Multiplying Laborers for the Urban Harvest

M u l t i p l y i n g L a b o r e r s f o r t h e U r b a n H a r v e s t M u l t i p l y i n g L a b o r e r s f o r t h e U r b a n H a r v e s t

all particular Christian expressions” sought to faithfully articulate, express, and defend what the Apostles passed down to us, and to embody its teaching, worship, discipleship, and experience. The Great Tradition both predates and is the source for our specific associational and denominational emphases, and represents the foundation of all valid contemporary Christian thought and practice. From the beginning, Christians have believed, adored, been formed by, and borne witness to the same Story outlined in the Scriptures. For us, the God who created, covenanted with Abraham, who redeemed Israel, and who was incarnated in the person of Christ, is truly the God of the Church, and of all believers in Jesus Christ. Why ought we pay attention to the ancient Church? Are we involved in our own fresh attempt to rediscover “the New Testament Church practice” in such a way that jumps across the historical divide, and ignores how the Spirit has worked in the Church through the ages? No. Our attempt to understand our common roots is not a rejection of what the Holy Spirit has done and is doing in and through the Church in history. Rather, we are suggesting that rediscovering our common roots can allow us to find fresh, vital ways to both reaffirm our true spiritual identity as well as communicate the Gospel afresh to our neighbors today. As a church passionately transformed by the presence of the risen Christ, the ancient undivided Church endured the challenges of schism, heresy, paganism, imperial domination, and societal immorality. They overcame the formidable attack of Gnostic deception (that ancient heresy which called into question the human nature of Christ), and withstood the advance of a number of vicious heresies all designed to undermine the Gospel’s clarity and truth. The early Christians articulated a faith that summarized and defended the Apostles’ teaching and established structures of worship that led its members (many of whom were poor and oppressed) into a living hope and the presence of Christ. Beyond question, the ancient undivided Church was a Christ-centered community. Most of its councils and creeds had to do with his person, his work, and his authority among his people. Governing themselves according to a councillor vision of leaders who swore allegiance to the Lord Jesus, the ancient Church defined spirituality in terms of the people of God reliving, reenacting, and embodying the life and work of Jesus in the baptism into Christ (catechumenate), the rhythm of the Lord’s Day celebration, practice of the Christian year, and a shared spirituality held in common among the churches. Rather than succumbing to societal pressure, these believers lived a faith that

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