Latest / Eurasia Region Podcast / S1-E55 | Everyday Eurasia | Dr. Olga Druzhinina

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S1-E55 | Everyday Eurasia | Dr. Olga Druzhinina · Eurasia Region Podcast

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  Hello and welcome to the Everyday Eurasia podcast,
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  Inspiring Faith for Every Day. Each day we are on a journey
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  with Jesus in our churches, our homes, our workplaces, and in so
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  many different places around the world.
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  Is it beautiful that no matter where we are, we can walk with
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  him every single day? Jesus is the one who connects us
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  all and stands at the very center of our lives day after
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  day. Through this podcast, you'll
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  hear voices from across the region sharing devotionals that
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  reminds us of God's presence in our everyday moments.
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  This week we're joined by Doctor Oka Dujingen, A theologian,
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  educator, and ordained minister in the Church of the Nazarene.
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  Originally from Russia, Olga has served across Eastern Europe as
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  a missionary, pastor, and theological educator.
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  She currently serves as Senior Lecturer and Cluster Chair for
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  Theology at European Nazarene College and holds a PhD in
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  Theology from the University of Manchester.
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  Throughout this week, Olga will be guiding us through the key
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  themes from her new book, Introduction to Christian
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  Theology. The openness reflects more
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  deeply on what we believe and why it managed for our everyday
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  walk with God. Hello dear friends, my name is
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  Olga Dujinen and I was asked to share some ideas from my book
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  Introduction to Christian Theology.
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  When people accept Christ as their Lord and Savior, they are
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  encouraged to grow in their faith.
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  In his letter to newly converted believers, the apostle Peter is
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  trying to inspire them, saying like newborn babies thirst for
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  the pure milk of the world, so by it you may grow in your
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  salvation. In this sense, our theological
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  reflections on the Word of God prompt us towards salvation, and
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  this salvation is closely related to the Christ likeness.
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  For example, we read in the Bible several statements related
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  to our purpose in this life. First, Scripture says that we
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  were created in the image of God.
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  In the epistle to Colossians, Apostle Paul tells us that Jesus
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  is the perfect image of the invisible God.
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  In addition, in his letter to Romans, he informs believers
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  that we should be conformed to the image of Christ.
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  However, we need to understand why and how we can reach this
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  goal. In this sense, theology helps us
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  to discover the biblical truths that spiritual growth is not a
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  purely human effort of self improvement.
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  It's not. We are not supposed to do this
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  by our own strength. The Holy Spirit guides us along
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  the way and we must cooperate with the Spirit of Christ on
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  this journey if we want to reach spiritual maturity.
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  Although this long life process of our transformation is Christ
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  centred, it should be understood in a Trinitarian way.
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  God the Father, through the Holy Spirit renews and restores us
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  into the likeness of His Son, Jesus Christ.
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  Theology assists us in collecting all the pieces
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  together to assemble the bigger picture.
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  In addition, it gives us reasons and motivation for spiritual
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  growth. Our spiritual formation depends
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  on what we believe and how we perceive our role in this world.
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  Theology explains how we can transform our lives and the
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  lives of others by pursuing simplification and perfection in
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  love. As long as people grow
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  spiritually, theological ideas may inform and enrich their
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  practice, and this way practical and theological approaches go
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  together. But people should cooperate with
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  divine grace. Theology helps us to find our
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  place in God's plan and follow His guidance in our lives.
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  By growing spiritually, believers may realise their
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  potential as ministers and servants of the gospel and
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  participate in God's mission. Theology, which is our
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  reflection on God, may help us provide answers to people's
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  questions. What is the person?
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  What is the purpose of my existence?
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  What happens after death? This doesn't mean that we always
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  have the answers to people's situations.
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  However, we should be aware of their needs and ready to give
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  sound and relevant geological answers.
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  For example, what Bible verses would you cite about genetic
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  engineering or artificial intelligence?
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  It takes some theological effort to work out how the Word of God
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  can be applied to questions, issues, and subjects that did
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  not confront the original readers of the Bible.
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  In our contemporary world, theology helps us to share the
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  gospel, our beliefs, values, and practices with people who never
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  heard about Christ. We can perceive their concerns
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  about life and respond in a practical way with love and
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  compassion. Let us pray.
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  Dear Heavenly Father, we come to you as your children who really
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  want to transform this world with your gospel.
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  We understand that many people are lost and suffering.
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  Please give us wisdom and help us to find the proper words that
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  the women share the good news about you with this world.
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  Amen. Thank you for listening to the
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  Everyday Eurasia podcast, Inspiring Fate for everyday.
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  For more Everyday Stories, subscribe on this podcast
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  channel, follow our socials, Facebook and Instagram, or our
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  newsletter Snapshots. For our newsletter and further
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  information about the Eurasia region, visit our website,
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  eurasiaregion.org.