Koinonia in the New Testament with an Investigation of the State of Koinonia in Seven Korean Seventh-Day Adventist Churches in United States
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Andrews University Digital Commons @ Andrews University Dissertation Projects DMin Graduate Research 1979 Koinonia In The New Testament With An Investigation Of The State Of Koinonia In Seven Korean Seventh-day Adventist Churches In United States Hyun Chul Shin Andrews University Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.andrews.edu/dmin Part of the Practical Theology Commons Recommended Citation Shin, Hyun Chul, "Koinonia In The New Testament With An Investigation Of The State Of Koinonia In Seven Korean Seventh-day Adventist Churches In United States" (1979). Dissertation Projects DMin. 388. https://digitalcommons.andrews.edu/dmin/388 This Project Report is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate Research at Digital Commons @ Andrews University. It has been accepted for inclusion in Dissertation Projects DMin by an authorized administrator of Digital Commons @ Andrews University. For more information, please contact [email protected]. NOTE This Doctor of Ministry Project report falls in a category described in the Seminary Bulletin as "Project II" in fulfillment of requirements for an alternate curriculum plan under which the candidate prepares too related papers— a theological position paper addressing some issue or problem in Koinonia in the New Testament, and a professional paper addressing this issue or problem from the standpoint of ministerial praxtice. Andrews University Seventh-day Adventist Theological Seminary KOINONIA IN THE NEW TESTAMENT WITH AN INVESTIGATION OF THE STATE OF KOINONIA IN SEVEN KOREAN SEVENTH-DAY ADVENTIST CHURCHES IN UNITED STATES A Project Presented in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree Doctor of Ministry by Hyun Chul Shin April 1979 KOINONIA IN THE NEW TESTAMENT WITH AM INVESTIGATION OF THE STATE OF KOINONIA IN SEVEN KOREAN SEVENTH-DAY ADVENTIST CHURCHES IN UNITED STATES A Project Presented in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree Doctor of Ministry by Hyun Cnul Shin APPROVAL BY THE COMMITTEE Robert M. Johnson, Chairperson Dean, SDA Theological Seminary / \j ( i Arnold A. Kurtz U /-El ^ ISdeii m ! Chalmers Z a ) 1-"^ f _ --/i / Thomas H. Blincoe DEDICATION My dear Parents, wife, Soonwha, and four lovely children, Kyung-Chun, Sung-Rae, Sung-Hi and Guk-Chun. TABLE OF CONTENTS NOTE DEDICATION LIST OF TABLES ...................................... vi ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS.................... ........................ vii GENERAL INTRODUCTION ........................................ viii PART ONE KOINONIA IN THE NEW TESTAMENT Chapter I. INTRODUCTION ................................ 1 II. KOINONIA AND THE TRINITY.......... .......... .......... 8 Koinonia with God the Father . ....................... 9 Koinonia with Jesus Christ, the S o n .......... .. 11 Koinonia: As Eucharistic Participation .............. 13 Koinonia with Christ in an Eschatological Sense . 14 Koinonia with the Holy S p i r i t ...................... 15 III. KOINONIA: ECCLESIOLOGICAL AND SOCIAL LIFE . ......... 19 Mutuality in Koinonia .............................. 20 Koinonia in the Early Christian Community .......... 22 CONCLUSION ................................................ 32 PART TWO AN INVESTIGATION OF THE STATE OF KOINONIA IN SEVEN KOREAN SEVENTH-DAY ADVENTIST CHURCHES IN THE UNITED STATES I. INTRODUCTION ................ 35 II. EXPRESSIONS OF KOINONIA IN THE CHURCHES . ........ 38 Verbal and Nonverbal Expressions of Christian Love . 39 iv Verbal and Nonverbal Expressions of Christian Greetings ....... .............................. 40 The Need for Koinonia through Church Meetings and Fellowship........................................ 42 Level of Christian Joy at Meetings.................. 43 Participation in the Lord's Supper ........ .. 45 Koinonia through Eating Together .................. 46 Quality of Christian Dialogue among Members ........ 47 Koinonia through Material Sharing and Contribu tion . ........................................... 48 Open-Ended Questions and Random Selections ...... 50 III. CONCLUSION AND RECOMMENDATION............. 55 APPENDIX 1 60 APPENDIX 2 72 APPENDIX 3 ............ .................................. 99 BIBLIOGRAPHY . .......................................... 101 VITA ................................... 107 v LIST OF TABLES Seven Korean Churches and Distribution, Collection of Questionnaires (Numbers and in Percentages) . 4 Information about Respondents (in Numbers and Percentages) .................................. 5 Verbal Expressions of Christian Love ............ .. 39 Acts of Christian L o v e ........................ .. 40 Verbal Expressions of Christian Greetings ........ 41 Nonverbal Expressions of Greetings (e.g. Hand shaking) .......... ............................ 42 Level of Christian Joy at Meetings , . ............ 44 Regular Attendance at Meetings .................... 44 The Rates of Attendance at Meetings and Income Ranges .......... .............................. 46 Participation in the Lord's Supper ................ 47 Members Sharing Meals Together .................. 48 The Quality of Christian Dialogue ................ 49 Material Sharing among Members .... .......... 50 Participation in Giving Offerings ................ 51 vi ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The author wishes to thank his Seminary teachers, but most es pecially his advisors on this thesis, Dr. Robert Johnston, Dr. Arnold Kurtz, Chairman of the Doctor of Ministry program, Dr. Elden Chalmers, Professor of Pastoral Care and Nuture, and Dr. Thomas M. Blincoe, Dean of the S.D.A. Theological Seminary. Included in his thanks is his wife, Soon Wha, who assisted with the research by typing and editing of the thesis. The writer's son, Kyung Chun, and daughters, Sung Rae, .Sung Hi and Gook Chun, also deserve credit for their help on this, pro ject. The researcher is also, indebted to the pastors, elders, offi cers, and members of the seven Korean churches who were cooperative and helpful in this study. A word of. thanks is also due to the leaders of the Far Eastern Division, the Korean Union Mission and Korean Union College. All have lent their support and assistance during the writer's stay at the Semi nary . Finally, deep appreciation is extended to the researcher's aged parents who encouraged him with unceasing prayer while waiting for him and his family to return to Korea. viii GENERAL INTRODUCTION This study consists of two parts. Part I is in the form of a theological position paper entitled: Koinonia in the New Testament. Part II proceeds to investigate the state of Koinonia in selected Korean Seventh-day Adventist Churches in the United States. PART I KOINONIA IN THE NEW TESTAMENT CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION The total message of the Bible teaches that God's plan of re demption means not only restoration of man to His image but also com munication between God and man, and between man and man. The original purpose of God's creation is fellowship with His creatures in love. But man transgressed God's will. He became isolated from God and from joyful fellowship. Every phase of human relationship has been broken vertically and horizontally. Jesus Christ is the communicator and mediator between God and man. He established the basis for true fel lowship between man and man. Hence true communication is a prime con cern of our age, particularly in the church. It is the purpose of this study (1) better to understand the New Testament concept of koinonia: the Biblical and theological mean ings, as well as the experience of koinonia in the life of the saints in the New Testament community; (2) to contribute to the understanding of the meaning of Biblical fellowship, communication, participation, sharing, contributions, and common life as the meanings of Biblical koinonia; (3) to discover the life style of true Christian community as it relates to divine fellowship, liturgy, and sharing on the human level within the church, the body of Christ; and (A) to point out ap- 1 2 plications relevant to contemporary Christian life of the fellowship, togetherness, involvement, unity, and Christian warmth reflected in relevant Biblical passages. The second study is a comparison of the community life in the early church in the New Testament with that of several immigrant Kore an churches in the United States. Its first objective is to investi gate the atmosphere of fellowship in these Korean churches. The re sulting information should be of help to those who counsel, preach to, and interact with the members of the Korean churches in the United states. Its second objective is to further the church leadership's understanding of the dynamics of church community and the best possi ble ways to improve it. If pastors, lay leaders, and church members all engage in planning, encouraging, and promoting Christian koinonia, then this study will be able to provide them with the insight and the techniques that will enable them to carry out the work of preparing a truly unified church for the second coming of Jesus. The study includes directly and indirectly related Biblical passages which were analyzed and organized, proceeding with the fol lowing steps: (a) careful study of passages employing the word koinonia, (b) clarification of the various meanings of koinonia, also indicating relationships, (c) analysis of related Biblical texts, and (d) interpretation. Relevant theological secondary sources were surveyed as well as the writings of Ellen G. White. The second paper is based upon the earlier one entitled Koinonia in the New Testament, which provided the-framework