heGrace School of Divinity is focused on the study, praxis and proclamation of Renewal Theology.
Renewal Theology is the believing reflection on the activity of God in Holy Scripture and in the history of
the Church from the point of view of the renewing work of the Holy Spirit. It operates within a
Trinitarian framework with a Christological focus, and is shaped by the normative voice of Holy
Scripture. Renewal Theology values the gifts and power of the Holy Spirit, while acknowledging the role
of love as “the most excellent way” (1 Corinthians 13).
Renewal theology aims to strengthen the faith of the Christian community and emphasizes the
conviction, formalized by Augustine in the fourth century as credo ut intelligam, “I believe in order to
understand” and by Anselm in the eleventh century as fides quaereus intellectum, “faith seeking
understanding.” In our pursuit of Renewal Theology we know that we are treading on holy ground. God
is never “summoned into the presence of reason; reason is summoned before the presence of
God.” Renewal Theology is not merely free speech, but rather holy speech.
Renewal theology is rooted in the idea that the triune God alone is the source of all genuine reviving and
awakening, and thus it seeks to foster within all people an inner experience of treasuring the beauty and
worth of God in an ever-growing love for God and the Lordship of Christ over all of life. To this end, the
Bible is the primary means through which God makes his nature, beauty, and will known to humanity. As
such, the Old and New Testament are God’s self-disclosure, through the many genres of literature, like
the many colors of the rainbow. No one literary type or literary device is preeminent over all others
(e.g., propositional, metaphor, etc.). Rather, God’s renewing and reviving works are mediated through
the multi-colored spectrum that constitute the palette of literary forms. The Spirit of God carries out his
restoring and reviving work primarily through the Scriptures, by which he confronts, convicts, imparts
faith, produces repentance, and creates life-sustaining joy in the heart, so that people begin to value
and intentionally display his worth in their lives. These displays of his worth are expressed through our
natural giftedness, as well as the Spiritual gifts he grants for the purpose of building up the Church—
which is Christ’s body—and to empower us as his witnesses, with the biblical text adjudicating these
expressions; making it both the means and the standard of renewal.
MISSION AND VISION
The Grace School of Divinity exists for the glory of God by providing Biblical, theological and ministerial
education that seeks to be faithful to the Scriptures and emphasizes the renewing work of the Holy
Spirit in order to train laborers who will bear witness to the gospel of Jesus Christ in the Church, the
world, and the academy. We support the mission and vision in the following ways:
1. Biblical fidelity: We are committed to excellence in theological and ministerial education that is
grounded in the authority of the Bible as the eternal, infallible and inspired Word of God.
2. Trinitarian worship: We seek to offer our labor in education and research as worship of the
Triune God and aim to declare His holiness and glory in all that we do.
3. Spiritual renewal: We are focused on the renewing presence of the Holy Spirit from creation to
the consummation, and embrace the Biblical, historical and contemporary expressions of His
renewing work.
4. Holistic formation: We understand the call to formation to be the lifelong process of being
conformed to the image of Christ by His Spirit and seek to promote holistic habits of spirit, soul
and body that promote human and ministerial flourishing.
5. Ecclesial focus: We desire to serve the Body of Christ with humility and integrity, recognizing the
central role of the Church in the eternal plan of God.
6. Missional leadership: We participate in God’s mission by providing education, training,
empowerment and equipping to all whom God calls, regardless of ethnicity or gender.
7. Prophetic relevance: It is our vision to graduate Christ-centered leaders that will be prophetic
witnesses in their generation, standing firm in their commitment to Biblical values of holiness
and morality.
In a reflective paper of 700-800 words:
• Summarize and define each of the Grace School of Divinity’s seven core commitments
• Choose one of those core commitments for special focus
• Define that core commitment and how it applies to training for ministry
• Present a strong biblical and theological case for the necessity for the core commitment
• Reflect on how that core commitment will influence the way you approach your studies
• Reflect on how that core commitment has the potential to impact your personal life and
ministry. (My ministry is feeding the homeless and educating Pastors/leaders on preaching and
caring for people outside the walls of the church.)
• Research and citation from at least 7 unique sources
• Excellent use of Turabian (9th Edition) formatting
• At least one source from the Web that you have evaluated for its validity
• At lease one source from e-book and one source from e-journal.
Contents area is not needed in the front matter of your paper.
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