Back to NIRSA today, incredible response to the 'Mighty Men of God' conference.

It is just before 8am here in Johannesburg and I am on my way back to the NIRSA (National Innitiative for the Reformation of South Africa) conference near the OR Tambo airport. This is the second day of the conference. Yesterday was an interesting, and encouraging, day. The tone of the day was listending, praying, and strategising for change in South Africa (and Southern Africa). The speakers and presenters came from a variety of theological backgrounds and denominations, ranging from the Catholic Arch Bishop, to evangelical leaders, there were members of government (such as Chief Mangasotho Buthelezi), and leaders of industry.

The points that came through most clearly by the end of the day were:

1. The Church has a great responsibility to 'disciple the nation' for responsible living in accordance with Kingdom values. This is NOT to be confused with nationalism. Rather, it means that we should be helping our members to understand that their faith is NOT just about that 1 hour of worship on a Sunday. Rather, their faith influence their economic, social, political and moral choices. This point was particularly strongly made when we considered that such a large percentage of our population profess the Christian faith, yet crime is high, there is rampant hopelessness, we have adbidcated our responsibilities to government etc.

2. There is a need to move from a shallow 'personal salvation' paradigm to an understanding that Christians must unite forces, across denominational and theological lines, to bring about healing and transformation in society. The issue here, is that the function of the Church in society is NOT Church growth (for the sake of building empires for denomonations and individuals), rather the emphasis is upon working together to bring about God's will and desire in our country. For example, what is the Church doing about hungry children, what is the Church in your area doing about HIV / AIDS, what is the Church doing about issues of moral decay? In short, we were challenged to understand that the Church has done a fairly good job of presenting the message of the Gospel, now it was time to establish the Kingdom of the Gospel.

3. Two innitiatives were validated as central to this process: a. The need to be praying together much more ardently for the needs of our nation(both listening for God's guidance, but also presenting our needs, concerns and desires to God), b. to support the 'unashamedly ethical' campaing (see www.transformationafrica.com where we personally take responsibility for our own Christian ethical conduct (to deal with negative issues such as sin, but also to encourage positive responses to problems, such as generosity, inclusivity, etc.).

Well, I hope to post a few more thoughts and pictures throughout the day. Please continue to pray for all who are participating in this seminal event in our nation's history.

PS. for the Methodists among us, there is a wonderful representation of Methodists (including our own Khoza Mgogo and Vido Nyobole) here! I am greatly encouraged by the diversity of persons (Anglicans, Presbyterians, Baptists, Catholics, independents, Evangelicals, Charismatics.... etc., etc.)

PPS. With regards to the 'Mighty men of God' conference, the response has been overwhelming both here on this blog, and among the participants of the NIRSA conference. It would seem that this event has touched so many lives! I have never had the ammount of traffic to my blog as I do now (I am getting close to 1200 hits a day on the Mighty Men of God posts and photographs). While many persons from different perspectives at the conference were present, there seems to be consensus on the matter that such a large, simple, and significant event could have very positive impacts upon our society. Let's pray that it is so!

Technorati tags: Mighty men of God, Angus Buchan, Christian men, incredible blessing, NIRSA Michael Cassidy, Church and State

Comments

[David Barbour]

Thanks for the update Dion. It is great to see so many diverse traditions together on one subject the transformation of our country. The Mighty men experience has certainly made a dent in the spiritual discourse of our churches. I had a young confirmation boy express his thoughts about Angus Buchan and the conference and he was very encouraged. There is a place for all under the sun.. God bless

[ROYDO]

Hi Dion,

I was there. Sorry we did not connect. Perhaps another time and place. Some of my thoughts about NIRSA are expressed in this e-mail I sent to the leaders in our denomination. (The Wesleyan Church of Southern africa)

God bless

Roy


"Dear brothers and sisters in Christ,

Recently (22-23/04) I was a delegate at the 2-day NIRSA Conference in Boksburg (National Initiative for Reformation of South Africa). The conference was held under the leadership of Dr Michael Cassidy of AE. The resolutions of this conference (the NIRSA Declaration of Intent) (PDF) is attached for your deliberation and action.

Though there is much to digest, I personally believe that it is the first clear evangelical statement of intent from a diverse group of South African Christians ever. We came from many different theological, and cultural backgrounds to deliberate on this question, "How is the church of Christ in South Africa going to respond in this hour of serious moral decline?" We came also to hear what the Lord has to say to us.

Imagine asking 450 Christians for their individual opinions and insights on issues of national importance, and then still hoping to hear from the Lord! But we did. The NIRSA Declaration of Intent clearly shows this fact.

I am both humbled and encouraged by what is happening among believers in our land. I also met some wonderful brothers and sisters in the Lord who are deeply concerned about the moral state of our country. (We can find each other at the cross of Jesus.) Michael Cassidy believes fervently that South Africa needs a work of God similar to what took place through Wesley, Whitfield, the Moravians and others during eighteenth century England. He publicly stated at NIRSA that the Wesleyan revival is the model for South Africa.

I met with him about three weeks prior to NIRSA, we spent almost two hours together. We were both encouraged with what the Lord is putting together in our country. At NIRSA I mentioned to him the fact that in my reading of the Wesleyan revival I discovered that there were at least four distinct theological streams of thought throughout the revival. Wesley (Arminian), Whitfield and Countess Huntingdon (Hyper Calvinism), the Moravians (Lutheran) and a move within the church of England (Mildly Calvinistic). Yet, despite these differences, one historian (Skevington Wood) says that two distinct facts were emphasised by every group. (a) The authority of the Word of God; (b) The necessity of the new birth.

I stressed this fact at the conference, because although the conference leadership emphasised the authority of the Bible, they did not specifically mention the new birth. I think it was assumed, and not deliberately omitted; but we do need to stress the fact that the new birth is the sole means of entry into God's kingdom. I see that this has now been included in the NIRSA Declaration of Intent.

Please be in prayer for our country and for what God can accomplish through NIRSA. I have just now sent an e-mail to Michael Cassidy, mentioning to him that what is needed to catapult the NIRSA Declaration of Intent through the churches is a deep work of the Spirit of God. (Zechariah 4:6)"

Greetings in Jesus precious Name

Roy D Oosthuizen