This paper will consider a specific case study in light of the information covered in the class Jesus and the Christian Community at Fresno Pacific University. A careful re-reading of the gospels along with the textbook, The Upside-Down Kingdom by Donald B. Kraybill, challenges students to examine the kingdom of God and compare it to the kingdom of the world. Kraybill suggests the central theme of Jesus’ teaching in the gospels is the kingdom of God and argues that the kingdom of God was a “new order of things that looked upside-down…in the first century.” and “continues to have upside-down features” as it continues to spread and impact every age and culture. The church, collectively and individually, must be aware of the vast difference between the kingdom of God and the kingdom of this world and must constantly evaluate its philosophy and program to be certain they are aligned with the kingdom of God. The case study selected for this paper is as follows.
Your church has the opportunity to relocate to a larger piece of land in a growing part of the city. The relocation will put them in the middle of a region where new homes are being built with new schools and shopping areas. The older part of town where the church is now located is decaying. Few people from the church choose to live there anymore. Would Jesus counsel the…show more content… He powerfully addresses the story of the prostitute who came and anointed Jesus feet with perfume. The disciples questioned why Jesus would condone the waste of perfume, which could have been sold to raise money for the poor. Jesus responded by saying that there would always be the poor among them. This verse has often been taken out of context and used to play down the need for ministry to the poor but that is not at all what Jesus was communicating. Jesus was referencing Deuteronomy chapter
