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Charismatic Revival and the Mission of the Church

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Charismatic Revival and the Mission of the Church ABSTRACT CHARISMATIC REVIVAL AND THE MISSION OF THE CHURCH by J. Edward Crenshaw Revivals are, by nature, a disruption in the church’s status quo. The charismatic revivals of the 1990s, predominantly centered at Toronto Airport Christian Fellowship in Toronto, Canada, and Brownsville Assembly of God in Pensacola, Florida, touched many churches. Historically, revivals have had the positive fruit of restoring the very necessary experiential aspects of the Christian faith. At the same time, revivals have also included aberrations, errors, and excesses. The charismatic revivals of the 1990s were no exception. The purpose of this study was to explore the relationship between pastors’ perceptions of positive and negative impact of revival, and the church’s ability to maintain its biblical mission and nature in revival. These variables were studied through a selection survey that elicited responses on degree of revival impact, degree of positive impact, and degree of negative impact. Semi-formal interviews were conducted with pastors with a tenure of at least ten years in churches of at least one hundred attendance and who agreed that their churches were significantly impacted by the revival. The operating hypothesis was that pastors of churches that were able to maintain a focus on their mission and biblical nature during revival would have a healthier perception of the impact of the revival. The hypothesis was based on the premise that revival is not an end in itself but a catalyst to enable the church to fulfill the purposes of God for the church. The study upheld the hypothesis and offered insights on healthy revival spirituality. DISSERTATION APPROVAL This is to certify that the dissertation entitled CHARISMATIC REVIVAL AND THE MISSION OF THE CHURCH presented by J. Edward Crenshaw has been accepted towards fulfillment of the requirements of the DOCTOR OF MINISTRY degree at Asbury Theological Seminary April 24, 2006 Mentor Date April 24, 2006 Internal Reader Date April 24, 2006 Representative, Doctor of Ministry Program Date April 24, 2006 Dean, Doctor of Ministry Program Date CHARISMATIC REVIVAL AND THE MISSION OF THE CHURCH A Dissertation Proposal Presented to the Faculty of Asbury Theological Seminary In Partial Fulfillment Of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Ministry by J. Edward Crenshaw May 2006 © 2006 J. Edward Crenshaw ALL RIGHTS RESERVED TABLE OF CONTENTS LIST OF TABLES........................................................................................................... viii LIST OF FIGURES ............................................................................................................ix ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS.................................................................................................x CHAPTER 1: PROBLEM Background of the Study .........................................................................................1 The Problem.................................................................................................5 The Purpose Stated......................................................................................7 Research Questions......................................................................................7 Definitions ...................................................................................................8 Context...................................................................................................................10 Methodology..........................................................................................................12 Subjects......................................................................................................13 Variables....................................................................................................13 Instrumentation..........................................................................................14 Delimitations and Generalizability............................................................14 Overview of the Study...........................................................................................15 CHAPTER 2: LITERATURE..........................................................................................16 Biblical Foundations of Revival ............................................................................17 The Old Testament ....................................................................................17 The New Testament...................................................................................18 The Nature of Revival ...........................................................................................18 The Normal State of the Church................................................................18 Seasons of Revival.....................................................................................20 iii Renewal or Revival....................................................................................22 Response to Revival..................................................................................25 Experience of Revival................................................................................26 The Necessity of Revival.......................................................................................27 The Necessity of Experiential Christianity................................................27 Institutionalization and Spiritual Decline..................................................30 Sin and Repentance....................................................................................34 Cultural Issues in Revival......................................................................................36 A Changed Cultural Environment .............................................................37 Additional Environmental Considerations................................................38 An Adaptable Church................................................................................38 Enculturation..............................................................................................39 Excesses and Aberrations in Revival.....................................................................43 No Perfect Revival.....................................................................................44 Reality and Appearance.............................................................................45 Opposition..................................................................................................47 Demonic Attack from Within....................................................................48 Pride...........................................................................................................49 Anti-Institutionalism..................................................................................50 Discontinuity with Tradition......................................................................52 Doctrinal Sloppiness..................................................................................54 Experientialism..........................................................................................57 The Routinization of Feelings and Manifestations....................................59 The Value of Constructive Critique.......................................................................61 iv Biblical Principles of Revival Leadership .............................................................62 The Role of the Holy Spirit .......................................................................63 Luke-Acts ..................................................................................................64 1 Corinthians..............................................................................................73 John Wesley’s Revival Leadership........................................................................84 Wesley’s Synthesis....................................................................................85 Theologian of Experience..........................................................................86 Manifestations of Revival..........................................................................87 Enthusiasm Confronted.............................................................................89 The Authority of Scripture.........................................................................92 Scriptural Mission......................................................................................92 Love as the Balance...................................................................................94 Love in Action...........................................................................................95 The Good Work of Saving Souls...............................................................98 Structured for Revival..............................................................................100 The Mission of the Church ..................................................................................102 The Passionate Pursuit of On-Purpose Revival: A Summary .............................105 CHAPTER 3: METHODOLOGY………. ....................................................................108 Research Questions…………..............................................................................109 Research Question 1................................................................................109 Research Question 2................................................................................109 Research Question 3................................................................................109
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