Scriptures Distinctives and Dynamic
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Scripture’s Distinctives and Dynamic Towards an Asia-Pacific Hermeneutic of Holiness Papers and Reflections from the 2003 Asia-Pacific Regional Theology Conference October 7-9, 2003 Korea Nazarene University Edited by David A. Ackerman © 2004 Asia-Pacific Nazarene Theological Seminary Ortigas Ave. Ext., Kaytikling, Taytay, 1920 Rizal, Philippines Cover Design by Ervin (“Ervz”) Tia of the Asia-Pacific Fairbanks Media Center. All scripture unless otherwise stated is taken from the Holy Bible, New International Version® (NIV). Copyright © 1973, 1978, 1984 by International Bible Society. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations taken from the 21st Century King James Version®, copyright © 1994. Used by permission of Deuel Enterprises, Inc., Gary, SD 57237. All rights reserved. Scripture quotations also taken from Revised Standard Version of the Bible, copyright 1952 [2nd edition, 1971] by the Division of Christian Education of the National Council of the Churches of Christ in the United States of America. Used by permission. All rights reserved. Printed in the Philippines by Faithful Servant Marketing Printers, Inc. ISBN 971-92521-1-1 Table of Contents Dedication ........................................................v Acknowledgments ................................................ vii Introduction David A. Ackerman ........................................... ix Opening Address 1. Scripture, Theology, and the Church Dwight D. Swanson ............................................1 Session 1: Historical Theology 2. A Dialogue between Wesley and Confucius on the Theme of Sanctification Im, Seung-An ................................................14 3. A Response to “Dialogue between Wesley and Confucius” Ben Nacion .................................................38 4. Response: Thomas Dorum ...............................................44 Session 2: Ethics and Theology 5. Doing Empatheology as a Praxis of Holiness Theology: Theological Reading Luke 10:30-37 Chun, Kwang-Don ............................................46 6. The Telos and Pathos of Christlike Kenosis: A Response to “Doing Empatheology as a Praxis of Holiness Theology” Larnie Sam Tabuena ...........................................66 7. A Response to “Doing Empatheology as a Praxis of Holiness Theology” Hitoshi (Paul) Fukue ..........................................74 Plenary Panel Discussion 8. Scripture and Culture in Ministry Mark Hatcher ................................................81 Session 3: Bible 9. The Scriptures as the Book of Sacred Drama of God’s Holy People: Interpreting the Scriptures in Japanese Context Ishida, Manabu ...............................................87 10. A Response to “The Scriptures as the Book of Sacred Drama of God’s Holy People” Gilbert Montecastro ...........................................96 11. A Response to “The Scriptures as the Book of Sacred Drama of God’s Holy People” Simson Sihombing ...........................................100 iii iv Devotional 12. Caution from Biblical Apostasy: Matthew 13:24-30 Julie Detalo ................................................106 Keynote Address 13. Holiness Distinctives Dwight D. Swanson ..........................................111 Session 4: Missiology 14. The “Khit-Pen” Theological Education Model: A New Methodology for Contextualizing Theological Education in Thailand Daniel Saengwichai ..........................................123 15. Response to the “Khit-Pen” Theological Education Model Neville Bartle ...............................................142 16. Response to the “Khit-Pen” Theological Education Model Hong, Ki Young .............................................146 Session 5: Evangelism and Church Growth 17. Evangelism Robert C. Donahue ...........................................151 18. Expansion on Dr. Robert Donahue’s Paper about Evangelism A. Brent Cobb ...............................................169 19. Actualizing Evangelism as a Lifestyle: A Response to Dr. Robert C. Donahue’s Paper on Evangelism Michael P. McCarty ..........................................181 20. Evangelism in a Post-Modern Urban Setting Wing Fai Chan ..............................................186 Special Session on the Spirit World: 21. Articles of Faith and Jesus’ Victory over Satan: Missiological Implications Neville Bartle ...............................................189 22. Jesus’ Victory over the Forces of Evil: A Biblical Perspective David A. Ackerman ...........................................205 23. An Initial Response to Neville Bartle’s “Articles of Faith and Jesus’ Victory over Satan: The Missiological Implications David B. McEwan ............................................218 Devotional 24. The Most Excellent Way Cisca Ireland ...............................................227 Synthesis 25. Scripture’s Distinctives and Dynamic: “Towards” a Synthesis Dwight D. Swanson ..........................................230 Dedication This book is dedicated to the memory of Mark Hatcher who went to meet his Savior on January 28, 2004, due to cancer. Mark was a key participant in the theology conference, and offered important insights into the issues of discussion. Mark and his wife Rovina served as Nazarene missionaries to Korea from 1986 to 1996 and planned to return to the region soon to serve at Asia-Pacific Nazarene Theological Seminary. Mark was completing his doctorate at Asbury Theological Seminary where he was also teaching. May this book and the dialogue it creates continue the mission, of which Mark was a part, of sharing the Good News of Jesus Christ. v Acknowledgments Special appreciation goes to those who participated in this theology conference and those who provided financial assistance to make this conference and book a reality. Korea Nazarene University hosted the conference and generously provided room and board for the participants. The International Board of Education provided a generous grant to assist developing theologians from many countries to attend this conference— something that would be impossible for them to do without this assistance. The Asia-Pacific Region and World Mission Literature made printing of this book possible. vii Introduction A group of over 35 theological educators and church leaders gathered at Korea Nazarene University on October 7-9, 2003, to explore together a most critical topic. The international makeup of this group, representing over ten countries of the Asia-Pacific Region as well as the U.S.A. and United Kingdom, brought a richness to the discussion of how to make Scripture relevant to the peoples of these lands. The conscious, driving force of our conference was to progress towards our goal as disciples of Jesus Christ of guiding people into transforming relationship with God. Theological dialogue provides a solid foundation for the evangelistic mission of the church. One of the significant challenges we face today is taking the message of this relationship as described in the Bible and making it relevant and understandable to cultures and contexts far removed from the cultures of the Bible. Our task as theologians is to find the inner reality and transformative message of Scripture and articulate it to our own contexts without altering that message. We must be faithful to both text and context while preserving the message of Scripture as interpreted by our Wesleyan tradition. Hermeneutics is one essential if not primary step in the process of doing theology. Our theology (and thus preaching and teaching) is determined to some degree by our hermeneutic, and our hermeneutic is guided by theological presuppositions. With the new challenges and opportunities facing the church, a careful look at how we formulate and apply our doctrines is much needed. In an area as diverse as the Asia- Pacific Region, contextualized theology is mandatory, but in this contextualization lies the threat of factionalism or regional theologies that become separated from the larger, global church. The call for world evangelization urges fresh and relevant approaches, but the unity and theological integrity of the church calls for mindful interpretation. This book contains the papers and sermons presented at the conference. The planning committee structured the presentations to come to the topic from a number of disciplines, thus the divisions of this book: historical theology, society and culture, ethics and theology, Bible, missiology, and evangelism and church growth. In this regards, we were attempting to be “Wesleyan” in our method, realizing that the various ix Ackerman: Introduction x disciplines will help us see the bigger picture of the application of scriptural truths. The title of the conference carries significance. The distinct (as in clear and obvious) message of the Bible, we believe, is the desire of the holy God to be in a love relationship with His creatures whom He makes holy through Jesus Christ in response to their faith and obedience. As a denomination, we believe we have been “called unto holiness,” that is, called to remind the global Church about and invite the world to this deeper relationship with God in Christ. If we are to be truly a people of holiness, we must be people of the Word. Even though this is such an important thought, it contains a bit of ambiguity because of the dynamic of interpreting the Bible. The words of Scripture do not change, but their understanding, translation, and application change from one person, language, time, and location to another. The Holy Spirit inspired the original authors but also inspires