Incarnation Can Be Used As A Model For Christian Witness.
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| Incarnation Can Be Used As A Model For Christian Witness. |
As the church seeks to express its life in local
cultural forms, it soon has to face the problem of cultural elements which
either are evil or have evil associations, the church has a mandate to
penetrate into all facets of the world with the gospel using various models to
witness. Hence in this paper I will define Incarnation and demonstrate how this
could be a model for Christian witness focusing on its merits and
demerits.
The Incarnation is the mystery and the dogma of the Word made Flesh. ln this
technical sense the word incarnation was adopted, during the
twelfth century, from the Norman-French, which in turn had taken the word
over from the Latin incarnatio. The Latin Fathers, from the fourth century, make common use of the
word; so Saints Jerome, Ambrose, Hilary, etc. The Latin incarnatio (in: caro,
flesh) corresponds to the Greek sarkosis, or ensarkosis,
which words depend on John (1:14) kai ho Logos sarx egeneto,
"And the Word was made flesh". http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/07706b.htm#I
Incarnation is
a term used by theologians to indicate that Jesus, the Son of God, took on
human flesh. This is similar to the hypostatic union. The difference is
that the hypostatic union explains how Jesus’ two natures are joined, and the
Incarnation more specifically affirms His humanity. http://www.gotquestions.org/hypostatic-union.html
According
to Walter A. Elwell (1984: 555) Incarnation is the act where by the eternal Son
of God the second Person of the Holy Trinity, without ceasing to be what he is,
God the Son took into Union with himself, the human nature and so (He) was and
continues to be God and man in two distinct nature.
Theologian
like Allister McGrath (1990: 350) refers Incarnation to the assumption of human
nature by God in the Person of Jesus. Of course theologian are not in agreement
in the natures of Jesus, was he fully human and Divine.
The
concept of incarnation as a model for Christian witness is first drawn from the
idea that Ferguson (1978: 33) which he postulated in defining incarnation as
Jesus identifying with humanity, bearing all and familiarizing humanity to the
Gospel of Salvation.
What
then is incarnation or incarnational
ministry? A working definition of incarnational ministry is
“the immersion of one’s self into a local culture and ‘becoming Jesus’ to that
culture.” Incarnational ministry seeks to dispense with ministry “from a
distance” and embrace ministry “up close and personal”—the love of God and the
gospel of Christ are “incarnated” or embodied by the person ministering.
Just as the Son of God took on human flesh and
came into our world, we should adopt the culture to which we are ministering
and “become Jesus” within it. The idea that Christians should represent the
incarnated gospel is called incarnational theology. A central tenant of the
incarnational ministry concept is “live the good news rather than preach the
good news.
Thus
incarnational ministry or incarnation is then a model which seeks to infiltrate
a community with the Gospel of Jesus Christ, sharing it in the language,
culture and understanding of that particular community without however, losing
the Gospel message and its values.
The
Christian understanding of the word incarnation is that
“the Word became flesh and dwelt among us” (John 1:14). The very
cornerstone of Christian belief is that God the Son the Word, the third Person
of the Trinity took on human flesh when He entered our world. http://www.gotquestions.org/incarnational-ministry.html
Furthermore, the understanding and
practice of Christian witness is rooted in and shaped by the life, ministry,
suffering, death, and resurrection of Jesus. Hence the missioner is mandated to
present the gospel in this context regardless of the context and cultural
variations.
Incarnation entails that Jesus had to empty Himself and deliberately
chose to identify with humanity in all aspects so as to redeem the world. According
to the Lausanne Report it highlighted that incarnation principle is hinged on
the two central scriptures. Philippians 2:1-11 and John 1:14. As alluded by the
conference” … Two verbs then indicate the action to which the mind of Christ led him:
“he emptied himself … he humbled himself…” The first speaks of sacrifice (what
he renounced) and the second of service, even slavery (how he identified
himself with us and put himself at our disposal). We have tried to think what
these two actions meant for him, and might mean for cross-cultural witnesses.” https://www.lausanne.org/content/lop/lop-2#5
In incarnation Jesus renounced his status, by
status it means that He surrendered the rights, privileges, and powers which he
enjoyed as God’s Son. (Lausanne) Incarnation demands the missioner to renounce
his or her status so as to reach the community in which the missioner is to
preach the gospel. Thus the missioner must allow not his or her culture,
understanding, perspective and position in life to dictate the preaching of the
Gospel.
Incarnation could be seen as a model for Christian
witness since it allows the missioner to relate with the community without
arbitrating the hearers and the Gospel remaining true in terms of the content.
However, the burden of incarnation and revelation is on the shoulders of the
individuals and this often leads to burnout. http://www.patheos.com/blogs/jesuscreed/2012/08/13/is-incarnation-the-right-word-for-ministry/
Furthermore, by renouncing one’s status a person rejects who he or she
is truly. The question is how long can a person keeps up with another
personality which does not reflect his or her true self?
According to Elwell (1984:555) Jesus had two
distinct natures which were natural to His being. This practice of incarnation
by the missioner or preachers could not be possible since each person cannot be
separated from his or her personality and way of life. To divorce a person from
his or her culture, privileges, and power is to separate one from his or her
true nature.
Additionally Incarnation is not complete without
Jesus renouncing his immunity. In incarnation Jesus exposed himself to
temptation, sorrow, limitation, economic need, and pain.
So the
missionary should expect to become vulnerable to new temptations, dangers and
diseases, a strange climate, an unaccustomed loneliness, and possibly death. https://www.lausanne.org/content/lop/lop-2#5 this element in incarnation expresses the central
message of salvation that of laying down our lives for the other. It is through
this understanding that the gospel can be taken to the remote and poor and
dangerous regions of the world. According to Chris Wright (1990:21)
Incarnational model of witness can motivate members of the church to leave the
places of comfort and walk around and look at our community with the eye of an
outsider.
However, according
to Matthew 28: 18 incarnation can be a model for witness that could honor the
great commission. Whilst on the other this model can leads the church to be
involved in Christian and spiritual syncretism.
Echoing the words of Wright (1990:29) “the gospel
is true always and everywhere or it is not a Gospel at all or true at all “
This implies that the Gospel must be taken to all regions of the world at the
exposure of the believers but maintaining the integrity of the Gospel and
Truth.
Finally incarnation means to be identified with a
people, this idea can be best pictured by Hebrews 2:14 He shared our “flesh and
blood,” was tempted as we are,
learned obedience through his sufferings and tasted death for us (Heb. 2:14-18;
4:15; 5:8). https://www.lausanne.org/content/lop/lop-2#5 . According to
Hebrews Jesus identified with us, he shared with us in every aspect of life.
Identification must be certain and must include mastering their language,
immersing ourselves in their culture, learning to think as they think, feel as
they feel, and do as they do. The missioner must incarnate so as to preach and
participate in the religious world view of their audience. (Lausanne)
During his public ministry Jesus befriended the
poor and the powerless, healed the sick, fed the hungry, touched untouchables,
and risked his reputation by associating with those whom society rejected. In
this approach the church can be able to reach the unreachable and touch the
untouchables.
Understanding Incarnation as identification could prove to be a
remarkably integrative way to approach the church’s missionary vocation. It
could counter the typically Western reduction of mission to one of the many
programs of the church. It could recast that mission as the definitive calling
of the church. It could seek to read the biblical record in its own terms and
to address serious problems in Western mission that have surfaced in this century.
http://www.lifeandleadership.com/book-summaries/guder-the-incarnation-and-the-churchs-witness.html
It is through this model of witness that will set
the church on a holistic mission to evangelization of the man, woman and
children of every race, compassionate service of those in need to embrace human
development, liberation, justice and peace and integrity creation which brings integral
transformation of a society
(Wright:1990:34).
Viewing the Incarnation as a model for ministry leads to a dangerous
imbalance in two ways. The problem is not the doctrine of the Incarnation,
which is central to Christian faith. Rather, the problem results from a
distortion of that belief—turning the uniquely divine act of the Word becoming
incarnate in Christ into a "method for ministry" that is repeated in
our own lives. Let me offer two examples of this distortion one more common in
mainline Christian circles, the other more common among conservative
evangelicals. http://www.lifeandleadership.com/book-summaries/guder-the-incarnation-and-the-churchs-witness.html
A searching test of identification is how far we feel that we belong to
the people, and still more how far they feel that we belong to them. According
to Tim Chester the event of the coming of Jesus into the world is unique, unrepeatable
and incomparable. For John, it is not the manner of Jesus’ coming into the
world, the Word becoming flesh, the incarnation, that is a ‘model’ for
believers; rather, it is the nature of Jesus’ relationship to the Father who
sent him into the world, which is one of obedience to and dependence upon the
Father. https://timchester.wordpress.com/2010/09/04/questioning-the-incarnation-as-a-model-for-mission/
According Scot McKnight “The primary significance of the incarnation
was that Christ was incarnate in the human race, rather than in particular
social and cultural circumstances” Scot further argued that the New Testament
passage suggests that we should imitate the divine act of becoming incarnate.
Instead, the passages used to support “incarnational ministry” illustrate the
pervasive New Testament theme of union with Christ by the Spirit. We actually
become united to Christ the Lord by the Spirit’s power. http://www.patheos.com/blogs/jesuscreed/2012/08/13/is-incarnation-the-right-word-for-ministry/
Incarnation could be a model
of for Christian witness in that it sets the church to identify with the people
to which it wants to minister, and in order to fulfill its Great commission
mandate of going to the all nations and to all races. As we incarnate the
Gospel could be preached and communities will be reached and the Christian
community remaining unchanged both in its Gospel and life style yet being
exposed in the most enticement, dangerous and wicked environment. Just as
Christ who become flesh and identified with humanity and yet remained Divine.
Reference
Elwell 1984. Evangelical
Dictionary of Theology: Grand Rapids; Baker Book
House Company
Ferguson S 1978. New
Dictionary of Theology: Edinburgh: Inter Varsity
McGrath 2012. Historical
theology: An introduction to the history of Christian
thought. John Wiley & Sons.
Wright 1990. One
Gospel Many Clothes: Oxford:
http://www.lifeandleadership.com/book-summaries/guder-the-incarnation-and-the-churchs-witness.html Accessed
12/04/16
http://www.patheos.com/blogs/jesuscreed/2012/08/13/is-incarnation-the-right-word-for-ministry/ Accessed 12/04/16
https://www.lausanne.org/content/lop/lop-2#5 Accessed 11/04/16
http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/07706b.htm#I Accessed 12/04/16
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