D.Litt.et Phil. / The world in which the Christian community finds themselves today, is a world that has in many ways spiritually lost its way. This has led to the ethical and moral decay that has as a result, social problems, as well as social and political corruption. The Church is also experiencing a crisis. The Church, until recently was the centre of many people‟s existence, but now increasingly people are removed from the church and churchless. Is there an antidote to counteract this assault on the Christian faith? As per the argument in this dissertation, the answer lies in the lifestyle of the faithful, according to their confession. A way of life that confirms and not renounces the Biblical truths is the only way in which the Church‟s credibility can be restored in a post modern milieu. It is also one of the most important ways in which the decay in society can be counteracted; a Church that can yet again, as a bride of Christ perform her missiological duty as the salt and light of the world. This conclusion has forced the relevance of this research to the forefront. Paul describes the Corinthians as the holy temple of God in which the Holy Spirit resides (1 Cor 3:16-17). Two questions immediately arise: what relevance does this metaphor have on a Christian lifestyle and can a metaphor, applied 2000 years ago to the Christians in Corinthians, have any hermeneutical value, today? Can it serve as an ethical core moment in the post-modern time in which we find ourselves? These are some of the questions addressed in this research. The temple motif is a central theme found throughout the Bible. This is born through God‟s desire to live amidst his people. He instructs Moses to build a tent tabernacle, so that He “can live in their midst” (Ex 25:8). This tabernacle moved with the Israelites, everywhere they went. This was the place where God revealed his special presence, where daily offerings were made as atonement for the people‟s sins and where, once a year on the Great Day of Reconciliation the high priest went into the Most Holy to atone for the sins of the people as well as his own. Everything in and around the tabernacle was characterized by holiness.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:uj/uj:7384 |
| Date | 12 November 2012 |
| Creators | Maré, Pieter Johannes |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
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