Die koninkryk van God in die Ou Testament: ’n Kort oorsig

2021 ◽  
Vol 55 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Daniel F. O'Kennedy
Keyword(s):  
Old Testament ◽  
Kingdom Of God ◽  
Church Leaders ◽  
Real Difference ◽  
Central Concept ◽  
The Past ◽  
To Come ◽  
Psalm 22 ◽  
The Church ◽  
Technical Terms

The kingdom of God in the Old Testament: A brief survey. The kingdom of God is a central concept in the teaching of Jesus, but the question posed by this article is the following: What does the Old Testament say about the kingdom of God? Several Old Testament terms convey the concept of kingdom, kingship and rule of God. This article focuses on the Hebrew and Aramaic ‘technical’ terms for kingdom: mamlākâ, malkût, mělûkâ and malkû. One finds only a few Old Testament references where these terms are directly connected to God, most of them in the post-exilic literature: 1 Chronicles 17:14; 28:5; 29:11; 2 Chronicles 13:8; Psalm 22:29; 103:19; 145:11–13; Daniel 2:44; 3:33 (4:3); 4:31 (4:34); 6:27; 7:14, 18, 27; Obadiah 21. A brief study of these specific references leads to a few preliminary conclusions: The kingdom of God refers to a realm and the reign of God, the God of the kingdom is depicted in different ways, God’s kingdom is eternal and incomparable with earthly kingdoms, the scope of the kingdom is particularistic and universalistic, the Old Testament testifies about a kingdom that is and one that is yet to come, et cetera. It seems that there is no real difference when comparing the ‘kingdom of God’ with the ‘God is King’ passages. One cannot unequivocally declare that ‘kingdom of God’ is the central concept in the Old Testament. However, we must acknowledge that Jesus’s teaching about the kingdom of God did not evolve in a vacuum. His followers probably knew about the Old Testament perspective on the kingdom of God.Contribution: The concept ‘kingdom of God’ is relevant for the church in South Africa, especially congregations who strive to be missional. Unfortunately, the Old Testament perspective was neglected in the past. The purpose of this brief survey is to stimulate academics and church leaders in their further reflection on the kingdom of God.

In Search of a Foundation for Christian Ethics

1970 ◽  
Vol 23 (2) ◽  
pp. 157-165
Author(s):  
S. H. Russell
Keyword(s):  
Practical Theology ◽  
Practical Wisdom ◽  
Kingdom Of God ◽  
Christian Ethics ◽  
Moral Judgments ◽  
The Past ◽  
To Come ◽  
Blue Print ◽  
The Church

At the present time the Church is frequently exhorted to give an ethical lead. Yet what would be the nature of such direction—the dissemination of practical wisdom from the Scriptures, the provision of a blue-print for the realisation of the Kingdom of God on earth, or just emotional encouragement to moral effort? Theological colleges offer courses on ‘Christian Ethics’, and for certain degrees there are papers bearing this title, yet what exactly is the nature of the discipline? Is it any more than the retailing of the moral judgments of distinguished Christians in the past, and information concerning certain important areas of life in regard to which Christians ought to come to some sort of practical decision? Is Christian Ethics a discipline at all, or just an unmapped, and possibly an unmappable, field between dogmatics and practical theology?

Practising piety in a (post-) pandemic time: A spatial reading of piety in Psalm 66 from the perspectives of memory and bodily imagery

2021 ◽  
Vol 77 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Lodewyk Sutton
Keyword(s):  
Old Testament ◽  
Social Anthropology ◽  
The Past ◽  
Body Imagery ◽  
Research Article ◽  
Global Pandemic ◽  
Practical Theological ◽  
The Individual ◽  
Exodus Narrative ◽  
The Church

Situated in the larger collection of Psalms 51–72, also known as the second Davidic Psalter, the smaller group of Psalms 65–68 is found. This smaller collection of psalms can be classified mostly as psalms of praise and thanksgiving. The relation and compositional work in this cluster of psalms become apparent on many points in the pious expressions between groups and persons at prayer, especially in the universal praise of God, and in the imagery referring to the exodus, the Jerusalem cult and blessing. Such piety becomes most discernible in the imagery and expressions in Psalm 66. The psalm’s two main sections may be described as praise, with verses 1–12 being praise by the group or the ‘we’, and verses 13–20 being praise by the individual or the ‘I’. Personal or individual piety and private piety are expressed by the desire of the ‘we’ and the ‘I’, and the experienced immediacy to God by transposing the past into the present through the memory of the exodus narrative, the Jerusalem cultic imagery and the use of body imagery. In this research article, an understanding of piety in Psalm 66 in terms of the memory of past events and body imagery is discussed from a perspective of space and appropriated for a time of (post-) pandemic where normal or traditional ecclesiological formal practices cannot take place.Contribution: This article makes an interdisciplinary contribution based on knowledge from the Psalms in the Old Testament, social anthropology, literary spatial theories and practical theological perspectives on the church in order to contribute to the relevance and practice of theology today, during a time of turmoil and a global pandemic.

scholarly journals Golem i Lewiatan. Judaistyczne źródła teologii politycznej Thomasa Hobbesa

Politeja ◽  
2019 ◽  
Vol 16 (2(59)) ◽  
pp. 207-232
Author(s):  
Tomasz Tulejski ◽  
Arnold Zawadzki
Keyword(s):  
Political Philosophy ◽  
Political Theology ◽  
Kingdom Of God ◽  
The State ◽  
Rabbinic Judaism ◽  
To Come ◽  
The Church

Golem and Leviathan: Judaic Sources of Thomas Hobbes’s Political Theology In the article, the Authors point out that Hobbes’s political philosophy (and in fact theology) in the heterodox layer is inspired not only by Judeo-Christianity, but also by rabbinic Judaism. According to them, only adopting such a Judaic and in a sense syncretistic perspective enabled Hobbes to come to such radical conclusions, hostile towards the Catholic and Calvinist conceptions of the state and the Church. In their argument they focused on three elements that are most important for Hobbesian concept of sovereignty: the covenant between YHWH and the Chosen People, the concept of the Kingdom of God, salvation and the afterlife, and the concept of a messiah.

scholarly journals Kristi Genkomst og kødets opstandelse. Det eskatogiske hos Grundtvig

1950 ◽  
Vol 3 (1) ◽  
pp. 7-56
Author(s):  
C. I. Scharling
Keyword(s):  
Human Life ◽  
Kingdom Of God ◽  
The Body ◽  
Essential Point ◽  
Life And Death ◽  
The Future ◽  
To Come ◽  
Personal Understanding ◽  
The Church ◽  
Second Coming

The Second Coming of Christ and the Resurrection of the Body. Grundtvigs Eschatology. By C. I. Scharling. This essay shows how Grundtvig, in contrast to his contemporaries in the Church, laid great stress upon the eschatological hope of the future. He may have been partly inspired by Scandinavian mythology (the myth of Ragnarok) and partly by Schellings theories about the great drama of existence (the coming forth of ideas from the Absolute and their returning thither). But the essential point is that the eschatological hope grew forth naturally from his personal understanding of life and death, of the meaning and object of human life, and from his faith in the living, risen Christ as Lord and victor over the powers of darkness and death. It is remarkable that while after 1825 Grundtvig lived with such intensity in the experience of the realisation of the Kingdom of God here and now in the Church’s fellowship with the risen, present Saviour, at the same time, both in his hymns and in his preaching, he gives such powerful expression to the eschatological hope of the future. The author finds the explanation of this in the fact that for Grundtvig (unlike many others) it was not the need and distress of the time that gave life to the Biblical promises of the Second Coming of Christ and the setting*up of the Kingdom of Glory at the Last Day, but his very joy in God’s great Salvation, experienced in the Church. Thus the peculiar thing about Grundtvig’s eschatological expectation is that the tidings of the Second Coming of the Lord are for him an evangel in the full sense of the word; his feelings about the Last Day are far removed from the feeling of fear and horror which meets us in many of the mediaeval frescoes of the Lord’s Return to Judgment or in the old hymn, “Dies irae, dies ilia”. Characteristic of him, too, is his stress on the contin uity between the present world, which came into being at the Creation, and the world to come; the old world shall not be destroyed, but reborn and transfigured; its for this reason that he lays so much stress on faith in the resurrection of the body. On the other hand the author rejects the theory put forward by the Norwegian writer, Paulus Svendsen, that Grundtvig was a Chiliast and “believed in an external, perfect Kingdom of God on earth” ; he refutes it by reference to the fact that Grundtvig explicitly rejected Edward Irving’s conception of the millennium.

scholarly journals AGENTS IN THE PROCESS OF INCULTURATION: FRIEND OR FOE?

2020 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 1
Author(s):  
Okelloh Ogera
Keyword(s):  
Integrated Approach ◽  
Church Leaders ◽  
Human Beings ◽  
African Christianity ◽  
The Past ◽  
The People ◽  
Simple Question ◽  
The Subject ◽  
The Church

Purpose: This article looks at the role played by agents: the people responsible for articulating and implementing inculturation in Africa. The article asks the simple question of are these agents useful or a hindrance in the process of inculturation? The article begins by identifying these agents then discusses the challenges they face in the process of inculturation. The article concludes by giving a way forward and that is an integrated approach in inculturation.Methodology: This study will review the available literature on the subject with a view to examining what previous research says concerning the role of the agents, that is human beings, in the process of inculturation. This was done with the main objective of examining the challenges that he agents of inculturation face, and concluding by exploring an integrated approach to inculturation, where all the agents are brought on board. Findings: This study found out that if inculturation is to truly take root in African Christianity, it must bring on board all actors, not just Church leaders, and trained theologians, but also the laity. All these actors also need to overcome some of the challenges that have hindered the prospects of inculturation which include but not limited to fear of syncretism, lack of enthusiasm by some Church leaders, answering the question of culture in a post-modern and globalized world.Unique Contribution to Theory, Practice and Policy: This paper will offer unique contributions to policies and practices governing the attempts to make the Church in Africa truly African by proposing a re-evaluation of the way inculturation has been carried out in the past. This has tended to be spearheaded by professional theologians and some church leaders, neglecting the biggest constituency in the entire process, and that is the consumer of inculturational processes; the laity.

Augustine and Pentecostals

Pneuma ◽  
2015 ◽  
Vol 37 (2) ◽  
pp. 262-280
Author(s):  
Derek M. Geerlof
Keyword(s):  
Old Testament ◽  
The Past ◽  
Triune God ◽  
In Christ ◽  
The Church ◽  
Figurative Interpretation

This essay interacts with Augustine’s figurative interpretation of Ps 142 and a pentecostal priority to experience God in ways analogous to experience found within the narratives of Scripture. Contending that the Psalms are both historical and prophecy-fulfilled-in-Christ, Augustine interprets Ps 142 within the dual histories of David and Christ. This grounds his figurative interpretation firmly within scriptural narratives while providing a means of viewing the psalm as the prayerful expression of Christ’s own experience. His theology of the totus Christus then unites the experiences of the church and Christ, ensuring that Christian interpretation of an Old Testament experience does not bypass Christ. The telos of interpretation does not reside in the past, but in the present transformation and encounter of the church with the triune God.

scholarly journals Pengajaran Eskatologi dalam Pendidikan Agama Kristen di Sekolah

2020 ◽  
Vol 1 (1) ◽  
pp. 15-26
Author(s):  
Simsoni Yosua Daud Patola ◽  
Oda Judithia Widianing
Keyword(s):  
Christian Education ◽  
Old Testament ◽  
School Environment ◽  
Talent Development ◽  
Dominant Focus ◽  
The Past ◽  
Education Material ◽  
Life Saving ◽  
The New Testament ◽  
The Church

AbstractAn essential aspect of the doctrine of escatology is futuristic fact, namely the disclosure of a number of events that will occur in the future through prophecy in the past. For this reason Bible prophecy is the dominant focus in the investigation and discussion of the doctrine of eschatology.  Eschatology is the most important doctrine that must be taught in the church, family, and school environment as Christian education material, the Doctrine of Eschatology is very important taught to students in schools, so that they understand it and take the attitude to repent and believe in Jesus Christ and obtain life-saving work. Everlasting, now while still alive on earth and later when Jesus comes the second time to pick up every believer By knowing eschatology, students can prepare themselves spiritually with a strong faith that Jesus will come a second time to pick up believers in the resurrection from the first stage of the dead and those who are still alive will experience the rapture to heaven. In Christian education in schools students must be taught that in the first stage of the resurrection the believers in the Old Testament era and the New Testament era will be raised from the grave, and the believers who are still alive at the time will be raptured, they will obtain a glorious body for and enter the feast of the Lamb of God. In Christian education it is necessary to put in place precautionary advice, encouragement to work faithfully, talent development, affirmation of responsibility for all actions, and noble hope for the day of the Lord's coming.Keywords: escatology; Christian educationAbstrakAspek penting dari ajaran eskatologi adalah fakta futuristik, yang merupakan wahyu tentang beberapa peristiwa yang akan terjadi di masa depan melalui nubuat masa lalu. Karena alasan ini, nubuat Alkitab menjadi pusat pemeriksaan dan diskusi tentang ajaran eskatologi. Eskatologi merupakan doktrin terpenting yang harus diajarkan dalam lingkungan gereja, keluarga, dan sekolah sebagai materi pendidikan agama Kristen, Doktrin Eskatologi sangat penting diajarakan kepada anak didik di sekolah, agar mereka memahaminya dan mengambil sikap untuk bertobat dan percaya kepada Yesus Kristus dan memperoleh karya keselamtan hidup yang kekal, sekarang ketika masih hidup di dunia dan nanti ketika Yesus datang kedua kali menjemput setiap orang percaya. Dengan mengetahui Eskatologi anak didik dapat mempersiapkan diri secara rohani dengan iman yang kuat bahwa Yesus akan datang kedua kali unuk menjemput orang-orang percaya pada kebangkitan dari antara orang mati tahap pertama dan orang-orang yang masih hidup pada saat itu akan mengalami pengangkatan  ke surga  (the rapture to heaven).  Dalam Pendidikan agama Kristen di sekolah anak didik harus diberikan pengajaran bahwa dalam kebangkitan tahap pertama orang-orang percaya pada zaman Perjanjian Lama dan zaman Perjanjan Baru akan dibangkitkan dari kubur, serta orang-orang percaya yang masih hidup pada saat akan diangkat (rapture), mereka akan memperoleh tubuh kemuliaan untuk dan masuk dalam pesta Anak Domba Allah.  Dalam pendidikan agama Kristen perlu disisipkan adanya nasihat untuk berjaga-jaga, dorongan untuk bekerja dengan setia, pengembangan talenta, penegasan tentang tanggung jawab atas semua tindakan, dan pengharapan yang mulia akan hari kedatangan Tuhan.Kata-kata kunci: eskatologi; pendidikan Kristen

scholarly journals Scripture, Mishnah, and Confessions

2016 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 51
Author(s):  
PAUL R. GILCHRIST
Keyword(s):  
Old Testament ◽  
Church Leaders ◽  
History Of ◽  
Law Of Moses ◽  
The Church

Abstract: “Scripture, Mishnah, and the Confessions” examines the rabbinic sayings of the Pharisees at the time of Christ, the “oral law of Moses” that ultimately was written down in A.D. 200. These Mishnaic interpretations thought to apply the Old Testament to their new culture. The author notes that church leaders, wittingly or unwittingly, elevate their formal documents to the same level of authority in seeking to adjust to changing cultures. This tendency is observed in the history of the church, whether Romanism or liberalism, fundamentalism or evangelicalism, and sometimes in confessional church circles.

scholarly journals The church and moral decision-making

2017 ◽  
Vol 73 (3) ◽  
Author(s):  
J. M. Vorster
Keyword(s):  
Decision Making ◽  
Church Leaders ◽  
Theoretical Argument ◽  
Moral Decision ◽  
Moral Decision Making ◽  
The Past ◽  
Moral Decisions ◽  
The Church ◽  
The Way

This article deals with the burning issue of moral decision-making by major church assemblies,such as regional and general synods. Moral decisions by church assemblies have createdmany conflicts in churches in the past and at times did an injustice to the prophetic testimonyof churches in society. The question arises as follows: To what extent should church assembliesbe involved in moral decision-making? The central theoretical argument of this study is thatalthough the notion of a ‘biblical ethic’ is valid, synods and council of churches should beextremely cautious and even hesitant to formulate moral decisions because of differences inhermeneutical approaches and the principle that the church is primarily the ‘local congregationof believers’. The church is not in the first instance a national, general or international socialstructure that should pass conclusive resolutions and that testifies by way of moderators orelected church leaders. To unfurl this central theoretical argument, the researcher refers to thecurrent hermeneutical discourses and proposes certain ideas regarding the possible role ofthe church with respect to moral decision-making. In view of the information provided, apoint of view is advocated regarding the way in which churches could be involved in moraldecision-making today.

scholarly journals Teologie van die koninkryk (Basileiologie)? Teologies nagedink oor die plek en betekenis van die koninkryk van God in die teologie en die kerk

2015 ◽  
Vol 49 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jan H. Van Wyk
Keyword(s):  
New Testament ◽  
Dynamic Effect ◽  
Kingdom Of God ◽  
Central Theme ◽  
The Past ◽  
Separate Locus ◽  
The Church ◽  
The Way

Hierdie artikel is ’n poging om aan te toon dat daar ’n groot leemte bestaan in die wyse waarop die klassieke leerstukke in dogmatiek in die verlede hanteer is, omdat dit ’n sentrale tema soos die koninkryk van God óf volkome geïgnoreer, óf totaal onderbelig het. Hierdie leemte word vervolgens nader ondersoek. Eers word aandag gegee aan die eskatologiese modelle wat in hierdie verband ontstaan het. Daarna word op die sentraliteit van die tema van die koninkryk in die Ou en Nuwe Testament gefokus en hierna word op die dinamiese uitwerking daarvan gelet wat dit op die samelewing behoort te hê. Die konklusie waartoe die outeur kom, is dat die tema van die koninkryk van God in die geheel gesien in die kerk en in die teologie totaal onderbeklemtoon was en steeds is. Vir ’n relevante kerkbeskouing (ekklesiologie) kan dit ’n groot bevryding bring indien die fokus van die kerk na die (gekome en komende) ryk van God verskuif. Die dogmatiek benodig ’n afsonderlike locus wat oor die Basileiologie handel.Theology of the kingdom (Basileiology)? Theological reflections on the place and role of the kingdom of God in church and theology. This article is an attempt to demonstrate that there is a great void in the way in which classical doctrine was treated in dogmatics in the past, since it either completely ignored a central theme like the kingdom of God, or shed altogether insufficient light on it. This void will subsequently be investigated more closely.Firstly, attention is given to the eschatological models which came into being for it. Next, the focus is on the centrality of the theme of the kingdom in the Old and New Testament after which its dynamic effect on society is pointed out.The conclusion reached by the author is that the theme of the kingdom of God was and is on the whole underemphasised in the church and in theology. For a relevant view of the church (ecclesiology) it could be liberating if the church shifted its focus to the kingdom of God (that has come and is coming). Dogmatics needs a separate locus dealing with Basileiology.

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