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OPWEKKING EN HERVORMING A Theological-Practical Perspective Daniel Duda Trans-European Division

OPWEKKING EN HERVORMING A Theological-Practical Perspective Daniel Duda Trans-European Division The Netherlands Union Meeting Apeldoorn 30 October 2011. Opwekking en Hervorming What comes to your mind when you hear: Opwekking en Hervorming? Is this an initiative, programme, lifestyle?

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OPWEKKING EN HERVORMING A Theological-Practical Perspective Daniel Duda Trans-European Division

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  1. OPWEKKING EN HERVORMING A Theological-Practical Perspective Daniel Duda Trans-European Division The Netherlands Union Meeting Apeldoorn 30 October 2011

  2. Opwekking en Hervorming • What comes to your mind when you hear: Opwekking en Hervorming? • Is this an initiative, programme, lifestyle? • What is the reality of life – individual & corporate…? • We tend to get set in our behavioural patterns • We tend to think in models and patterns of thinking

  3. Ideas have a life of their own • Ideas and doctrines have a tendency throughout the years to develop a life of their own • People then do not know anymore what is their origin, but perceive everything through a prism of these ideas and doctrines and are genuinely convinced that this is what the Bible teaches • We do not see the world the way it is, we see the world the way we are. (Talmud)

  4. The Grand Story of the Bible 1 2 5 3 4 6 7 Creation Fall The Promise and the People The Fulfillment in Jesus The Fulfillment and the People Day of the Lord The New Creation Reversal in Christ Promise God’s Blessing Human Evil God’s Curse Seed - Abraham - Israel - David - Kingdom - Exile ALREADY NOT YET

  5. The Bible Story in 7 Stages 2 4 5 6 6 7 1 3 Day of the Lord The Promise and the People The Fulfilment in Jesus The Fulfilment and the People New Creation Creation Creation Fall Transitional Origin of evil Transitional Termination of evil Transitional Remedy of evil Redemptive Response Mercy Salvation Redemption Jesus Judge Jesus Priest Jesus Saviour C R E A T O R C R E A T I O N God’s Blessing D E P E N D E N C E The One David Goal Israel Abraham The Gospel of the Kingdom Seed Evil God’s Curse Condemnation Abandonment Wrath Restraining Response ALREADY Apostolic Past NOT YET Apostolic Future ALREADY Apostolic Present From Paradise Lost to Paradise Restored

  6. The Bible Story in 7 Stages 6 7 1 2 3 4 5 CHRIST’S FULFILLMENT PROMISE STORY Salvation Confirmed Salvation Achieved Salvation Applied Mercy Salvation Redemption God’s Blessing Evil Sin & God’s Curse Kingship Abraham Exodus Exile 586 70 weeks 490 years Judgment Abandonment Wrath ALREADY NOT YET

  7. Martin Luther (1483-1546) • Was a German priest, monk and theology professor • He confronted Johann Tetzel the salesman of indulgences because he strongly disputed the claim that freedom from God’s punishment of sin could be purchased with money • On 31 October 1517 he nailed on the door of Schloss Kirche in Wittenberg his Ninety-Five Thesis as an invitation to disputation • Once translated from Latin into German and distributed widely in printed form, they caused the beginning of reformation in Europe

  8. Reformers’ Understanding • All have sinned (Rom 3:23) • The punishment for sin is death (Rom 6:23) • Jesus paid it all on the cross (2 Cor 5:21) • God does not strike twice – you are free! Therefore: • Sola Scriptura • Sola Gratia • Sola Fide • Solusremptione Christi (or SolusChristus) • Soli Deo Gloria

  9. The Bible Story (Reformers) 6 6 1 2 3 4 5 CHRIST’S FULFILLMENT PROMISE STORY Salvation Confirmed Salvation Achieved Salvation Applied Mercy Salvation Redemption Justification =Sanctification =Perfection God’s Blessing End of the World Human Evil God’s Curse Kingship Abraham Exodus Exile 586 70 weeks 490 years Judgment Abandonment Wrath ALREADY NOT YET

  10. What is the solution? A Heavenly Sphere! -a non-earthly dimension -a spiritual semi-physical existence in heavenly Paradise From Paradise to Heaven? Eternal Heaven End of the world C R E A T O R C R E A T I O N D E P E N D E N C E S o u L At the Resurrection At Death Soul being End of the world Eternal Hell

  11. John Wesley (1703-1791) • A Church of England clergyman – arminian • Founder of Methodism – sanctification • After justification (first work of grace) must come sanctification (second work of grace); thus one can reach full sanctification • Full commitment is the solution for the sin problem • Every day is a test of my commitment • It is possible to reach full sanctification (love) • At the moment of death, the soul reaches full perfection

  12. The Bible Story (Wesley) 6 6 1 2 3 4 5 CHRIST’S FULFILLMENT PROMISE STORY Salvation Confirmed Salvation Achieved Salvation Applied Mercy Salvation Redemption Perfection Sanctification God’s Blessing Justification End of the World Human Evil God’s Curse Kingship Abraham Exodus Exile 586 70 weeks 490 years Judgment Abandonment Wrath ALREADY NOT YET

  13. What is the solution? A Heavenly Sphere! -a non-earthly dimension -a spiritual semi-physical existence in heavenly Paradise From Paradise to Heaven? Eternal Heaven End of the world C R E A T O R C R E A T I O N D E P E N D E N C E S o u L At the Resurrection At Death Soul being End of the world Eternal Hell

  14. Speaking about going to heaven? A Heavenly Sphere! -a non earthly dimension -a spiritual semi-physical existence From Paradise to Heaven? Eternal Heaven End of the world C R E A T O R C R E A T I O N D E P E N D E N C E S o u L At the Resurrection At Death Soul being End of the world Humans are fallen dual beings in need of deliverance: embodied souls – dual beings The hope of the Apostles Was that the end of the world? Was that to leave the world and go to heaven? Is the kingdom of God the eternal kingdom that is in heaven? Eternal Hell

  15. William Miller (1782-1849) • A Baptist farmer • Deist – God not involved with the world • Science, technology, discoveries – Golden age • War of 1812 – Battle of Plattsburg (1814) => • Change of thinking – post-millennialism to pre-millennialism • Carefully studied prophecies for many years • Between 1831-1844 no problem with identity • Wednesday, 23rd October 1844 – The Great Disappointment

  16. Lessons From History • Millerism started as a response to Enlightenment and deism, as a re-thinking movement • As with every re-thinking, it brought some positive results and it also created some confusion • To sort out the confusion, another re-thinking was needed • Out of this re-thinking, Seventh-day Adventism was born and moved forward

  17. The Bible Story (Wesley) 6 6 1 2 3 4 5 CHRIST’S FULFILLMENT PROMISE STORY Salvation Confirmed Salvation Achieved Salvation Applied Mercy Salvation Redemption Perfection Sanctification God’s Blessing Justification End of the World Human Evil God’s Curse Kingship Abraham Exodus Exile 586 70 weeks 490 years Judgment Abandonment Wrath ALREADY NOT YET

  18. The Bible Story (Adventism) 6 6 7 1 2 3 4 5 CHRIST’S FULFILLMENT PROMISE STORY Salvation Confirmed Salvation Achieved Salvation Applied Mercy Salvation Redemption Judgment Close of probation God’s Blessing Day of the Lord Human Evil God’s Curse Kingship Abraham Exodus Exile 586 70 weeks 490 years 1844 Judgment Abandonment Wrath ALREADY NOT YET

  19. Pentecostalism (1901-) • Before the imminent second coming of Christ, an end-time revival will bring many people to Christ. • This experience that will empower believers to evangelize the world is the baptism of the Holy Spirit, which is the Latter Rain experience • The entire sanctification is a definite event. • If God can give you the total sanctification experience, Why not sooner rather than later? • Why not now? – became the rallying cry of Pentecostalism in which mission, speaking in tongues, healing and miracles will start playing a crucial role.

  20. Why are we here? What is the reason for our existence? It used to be clear – After 167 years not so Old formulations do not fit new situations Adventism worked well with short time mentality – If not us, who else will do it for the Lord?

  21. Why are we here? What is the reason for our existence? Are we one of the churches, or do we have a specific mission, that nobody else has? Different solutions have been proposed for the current crisis of identity – the result is Adventism is now more fragmented and polarised than any time of its history!

  22. History of Adventism • 1844-1888 – Eschatology • 1888-1958 – Soteriology • 1958- now – Fragmentation • a) Historic • b) Cultural • c) Mainstream • d) Progressive • e) Evangelical

  23. A Solution for Identity Crisis • New events and new patterns of thinking always cause a crisis of faith, an identity crisis • The only viable solution is re-thinking our faith and identity • Adventism needed to do a re-thinking a few times in its history and so far managed to do it well • The future of Adventism depends on our ability to re-think our identity • If we want to move forward, we need to re-think our faith in every generation

  24. Questions for Discussion • Discuss in a small group: • What leads people today to question their place in the world? What are your current crises of identity? What are the events, books, trends, etc., which shake your identity? • How does the global history of Christianity influence the development of Adventism in your country? • How does the local history of a particular SDA church influence the type of Adventism/ church you find today?

  25. The Ministry of the Holy Spirit To the world: • To convict the world of sin • The presence of Christ through Holy Spirit in the world is a proof that God had not abandoned it to its sinful condition. Because sin continues to thrive, so must continue the work of the Holy Spirit • To convict the world of righteousness • Christ represents the righteousness of God both in his person and in his teaching. This witness for righteousness will be present by the ministry of the Holy Spirit (John 16:8-11)

  26. The Ministry of the Holy Spirit To the world (John 16:8-11): • To convict the world of judgement • All will not accept Spirit’s conviction against sin and for righteousness. The presence of the Spirit is a sign of the defeat of Satan and an indication that the final phase of history (last days) has begun and the end is sure. The judgment of the ruler of this world, which begun at the cross, will become final (Jn 12:30.21; 16:11; Acts 2:16-20)

  27. The Ministry of the Holy Spirit To the Church: • The teaching • The teaching function of the word of God was as foundational to the establishment of the church as it is now to its survival. The early believers “devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching” (Acts 2:42) • The fellowship (koinonia) • The believers not only came to know God in a new way through the apostles’ preaching/teaching; now they came to know each other in a new way of relating to each other. • There were two main components of the corporate life of the church: • Worship (temple and houses) • Communal involvement (mutual edification, caring and accountability)

  28. The Ministry of the Holy Spirit To the Church: • The stewardship • They not only shared faith through apostles’ teaching, shared communal life in fellowship, but also they shared a task – able to care and serve in a new way • Of their own free will, those who were able to do so, shared with those who were less fortunate. The privilege of stewardship took precedence over the right of ownership – the principle of strong helping the weak. The need for repentance and revival is because: We live in a world that destroys community by creating and emphasizing differences and inequalities; rich flourish and poor perish; power is misused to harass and abuse; strong oppress the weak. Church must model a community by minimizing differences and striving for equality (1 Cor 8:13-15)

  29. The Ministry of the Holy Spirit To the Individual: • The Salvation • The Spirit brings conviction to the human conscience. The ensuing process is dependent on the Spirit’s activity and described as a “new birth” (Jn 3:3-5). • The Sanctification • The work of the Holy Spirit is not supposed to stop with receiving God’s salvation. Sanctification is a process of growth and maturing described as restoring God’s image in us. The goal is reproducing God’s character in his children; the effects are defined as the fruit of the Spirit (Gal 5:16-21). • The Service • It is the nature of God to love, give and serve, so the indwelling Holy Spirit will produce the same in the believers. Spiritual gifts is the way we serve in the NT.

  30. So What? Kingdom life is the only life worth living. Live to the fullest, use the gifts you’ve got to serve others! Do not get discouraged when things do not work out the way you planned or expected. The opinion of people around you does not need to determine how you live. For the sake of Kingdom, be the best person you can be! One day you will be happy you did! You will hear: Well done!

  31. So What? • Jesus invites us to live our life in a new dimension, as followers of the Messiah, who are living stones that model new type of community. • Jesus invites us to show the love of God for all people, all creation, in all our pain and trouble, here in history, until He comes. • Jesus wants us to build communities of faith and action around Him as a Messiah and His story [=good news] of the kingdom of God.

  32. Questions for Discussion • Discuss in a small group: • Is it of any significance that Jesus had more to say about serving the poor than about prayer and being born-again together? If yes, what does it mean today to be a follower of Jesus in your particular context? • If the question to be asked at the last judgement is: “What have you done to the little ones?” (Mat 25:40), what changes do we need to make in our emphasis on teaching and living primarily the right doctrines?

  33. Questions for Discussion • Discuss in a small group: • To what extent the movement that had the attribute “re-thinking movement” written in its “birth certificate,” became just an institution that replicates itself and its traditions? • What changes can you see in your current environment in the last 10-15 years? In what way these challenges require a new response? What story are we telling the people around us? • What changes need to take place in your personal and communal life for your local church to experience true “revival and reformation”?

  34. The Way Forward: • Leaders at all levels must model, exemplify and teach discipleship – not as a precondition for being saved, but as a natural development. • Discipleship is something that we experience as a part of community. Otherwise it will deteriorate into unhealthy self-observation that will either make you feel guilty or judgmental.

  35. The Way Forward: 3) Legalism must be avoided by carefully incorporating scriptural, theological, ecclesiastical and psychological aspects of discipleship. 4) Move beyond from simply counting “church membership” on Sabbath morning. Purposely re-orient the church toward bringing people to the point of regeneration and discipleship.

  36. The Way Forward: 5) Reframe spiritual growth from an activity-based approach to a spiritual journey approach. Each person and church needs to develop a spiritual growth plan for their lives. The focus is on the next step. 6) Take into consideration “different strokes for different folks”. Develop therefore key performance indicators for those who are a) Exploring Christianity; b) Growing in getting to know Christ; c) Close to Christ; d) Christ-centred mature believers

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