What has God called you to do? In this chapter from Your Call to Work & Mission: Following Jesus 24/7, Johan Mostert challenges all followers of Jesus to remember those trapped in poverty and take practical steps to demonstrate God’s love for them.

Evangelism, global missions, and discipling others—topics from the previous section—are urgent. They excite and energize committed Christians. This chapter shifts the focus of following Jesus in discipleship to an area that often causes discomfort—that of working with the poor. It seems counter-intuitive to work with poor people when Christian leaders and literature often—and rightly—emphasize vital Great Commission concerns of church planting, church growth, and impactful evangelism.

“Don’t Forget the Poor: A Biblical Approach to Addressing Poverty” by Johan Mostert is chapter 11 in Stephen Lim, ed., Your Call to Work & Mission: Following Jesus 24/7 Whole-Life Discipleship (AGTS, 2015). Available from the Assemblies of God Theological Seminary online bookstore.

Our natural tendency is to seek out influential and well-off persons in the church who have the potential to promote and fund our proposed ministries—instead of individuals with few resources. Also, we often think first of the capital needs of a future church project rather than the need for relational capital that is so evident among poor people—such as caring, mutually upbuilding relationships, community-building, mentoring, and people who demonstrate biblical values. Even as we strategize to reach the world for Christ and to disciple believers, why in the world would the biblical writers insist that we “not forget the poor” (Gal. 2:10, KJV)?

To answer this question, let us review the prevalence of the biblical insistence on focusing on the poor. One of the clearest indications of the prominence of the poor and the marginalized in the gospel of the Kingdom is the way that Jesus identified with them. In the Parable of the Sheep and Goats (Matt. 25:31–46), He makes the stunning declaration that when we serve the needy, we are actually serving Him. If we forget the poor, we are forgetting Jesus! In addressing the needs of the destitute, we do not move away from the heart of the Kingdom message, but recognize this as an essential way of serving the Lord.

In the Early Church, we see the beginnings of a division of missions focus: Peter, James and John concentrate on preaching to their own people, the Jews, while Paul seeks to reach Gentiles as well. This creates serious tension between them, as Paul seeks to break free from Jewish rituals and proclaim a gospel of faith and grace. Paul says that after their meeting to resolve their differences, the only thing that the other disciples ask him to do is to remember the poor (Gal. 2:10). They give Paul the freedom to pursue new courses of action; however, he must not neglect the importance of serving the needy. With this, Paul is in full agreement.

A young Afghan girl begging in the street in Kabul, Afghanistan, September 2008. Photo by Mikhail Evstafiev via Wikimedia Commons.

When Readers Digest interviewed mega-church pastor, Rick Warren, he verbalized what so many of us have realized, “I’ve got three advanced degrees. I went to two different seminaries and a Bible school. How did I miss the two thousand verses in the Bible where it talks about the poor?”¹

Introduction

Defining an ultimate Pentecostal hermeneutic is not an easy thing. This is because Pentecostalism by itself is a diverse phenomenon consisting of different types of groups. There is no homogeneity in Pentecostal grouping because different Pentecostal factions are established within different traditions,[1] even though the underlying theological formation is the same. This diversity in traditions brings with it varied theological approaches and thinking when establishing Pentecostal hermeneutics. But as Kenneth Archer observes “it is this diversity along with Pentecostalism’s ability to adapt without losing its essential beliefs and practices that has aided its growth.”[2]Pentecostal movements in different parts of the world have different factors behind their origins, but most of them have similar social-political and religious grounding. The early American Pentecostal movements, as Archer observes, have their basis on the post civil war era, which comprised of industrialization, urbanization and mass migrations. As the American society sought to discover a new identity, most spiritual movements, and especially Protestants, saw the possibility of moral reform through spiritual revival built on private action and personal responsibility.[3] It was out of these revivalist movements and social chaos that characterized post civil war America that American Pentecostalism was born. Similarly, as Ogbu Kalu argues, African Pentecostalism was born out of the African postcolonial identity crisis.[4] As Africans sought their true identity and responded to the white missionary ecclesiological structures and hermeneutics, a new approach to worship that was pneumatic in nature was born. It should however be observed, even in light of Kalu’s assertion that African Pentecostalism is not an extension of American Pentecostalism,[5] African Pentecostalism has been and continues to be highly influenced by American Pentecostalism. In both cases, Pentecostalism emerged as movements protesting the increasing evils in their immediate societies and the presumed “coldness” of the then mainline churches.[6]

Central to the Pentecostal belief and theology is the conversion experience and the infilling of the Holy Spirit. Pentecostals see holy living as an essential duty of the Christian. This holy life can only be obtained through the individual’s submission to the authority of Jesus Christ. Conversion is a personal choice and calls the individual Christian to personal responsibility. Every believer needs to maintain a life of holiness. This holiness cannot be attained through mere abstinence to sin, but through the guidance of the Holy Spirit hence the need for the baptism of the Holy Spirit, an experience that assures the indwelling of the Spirit of God in the believer. The Spirit gives the believer power over sin and enables them to proclaim the Gospel with power, testifying the saving grace of God through Jesus Christ. Speaking in other tongues is the main evidence of one’s baptism in the Spirit. These similarities in origin and doctrine become the common denominator in which Pentecostal hermeneutics can be discussed. This paper attempts to explore the general hermeneutical approach, methodology and theological direction that the whole of Pentecostalism embraces.

Pentecostal Theology and Interpretation

Hermeneutics has been defined as both the science and the art of interpretation.[7] “As a science, it enunciates principles, investigates the laws of thought and language, and classifies its facts and results. As an art, it teaches what application these principles should have, and establishes their soundness by showing their practical value in elucidation of the more difficult scriptures.”[8] Hermeneutics involves drawing meaning from the immediate context of the literature and at the same time it “is the search for the meaning of the text here and now.”[9] Thus we can clearly observe that biblical interpretation has two main dimensions. The first one seeks to find out the original meaning of the text; the one that the author intended for the first readers. The second one looks at the meaning that the readers of the Bible might attach to it. This second dimension shows that the environment and the experiences of the interpreter largely influence the meaning he/she attaches to Scriptures.

Becoming agents of reconciliation that glorify Jesus, not compromise His Gospel.

Introduction

Tony Richie at the 2011 convention of the Society for Pentecostal Studies.

An especially fruitful interfaith dialogue I was recently privileged to participate in released a cooperative statement containing several descriptive suggestions about the nature of religion and the religions. Among other things, it admitted that “religion has often been used, rather misused, to shed blood, spread bigotry and defend divisive and discriminatory socio-political practices”. That is sad but all-too-true. It also insisted, however, on the “necessity and usefulness” of interreligious dialogue “for promoting peace, harmony and conflict-transformation” in our world today.¹ And that, I think, is true too. I am therefore both challenged and encouraged at the present opportunity to wrestle through these issues together with religious others by focusing on themes of forgiveness and reconciliation among the religions from my perspective as a Pentecostal Christian. And I am convinced global Pentecostalism may have some unique contributions to make to this conversation.

Extinguishing the Forbidden Fire of Sectarian Strife

In the context of sectarian strife, really full-blown religious and racial prejudice and tension between Jews and Samaritans, two of Jesus’ disciples desired to call fire down from Heaven to consume their competitors. Jesus firmly forbade them. Some ancient manuscripts add an explanatory comment from Jesus that “You do not know what kind of spirit you are of, for the Son of Man did not come to destroy men’s lives, but to save them” (Lu 9:56 NIV margin). Biblical exegete Craig Evans opines that the explanation “certainly captures the essential point of the passage.” According to Evans, the episode “portrays a loving and gracious Lord who does not seek vengeance”.² In other words, Jesus wills forgiveness and reconciliation among rival religions and the Spirit he has given his disciples wills us in the same way. With its appreciation for pneumatological nuances, Pentecostalism’s theology and spirituality ought unquestionably to guide us in the same direction.

Editor Introduction to The Kingdom of God As Scripture’s Central Theme

Part 1 of The Kingdom of God As Scripture’s Central Theme

Editors Introduction: This is part 2 of David Burns’ proposal that the Kingdom of God is the central unifying theme of Scripture. First published in two parts in the print version of Pneuma Review in 2001, we invite all readers to continue the conversation now that it has been brought online. Please leave your comments under the article.

The Kingdom of God in the Old Testament

The Kingdom of God is at the heart of the Old Testament. Throughout its pages God is presented as the undisputed Sovereign who reigns over all he has created and who administers the rule of his Kingdom through covenant. In our brief survey we will show how the Kingdom of God developed in the Old Testament and focus on texts that speak of his kingship. From there we will move on to discuss the coming of the Kingdom under the New Covenant.

The Kingdom of God in the Pentateuch (Torah)

The fall of man in the garden led to evil becoming rampant (Gen. 6:1-5,11-12). The great flood of Noah’s day effectively reduced evil in the world by destroying all life. Yet God assured the advancement of his Kingdom by delivering the righteous Noah, his family, and two of every creature safely through the flood (Gen. 6-9). They became the recipients of another covenant wherein God promised to never again flood the earth (Gen. 9:11). The Noahic Covenant was essentially the Adamic Covenant reformulated to fit a sinful world. The creation mandate of multiplying and ruling is restated (Gen. 9:1-2), but the rule of man now has an element of dread for the creatures (Gen. 9:2). In fact man’s entire role as “image” is in jeopardy due to his failure as God’s representative on earth. Thus the sacredness of that image must be protected by placing a just penalty upon any living being that would take its life (Gen. 9:5-6).

Editor Introduction to The Kingdom of God As Scripture’s Central Theme

Editors Introduction: David Burns’ proposal that the Kingdom of God is the central unifying theme of Scripture was published in two parts in the print version of Pneuma Review in 2001. Brought online in October 2014, we invite all readers to begin a conversation on the Last Days (eschatology) and approaches to biblical theology by leaving comments under the article.

Introduction

Have you ever wondered what God is doing? What is He up too? In this article we will be answering those questions by taking a look at the Kingdom of God. The Kingdom of God is the primary theme that binds the Scriptures and indeed all of history together. Only the kingdom theme flows easily from the pages of the biblical writers. It alone does adequate justice to the progressive unfolding of biblical revelation by viewing the historical covenants of redemptive history as keys to revelatory development in the Kingdom of God. It is also the only theme that incorporates within it all the major and minor subthemes of Scripture without doing violence to any of them. The Kingdom of God places our Lord Jesus at its center and emphasizes covenant as the vehicle of our redemptive relationship with God. In that respect it considers the Bible not only to be a book about covenant, but a covenantal book itself, governing the relationship of God with the subjects in his great Kingdom. Thus the Kingdom of God becomes the unifying theme of Scripture with covenant providing its structure.

Popular Approaches to Understanding the Scriptures

Before we go on to present a Kingdom centered approach to understanding Scripture, let us look at the two main interpretative schools which have dominated the conservative Christian community this century—Covenant Theology and Dispensationalism.¹ If you grew up in a Reformed church, you were taught Covenant Theology. If you grew up in an independent, Pentecostal, or Baptist church, you were probably taught Dispensational Theology. Each one of these approaches is helpful to understanding Scripture and has its good points, but in my opinion each also has its shortcomings. I have learned a tremendous amount about God and the Scriptures from the godly men of both schools. Any criticism of these systems in no manner implies disrespect. What better way is there to honor one’s teachers than to critically evaluate their teachings and to come to one’s own conclusions? To the degree that any of this author’s conclusions are accurate, they have been built upon the shoulders of his mentors. Any failure is due to his own shortcomings.

Covenant Theology

Covenant Theology generally sees covenant as providing both the unifying theme and the structure for Scripture. It is through covenant that God enters into relationship with man and brings salvation to him. Covenant Theology divides biblical history into two major covenants, the Covenant of Works and the Covenant of Grace. A third covenant, the Covenant of Redemption, is the covenant that stands above history and becomes the basis for the Covenant of Grace. The Covenant of Redemption is an everlasting covenant established between God the Father and God the Son in eternity past before the creation of the world. It provides for the salvation of sinful man through the sacrificial death of the Son.

The Covenant of Works historically began with Adam and continued until the fall of man in the garden of Eden, but legally it is still in force today. Under it God promised Adam eternal life as long as he perfectly and totally obeyed his commands, but death should he disobey. The Covenant of Works shows the inability of man to save himself by attempting to perfectly obey the laws of God. Jesus Christ was the only one who could perfectly obey the law of God and thus satisfy the requirements of a holy and just God.

The Covenant of Grace began at the fall of man and continues throughout eternity. It brings into history and puts into action the plans of salvation made between the Father and the Son in the Covenant of Redemption. It is through the Covenant of Grace that God begins to rescue the human race from its sinfulness. God does this through two different dispensations or administrations of the Covenant of Grace, the Old Covenant Dispensation and the New Covenant Dispensation. The various covenants under the Old Covenant are stages in the development or revelation of the Covenant of Grace. The two dispensations are not different in kind but only in degree. They are both part of God’s single plan to bring salvation into the world. Their difference lies in their place along the historical path of revelatory development. In other words, as times goes on God reveals more and more of his plan of salvation, until his greatest revelation, the Lord Jesus Christ, comes into the world.