Foundations for Christian Mission, Mentor's Guide, MG04

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F O U N D A T I O N S F O R C H R I S T I A N M I S S I O N

is pressed into service in the NT to describe Jesus’ victory over Satan on the cross. Though Satan was defeated, the NT also understands that for a time he is still able to cause great distress. The period of time between the cross and Christ’s return is the time between the battle that secured the ultimate victory and the final defeat and cessation of hostility. In the meantime the battle continues, and the church is called upon to wage war against God’s enemies just as Israel was God’s army in the OT. The difference is that the church’s weapons are spiritual, not physical (cf. Eph. 6.10-20). Your task in this module is to help the students come to grips with these motifs as used by the biblical authors, and to employ them as a lens to enable you to gain a fresh perspective on the nature of Christian mission viewed through them . This habit of mind, this mode of interpretation is dramatically helpful in filling out the richness and power of Christian mission today, and to protect it from being reduced to mere technical methodology and rules of practice. Help your students catch the feeling of these metaphors and images, the joy of the wedding feast, and the celebration of the defeated enemy. Images are communicated not just for data’s sake, but for the sake of the heart and the soul; enable your students to think clearly, but also work to help them feel deeply through these images, for that is why the Lord gave them to us. Please notice again the objectives below, and recall the way in which they play a central role in every facet of classroom instruction. Again, one of your key responsibilities as Mentor is to emphasize these concepts throughout the lesson, especially during the discussions and interaction with the students. The more you can highlight the objectives throughout the class period, the better the chances are that they will understand and grasp the magnitude of these objectives. ~ Leland Ryken. The Dictionary of Biblical Imagery . (electronic ed.). Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2000. p 213.

This devotion focuses on the idea of the divine romance, with a focus on the marriage supper of the Lamb mentioned in Revelation 19. The idea of marriage as a way of communicating the relationship of God to his people, and the invitation to all to actually come and become a part of that company which constitutes the bride

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