Foundations for Christian Mission, Student Workbook, SW04

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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

3. Explain how poverty (and its effects) is a denial of God’s shalom . How were God’s blessing, provisions, and commands of the covenant designed to overcome poverty and ensure justice and righteousness among his people? 4. In what sense can we say that God identifies with the poor in their plight and condition? How does the Exodus event embody and give shape to God’s identification with the poor and the oppressed? How was Israel meant to be a “reflection of his holiness, a model of justice and mercy, and a beacon for the nations” through the covenant? 5. What are the three major causes of poverty in the Scriptures, and how do they relate to one another? How is the term “the poor” in Scripture linked to other concepts which serve as its synonyms, for example, “the widow,” “the fatherless,” and the “stranger?” 6. List out some of God’s standards for treatment of the poor in the OT covenant community. How do these standards serve as a witness, both to his heart for the poor, as well as his applied wisdom to his people for the elimination of poverty among them? 7. List two of the covenant standards God gave to his people and thoroughly discuss them in light of their meaning and implication for shalom . How might these standards inform our treatment of the poor today? Be specific. 8. In looking at these standards for God’s covenant community, what are the key implications of them? How do these standards inform our thinking about our foundations for doing justice, discipleship, and mission today?

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Christian Mission and the Poor

Segment 2: Missional Principles and Implications for Doing Ministry in the City

Rev. Dr. Don L. Davis

Jesus is both the founder and head of the Church, God’s new covenant kingdom community, which is called to demonstrate God’s shalom in the midst of the people of God today. Jesus identified himself as the Messiah of the OT prophets and promise. He inaugurated his Messianic ministry with acts of healing the oppressed

Summary of Segment 2