The Apostolic Paradigm

I. Life from the Father
"I believe in God the Father Almighty, creator ..."
"Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of mercies and the God of all consolation" (2 Cor 1:3).

II. Death in the Son
"and in Jesus Christ, his Son, our Lord, who was conceived ... born ... suffered ... rose ... ascended ... sits ... and will return."
"He died for all, so that those who live might live no longer for themselves, but for him who died and was raised for them" (2 Cor 5:15).

III. Resurrection by the Holy Spirit

"I believe in the Holy Spirit ... church ... communion ... fellowship ... resurrection ... life everlasting."
"You are a letter of Christ, prepared by us, written not with ink but with the Spirit of the living God" (2 Cor 3:3).

IV. This Paradigm Encapsulates ...
the Bible's central story, of Jesus Christ;

thus Christology: the doctrine of Christ, and
thus bibliology: the doctrine of Scripture.

the creeds of the Church;

thus the topics of dogmatic theology.

the saga of Israel's life, dissolution, and transformation;

thus theological history.

the life of God;

thus doctrines of God, pneumatology (Holy Spirit), and Trinity.

the end (i.e., goal) of all things ...

thus the doctrine of creation,

... and of humanity in particular;

thus doctrines of incarnation and theological anthropology (humanity).

the framework for the ordinary: fields of knowledge, ways of life, etc.;

thus Christian liberal arts.

the future that has begun arriving in the Kingdom of God;

thus eschatology: doctrine of the end-times.

the divine judgment of all that sin denies and resists;

thus hamartiology: doctrine of sin.

the forgiveness and new beginning that comes along with it;

thus soteriology: doctrine of salvation, including doctrines of atonement, and doctrines of vocation (e.g., threefold office, calling).
(We experience these as 'orientation', 'disorientation', and 're-orientation' [Walter Brueggemann on the Psalms].)

the common struggle and destiny of cultures and peoples;

thus missiology: doctrines of election and mission.

the biography of every disciple of Jesus;

thus salvation: doctrines of justification and sanctification, and sacramental theology.

the life into which the world is invited to heal;

thus ecclesiology: doctrine of the Church.

my expectation for our semester together.
the shape of this course!

V. (Mid-Semester) 'Fractal' Instances of the Paradigm in Discipled Life Include ...

John 15: abiding in the Father’s sent Son and being Father-pruned for Spirit-fruitfulness.
Phil 2:3-13 and Lesslie Newbigin’s interfaith staircase: kenotic relationships across boundaries.
John 12:20-26 and Chris Galanos, From Megachurch to Multiplication: Missional disciple-making as death experience.

Manifesations of the Kingdom originate in the Father's will, have their end in the Son, and are made new through the Spirit. These include

the biblical story in Walk through the Bible (and your DBS’ed snippets?),
the transformed lives in The Father Glorified (and your own circles?),
the transformed relationships there (and around you?),
your additional reading? (e.g., Mikalatos, Donovan, Wright)
...and what else?