Bible Exposition

Topics and Speakers for the Bible Expositions:

We will use the text John 15:9-17 for our Bible exposition and for the conference, taken from Jesus' Farewell Discourse to his disciples. Included in this passage are the following major themes:

• • Love and unity among Jesus disciples (vv.12, 17).
• • Jesus’ self-giving as the ultimate measure of love for one another and also the call to obedience and sacrifice (vv.13 & 14).
• • Friends of God (vv.14 & 15), and not just slaves/bondservants, implying a much deeper relationship modelled on Abraham (2 Chron 20:7; Is 41:8; & Jas 2:23) and Moses (Ex 33:11).
• • Call and chosen to bear fruits (v.16).

Exposition 1 (Day 2):	A call to Love and Unity- “…So have I loved you. Now remain in my love” (John 15:9-10, 17); Rev. Dr. Patrick Fung (SG)
Exposition 2 (Day 3):	A call to Obedience and Sacrifice- “I have kept my Father’s commands” (John 15:10, 13); Dr. Havilah Dharamraj (IN)
Exposition 3 (Day 4):	A call to Intimacy-“I have called you friends” (John 15:15); Rev. Dick Eugenio (PH)
Exposition 4 (Day 5):	A call to Action-“you might go and bear fruit-fruit that will last” (John 15:16); Dr. Eiko Takamizawa (JP)

Plenaries

Key Issues to be Addressed as Plenaries

 

1.Discipleship and Holy Living

Jesus said: “Go … make disciples of all nations …” (Mat 28:19). The church has grown wonderfully in many parts of Asia today and continue to do so. But the issue of discipleship and holy living is probably the biggest challenge churches in Asia present face. Many are tempted to think that the problem can be solved by running more and more programs. But programs by themselves do not produce strong disciples. The result is that mature Christian lives, wholesome Christian homes and churches which model true Christian communities are not easily found. If genuine disciples and mature churches are to emerge, the following issues need addressing:

• • What are the marks of Christ’s disciples as found in the NT?
• • Scholars on the Early Church have repeatedly noted that two things about the church helped advance the gospel in the midst of the surrounding paganism: the love of the Christians for both those inside and outside the church, and the high moral standards by which they live. How can the church today live as the “light of the world” that shines out like a “city on the hill” (Mat 5:14)?
• • Overcoming the unholy compartmentalization between the “sacred” and “secular”?
• • What are some key models, both historically and today, that are important in the discipling process? These include: great biblical preaching, monastic spirituality, Moravian 24/7 prayer meetings, Methodist class meetings, etc. How can these be replicated or implemented today?

Speaker: Rev. Kisung Yoo (Korea)

Respondent: Asiri Fernando (Siri Lanka)

 

2. CHURCH And State Relationship In Asia Today

Church and state relationships is becoming an increasingly acute issue in Asia. In the past 100-200 years, especially in those places where western colonial powers were in control, the state tended to maintain a neutral position towards the different religious communities. But in the past few decades many, but not all, Asian governments have tended to increasingly seek to exercise state hegemony and control over religious communities, especially minority groups. This has resulted in growing restrictions on religious freedom and civil liberties of minority groups. A similar pattern can be seen whether the government is controlled by a majority religious community or a secular ideological party (e.g. Marxism).

• How is the church to relate to the state within such contexts? Is the church is compromise (e.g. the Constantinian model), withdraw completely from society (e.g. the Anabaptists) or to play a transformative role (as “salt” and “light”)?

Co-Speakers Liow Chin Yong, Joseph (Note: China/EJ taken out)

 

3. PENETRATING Asia’s Cultural Heartlands With The Gospel

Over the past hundred years the Gospel has reached hundreds of millions in Asia. But the heartlands of the more established religions, especially Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam and Shintoism, have been much more difficult to penetrate. One of the key challenges for Christianity in Asia is the perception that it is a “white-man’s” religion with ways of thinking and action, church structures, worship, and ways of doing church and mission largely alien to Asia’s cultures and ways of life. Some keys issues that we need addressing:

• • What spiritual and intellectual challenges do these long-established religions posed for the church in Asia?
• • How can the Asian church be effective in reaching these Asian religio-cultural heartlands which are still deeply influenced by Asian religious worldviews?
• • How can Christians live and practice a faith that is much more contextually sensitive and culturally rooted in Asian soil?
• • What practical steps can be taken to challenge Asian churches to do church and mission in this manner?
• • How can the above issues be taken up without the church slipping into religious syncretism?

Speaker: Dr. Yoshiyuki “Billy” Nishioka (Japan)

Respondent: Dr. Ubonwan Michuthon (TH)

 

4. RECOVERING the supernatural

The western Enlightenment resulted in a scientific worldview that has little or no place for the supernatural. Yet everywhere in Asia, the supernatural remains a very fundamental aspect of the prevailing worldview. Thus, where the churches have grown fastest, again and again it is the supernatural manifestations of the Spirit’s power that have brought breakthroughs. This is not only the case of classical Pentecostal churches which came to us from the west, but also true of most churches of indigenous origins.

• • How can we help our churches to recover the supernatural so that Asian Christianity can be fully in tune with the NT in this area?
• • How do we structure our church worship and life so as to properly accommodate the exercise of spiritual gifts?
• • There is a need to develop teaching materials on this whole area so that we will not allow extreme teachings to lead the church into heresy or wrongful pastoral practices in this area. E.g. Some of the teachings that have come to us from western Pentecostals/charismatics are unbiblical and unhelpful, if not downright heretical.

Speaker: Dr. Finny Philip (India)

Respondent: ZH (CN)

 

5. MISSION And The Suffering Church

In the past few hundred years, mission has usually been from the powerful to the powerless, from the rich to the poor, from the educated (in science and technology) to the less educated, in short from the center to the margins. But in the NT, mission was initiated from the margins of empire, by a weak and persecuted minority, and eventually transformed the center and “turned the world upside down.” If we look carefully we will see that this is and will increasingly be true of Asian churches, with the growing resurgence of non-Christian religions and ideologies everywhere, be it Buddhism, Hinduism, Islam, Marxist totalitarianism, secularism and the like. Parallel to this will be increasing persecution. In the colonial and immediate post-2nd World War period, Christianity was identified with the imperial powers and protected by them. But that is history! How do we “reinvent” mission from the margins rather than from the center? Among issues that must be look at here are:

• • Where is the church small, weak and under persecution? How are the churches doing in these contexts?
• • Some historical and contemporary examples of churches thriving in spite of being weak and persecuted?
• • How can mission being done from the margins rather than from the center?

Speakers: Rev. David Yeghnazar & Mangalman Maharjan (NP)

 

6. Rethinking God's Mission with the #NowGeneration: The Old and Young in Collaboration

Times are rapidly changing and the gap between generations is widening. Young people struggle to find relevance within the Church and become disengaged. To carve out creative solutions, a mindset shift may be needed: Can we see young people not as the NEXT generation, but part of the #NOWGeneration, in which old and young collaborate, bringing our distinctive perspectives and strengths together, working in unity? This plenary presents some encouraging #NowGen ground-up practices emerging from across Asia.

Speaker: Angie Ng (Singapore)

Speaker: Blessing Sarangapany

Speaker: Dr. David Doong

Speaker: Jason Young

Speaker: Mitchelle Rajapakse (Sri Lanka)

 

7. BUILDING Local Churches In Urban Asia—Are Megachurches The Way Forward?

About 45% of Asia’s people are urbanized today, with 20 megacities each having some 10-40 million people. If the gospel of Christ is to reach them, there must be strong, thriving and disciple-making churches built in urban Asia. Many Christians have been attracted by the megachurch model because it appears impressive and attractive. But many have found it to be weak in the discipling process and not giving space for potential leaders to grow. What models are there for building strong churches in urban Asia?

Speaker: Rev. Chadwick Mohen Samuels (India)

Speaker: Jason Young (Hong Kong)

Seminars and BreakOut Sessions 1 & 2

The following are a list of some issues that we need to address at the seminars and breakout sessions. The aims are to seek the Spirit’s guidance for the church of Asia to incarnate the gospel of Christ in Asia’s heartlands. We hope these seminars will be practical and help develop concrete expressions of Asian perspectives of Christian discipleship and ministry, so that our faith can be planted on Asian soil and grow and bear fruit to leave a legacy in Asia.

1. Models for ministry: What is fundamental? Servanthood or leadership?

As a follow up from the plenary session on structures and accountability in the Asian church, this seminar explores practical models of ministry which are biblical yet contextual in terms of leadership and accountability. Are pastors to be charismatic CEOs of churches or servants of Christ attending to the spiritual needs of the church community? Are church leaders recognized as “holy men/women” (in the cultural sense of the term) or merely as organizational leaders and managers of religious groups? How can the church put into practice the idea that the fundamental paradigm for ministry in the New Testament is the call to servanthood and not necessarily to leadership?

Speaker: Dr. Calvin Ma (Hong Kong/Australia)

2. Nation Building

The focus is on intra-Asian partnerships. What good partnership models are there between the different churches in Asia, between the older and more established and the younger and more vibrant, between those with more resources and those with less, etc.? How can we avoid paternalism on the one hand and the dependency syndrome on the other? How can we foster equal partnership which will help to produce mature indigenous churches which are self-supporting, self-propagating, self-governing and self-theologizing?

Speaker: Bishop Efraim Tendero (Philippines)

3. THINKING Theologically In Context

The bulk of the textbooks and materials used in theological education and ministerial formation are written in the west where churches are primarily focused on the challenges of secularization, modernity and postmodernity. But the prevailing worldviews of Asian societies are not shaped by these but rather by the philosophical-religious frameworks of Buddhism, Chinese thought, Hinduism, Islam, primal religions and traditional cultures in their respective regions. To think contextually so as to effectively communicate the gospel and build truly indigenous churches involves the following and other issues:

• • Understand and master the prevailing worldviews within our own regions and cultures.
• • Develop theological frameworks that communicates the Gospel in our own contexts.
• • This exercise must cover various aspects of our faith. This includes biblical commentaries and theological texts, Asian church history and biographies, liturgies and hymnology, etc.

Speaker: Dr. Samuel Law (SG)

4. REINVENTING Theological Education And Pastoral Training

Many Asian churches still send pastors and workers to the west for training. Most Asian seminaries are still reproducing Western models of theological education and pastoral training. Many non-westerners perceive the western model as too academic, lacking in contextual relevance in Asia, and weak on the spiritual formation. Is there a need for more incarnational Asian-style theological and pastoral training for the Asian church to disciple Asian Christians and what will it look like?

Speaker: Dr. Paul Cornelius (India)

5. #NowGeneration Conversations: The Old and Young in Dialogue about Church and Mission

We’ve talked about the mindset shift needed to re-engage with young people – one that sees the young not as the NEXT generation but part of the #NOWgeneration. Now, let us try it out. This workshop is designed to create a safe space for #NowGen conversations, in which old and young listen to one another, bring our distinctive gifts and ideas together, working in collaboration and unity. Join us at this workshop to co-create church and mission for the decades ahead, in the hope of keeping the Christian faith relevant for the 21st century.

Speaker: Angie Ng (Singapore)

Speaker: Blessing Sarangapany

6. MIGRANT, Refugee And Diaspora

Asia is witnessing an unprecedented wave of transnational migration as well as rural-urban migration. What are the issues and challenges faced by these migrants as they leave hometowns in search of better jobs, education and safe environments? As millions become the new urban poor living in slums or stateless refugees and victims of human trafficking, what can the church do to help liberate them from such dire straits?

Speakers: Andrew Ng (Malaysia) & Rev. Asa Kain (Bangladesh)

7. INFORMATION Technology, Social Media & Artificial Intelligence

With the advent of the digital age, IT, social media and AI will increasingly impact the life, ministry and mission of the church. Online shopping giants like Amazon and Alibaba on the one hand and IS’s clever use of social media for messaging and recruitment are only two of the more obvious examples. The church needs and to understand and respond to both the opportunities and dangers that this massive digitalization of the modern world poses.

Speakers: Arun Kumar (Malaysia)

Speakers: Sharoon Sarfraz (Pakistan)

Speakers: Ann Chow (China)

Speakers: Russ Martin (Singapore)

8. CHURCH Planting In Asia—A Critical Evaluation Of Models

In the past many Asian churches grew out of the work of Western missions, often following methods developed within Western contexts or a Western repacked adaptation of an Asian context. Some Western agencies and writers continue to promote their respective church planting models as the way forward in Asia. These include the Church Planting Movements (CPM) and Disciple-Making Movements (DMM), and also those taught by Redeemer City to City, Association of Related Churches, and others. But given the different cultural and sociopolitical contexts, these imported models may not be as useful or effective as indigenous models which have emerged from the grass-roots in Asia itself. Asian Christians must therefore critically evaluate models taught by Western agencies in comparison with indigenous Asian models as to their real relevance and usefulness.

• • What models work best in Asia?
• • What are their respective strengths and weaknesses?
• • How can churches in Asia develop models that are truly relevant, contextual and effective in their own contexts?

Speakers: To Be Decided
Facilitators : Rev. Seth Kim and Rev. Chadwick Mohen Samuels

9. Asian Mission Movements: Reflections from Korea and Philippines

The two national churches that have sent out the most missionaries overseas to date are Korea and Philippines. What the respective strengths and weaknesses of each movement? What lessons can other national sending churches learn?

Speakers: Han Chul-Ho & Team (KR) Dr. Glicerio (Jojo) Manzano (PH)

10. LIVING In A Post-Covid-19 World

Covid-19 has upended many things we take for granted before 2020! For example, the internet has taken on a sudden accelerated degree of importance as education, meetings and conferences, business, etc. have moved online. The old normal is now being replaced by a new normal but how far that will go is still uncertain. What are the challenges for the church in face of the changes before us and how should the church position itself under such circumstances. Two facilitators will speak on this, one from the world of business, government & geopolitics, and the other from the church and missions organizations.

Speakers: Christopher Lim (Singapore: Geo-political & Socioeconomic trends); Dr. Lal Senanayake (Sri Lanka: Church and Mission trends).

11. NATION-Building: How can Christians Contribute To Nation-Building In Asian Societies

How can Christians participate in the public square so that increasingly Kingdom values of peace and justice, righteousness and integrity, freedom and responsibility, and human dignity and moral society will prevail? Case studies of the dynamic tension and relations between the church and state will be explored along with effective ways where the church can contribute to public theology

Speaker: CJ (Retired) Maria Lourdes Sereno (Philippines)

Co-Speaker: Bishop Ef Tendero (Philippines)

Co-Speaker: Dr Adrian Chan (Singapore)

12. NATIONALISM And National Identity Versus Christian Commitment: Loyalties In Conflict

This is an issue that is increasingly pressing hard on the church in most countries in Asia, and it goes beyond nation-building. It expresses itself in different ways in China, India, Japan, Myanmar, Islamic nations, etc. Whereas previously the emphasis in the western tradition was loyalty to our respective nations. But as Samuel Huntington so presciently noted, the emphasis is now increasingly shifting to loyalty to or finding our primary identity in indigenous culture and religion. It is easy for Christians to claim that we can be Christians and loyal citizens at one and the same time. But when push comes to shove, something has to give. That will be an increasing challenge for us in the future, especially for Christian minorities.

Speaker: Vijayesh Lal (India)

Speaker: Rev. Dr. Jack Sara (Israel)

13. Compatibility between Christian Faith and Cultural Rites in Asia Societies

Since the days of the Jesuits in China and India in the 17th century, Christians have wrestled with the issue of traditional rituals of Asia. Particularly among Protestants, ritual is commonly viewed with disdain. However, in Asia, ritual is a heart language, an indigenous manner of knowing, and an important social device for cultural transmission and identity formation. At this workshop, we will discuss how the Bible and Church History can guide us in the Christian engagement of cultural customs, in order to create a more Asian face to Christianity.

Speakers: Claire Chong (Singapore & Cambodia) & Samuel Sidjabat (Indonesia)

14. MISSION CHINA: A missions movement emerging from the house church in China

Beginning in the 1970s, a house church movement exploded in growth in China which occurred first in the countryside and then in the cities among urban intellectuals. Following the Cape Town 2010 Lausanne World Congress, house church leaders united together to catalyze an indigenous missionary sending movement called Mission China. Mission China has unique characteristics coming from a church under a growing geopolitical and economic power with nationalism on the rise.

Speakers: David Ro with Mission China leaders

15. Mission Advance: “Managerial Missiology” or Dependence on the Spirit?

Samuel Escobar was probably the first to highlight the tendency to emphasize the management of mission practice in evangelical thinking. This focuses on numerical success through strategic planning, modern managerial techniques, and adequate personnel and finances for mission advance. Others like James Engels and William Dyrness have drawn attention to the same problem, a result of the influence of modernity. But this strong emphasis on numerical success often neglects crucial issues such as discipleship, character growth, adequate understanding of the Bible’s message, suffering and persecution, and other complex issues in mission. Furthermore, a managerial approach often ignores less tangible but more fundamental concerns like prayer, unity and holiness in church, and the indispensable role of the Holy Spirit. It is these latter factors that have largely driven the growth of the churches in Africa, Asia and Latin America in the past 150 years or so. How can our paradigms be reshaped? How can we recover the centrality of prayer and dependence on the Spirit in our thinking and practice?

Speaker: Hwa Yung (Malaysia)

Seminar and Breakout Sessions 3: Partnership With The World Church

This session will address the issue of partnership of Asian churches with churches in the regions listed below. Participant attends only ONE session, depending on the region they may be interested in. Two facilitators per seminar, one EACH from Asia and the region concerned.

• 1. AFRICA: Nana-Yaw Offei Awuku (Video)
• 2. United Kingdom: Jamie Memory
• 3. EUROPE: Jean-Paul Remp
• 4. LATIN AMERICA: Decio de Carvalho/Daniel Bianchi (Video)
• 5. MENA: Rev. Dr. Jack Sara
• 6. RUSSIA AND CENTRAL ASIA: Pavel Kolesnikov
• 7. NORTH AMERICA: Paul Borthwick

ASIA co-facilitators:

• • Rev Dae Heung Kang (KR), Gen-Sec, Korean World Missions Association
• • LS (CN)
• • Theresa Roco-Lua (PH)
• • Dr. Qaiser Julius (PK)

Worship & Prayer

a. Overall, the worship team has been requested to avoid using only the modern westernized style of worship, popular with many in various parts of Asia. They have been requested to plan carefully with some the following key elements in mind:

• • The variety of church backgrounds of participants
• • Good examples of indigenous worship
• • Familiar songs and hymns to be included but not exclusively
• • Liveliness & spiritual sensitivity

b. Morning Worship Sessions (Days 2 – 5)

c. Evening Sessions (Days 2 & 4)

d. Opening and Closing Sessions

ii. Prayer Coordinator

Chrisanne Chin (Malaysia)

Asia 2020 Conference Proceedings

 Dr. Theresa Roco-Lua

 Rico Villanueva (Langham)