M.A. / The focus of this dissertation is based on the New Testament concept of life, within the framework of the reign of God. The message of the reality and concrescence of the reign of God in human history was articulated by Jesus Christ, both in his ministry and his consciousness as the Son of God. It was Jesus of Nazareth who declared that he was sent from above to bring about reconciliation between God and mankind. Jesus Christ in his prophetic role taught and challenged his audience to make radical decisions for God, by appropriating and aligning their everyday lives with the claims and the demands of the Kingdom of God, through repentance and by seeking God's will. Therefore, the death and the resurrection of Jesus Christ signifies a purposive, deliberate and redemptive intervention of God in human history. This christological event of God's intervention in human history inaugurates a new age accompanied by a newness of life. The message of the reign of God places serious ethical and moral demands upon all humanity. It affirms the fact that in Jesus Christ God has a Sovereign claim upon life itself, and that there is no area in human life which cannot be radically transformed by the salvific acts of God in the person and the work of Jesus Christ. The objective of this dissertation therefore, is to show how human life, particularly when affected by sickness and disease can be re-oriented by the "transformative purpose" of God in Jesus Christ. We therefore conclude by giving recommendations on how the Church can witness to the people suffering with the HIV-AIDS disease and how the kingdom ethics re-directs the lives of the sufferers themselves.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:netd.ac.za/oai:union.ndltd.org:uj/uj:2588 |
| Date | 16 August 2012 |
| Creators | Mashinini, Meshack Mandla |
| Source Sets | South African National ETD Portal |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Thesis |
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