Foundations of the World Christian Movement: a Larger Perspective
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FOUNDATIONS OF THE WORLD CHRISTIAN MOVEMENT: A LARGER PERSPECTIVE Course Reader REVISED EDITION INSTITUTE OF INTERNATIONAL STUDIES FOUNDATIONS OF THE WORLD CHRISTIAN MOVEMENT: A LARGER PERSPECTIVE Tis Course Reader is specifically designed for use in the Foundations of the World Christian Movement course. FOUNDATIONS OF THE WORLD CHRISTIAN MOVEMENT: A LARGER PERSPECTIVE – COURSE READER, Revised Edition – RALPH D. WINTER, General Editor Beth Snodderly, Associate Editor INSTITUTE OF INTERNATIONAL STUDIES Pasadena, CA © 2009 © Copyright 2009 by the Institute of International Studies All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form without written permission, except in the case of brief quotations embodied in critical articles and reviews. Published by Institute of International Studies 1539 E. Howard Street Pasadena, California 91104 uscwm.org/IIS.html (626) 398-2106 Library of Congress cataloging Foundations of the World Christian Movement: A Larger Perspective. A Course Reader, Revised Edition Printed in the United States of America Foundations of the World Christian Movement: A Larger Perspective Course Reader Te Kingdom Strikes Back - Ralph D. Winter ......................................................................................................... 7 Te Story of the Battle for Our Planet: Declaring God’s Glory among All Peoples - compiled by Beth Snodderly ........................................ 25 A Summary of Ralph D. Winter’s Warfare Missiology - compiled by Beth Snodderly ............. 33 Overview of the Mysteries - Ralph D. Winter ......................................................................................................... 37 Te Christian and Old Testament Teology - Ralph D. Winter ................................................................. 41 The “First Chapter” of the Bible, I - Ralph D. Winter ...................................................................................................... 47 “Historification” of the Big Picture - Ralph D. Winter ..................................................................................... 51 Te People of God and the Other Nations - Roberta H. Winter ................................................................ 57 Exegesis and Hermeneutics of Isaiah 49:1-6 - Ralph D. Winter ................................................................. 63 Te Times of the Gentiles - Walter Russell ................................................................................................................. 69 Reshaping History: Alexander the Great and Global Civilization - Ralph D. Winter .............. 75 Te Post-Exilic Period - Ralph D. Winter .................................................................................................................. 79 Te Political Landscape and Jewish Messianism - Walter B. Russell ...................................................... 83 Some Toughts on the Significance of the Post-Exilic Period - Ralph D. Winter ........................ 97 Te Gospels from a Global Perspective - Ralph D. Winter .......................................................................... 101 Te Challenge of the Kingdom - N. T. Wright ....................................................................................................... 107 Te Growth of the Church in Judea and Samaria: Acts 3–12 - Ralph D. Winter .......................... 117 Paul’s Letter to the Romans - Ralph D. Winter .................................................................................................... 121 Paul’s Middle Missionary Letters - Ralph D. Winter ....................................................................................... 139 Issues in the New Testament Church - Ralph D. Winter and James Emery ..................................... 145 Te First Four Hundred Years (0–400 AD) - Ralph D. Winter .................................................................. 153 Disciples of All Nations - Philip Jenkins .................................................................................................................... 159 Te Second Four Hundred Years (AD 400–800) - Ralph D. Winter ...................................................... 173 Te Two Structures of God’s Redemptive Mission - Ralph D. Winter ................................................ 179 Te Tird Four Hundred Years (AD 800–1200) - Ralph D. Winter ........................................................ 189 Te Significance of Medieval Christianity - Lynn T. White, Jr. ................................................................ 195 Te Fourth Four Hundred Years (AD 1200–1600) - Ralph D. Winter .................................................. 211 Te Fifth Expansion - Ralph D. Winter ...................................................................................................................... 215 Te Evangelical Awakening - Ralph D. Winter .................................................................................................... 219 Student Movements in Missions - Ralph D. Winter ......................................................................................... 223 Four Men, Tree Eras, Two Transitions: Modern Missions - Ralph D. Winter ............................ 229 Te Retreat of the West - Ralph D. Winter .............................................................................................................. 237 Te Legacy of Edinburgh, 1910 - Ralph D. Winter ............................................................................................ 241 To the New Asian Society of Missiology: Greetings from the West - Ralph D. Winter .......... 247 Te Kingdom Era Is Now - Ralph D. Winter .......................................................................................................... 253 I Was Bombed by an Explosive Idea! - Ralph D. Winter ................................................................................ 257 A History of Transformation - Paul Pierson ............................................................................................................ 261 Twelve Frontiers of Perspective - Ralph D. Winter ............................................................................................ 267 Churchless Christianity - Ralph D. Winter ............................................................................................................. 283 Te Analysis of a Movement - Ralph D. Winter................................................................................................... 287 Te Role of Western Missions in the 21st Century - Ralph D. Winter ............................................. 299 Making Sense to Today’s Scientists - Ralph D. Winter ................................................................................... 303 Where Darwin Scores Higher Tan Intelligent Design - Ralph D. Winter .................................... 309 Join the World Christian Movement - Ralph D. Winter ................................................................................ 313 A Blindspot in Western Christianity? - Ralph D. Winter .............................................................................. 319 Teologizing Prehistory: Implications for Mission - Ralph D. Winter ............................................... 323 Te Warfare Missiology of Ralph D. Winter - Beth Snodderly ................................................................ 329 Shalom: Te Goal of the Kingdom and of International Development - Beth Snodderly ...... 343 Te Story of Our Planet - Ralph D. Winter ........................................................................................................... 351 Te Kingdom Strikes Back: Ten Epochs of Redemptive History Ralph D. Winter an has virtually erased his own story. Hu- written records—surviving documents that are respect- man beings as far back as we have any ed by Jewish, Christian and Muslim traditions whose paleological record have been fighting each adherents make up more than half of the world’s popu- Mother so much that they have destroyed well over 90 lation. Tese documents called “the Torah,” by Jews, percent of their own handiwork. Teir libraries, their the “Books of the Law” by Christians, and “the Taurat” literature, their cities, their works of art are mostly by Muslims not only explain the strange source of evil gone. Even the little that remains from the distant past but also describe a counter-campaign and then follow is riddled with evidences of a strange and pervasive evil the progress of that campaign through many centuries. that has grotesquely distorted man’s potential. To be specific, the first eleven chapters of Genesis Tis is strange because apparently no other species constitute a scary “introduction” to the entire problem, treats its own with such deadly hatred. Te oldest indeed, to the plot of the entire Bible. Tose few pages skulls bear mute witness that they were bashed in and describe three things: 1) a glorious and “good” original roasted to deliver their contents as food for other hu- creator; 2) the entrance of a rebellious and destructive man beings. An incredible array of disease germs also evil—superhuman, demonic person—resulting in 3) cuts down population growth. a humanity caught up in that rebellion and brought under the power of that evil person. World population in Abraham’s day is estimated at 27 million—less than the population of California in AD Don’t ever think that the whole remainder of the Bible 2000. But, the small slow-growing population of Abra- is simply a bundle of divergent,