It is upon this foundation that our understanding of God and his relation to the world can be developed and composed from the content of Scripture.  Out of this theological construction we then examine our life experience against the standard of Scripture.  It is the Word of God that is the foundation for this model of theology.

Theology is the bridge that connects Scripture to everyday life.  It is not something to be feared or neglected.  Instead, embracing it and developing it in our own minds and hearts allows us to encounter the daily occurrences of life through the lens of Scripture.  Part of becoming a more faithful disciple of Jesus involves deepening our understanding of God and his relation to the world.  Our understanding of the storyline of Bible informs the way that we read various texts.  Our understandings of doctrines leads to a more faithful devotion to the God of Scripture and his intentions for our lives.  A developed grasp of theology leads to a life that is motivated to counsel others biblically, defend the truth lovingly, share the gospel persuasively, worship God faithfully, practice personal holiness diligently, and meet the needs of others sacrificially.  In short, when Scripture informs our theology it should produce faith in our hearts.  Our understanding should not define our faith; instead our faith should refine our understanding.

Suggested Resources for Further Reading:

Gospel-Centered Discipleship by Jonathan K. Dodson

40 Questions About Interpreting the Bible by Robert L. Plummer

What is Biblical Theology?: A Guide to the Bible’s Story Symbolism, and Patterns by James M. Hamilton Jr.

Christian Beliefs: Twenty Basics Every Christian Should Know by Wayne Grudem