An Examination of the Teaching of Missional Concepts of Christian
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Concordia Seminary - Saint Louis Scholarly Resources from Concordia Seminary Doctor of Ministry Major Applied Project Concordia Seminary Scholarship 12-15-2017 An Examination of the Teaching of Missional Concepts of Christian Discipleship and their Potential for Creating an Attitudinal Change at Berea Lutheran Church, Richfield, Minnesota Kevin Tiaden Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://scholar.csl.edu/dmin Part of the Practical Theology Commons Recommended Citation Tiaden, Kevin, "An Examination of the Teaching of Missional Concepts of Christian Discipleship and their Potential for Creating an Attitudinal Change at Berea Lutheran Church, Richfield, Minnesota" (2017). Doctor of Ministry Major Applied Project. 114. https://scholar.csl.edu/dmin/114 This Major Applied Project is brought to you for free and open access by the Concordia Seminary Scholarship at Scholarly Resources from Concordia Seminary. It has been accepted for inclusion in Doctor of Ministry Major Applied Project by an authorized administrator of Scholarly Resources from Concordia Seminary. For more information, please contact [email protected]. AN EXAMINATION OF THE TEACHING OF MISSIONAL CONCEPTS OF CHRISTIAN DISCIPLESHIP AND THEIR POTENTIAL FOR CREATING AN ATTITUDINAL CHANGE AT BEREA LUTHERAN CHURCH, RICHFIELD, MINNESOTA A Major Applied Project Presented to the Faculty of Concordia Seminary, St. Louis, Department of Practical Theology in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Ministry By Rev. Kevin Tiaden November 27, 2017 Approved by Dr. David Peter Advisor Dr. Victor Raj Reader Rev. Benjamin Haupt Reader © 2017 by Kevin Norman Tiaden. All rights reserved. This MAP is dedicated to my beautiful chef/lawyer/wife Kathleen. She walked with me through some very dark times, both personally and professionally, and as a result we are seeing some very blessed days. (Proverbs 31:28–29) The cultural shifts of the past several decades have permeated the Church, and consumerist demand from members upon their leaders is ever-increasing. Leading a church can become such a heavy burden that many pastors leave their churches and forsake their calling. While the Bible clearly defines roles within the Church, the mission of the Church was intended to be shared by the whole body. A healthy church builds a discipling culture and equips all members to participate in the missional work to which God has called them. Mike Breen and the 3DM Team, “Building A Discipling Culture,” 113. CONTENTS ILLUSTRATIONS ....................................................................................................................... xi TABLES ...................................................................................................................................... xii PREFACE ................................................................................................................................... xiii ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ........................................................................................................ xiv CHRONOLOGY......................................................................................................................... xvi GLOSSARY .............................................................................................................................. xvii EDITORIAL METHOD ........................................................................................................... xviii ABSTRACT ................................................................................................................................ xix CHAPTER ONE ............................................................................................................................ 1 THE PROJECT INTRODUCED .......................................................................................... 1 THE PROBLEM ................................................................................................................... 2 THE PURPOSE OF THE PROJECT ................................................................................... 8 THE ORIGINAL PROCESS ................................................................................................ 9 THE PROCESS .................................................................................................................. 10 PRESUPPOSITIONS ......................................................................................................... 14 SUMMARY ........................................................................................................................ 16 CHAPTER TWO ......................................................................................................................... 17 BIBLICAL AND THEOLOGICAL FOUNDATION ........................................................ 17 WHAT IS MISSIONAL? ................................................................................................... 17 WHAT IS A DISCIPLE IN THE BOOK OF ACTS? ........................................................ 21 WHAT ARE THE MISSIONAL CONCEPTS OF DISCIPLE MAKING?....................... 31 vi UP .............................................................................................................................. 34 OUT ........................................................................................................................... 35 IN ............................................................................................................................... 38 SUMMARY ........................................................................................................................ 43 CHAPTER THREE ..................................................................................................................... 45 RECENT RESEARCH ....................................................................................................... 45 STRUCTURES OF MINISTRY ........................................................................................ 46 CHANGE IN THE PARADIGM ....................................................................................... 55 HOW THE CHURCH TEACHES ..................................................................................... 62 SUMMARY ........................................................................................................................ 70 CHAPTER FOUR ........................................................................................................................ 72 THE PROJECT DEVELOPED .......................................................................................... 72 MAIN RESOURCES .......................................................................................................... 73 RESEARCH METHODOLOGY ....................................................................................... 74 MY ORIGINAL STEPS ..................................................................................................... 74 CHANGING THE BEREA MISSION STATEMENT ...................................................... 77 Evaluation Team ........................................................................................................ 79 Implementation Time Line ........................................................................................ 80 SUMMARY ........................................................................................................................ 83 CHAPTER FIVE ......................................................................................................................... 84 THE PROJECT EVALUATED ......................................................................................... 84 ORIGINAL GROUP........................................................................................................... 84 FINDINGS OF THE PROJECT ITSELF ........................................................................... 86 vii SUMMARY ........................................................................................................................ 95 CHAPTER SIX ............................................................................................................................ 97 SUMMARY AND CONCLUSION ................................................................................... 97 RESOURCES ..................................................................................................................... 97 CONCLUSIONS ................................................................................................................ 98 UNEXPECTED GOD STUFF ......................................................................................... 101 DID IT MEET MY EXPECTATIONS? ........................................................................... 103 CONCLUSION ................................................................................................................. 104 APPENDIX ONE....................................................................................................................... 106 OUTLINE OF CLASS...................................................................................................... 106 APPENDIX TWO ...................................................................................................................... 108 QUESTIONNAIRE ABOUT CLASS ON DISCIPLESHIP ............................................ 108 APPENDIX THREE .................................................................................................................