Building and Rebuilding the Foundation of Mission

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building and rebuilding the foundation of mission

Japan is located in the world’s most active earthquake zone. Because of the many seismic activities that happen every year, constructing a skyscraper in Japan is a work of engineering. It is said that the foundation is the most critical aspect of building a skyscraper in Japan. The building foundation is very deep and made of cylinders of concrete, steel, or both that penetrate the earth until they reach a stable bedrock layer to prevent the building from sinking or toppling in an earthquake. The higher the building, the deeper the foundation.

The Lord has given the Body of Christ, a mandate for mission. It is essential to have a good foundation if we were to accomplish the task the Lord has commissioned us to do. There are critically important foundations the Church needs to recapture to build and rebuild. To do mission successfully, there are four essential foundations that we need to consider:

1. Biblical Foundation

The actual word mission is not found in the Bible. Neither are familiar words like trinity or rapture. These are all terms that represent concepts that are present in the Bible. However, we cannot study mission in the Scripture by looking at a concordance, though all Christians would agree that the concept of mission is in the Bible.

If mission is not in the concordance, are there direct ways to trace it? Are there other words that we can study? Is mission merely a minor theme in Scripture, or is it of major significance? Many Christians assume that mission begins with Jesus in Matthew 28:19-20: 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. Jesus gave these clear marching orders to His followers before returning to His father. Yet, if we seriously examine the Bible, God gave these marching orders from the very beginning – in Genesis, all the way to Revelation.

Therefore, if the global mission is a topic of serious biblical concern, it should appear before Jesus’ last moments on earth. The Old Testament contains 75% of the Scriptures. Is mission found in the Old Testament? On the other hand, if mission is God’s “big idea” throughout the Bible, why don’t we preach and teach about it and talk about it more often? In our study of the Word, wouldn’t we have noticed such an important topic? Only very few theologians actually expound on such an idea.

Mission is more than just a minor addendum to God’s overall intent. Nor an optional ministry department in the Church. Mission is the very reason written Scripture needed to be given to us in the first place.

We need a missional reading of the Scripture using missional hermeneutics as our tools in developing a Biblical foundation for mission.

2. Historical Foundation

The presence of a mission mandate throughout Scripture becomes visible once we know what to look for. When this is understood, the mission theme connects Scripture into a meaningful whole. The Bible emerges as a singularly focused book instead of a seemingly scattered collection of laws, stories, poetry and chronologies. God’s goal is to reveal Himself not only to Israel but also to the nations. When His intention to reach all nations becomes clear, the Bible fits together sensibly and purposely.

If mission is the focus of all Scripture, then it must also become our focus. By studying biblical history with this understanding, we see these principles worked out in real time and human space. Looking at history in light of God’s global objectives transforms our view of what happened and why. A study of events that formerly seemed dry, dull, and tedious is now filled with relevant lessons.

3. Strategic Foundation

God is accomplishing His worldwide mission and instructing His kingdom people to join Him. His desire to reconcile nations to His loving rule is the primary moving force behind all history. Each of us has a part to play until His mission is completed. Having comprehended His plan in Scripture, we now move to the next step: finding our part and carrying it out in obedience to Him.

With a daring and dangerous charge before us, we need clear and well-thought-out plans and strategies. Some people think that having a strategy might prevent them from being led by the Lord or that it might put them in the position of “running ahead” of God’s will. But God is a strategic God. Made in His image, we are called to be strategic people. Rightly understood, strategies can come from Him and be used by Him. We must determine where the least-evangelized peoples are and then begin to strategize to reach them.

4. Cultural Foundation

Our mission foundations received light from many insights. First, God desires to reach all nations of the world with His truth. Next, He is working through the ages toward that end. Then He desires that His people connect with the remaining unreached peoples. Now we come to the challenge of culture.

Each of the people group who needs to receive God’s message has their unique way of life, its own distinct mode of operating, and its own ideas and stories. From their history, circumstances, and experiences, they have developed their particular culture. Simply reciting John 3:16 in their language will not suffice.

Missionaries shared John 3:16 in many animistic cultures, but people from these cultures were not concerned about love. They were concerned about protection from the spirit world, and until their needs were addressed, the gospel message was not of interest. When people from animistic cultures learned that Jesus had power over the spirit world, the message had value.

To successfully reach people from all nations in Canada and beyond, we must build or rebuild these four critical foundations for mission. Together as a Church, we can finish the global mission task in our generation!

Ike Agawin
ServeBeyond Director

“Rebuilding” the Jesus Way

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rebuilding the Jesus way

Over the past few weeks our EFCC Blog has focused on “rebuilding.”  Last week our Executive Director, Bill Taylor, talked about the foundation and Cornerstone of our rebuilding, a reminder needed before we “get to practical suggestions.”  Well, today I want to offer just one practical suggestion from the model of our Cornerstone – Jesus. This is, I believe, an essential step in building and rebuilding, especially as we consider the work of the Church.

That essential step is this: invest in your key leaders. I know you have heard this before. But I believe it is even more vital, formative, and non-negotiable than ever. I am also convinced it is something everyone of us can do if we just give it the attention it deserves.

You see, it matters little how great a strategy you might build if you don’t have a healthy team of leaders who own it and work it.

It doesn’t matter how great your facility, your technology, your plan, and even your budget is; without strong leaders who are united to each other, AND to the vision, you will not be able to rebuild much of anything.

I know this is not rocket science. Of course, as the leadership guy I will talk about the importance of “growing leaders.”  But I simply cannot overemphasize this. Do you have good leaders already? Wonderful, you still need to invest in them. Do you have a good relationship with your leaders? That is great, but you need to keep working on that relationship. Do you need more good leaders? Start now investing and growing them. In fact, I think we need to stop just looking for people who already shine as leaders and broaden our search to potential leaders who have yet to show their leadership chops.

This means we need to shift our gaze to younger people. Invest, empower, and release the young people in your church. Give them opportunities, responsibilities, appropriate authority, exposure, prayer support, and friendship. I am pretty sure if Timothy joined any of our churches, he would lower the average age of the leadership.  The biblical model is clearly there for us to invest early. At whatever age you are presently looking for leaders, I would suggest you start investing in people younger than that.

Beyond the call to invest in young people let me say this to pastors:  build deeply into your leadership board. Invest in them as a group and invest in them individually. Spend time with them. Visit them in their workplace. Invite their families into your home. They are key. The New Testament speaks often about the role of elders in the leadership of the church. And you have the privilege of being their shepherd.

And Elders, invest deeply in your ministry staff. They need you more than you know. They are not superhuman, they are often wounded, tired, confused, but still committed. Pray for them. Find ways to bless them. Get to know, and care for, their families.

And if you are not a pastor or Board member, I would encourage you to find someone around you that you can invest in. If you are retired, take a young person under your wing. If you are an older couple, take a young couple under your wing.

You first step in strategy when it comes to rebuilding is to invest in the key people around you, building into the leaders. I wanted to write about the need to develop trust as you rebuild. I thought about talking about the benefit in starting program/events as trials and experiments rather than waiting for the perfect and risk-free plan to come along.

But I resisted those temptations to instead say that rebuilding is about people first, not programs. Many teams and relationships have been stressed, fractured, distracted, and disconnected over the past few years. So, start rebuilding there, with the key leaders of your ministry.

When I look at the example of Jesus, I marvel at how he invested specially in the key followers he called, building relationships with them long before they even understood what he would be asking of them. Let’s follow his example.  We will never be sorry when we do that in the service of His bride, the church.

Terry Kaufman
EFCC Leadership Catalyst

Rebuilding on Foundation and Cornerstone

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rebuilding on foundation and cornerstone

So now you Gentiles are no longer strangers and foreigners. You are citizens along with all of God’s holy people. You are members of God’s family. We are His house, built on the foundation of the apostles and prophets. And the cornerstone is Christ Jesus Himself.  We who believe are carefully joined together, becoming a holy temple for the Lord. Through Him you Gentiles are also joined together as part of this dwelling where God lives by His Spirit. 

I love the above verses from Ephesians 2:19-22! During this season we are considering what “rebuilding” the church post-Covid looks like. Over the past few weeks, Terry Kaufman talked about deconstruction, Ike Agawin shared about missional identity, and Neil Bassingthwaighte highlighted the firm foundation of God’s hesed. In my last post I ruminated a bit about building on divine calling. Before we get to practical suggestions for rebuilding ministries post-Covid, I want to briefly consider Paul’s words to the church in Ephesus.

Firstly, I am struck by what we should be rebuilding. If we build in alignment with the redemptive heart of our God, then our primary goal must be to build family. We were strangers and aliens to God’s family, but now we have the privilege of being a holy people who are citizens of His Kingdom. We have the missional task of inviting other “foreigners” into His family. If we build according to God’s heart, then neither buildings nor programs nor reputations should be our primary goal. In dependence on the Holy Spirit, we invest our energies towards the building of people – both as unique individuals and as family.

Secondly, I consider where/on what we build. We are His house, and we build upon the foundation of the apostles and prophets. Jesus Himself is the cornerstone that holds the entire house together.

There is no power in building God’s kingdom on a foundation of human technique, strength, and fame. One can build only a temporary human kingdom using human ingenuity. Building something eternal takes the supernatural power of the gospel of Jesus and His Holy Spirit. We dare not build on anything else but the Living Word.

Lastly, I notice how we rebuild. I love Paul’s point about how carefully each believer is fitted together as an integral part of God’s holy temple where God lives by His Spirit. There is something beautiful about how our God lovingly builds us into His dwelling place. Oh, how He must value every one of His children!  God purposes that each believer be a strategic piece of His temple and a priest who ministers His presence in this world. We dare not treat believers as mere cogs to keep “church machinery” running.   As we rebuild His temple presence in this needy post-Covid world, we must do so in ways that treat each family member with care and honour. After all, believers are entrusted to one another, and are being joined together into a loving, holy unity by the Master Builder.

So, let’s arise and rebuild! Our God will give us wisdom and ability to do so.  Yet may we be clear about what, where, and how we build!

Bill Taylor
EFCC Executive Director

Underneath the Foundation

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Under the Foundation

Give thanks to the Lord, for he is good! His faithful love endures forever.
Give thanks to the God of gods. His faithful love endures forever.
Give thanks to the Lord of lords. His faithful love endures forever.

Psalm 136:1-3

Whenever I have seen a larger structure being built, it always amazes me how long it takes before all the foundation work is done. The rest of the building seems to rise almost instantaneously in comparison. A lot of that initial work is in the ground, underneath the concrete.

Our current blog theme is rebuilding. Much of our rebuilding focuses on recovery from Covid. That is needed. Some of our rebuilding discussion reaches out from that context and asks larger questions for today: What does the church need to look like? How do we as disciples live in this changing culture? What are the core beliefs and practices we need to continue to live out? What are secondary beliefs and practices that may need to be recontextualized? Rebuilding is hard work and usually requires change. For many people rebuilding feels like someone has pulled the rug out from under them.

A firm foundation is important. What we rebuild upon is crucial. The foundation we, as Christian, are always building and rebuilding on is our Triune God. Our faith is all about relationship. Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, all play crucial roles in calling and empowering us as we enter life and mission with God.

But what lies under the foundation? How do we know it will hold up in the shifting sands of culture? Ultimately, why do we trust God?

Most construction requires piles which anchor and support the foundation. Depending on the soil, piles need to be driven deep into the ground to ensure the stability of the entire structure. Using this analogy, I think of the character of God as the piles underneath the foundation.

We know we can trust God because we can count on the faithful love of God that always endures.

Chesed (or Hesed – the Romanized form of the word) is a Hebrew word used in the Old Testament. It appears over 250 times, more than half of those are in the Psalms. It’s difficult to translate. Some English attempts to do so are: “Unfailing love”, “faithful love”, “mercy”, “lovingkindness”, and “goodness”. It ultimately speaks of a deep faithful loving covenant commitment.

In Exodus 34, God allows Moses to catch a glimpse of his glory. As part of that revelation, he reveals His name, “Yahweh! The Lord! The God of compassion and mercy! I am slow to anger and filled with unfailing love and faithfulness.” Moses finds out “Hesed” is part of the essential character of God, part of how he is known by us. This understanding refocuses Moses’ leadership after the golden calf.

Psalm 136 is a history of the nation of Israel in verse. Every line of their story is interwoven with the unfailing love of God. Through the good and the bad, times of flourishing and languishing, God’s faithful love endures forever. What a great way to recite their story! Think through your own story. Even though you may not always see it, “God’s faithful love endures forever” is interwoven into it as well. It could even be said that your story is part of a much larger story of God’s faithful love which endures forever.

“Hesed”, God’s faithful love, is like the piles in the ground that guarantees our foundation for rebuilding is strong and will not shift. It is the essential character of God that undergirds everything he does. As we debate what rebuilding is, and engage in the process, the way ahead is not clear. However, I hope and pray that for you, the faithful love of God that endures forever is crystal clear. May that assurance help all of us rebuild well.

Neil Bassignthwaighte
ServeCanada Director & Interim Prayer Catalyst

Rebuilding the Church’s Missional Identity

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rebuilding the missional identity of the church

Dr. Darrel Guder coined the word “missional” in His book, “Missional Church: A Vision for the Sending of the Church in North America.” In that book, he chose the term “missional” to talk about the missionary nature of the Church, that mission is not a program of the Church but rather the essence, purpose, action and character of the Church, all wrapped up in this larger understanding of God as a missionary God. God is engaged in the mission of redeeming all of creation and has commissioned His Church, the Grand Collective, to be on mission with Him.

Unfortunately, the term “missional” became so popular and became a cliché in our churches today. “Missional” seems to be used to describe almost anything. We have missional communities, leadership, cohorts, cafes, and countless books which claim it in a title. The term became a fad or an attempt for relevance in our current ecclesial environment. There is no end to problematic use of the word especially to imply that if everything is mission, then nothing is mission.

But the term “missional” is still significant and crucial in our understanding of our missional identity as God’s people. The call to be missional is also timely because of the significant changes that have been happening in our world today. There had been a shared consensus among theologians and missiologists that we are living through the end of Christendom in the West, and yet we are still living as though Christendom were intact.

The context where the Church is located has already changed. We live in a society marked by religious pluralism, ethnic diversity, and cultural relativism, yet we are not doing enough to reach our next-door neighbour.

We know Acts 1:8, which commands us to be God’s witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea and Samaria and the ends of the earth. Yet, the reality is that Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria, and the ends of the earth are now in one place, and frontier missions can now be done right where we are! God has sovereignly brought many unreached people groups right on our doorsteps (Acts 17: 26-27), yet very little outreach is done among them. We now live in the glocal (global and local) era where the paradigm of global and local mission exists together.

In light of this present context, the call to be missional is as urgent as ever. If God is a missionary God, it follows that God’s people, the Church, are also missionary. In the Triune God, God the Father sent His Son to the world on a mission to redeem His creation; Jesus sent the Holy Spirit, and the Holy Spirit is sending the Church to the world on mission with God. Jesus said, “Just as the Father has sent Me, I also send you (John 20:21). That is the Church’s missional identity in Jesus.

The question is, how do we rebuild our missional identity?

First, we need to have broader mission theology that will help us define our missional identity in Christ. In the past, there was no theological framework that could provide the basis for mission. Systematic Theology and Biblical Theology are good, but they are inadequate. As you can observe in most Bible Colleges and Seminaries today, mission theology is not being taught. Missional identity development should be an intentional effort of the Church and needs to be emphasized in the discipleship process in our local churches.

Secondly, our missional identity begins with recovering a missionary understanding of God. By His very nature, God is a “sending God” who takes the initiative to redeem His creation. Understanding the Missio Dei will cause us to redefine our understanding of the Church. Because the Church is comprised of the “sent” people of God, the Church is the instrument of God’s mission in the world. However, most people believe that mission is just an instrument of the Church, a means by which the Church is grown. Although Christians frequently say, “The church has a mission,” but according to missional theology (Alan Hirsch), a correct statement would be “the mission has a church.” This understanding is essential in rebuilding our missional identity.

Thirdly, “missional” or “missional living” is a Christian term that describes a missionary lifestyle. Being missional includes embracing the posture, thinking, behaviours, and practices of a missionary to reach others with the message of the gospel. The basic premise of this thinking is that all Christians should be involved in the Great Commission of Jesus as commanded in Matthew 28:19-20.

And fourthly, to rebuild our missional identity, we need to understand that the Church is sent to every culture wherever they may be found. The scope of the imperative to make disciples is to all nations – (Grk. panta ta ethne in Matthew 28:19-20). We are to engage the nations with the gospel locally and globally.

The task of reaching the nations for Christ often feels overwhelming and insurmountable. Nevertheless, God has gifted people in local churches to fill every need and conquer every obstacle. The task of reaching the world can only be accomplished by renewing Paul’s vision of developing every Christian for his or her place in God’s kingdom. This can be done by developing or rebuilding the missional identity of local church members so that they as a church can represent Jesus to the world by “attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ” (Eph. 4:13).

Ike Agawin
ServeBeyond Director

The Role of “Deconstruction” in Rebuilding

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the role of deconstruction in rebuilding

As our Executive Director (Bill Taylor) noted in his blog post last week, we are shifting our focus in these posts to “rebuilding.” He appropriately challenged us to recognize the universality of the divine calling we have received as part of God’s family – the call of the church is a call to us all. As we then begin to process thoughts about rebuilding, we must recognize both the present reality as well as the divine design we are working toward. This leads us to this presently controversial word of “deconstruction.”

In some measure, we are at a place of “rebuilding” because of COVID, but it is more than that. COVID regulations and ripples did not singularly change the context and effectiveness of our ministry, though it exacerbated or magnified what already exists in some measure. The last several years also laid bare what we are doing, in a way, clearing the table for us. The question then is: “What was swept off the table of ministry in the last several years that should be put back on?” That is for each of you and your churches to sort out, but I want to suggest that it will be hard to do that well without engaging in a form of “deconstruction.”

“Deconstruction” has been getting a lot of press lately. I have people asking me what I think about it, and how we should respond. Without getting too deep into the manifestation of deconstruction we are seeing in Christian celebrities (that may be a topic for another blog), I would want to clarify that in its essence deconstruction is not the same as destruction. Deconstruction is not equivalent to abandonment – though that seems to be an equivalency too often implied. Deconstruction is a more careful and thoughtful process of taking something apart for the sake of understanding and improvement rather than a critical spirit engaged for purposes other than rebuilding.

The truth is that to rebuild we must first disassemble, or at least review.

COVID did some of that deconstruction for us, but it has left lots of work for us to do. I believe that healthy deconstruction is only a first step – whether it is personal or corporate. The next steps are evaluation (bible based) and then rebuilding. Bill has helped us to begin to think about the rebuilding portion.

Unfortunately, some of us refuse to reconsider anything. Others too easily dismiss what has gone before. Neither approach is right and both invite trouble. Peter is one example of someone who wrestled with this same process. He had to reconsider the reality of Jews & Gentiles and rebuild his approach to ministry. That is deconstruction in its appropriate application: guided by the Holy Spirit and motivated by a concern for the lost, growing God’s church, and bringing honor to His name.

Where are you at in the rebuilding process? Do you refuse to revisit your plans and strategies? Are you simply longing to put everything back together as it was before? Or have you inappropriately thrown out all things historic too dismissively, simply because they were used by a previous generation or leadership? Hopefully, we are wise enough to avoid both of those ditches.

Additionally, let’s hope that what we have built is made up of components so evidently valuable and appropriate that when our ministries are deconstructed, they will reveal the great building blocks of God’s amazing truths, the sources of hope and purpose, of love and charity. And may we have the humility to allow others to test what we have been building, and building on, to make something stronger, better, purer, and even more effective.  In fact, let’s be building blocks on which those coming after us can build upon to reach higher for God’s kingdom.

Maybe we need to avoid the word “deconstruction” because its meaning has been hijacked. But the concept we must not run from. To rebuild well we must not tear down and abandon, but disassemble to evaluate what parts still work, what parts are necessary and valuable, and then reassemble with those pieces. To do this well we must listen to the Holy Spirit and the truth in God’s Word. In fact, that approach is at the heart of our heritage in the Free Church. So, let’s rebuild well!

Terry Kaufman
EFCC Leadership Catalyst

Rebuilding on Divine Calling

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rebuilding on divine calling

So God created human beings in His own image.  In the image of God He created them, male and female He created them.  Then God blessed them and said, “Be fruitful and multiply. Fill the earth and govern it. Reign over the fish in the sea, the birds in the sky, and all the animals that scurry along the ground.”  Genesis 1:27-28 

This week the blog theme shifts from theology to rebuilding. This is a natural progression – a rebuilding of mission/ministry on a foundation of theological truth. “Rebuilding” seems to imply that something has been lost, destroyed, or taken away. After two years of pandemic, “rebuilding” is a relevant theme.

I am struck by two truths from Genesis 1. First, man and woman are made in the image of God.  Second, man and woman are given a divine calling by God.  A few weeks ago, our EFCC Leadership Catalyst Terry Kaufman talked about how God’s beautiful plan for humanity includes “work”! Part of what it means to be made in His image is that we are wired (and commanded!) to create, be fruitful, and tend (2:15) creation. We are gifted and called by God to “reign” over what He has created in a loving, caring way that causes it to flourish.

I am reminded that every human being – male and female has this gifting and calling from God. Further, as followers of Jesus, each of us has a calling to minister shalom and His grace in this world. Many Old Testament scholars see temple imagery in the Garden of Eden. Man and woman are expelled from the Garden/temple in Genesis 3, but God continues to find ways to personally minister grace in a sinful world (through the tabernacle, the temple and Jesus). Peter reminds us in I Peter 1 that we are a “living stones that God is building into His spiritual temple. What’s more, you are His holy priests.  Through the mediation of Jesus Christ, you offer spiritual sacrifices that please God.”  (I Peter 2:5). Peter further declares that we are royal priests, a holy nation, God’s very own people. As a result, we can show others the goodness of God (I Peter 2:9).

The calling on man and woman in Genesis 1-2, was a calling to all humans.  It was a calling to live out the image of God in us and work – to produce beauty, fruitfulness, and shalom.

That universal call still stands – even in a creation that groans under the weight of sin (Romans 8). Moving forward, I want to suggest that the Church needs to rebuild on another divine calling. This calling is for every follower of Jesus (not just pastors and missionaries). This divine mandate is for each of us to be a royal priest who ministers the gracious, redemptive presence of God in this foreign land. Professional clergy and spectacular programs alone will not accomplish what God has called His Church to. This side of COVID we need to embrace the divine calling that puts feet to the doctrine of the priesthood of all believers and makes it relevant to salvation, sanctification, and mission.

Bill Taylor
EFCC Executive Director

 

When Theology is Not Enough

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When Theology is not Enough

I am haunted by some verses found in John 5. The context – Jesus has just healed on the Sabbath and the leaders are upset. Jesus offers up an explanation for healing on the Sabbath. This leads to more trouble as the Jewish leaders clearly understood Jesus’ statement about his father (v.17) and want to kill him for blasphemy. In the middle of the subsequent rebuttal by Jesus we read verses 39-40:

39You search the Scriptures because you think they give you eternal life. But the Scriptures point to me! 40Yet you refuse to come to me to receive this life.

Wow! Think about those words for a few moments. These men were the elite theologians in Jesus’ day. They knew their Scriptures inside and out. They had been educated in the best rabbinical traditions. They had systematized their Scriptures into a detailed theology and created a whole host of religious practices to live that theology. But they missed the point! They missed Jesus.

Do we do the same thing?

Before we go further, please understand that I am in no way advocating that we give up on becoming better students of the Bible. I am also not setting up a false dichotomy between theology and religious experience, or theology and Jesus, or the Bible and Jesus. We need to be more robust in our theology, but we also need to experience Jesus in our daily lives. Theology without experiencing life with Jesus is like the experience of the religious leaders of Jesus’ day.

When was the last time you truly experienced Jesus in your life?

Do you have friends that can ask if and how you are experiencing Jesus?

When I say experiencing Jesus, I am simply referring to those moments where we can clearly identify God showing up in some way, shape, or form in our daily lives. It might be as simple as a Bible verse taking on new meaning. It might be an answer to prayer. It might be another member of the body of Christ who visibly lives out Jesus in their words and actions toward us. Whatever it is, it leads us to a bigger, bolder, and more beautiful vision of who Jesus is.

This whole blog season has centered around the theme of theology. As we close that theme, I want to leave you with this encouragement. Our theology comes to life when it is infused by seeing and experiencing the living Lord in our lives. As we meet Jesus throughout our daily lives: we learn more about Him and His good plan for the flourishing of all life, we learn more about His character, we are drawn deeper into His love, life, and mission, and we grow in our understanding of what it means for us to follow Him. As our experience of Jesus grows, our theology deepens.

Do you want to deepen your theology?

The flipside of that question could be this one:

How are you making space in your life to be open to hear from, see, and experience Jesus?

Neil Bassignthwaighte
EFCC National Mission Director & Interim Prayer Catalyst

The End of Mission

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the end of mission

Some people believe that mission is over. Jesus said in Matthew 24:14 that “This gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all the nations, and then the end will come.” The Gospel has indeed been preached to all the countries of the world, but Jesus is referring to the nations – the ethnic or people groups with their distinct cultures and languages. Almost half of the world’s population, representing many people groups, are yet to hear the Gospel.1 The Gospel has not been preached to them. Mission is not over, and the task of world evangelization is still in effect for the Church. But when will mission end?

Throughout the Book of Revelation, John records his vision and revives the confidence of the Churches in the certainty of the spread of the Gospel throughout all the nations. Persecutions and slaughter cannot stop the spread of the Gospel until all that dwell on earth has heard. The song of the twenty-four elders addressed to the Lamb of God celebrates the redemption of men from all nations. They are redeemed out of all peoples of God’s purpose: He has “made them a Kingdom and priests to our God, and they shall reign on the earth” (Rev. 5:10). In another vision, John sees “a great multitude that no one could count, from every nation, tribe, people, and language” in worship before the throne of God (Rev. 7:9). Representatives of all nations will be there in heaven worshipping the Lord and thus fulfill God’s promise to Abraham in Genesis 12. This is where history ends. God is moving all history towards the completion of world evangelization.

In Revelation 21:24, John describes his vision in heaven “The nations will walk by its light, and the kings of the earth will bring their splendour into it. The glory and honour of the nations will be brought into it (v. 26). The worship of God by people from every nation, tribe, people, and language will bring the highest glory to God! This should be our guiding vision of ultimate purpose, that God would be most glorified in every people by a movement of obedience and worship to Christ.

This multicultural worship in heaven will happen because this is God’s unchanging purpose on earth.

We read in Hebrews 6:17-18 the two unchanging purposes of God; (1) To bless Abraham and his descendants, and (2) To bless all peoples or nations of the earth through His descendants or seed. So, between Abraham in Genesis 12 to the worship in heaven by all the nations of the world in the Book of Revelation is mission. The worship in heaven and the completion of God’s promise to Abraham will only be realized through missions.

The Book of Revelation closes with a vision of new heaven, new earth, and the eternal city in which the Lord Himself is the Light. There once more, we meet the nations. In the new Paradise is the tree of life with leaves for the healing of the nations (Rev. 22:2). And so, history is complete. Mission is over. The nations, the families of the earth who have always been the object of God’s love, redeemed and preserved, have a place in God’s creation. The Lord will be their light, and they shall reign forever and ever (Rev. 22:5).

Ike Agawin
EFCC International Mission Director

1 https://joshuaproject.net/global/progress

Theology for Today

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theology for today

Recently Bill Taylor posted on this Blog site some thoughts and questions regarding Genesis and its implications for us. He graciously opened the door for further discussion, and I would like to follow that invitation by suggesting a couple of thoughts for consideration.

First, it is clear from the early chapters of Genesis that we were created to work. I know that work is often perceived as a four-letter word — in the “bad” sense. But work was given to mankind pre-fall, in a perfect environment, and as a part our forming in the image of God. This flies in the face of the often-caricatured picture of work being a result of the fall of humanity from grace, the fall into brokenness, something to endure, something bothersome and endured only to provide for what is really important — which of course is leisure. But that is not God’s model. Nor is that God’s example. Work is Godly, in many ways. At least, it is designed and intended to be.

In fact, there is a fascinating verse in Isaiah 65 that indicates that we will even work in the New Heaven/New Earth. There, work will not be stained by the fall, but we will be able to build houses that last and will not be taken from us. While I am not sure how literal to take that, I do believe it draws our attention to the fact that the world for which God created us, the world of Genesis 1 and 2 where sin had not yet destroyed so much, included work. If heaven is the re-creation, the fulfillment of God’s Eden, then work will be a part of our eternity in some form. I actually wonder if craftsmen, artists, creatives will all find fulfilling God’s honoring work in heaven, while us pastors will have to set our hands and minds to things less familiar to us now, as the work we are presently committed to will not be needed there. That is an intriguing thought for me.

So, can we begin to view our workplace and work opportunities with a fresh view? As Christians we should not communicate a dread for Mondays, and a celebration for Fridays, in the same way as those who are ignorant of God’s design and call on us. What a privilege to partner with God in the provision of our people and in reflecting His image through work.

But that also leads to a second observation from those first chapters of Genesis.

The work assigned to humanity in the Garden of Eden included care for God’s creation. Yes, that creation was there to provide for us, but we are also called to consider and care for the larger creation of God. This too is part of living in the image of God.

So, I leave you to ponder a couple of questions. What is your attitude about work? Is it appropriate? What can you do to change it? How can we leverage our work as a call of God, whether that work be in a kitchen, garage, retail sales, or church? And what are we personally doing to further the cause of care of God’s creation? This too is part of our work, our calling.

For me, these are pretty clear, and not very controversial, implications of the first chapters of Genesis where God articulates the beginnings of His plan for us. So how is that theology expressing itself in your today?

Terry Kaufman
EFCC Leadership Catalyst

Answers in Genesis

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answers in genesis

God’s gospel originates in and expresses the wondrous perfections of the eternal, triune God.

1. We believe in one God, Creator of all things, holy, infinitely perfect, and eternally existing in a loving unity of three equally divine Persons: The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. Having limitless knowledge and sovereign power, God has graciously purposed from eternity to redeem a people for Himself and to make all things new for His own glory.

In an earlier post I highlighted some “Questions in Genesis.”  In this post I want to think briefly about the rich “Answers in Genesis” that these two chapters present to gospel people. Rather than debating the mechanics of creation, I wish to affirm that these chapters provide us with deep, rich insights into the character and plans of our God. Many of these ideas are summarized in Article One of our EFCC Statement of Faith (which I have quoted above).

Genesis 1-2 reminds us that our God is Creator – and creative! Time and again in these chapters we see that the creation is good – very good, indeed!  It is good because our God is good – He is holy, infinitely perfect, and eternally existing! If you have read any of the ancient stories about the Greek, Canaanite, or Roman gods, you cannot but be amazed at the goodness of our God (as introduced to us in Genesis 1-2). He isn’t malevolent, capricious, or immoral, or any of the things we see from the ancient pagan gods. He has good plans for His creation. He is goodness, through and through! His rule is benevolent. He invites Adam and Eve to join Him in a “tending” of the creation meant for its flourishing, not for His own personal abuse. He is sovereign over it – He is king, but He is a loving, wise king who revels in the beauty of what He has made and invites humanity to join Him in its flourishing.

We see that our God is a “loving unity of equally divine persons.”  He declares, “Let us make man in our image!”  Loving unity is such a central feature of His nature that He declares that it is “not good” for Adam to be alone – and He creates a perfect counterpart so that Adam and Eve can experience the same loving unity. The beauty of God’s plan for male and female reflects the loving heart of an infinitely perfect, relational God. Genesis shows us God’s plan of shalom – loving and flourishing community for His creation and for humanity, the pinnacle of His creation. Genesis 3 of course shows how sin and rebellion destroy so much of this beauty, and yet, we see throughout the Word that “God has graciously purposed from eternity to redeem a people for Himself and to make all things new for His own glory.”  The first two chapters of Genesis remind us that our God is essentially a God of lovingkindness whose plan for creation and for male and female is beautiful and fulfilling.  All human substitutes for His plan may seem good and satisfying in the short run – but in the end fall short of the beautiful plan God had for creation, creature, and community.

Even the Fall of Genesis 3 cannot destroy the dignity of humans (the image of God in us), nor the beauty of creation. We do well to anchor our vision of God, creation, sex, marriage, calling, vocation, and community in this beautiful passage that introduces our God and His plan for His creation!

Bill Taylor
EFCC Executive Director

A Reading List for Everyone?

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A Reading List

Be careful, for writing books is endless, and much study wears you out. Ecc. 12: 11-12

A great book is very helpful. But how many helpful books can one possibly find or read? Every year scads of books get published. Some are good. Some are incredibly helpful. But we can get lost in a sea of books.

Someone recently encouraged me to put together a list of Christian non-fiction books that every Christian should read. What an impossible task. Think about all the languages that would need translations. So the person refined the challenge. Could I form a list that could be read by every English reading adult Christian in the western world? Still too broad, but I began to think about it.

My first thought was, I don’t want to minimize Bible reading.

Reading books must not replace our Bible reading! The Bible is so much more than any book. But only reading the Bible without listening to other Christian perspectives about the Bible, leads to misinterpreting the Bible. We can’t help it; we are trapped by our biases. We need the help of others in doing theology. Authors provide some of that help.

Then, I began to form some criteria to help me put together a book list. Here is what I came up with:

  1. A book I have personally read. I can’t recommend it otherwise. I still have a significant pool to pick from. Over my ministry years I have read well over 1500 books.
  2. The book would need to be easy to read. So, sadly, no classics with antiquated language. It should have few large and hard-to-define words. Likely aimed at a high school reading level.
  3. The theological concepts need to be accessible to all. Although there are deep theological treasure troves which some people enjoy, those kinds of books are beyond this list.
  4. It must contain applicable topics for all Christians. It would need to have a universal appeal.
  5. It should cover basics or subjects close to or leading to them.
  6. It needs to be a short list. Not all are avid readers and avoiding the sea of books is crucial.
  7. Written from a gracious Neo-fundamentalism need not apply.

I looked back over the lists of books that I have read. Yes, I kept track of every Christian book I have read since I started ministry. I know I’m weird! Forgive me.

Here’s Neil’s Reading List for Any Christian (with qualifiers understood) that I came up with based on the above listed criteria:

  1. With: Reimagining the Way You Relate to God – Skye Jethani
    This could be reread several times over. It’s that important! Skye explores 4 ways of relating to God that are essentially attempts to control Him. He then shifts to focus on what Life With God really is and how we can cultivate it.
  1. Seven Things I Wish Christians Knew About the Bible – Michael Bird
    This little volume has more tools for good solid Biblical interpretation than several Bible College texts books I have seen. Michael’s simple yet profound work helps readers get a handle on what the Bible is and how to handle it well.

We could probably end the list right there if we wanted. They are the top tier. But that’s too short a list. So, I added a few more, in no particular order:

  1. Inexpressible: Hesed and the Mystery of God’s Lovingkindness – Michael Card
    This is a beautifully written book on the Hebrew word Hesed and what it reveals to us about the character of God.
  1. Who is This Man?: The Unpredictable Impact of the Inescapable Jesus – John Ortberg
    A wonderful look at who Jesus is and the impact he has had on our world.
  1. Accidental Pharisees: Avoiding Pride, Exclusivity, and the Other Dangers of Overzealous Faith – Larry Osborne
    This volume is a prophetic corrective. It too is one of those books that could be reread several times as a healthy reminder of the need to not become overzealous about other’s lives.
  1. Simply Christian: Why Christianity Makes Sense – N.T. Wright
    I almost didn’t include this book because it is a slightly more difficult read than the rest of the list. But a book like this, or C.S. Lewis’ Mere Christianity, probably needs to be on this list and this reads slightly easier than Lewis.
  1. The Listening Life: Embracing Attentiveness in a World of Distraction – Adam McHugh
    This volume is much needed in our current cultural climate. The art of listening needs to be recultivated, as a discipleship and hospitality practice. Adam has all kinds of good advice on how that can happen.

That’s it! That’s the whole list. There were many great books that I wish I could have included. But of the writing of books there is no end. So based on all my criteria, it ultimately boiled down to these 7 books.

What is your list? I suspect that you would have different books on your list, based on your reading history. I would love to hear your list.

Neil Bassignthwaighte
EFCC National Mission Director & Interim Prayer Catalyst