The Church and its Mission to the Nations

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church and its mission to the nations

But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem and in all Judea, and Samaria, and as far as the remotest part of the earth. (Acts 1:8, NASB)

Through the agency of the Holy Spirit, the New Testament Church came into being as an evangelizing, teaching, worshipping, and serving fellowship of the people of God. The Church takes up the destiny of the true Israel and becomes the missionary people of the kingdom of God. The Church is an essential part of the plan of God for the salvation of the nations. She is sent into the world in the power of the Spirit to bring the nations to faith and obedience (Romans 16:26).

However, the early Church was slow in bringing the Gospel to the nations in the beginning. Having received the Commission from the Lord already on several occasions, the disciples did not rush out to evangelize the nations. Only when persecution scattered the believers throughout Judea and Samaria did they begin preaching in the regions (Acts 8:1, 4). They first confined their witness to the Jews, but later on, in the Book of Acts, we see the mission to the Gentiles started and finally carried out and made central in their lives and ministry.

About the priestly calling of Israel in Exodus 19: 3-6, Peter has a new understanding that Christians are now the ones who are to perform the priestly calling, to be the ones standing in the gap between God and the nations (I Peter 2:9 ff.).

The Book of Acts provides the history of the earliest out-workings of the Church’s obedience to the missionary command to make disciples of all nations. The Apostle Paul is the well-known and greatest apostle to the Gentile nations. Aside from the Lord, he is the best example of someone who had a heart for the nations.

About Israel’s mandate for mission, Paul attempted to bring back God’s original plan, e.g., for the Jews to bring the blessing of salvation to the Gentile nations. However, the Jews rejected Christ and the Gentile Church.

We also see that in Acts 17:26-27, Paul taught that God had directed the times and places of the people groups or the nations in such a way that they would seek God and find Him. Paul had a clear understanding of God’s heart and His plan to bless all the nations of the world by the blessing of salvation. His Epistles were written in the context of mission. His ambition was to preach the Gospel to places where Christ was not known or to the unreached peoples and nations who are the objects of God’s concern (Romans 15:18-23). Paul considered a people group or nation reached when a church is already planted among them, churches which are self-governing, self-supporting and self-propagating. After he had planted churches from Jerusalem to Illyricum, he was ready to move on to the unreached areas.

An important aspect in mission that Paul understood is the connection between the Church and Abraham. 

What is the link? In Galatians 3, Paul first repeats how Abraham was justified by faith and then continues: “so you see that it is men of faith who are the sons of Abraham” and who, therefore, “are blessed with Abraham who had faith” (v.6-9). What then is the blessing with which all the nations were blessed (v. 8)? In a word, it is the blessing of salvation. We were under the curse of the Law, but Christ has redeemed us from it by becoming a curse in our place, in order “that in Christ Jesus the blessing of Abraham might come upon the Gentiles, that we might receive the promise of the Spirit through faith” (v.10-14). Christ bore our curse that we might inherit Abraham’s blessing, the blessing of justification (v. 8) and the indwelling Holy Spirit (v. 14). Paul sums it up in the last verse of the chapter (v. 29): “If you are Christ’s, then you are Abraham’s offspring, heirs according to promise.”

Paul explains that we, the Church, are Abraham’s descendants by faith. God blessed us with the blessing of salvation so that we can be a blessing to other nations or people groups as well. God’s promise to bless the nations can only be made through Abraham’s descendants, the Church. If by faith we belong to Christ, we are Abraham’s spiritual children and have the responsibility to reach all the nations of the world.

Ike Agawin
EFCC International Mission Director

A Puzzle Worth Your Time

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leadership banner

For us who are part of God’s family, and even for many who are not yet there, Jesus has always been, and will be, our model, our mentor, the one we follow. The life and teachings of Jesus are our foundation – our “go to” – when it comes to figuring out how to live well as a child of God. But there are times in the life of Jesus when it can be difficult to understand what his life means for us, what the message is for us.

This Easter I revisited one such passage – the fascinating story of the healing of Lazarus as found in John 11. There is so much in that story, but I admit that I have often puzzled at Jesus’ response to a sick friend. He doesn’t rush to his side, instead he waits until He knows that Lazarus has died. And then he finally arrives at the place where families and friends are grieving, outside of the tomb where the body of Lazarus has now lain for 4 days – long enough that the perfumes and spices have worn off. And what does Jesus do? He stops and he weeps. Now, while I appreciate the model of joining friends in grief, my question has always been why Jesus would not immediately bring life back into Lazarus’s body. He knew he could. He knew he would. And in so doing, he would put a stopper in the flow of grief of his dear friends. Why not stop their grief as quickly as possible?

I am pretty sure I do not yet have a definitive answer to that question, but through reflection several things have been impressed upon me. Certainly, I have been reminded that I must keep learning the lesson that my timing is not God’s timing. Rushing to the solution is not always the best thing to do. I have also been learning the importance of joining friends in grief without having to talk, or explain, or rationalize. Both of those are important for me to come to terms with.

Above all though, it seems that there is a key lesson that rooted in Jesus actions, his delay, his weeping, his wisdom. That is this: for God, it is about relationship above all. Jesus wants us to know that he understands our pain and he hurts with us. He wants us to know that he joins us. He wants us to know that our relationship with him isn’t simply about the solutions he brings, it is about the bond we have. His person should be more important to me than his plan. His presence in my life should be more important than the solution I am hoping for.

So, in no matter what your role may be, whether you are a leader in formal ministry, or a new member of the family of God, keep following the model of Jesus – love people well, join them in struggles, and make the relationship more important than any resolution. But most importantly, as you follow Jesus, as you meet with Jesus, don’t ever forget that he wants to know you, he wants to join you, he does understand your journey, and nothing is more important to him than a relationship with you. It can be hard to believe that when you compare who we are with who he is as creator of universe and giver of life. And yet that is the truth we find in His Word. And maybe it is a truth you needed to hear today as you journey through whatever this life is giving you right now. I say to you all, revel in his Word where you find such truth, and revel in the place you have in the heart of God. That is a mystery bigger than any others, a puzzle bigger and better than Jesus’ timing with Lazarus. Bask in that one for a while!

Terry Kaufman
EFCC Leadership Catalyst

Questions in Genesis

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questions in genesis

God created ha’adam in his image;

In the image of God He created him. 

Male and female he created them.  (Genesis 1:26-28)

 

I was chatting with a former EFCC pastor recently and he was bemoaning the fact that the majority of young people raised in the church have nearly identical beliefs about sex, gender, sin and other moral issues as their unchurched friends (for a statistical study on this see Kinnamon & Matlock, Faith for Exiles).  My immediate response to him was, “we need to help our people understand God’s beautiful plan for human flourishing (Genesis 1-2) and then see the world’s counterfeits to God’s plan in the context of Genesis 3 and the fall.  Sadly, we have only taught our people what we are against – not what God is for.”

I am entitling this post “Questions in Genesis” because I think we would be well served by asking better questions regarding Genesis 1-2, rather than the “Answers in Genesis” approach.  That approach assumes that the essential theological issues worth fighting over have to do with answers regarding science and the mechanics of creation.  I believe that using Genesis 1-2 primarily as an apologetic against modern science has led to two problems.  First, we often overlook Genesis 1-2 in our gospel presentations.  We start with “you are a sinner” (Genesis 3).  The we skip the OT and go straight to the cross.  The upshot of this “sin management gospel” is accept Jesus, be forgiven and then be good.  This misses out on the richness of God’s redemptive narrative throughout the rest of the Bible.  The second problem with reading Genesis 1-2 this way is we miss out on what the author is really focusing on.  Genesis 1-2 is essential reading for understanding the good/beautiful character of the Hebrew God (versus the pagan gods of the land).  It is also one of our most powerful passages for understanding God’s beautiful plan for His creation (and for humans in particular).

I believe that historically we have brought tons of cultural assumptions into the text of the Bible.  This can lead us to miss the point of what the Spirit wants us to know and live out when we do it to passages like Genesis 1-2.  In this blog I simply want to surface several questions that help to expose some of the cultural assumptions we impose on this text.

  1. How would OT Jews have read this text?  Would they have looked for answers regarding the science and mechanics of creation?  Or would they have seen the Spirit presenting an apologetic regarding how good/moral/beautiful Yahweh is compared to the gods of the land?  Would they have marveled at how a good God initiated a beautiful plan for human flourishing?
  2. Do the English translations feed into some of our cultural assumptions about men and women?  For instance, the Hebrew word for “Adam” (quoted above) is not used as a name for the first man until chapter 4!  Adam and Eve are both “Ha’Adam” = human.  “Ezer”, translated “helper” or “helpmate” makes it sounds like Eve is a second-rate servant, created only to wait on Adam.  Yet “ezer” is a strong military term that denotes protecting someone from danger.  Yahweh is the “Ebenezer”, the “Rock of help”.
  3. What does it mean for both men and women to be made in the image of God? What would Jewish followers of Yahweh have understood about humans bearing the imprint of the King?  How does that speak to the dignity of humans?
  4. What does it mean for those made in the image of God to “be fruitful and multiply”? Could this have great utility in encouraging followers of Jesus to flourishing and bearing shalom in creation?
  5. Does God really set up an eternal hierarchy in Genesis 1-2? Or do we read this in because of our cultural biases?  Are there clear structures and commands for hierarchy in these chapters or do we have to work hard to infer them into the text?

In the coming months, I want to ponder each of these questions a bit more fully.  Not only do I think that the questions help us better understand what the Spirit wants us to understand but they also provide powerful context and direction for dealing with many of the critical issues of our day!

Bill Taylor
EFCC Executive Director

The Goal of Theology

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theology blog

I think of theology as the middle step of a three-step process. I find this helpful as it moves me past theology that is a collection of beliefs or field of study and begs the question – how does this area of theology transform my life?

Here’s how I see this three-step process:

  1. Revelation – It starts here. God reveals a glimpse of Himself to us. Much like Moses, who only got to see a fraction of the glory of God, we only get a glimpse of God. We see what God has chosen to reveal in the Word – both living and written. We see what God has chosen to reveal about his plan for all of creation. And we see what God has chosen to reveal about what part we play in that incredible plan.
  2. Theology – Making sense of revelation is what I believe we do in theology. Finding our way through all God has revealed takes time, study, and the enlightenment of the Holy Spirit. In doing this, we as finite humans, employ methods that help us make sense of our observations of revelation. Let me mention two here (these are clearly my names, no theologian would call them this):

Pull-it-apart method

As a young guy, I loved to tear things apart, see how they worked, then put them back together. This usually worked okay. Although I did cause my parents concern somedays. In the process of pulling everything apart, I learned how a lot of household gadgets worked. We do the same thing in theology. We pull the revelation of God apart, determine key categories, place the pieces in those categories, so we can see how it works.

Let-it-live method

I once heard Leonard Sweet talk about the difference between a toaster and a cat. To repair a toaster, you use the previously mentioned pull it apart method. You don’t do that to a cat, well at least if you want it to live. To figure out a cat (is there really any figuring out a cat?) you need to see its personality, how it behaves, etc. Akin to this, is treating God’s revelation as a unified story and observing the themes and storylines that run through it. Doing this lets it live, intact. Visit the https://bibleproject.com/ if you want to view some examples of this method.

I think both methods (and others) can be helpful, but they don’t guarantee we get it all right, and they certainly are not the end goal.

  1. Praxis – Praxis is the living out of an idea or belief. This is the reason we do theology. God reveals, we attempt to make sense of it, so we can live in accordance with it. The goal of theology is not just right belief, it’s life with God, and life with other’s done God’s way. The end of theology is the worship of God and the Holy Spirit’s transformative work in us.

In doing theology, I hope we never stop at the second step. To move beyond mere belief to lived out action, we need to ask our theology questions like:

– How does this inflame my passion for God again?

– How does this lead me to fall to my knees in worship?

– What does this call me to obey?

– How is this shaping me to be more like Jesus? How does this help me relate in Christ-like ways to others?

Neil Bassignthwaighte
EFCC National Mission Director & Interim Prayer Catalyst

 

Mission, Theology and the Bible

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mission

If we ask about the biblical basis for mission, many will answer and direct us to the words of the “Great Commission” (Matthew 28:16-20).

But for Paul, the biblical basis for missions went much further back. The “Great Commission” in its present Scriptural form did not yet exist. In Paul’s missiology, he defended both his mission practice and mission theology based on the Old Testament scriptures. In the Old Testament Paul found a rich and deep theology of the mission of God for the nations, and he built his mission theology on that foundation.

Paul sees the mission of God as bringing the whole of the created order to liberation along with the sons and daughters of God (Romans 8:18-27). He proclaims the Messiah’s resurrection as the first fruits of that new creation and can affirm that a new person is already a new creation when a person is in Christ (2 Corinthians 5:17).

Paul also goes back to Abraham. He sees the mission of Israel as being called into existence as the covenant people of God and to be the agent of God in blessing all the nations (Galatians 3:6-8). This understanding is Paul’s foundational block of his theology that he calls “the gospel in advance” – that is, the good news that God intends to bless the nations from the call of Abraham.

For Paul, the mission of God through Israel for the salvation of the nations was the message of the scriptures. Paul’s mission as the apostle to the Gentiles was grounded in the Bible of the time. His biblical theology was a theology of mission – the mission of God.

Our Lord Jesus did the same thing. He fully understood his mission in light of the Old Testament, and He taught His disciples to see mission in the same light and on the same foundation.

44 Now He said to them, “These are My words which I spoke to you while I was still with you, that all the things that are written about Me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.” 45 Then He opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, 46 and He said to them, “So it is written, that the Christ would suffer and rise from the dead on the third day, 47 and that repentance for the forgiveness of sins would be proclaimed in His name to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem. 48 You are witnesses of these things.

(Luke 24:44-48)

Jesus says that this passage is the whole point and thrust of the scriptures: the Law of Moses, the Psalms and the Prophets. The message of the Old Testament is the death and resurrection of the Messiah and the preaching of the gospel to the nations.

The Old Testament then is as much about mission as it was about Jesus. These two are an inseparable part of the same reality – the saving mission of God. If you truly know who Jesus is from the Scriptures, then to confess Jesus as the Messiah is to commit yourself to His mission to the nations.

With the New Testament, the biblical basis for mission is the whole bible – from Genesis to Revelation. God revealed Himself in the scripture as a missionary God. Biblically, mission is the mission of God (Missio Dei), and the Church is God’s agent in fulfilling God’s mission. God’s mission is to redeem all the nations (people groups) of the earth, and He is carrying this out through His redeemed people, the Church. Mission is not an optional ministry of the Church. The mandate of the church is to be on mission with God. “As the Father has sent Me, even so, I am sending you” (John 20:21). The Missio Dei is God the Father sending the Son, and God the Father and the Son sending the Spirit. The Father, Son and the Holy Spirit send the Church into the world.

Ike Agawin
EFCCM International Director

 

Is “Leading Like Jesus” the right goal?

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leadership

I expect for some that question seems rhetorical at best and irreverent at worst. Of course, I don’t mean to be irreverent, and I recognize that “leading like Jesus” is the right goal for anyone Christian in leadership! It is a great goal – so good and pure and high that we will never reach it. It is worthy. It is righteous even. But I am beginning to wonder if it is not the right one – at least, not without any postscripts. Allow me to explain.

As I have given more consideration to the implication of the essential doctrine of the Triune nature of our living God, I am finding myself placing the Trinity into conversations, thoughts, and processes where I did not previously or explicitly do so. Leadership is one of those such places. My questions in leadership were always about Jesus, God the Son. And there lie great questions. What does Jesus teach us about leadership? What does Jesus model in leadership? What does Jesus expect of us in leadership? All essential questions. But I am beginning to try to understand what the implications are when my leadership pictures are all framed around God the Son, but with the postscript that forces me to consider that God the Son is an integrated part of God the Father and God the Spirit. So much so that they cannot be separated. While I have not intentionally separated the Trinity, I have failed to at least ask some key questions.

What does the nature and work of God the Spirit have to say about my leadership, or leadership overall?

What does the character of God the Father have to say about leadership?

What does the very nature of the Trinity, three in one, perfect union of wills, perfect sharing of all things, mean when it comes to leadership? There are many more such questions.

To answer these questions goes beyond the intent of this blog. Here my hope is simply to encourage you to wrestle with those same questions. Please do not ignore the lessons of leadership given to us through God the Son, but don’t stop there. Ask the bigger questions coming out of the ontological reality of the Godhead. What does the fullness of God – Father, Son, and Spirit in perfect union – teach me about leading among His people and in His name? To me, that is a much more adequate, appropriate, and robust question for a calling that is intended to reflect God in His fullness.

If you have not ever asked those extra questions can I invite you to join me in starting to do so? Let’s see what God has for us to learn.

Terry Kaufman
EFCC Leadership Catalyst

 

Why The 10 Article Statement of Faith is Worth Adopting!

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efcc statement of faith

Welcome to Seasons of the EFCC Blog!

This will be a “somewhat weekly” set of posts on a variety of topics written by EFCC leaders.  Since we just completed our “Theology Symposium” last month our theme for this first quarter will be “theology”.  Speaking of theology, what better place to start than the EFCC Ten Article Statement of Faith (SOF).  It has been almost 14 years since we adopted the new SOF.  After working with the old Twelve Article SOF for 58 years, it was understandable that some felt a sense of loss when conference voted to adopt something new.  However, after working with this new SOF for over a decade, I believe that we have a significantly strengthened document stating the doctrinal issues that are essential to the EFCC.  Yet, some churches have hesitated to adopt the new SOF.  Here is why I think it is a good idea to adopt the 2008 EFCC SOF.

Statement of Faiths are crafted in a historical and cultural context. If they were inspired by God and He dropped them out of heaven for all of us to adopt, then we wouldn’t need to reevaluate or change them every 58 years (or so!).  Hence, it makes good sense for us to periodically refresh a SOF to address the following realities:

I. SOFs are designed by humans who choose what to include as essential doctrines and what to be silent on.

I highly recommend all Free Church folks to read Arnold T Olson’s Significance of Silence.  In it he articulates how the founders of the EFCA chose what to include and what was intentionally left out of the original 1950 Twelve Article SOF. The same principles were followed for the writing of the Ten Article SOF in 2008.  Check out Gospel Truths to see how the Free Church motto of “In essentials unity, in non-essentials charity, in all things Jesus Christ” is intentionally reflected in which doctrines are included and excluded from the new SOF.

II. Assumed truths change over time.

There are many issues that were assumed to be true in 1950, that are now being questioned.  The 2008 SOF has clarified and strengthened statements on a number of issues that are now “up for grabs theologically”.

  • Article One declares that our God has “limitless knowledge and sovereign power”.  This is a strong affirmation that stands in contrast to weaker views stressing the “openness of God”.
  • Article Two states that the Scriptures are “verbally inspired”, emphasizing that the very words that God uses in the Bible are important.  While we do not hold to “dictation theory” and believe that God used the words of human authors, we do believe that He supernaturally ensured that those words authoritatively communicate His will for salvation and are “the ultimate authority by which every realm of human knowledge and endeavor should be judged.”
  • Article Three affirms that Adam and Eve and Satan are all historical beings and not simply mythological stories communicating…well, whatever we would like those stories to communicate!
  • Articles Four reminds us that Jesus was “Israel’s Promised Messiah” and that He was crucified under Pontius Pilate.  This affirms that Jesus lived and died, a Jew, in first century AD Palestine.
  • Article Five firmly embraces Jesus’ “atoning death” and victorious resurrection as the “only ground for salvation”, a strong challenge to those who wish to downplay or refute the doctrine of “substitutionary atonement”.
  • Article Seven teaches that the ordinances are “not means of salvation” but that they are worthwhile celebrating in genuine faith for they confirm and strengthen us in our faith.  Sometimes we are so “memorial only” when it comes to the ordinances, that we merely “tack them on” to the end of our worship services!
  • Article Eight is a new article that reminds us that orthodoxy and orthopraxy work hand in hand – our faith must lead us to carry out the Great Commandment and the Great Commission.  Yes, “faith without works, is dead” and we are not our own, “we are bought with a price” and are slaves of the Master!
  • Article Nine states that only God knows when Jesus will return (in light of some who insist on setting dates and embarrassing the rest of us when they are wrong, that is a good reminder!).
  • Article Ten declares that “God commands everyone everywhere to believe the gospel by turning to Him in repentance and receiving the Lord Jesus Christ.”  This reinforces the crucial nature of repentance and of responding to the unique person of Jesus Christ.
III. We also choose categories to organize the theological essentials around – they are not inspired!

One of the real strengths of the 2008 SOF is the gospel headers.  When one remembers how Paul placed the gospel of Jesus as his most important, central message (I Corinthians 15:1-8), it makes great sense to organize our essential theological beliefs around the gospel!  After all, we are Evangelical Free!

IV. Language and words change over time.

Think of how even a term like “autonomy” has changed in the past 20 years! Thus, Statement of Faiths need to have the language updated every 58 years or so!  The tone of the new SOF is also so much more doxological – so much more of a worship inspiring creed than the 1950 SOF!

V. The Free Church family voted to adopt the refreshed SOF.

Belonging to the association means we should honor that family decision and follow through by adopting and implementing that decision.  “Opting out” of implementing “family decisions” ought to be rare indeed.  Local churches are self-governing, but that “autonomy” needs to be exercised in ways that recognize a unity and accountability to the rest of the family.

For these reasons it makes sense to adopt the 2008 Ten Article SOF.  It is an improvement over the old SOF.  It strengthens core, essential doctrines.  It maintains intentional silence on non-essentials.  While our SOF is intentionally silent on many issues the EFCC has traditionally deemed to be non-essential (allowing Calvinists, Arminians, Charismatics, non Charismatics, immersed, sprinkled, complementarian, egalitarian etc.to serve and fellowship together) it is important for us to affirm in a fresh way what truths are essential to hold as members of the Free Church family.  I believe that the new SOF speaks to the doctrinal debates of our day in a stronger manner, while still helping us to maintain that charitable spirit on minor issues that has allowed us to serve alongside other evangelicals in Canada and around the world!

Bill Taylor

EFCC Executive Director