Impossible mission alone

Christians face an impossible mission; one that is truly beyond our potential. The problem: human sin and its results. The mission: to undo the dire effects of sin, to bring reconciliation between us and God, and to extend that reconciliation to all creation. In the quotable phrase of N.T. Wright, it’s the mission of “putting the world back to rights.” This mission’s degree of difficulty? Utterly impossible. No amount of human cleverness, no collection of spiritual gizmos and disguises, will mend the breach between us and God, and heal all that is wrong with the world.

Paul’s second letter to the Corinthians follows his prior letters and ministry there, and he continues to defend his ministry against criticism and misunderstanding. But Paul doesn’t just defend his ministry; he also wants them to mimic his pattern of life, something he “teaches in all the churches” (1 Corinthians 4:8-17). The Corinthians—and all readers—must respond to the benefits of the cross of Jesus by taking up their crosses and laying down their lives, imitating Paul as he imitated Jesus. Paul provides the longest sustained writing on giving in the New Testament in 2 Corinthians 8-9, addressing motives, priorities and principles for Christian giving as he instructs the Corinthians about continuing to participate in his collection for the poor. Such opportunities to live out our mission and follow the pattern of Jesus and Paul (8:9) are abundant today. Paul insists that his weakness—and ours, if we follow him and Jesus—is not a detriment but a strength. Paul’s letter challenges our worldly models of success, influence and power. It challenges us to reject the quest for comfort and wealth which all too easily tends to shape our priorities and expectations.

How do we delight ourselves in the Lord? By doing what pleases Him and putting His law in our hearts. Then, as we are sanctified, He gives us the desires of our heart. Here’s how Matthew Henry put it: “He has not promised to gratify all the appetites of the body and the humours of the fancy, but to grant all the desires of the heart, all the cravings of the renewed sanctified soul. What is the desire of the heart of a good man? It is this, to know, and love, and live to God, to please him and to be pleased in him.” *

Imitating Christ requires us to walk as Jesus walked. Imitating Christ cannot be achieved without spiritual maturity, and spiritual maturity in turn cannot be achieved without a deep understanding and persistent application of the virtues of scripture. Virtue is truth, distilled and applied to the individual life. All we know, all we understand, all we believe about the truths of the Bible must come together into patterns of thinking which become habitual and then we must follow through with our words and our deeds as well. We have not been left alone in this objective of reaching maturity and achieving a life of virtuous thinking and acting. God has provided an extensive support system to aid us in our task which is not restricted to the help we receive from all facets of the church; we have also been given a detailed pattern to follow, namely the virtuous life of our master, Jesus Christ:

Christ Himself appointed some of us apostles, some prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and teachers in order to prepare all of His holy people for their own ministry work, that the entire body of Christ might thus be built up, until we all reach that unifying goal of believing what is right and of giving our complete allegiance to the Son of God, that each of us might be a perfect person, that is, that we might attain to that standard of maturity whose "attainment" is defined by Christ; that we may no longer be immature, swept off-course and carried headlong by every breeze of so-called teaching that emanates from the trickery of men in their readiness to do anything to cunningly work their deceit, but rather that we may, by embracing the truth in love, grow up in all respects with Christ, who is the head of the Church, as our model. In this way, the entire body of the Church, fit and joined together by Him through the sinews He powerfully supplies to each and every part, works out its own growth for the building up of itself in love. Ephesians 4:11-16

The Mission of God and the Missional Church

The mission movement

The Book of Acts records or reports that there was a special event that took place at Pentecost, which would have been the next pilgrimage festival after the Passover at which Jesus died. And at that time the disciples of Jesus were gathered together in Jerusalem unsure of what their future would be, when all of a sudden the spirit took hold of them and enabled them to speak in tongues, and that speaking of tongues is understood by the author of the Book of Acts to mean speaking in all of the languages of the world. So with the power of the spirit behind them, the disciples of Jesus immediately began a missionary campaign and started bringing people into the fold, converting them to belief in Christ. And from that time forward the mission moved ahead in the rather smooth way, directed by the spirit and by all of the apostles who acted in concert with one another and agreement with one another. That's the picture that we get in Acts.

In Cardinal Joseph Ratzinger's Redemptoris missio, he says the following --

'Within the church, there are various types of services, functions, ministries and ways of promoting the Christian life. I call to mind, as a new development occurring in many churches in recent times, the rapid growth of "ecclesial movements" filled with missionary dynamism. When these movements humbly seek to become part of the life of local churches and are welcomed by bishops and priests within diocesan and parish structures, they represent a true gift of God both for new evangelization and for missionary activity properly so-called. I therefore recommend that they be spread and that they be used to give fresh energy, especially among young people, to the Christian life and to evangelization, within a pluralistic view of the ways in which Christians can associate and express themselves'.

In virtue of their baptism, all the members of the People of God have become missionary disciples (cf. Mt 28:19). All the baptized, whatever their position in the Church or their level of instruction in the faith, are agents of evangelization, and it would be insufficient to envisage a plan of evangelization to be carried out by professionals while the rest of the faithful would simply be passive recipients. The new evangelization calls for personal involvement on the part of each of the baptized. Every Christian is challenged, here and now, to be actively engaged in evangelization; indeed, anyone who has truly experienced God’s saving love does not need much time or lengthy training to go out and proclaim that love. Every Christian is a missionary to the extent that he or she has encountered the love of God in Christ Jesus: we no longer say that we are “disciples” and “missionaries”, but rather that we are always “missionary disciples”. If we are not convinced, let us look at those first disciples, who, immediately after encountering the gaze of Jesus, went forth to proclaim him joyfully: “We have found the Messiah!” (Jn 1:41). The Samaritan woman became a missionary immediately after speaking with Jesus and many Samaritans come to believe in him “because of the woman’s testimony” (Jn 4:39). So too, Paul, after his encounter with Jesus Christ, “immediately proclaimed Jesus” (Acts 9:20; cf. 22:6-21). So what are we waiting for?

This mission is one and undivided, having one origin and one final purpose; but within it, there are different tasks and kinds of activity. First, there is the missionary activity which we call mission ad gentes, in reference to the opening words of the Council's decree on this subject. This is one of the Church's fundamental activities: it is essential and never-ending. The Church, in fact, "cannot withdraw from her permanent mission of bringing the Gospel to the multitudes the millions and millions of men and women-who as yet do not know Christ the Redeemer of humanity. In a specific way this is the missionary work which Jesus entrusted and still entrusts each day to his Church."

Key Men in Missions Movements

Vocation and promise

The special vocation of missionaries "for life" retains all its validity: it is the model of the Church's missionary commitment, which always stands in need of radical and total self-giving, of new and bold endeavors. Therefore the men and women missionaries who have devoted their whole lives to bearing witness to the risen Lord among the nations must not allow themselves to be daunted by doubts, misunderstanding, rejection or persecution. They should revive the grace of their specific charism and courageously press on, preferring - in a spirit of faith, obedience and communion with their pastors - to seek the lowliest and most demanding places.

God’s promise to bless all the “families of the earth,” first given to Abraham 4,000 years ago, is becoming a reality at a pace “you would not believe.” Although some may dispute some of the details, the overall trend is indisputable. Biblical faith is growing and spreading to the ends of the earth as never before in history.

Days of Prophecy, Promise and Hope: The 2014 Canadian Vocation Conference

Charting our journey

God is at work around the world fulfilling His Mission. Charting your journey means that you are intentional in joining the Triune, sending God. It means taking time to pray and listen and plan how you are going to get actively involved. It means taking intentional moves forward rather than being shoved around sideways by the pressures of peers, culture and career.

It is within this overall perspective that the reality of the kingdom is understood. Certainly, the kingdom demands the promotion of human values, as well as those which can properly be called "evangelical," since they are intimately bound up with the "Good News." But this sort of promotion, which is at the heart of the Church, must not be detached from or opposed to other fundamental tasks, such as proclaiming Christ and His Gospel, and establishing and building up communities which make present and active within people the living image of the kingdom. One need not fear falling thereby into a form of "ecclesiocentrism." Pope Paul VI, who affirmed the existence of "a profound link between Christ, the Church and evangelization," also said that the Church "is not an end unto herself, but rather is fervently concerned to be completely of Christ, in Christ and for Christ, as well as completely of people, among people and for people."


a nifty chart for the journey: stages in our life of faith


Roadmap for the Journey: Charting your course, getting your bearings  

Willing to give all

What’s the difference between a good idea and a God idea? A good idea will work some of the time; a God idea will work all the time. Scripture warns us not to lean on our own understanding but to trust God wholeheartedly (Proverbs 3:5). When we’re not willing to submit to God’s leadership and authority in our lives, God will let us follow our own devices. In following them, we will never experience what God is waiting and wanting to do in us and through us.

In the book of Job, this man with incredible trials in his life, says the simple but profound statement, “Naked I came from my mother's womb, and naked shall I return.” The same is true of all of us. We came into the world with empty hands, and when we die, we take nothing with us. When you understand this basic truth, then you understand that everything that passes through your control and possession in this life is not about ownership, but about “stewardship”. Picture in your mind the following: your house, your bank account, your cars, your family, your friends, your talents and skills, the months of your life. You’ll notice everything is temporary, everything is limited and everything stays here.

Church planters, whether full-time or bi-vocational, no matter what strategy or model they have chosen, are always in need of financial support for their church’s general budget and material support towards their outreach endeavors. Direct financial support may seem to be the least connected way of encouraging a church planter, but in many ways it is the most important. Often the level of financial support a church planter receives directly effects if they are able to stay on that field or take the next step in their strategy. In center-city or urban centers the living expenses can be astronomical. Bi-vocational work is usually not enough to meet the needs of their families and can be very difficult to secure in this economy. However God calls you to be involved in church planting, we pray that He leads you to directly invest financially in church plants as an offering to Him above your tithes to your local church. Please also consider discussing the possibility of direct financial assistance with your church’s missions committee. Often it is difficult for churches to imagine the need for missions giving beyond their denominational projects or people who have been sent out from their local congregation.

The strength of Christ is found in grace. More grace is released to us when we press in and actually boast how in our infirmities (how powerless we are within our own power – our own abilities, in other words), rather than complain or remain frustrated in them. God says there is sufficient power available for all our trials when we are able to fully surrender in our human weakness to the sufficiency of God’s grace for each particular situation.

KELLY WILLARD Willing Heart PSALM 51 10 12 With Lyrics

A BOY WHO GAVE LIFE

Our role in missions

Tentmakers are persons who use their skills to make enough money to finance their ministry and then minister “on the side.” This is a very good and effective model. In fact, it is the only model possible in some places in the world. There are countries in the world today that are closed to traditional missionaries; however a medical doctor or an engineer or even an English teacher might be able to go in, get a job, and be paid a very livable wage.

The proper role and vocation of the laity is found in their universal call to holiness, their state in life, and their vocation within the temporal order. "This is especially true in the primary areas of evangelization and sanctification" where laity provide "consistent witness in their personal, family, and social lives by proclaiming and sharing the Gospel of Christ in every situation they find themselves, and by their involvement with the task of explaining, defending, and correctly applying Christian principles to the problems of today's world" (Instruction Regarding the Collaboration of the Non-Ordained Faithful in the Sacred Ministry of Priest, Premise).

The history of humanity has known many major turning points which have encouraged missionary outreach, and the Church, guided by the Spirit, has always responded to them with generosity and farsightedness. Results have not been lacking. Not long ago we celebrated the millennium of the evangelization of Rus' and the Slav peoples, and we are now preparing to celebrate the five hundredth anniversary of the evangelization of the Americas. Similarly, there have been recent commemorations of the centenaries of the first missions in various countries of Asia, Africa and Oceania. Today the Church must face other challenges and push forward to new frontiers, both in the initial mission ad gentes and in the new evangelization of those peoples who have already heard Christ proclaimed. Today all Christians, the particular churches and the universal Church, are called to have the same courage that inspired the missionaries of the past, and the same readiness to listen to the voice of the Spirit.

God’s Mission, Your Role

Befriend, serve and convey the gospel

Typical believers spend far more of their "spare" time watching T.V. & videos, and reading magazines & books than they do serving Jesus.  Their struggles with personal sin are the primary focus of their thought life, and their conversation reflects what is in their hearts...themselves!  Just listen to the average believer talk; his/her favorite word is almost always, "I" or "Me".  Satan has effectively crippled their ability to step outside of themselves to reach out to the lost and the hurting.  They are so busy worrying about themselves they excuse their deception saying, "When I get my life together, or when I know the Bible better, then I can help others."  Excuses abound, and they are embarrassed to even share their life or their faith with a stranger.  It's easier for Christians to sit around like a bunch of old hens and talk about how bad the world is getting, and how evil different segments of society are.  God forbid that they should ever get off their rear ends and do something to help those people they so dearly love to judge and criticize!

Three ministers help evangelization center find creative ways to convey the Gospel

Barriers and Bridges to Befriending Muslims

Short-term

Long-term missionaries have mixed feelings about the benefit and best use of a volunteer team. However, there is broad agreement about one point: short-term volunteers need more pre-field preparation.

The phenomenon has grown quickly so that missiological literature has scarcely been able to attempt precise definitions. Moreau, Corwin and McGee describe short term missions thus: “This usually refers to trips with a mission focus that range from one week to one to two years. They may be organized by churches, agencies, or even individuals for a variety of reasons (English-language camps, church building projects, evangelistic
campaigns).”

Too often, we simply don't realize how our wealth and power crush the ability of local people to set the agenda. We can go with good intentions, teaching flexibility and listening to our team members. But the structures of our organizations and our control of resources make it extremely difficult for local believers to shape these trips or imagine how they'd like to interact with us. They turn to patterns already set by previous teams or laid out by long-term North American missionaries. They may be glad for the connection, but in many cases their ability to refashion these encounters is profoundly shaped by an aversion to offending a powerful and wealthy guest.

The Church's Potential

Winter makes the point that “the most exciting reality in missions today is the gradual discovery of the vast
unrealized potential of our precious sister churches as the source of new missionaries to go further out.” If existing western missionaries in these emerging and younger movements can play a strategic role in training pioneer missionaries, then it is the role of these churches to come full cycle and begin to send their own laborers to the unreached. Frontier mission thinking provides a framework for embracing and directing the work of the non-western missionary force by highlighting the urgency of cross-cultural evangelism among the
unreached. In this way, while recognizing the sovereignty of the Spirit of harvest in calling laborers to various fields, whether among the so called reached or unreached, there is a natural and strategic connection for non-western laborers to start in new ground among those who have had the least access to the Gospel.

Each particular Church is likewise called to missionary conversion. It is the primary subject of evangelization, since it is the concrete manifestation of the one Church in one specific place, and in it “the one, holy, catholic, and apostolic Church of Christ is truly present and operative”. It is the Church incarnate in a certain place, equipped with all the means of salvation bestowed by Christ, but with local features. Its joy in communicating Jesus Christ is expressed both by a concern to preach Him to areas in greater need and in constantly going forth to the outskirts of its own territory or towards new sociocultural settings. Wherever the need for the light and the life of the Risen Christ is greatest, it will want to be there. To make this missionary impulse ever more focused, generous and fruitful, encourage each particular Church to undertake a resolute process of discernment, purification and reform.

We have never seen times where “church” is done so many different ways and pastors can get easily confused in the middle of it all. Core issues should never be compromised but every pastor and church is different and distinct as are the communities they are called to. We can all learn from what other churches are doing but when we try to copy it is where we make a mistake. Pastors err in trying to follow what is working for other churches rather than becoming crystal clear on what God has called their church to be. Style changes are one thing but watering things down are another, each pastor had better be clear on the course they need to take and get busy with what makes their church unique.

Our commitment does not consist exclusively in activities or programs of promotion and assistance; what the Holy Spirit mobilizes is not an unruly activism, but above all an attentiveness which considers the other “in a certain sense as one with ourselves”. This loving attentiveness is the beginning of a true concern for their person which inspires me effectively to seek their good. This entails appreciating the poor in their goodness, in their experience of life, in their culture, and in their ways of living the faith. True love is always contemplative, and permits us to serve the other not out of necessity or vanity, but rather because he or she is beautiful above and beyond mere appearances: “The love by which we find the other pleasing leads us to offer him something freely”. The poor person, when loved, “is esteemed as of great value”, and this is what makes the authentic option for the poor differ from any other ideology, from any attempt to exploit the poor for one’s own personal or political interest.Only on the basis of this real and sincere closeness can we properly accompany the poor on their path of liberation. Only this will ensure that “in every Christian community the poor feel at home. Would not this approach be the greatest and most effective presentation of the good news of the kingdom?” Without the preferential option for the poor, “the proclamation of the Gospel, which is itself the prime form of charity, risks being misunderstood or submerged by the ocean of words which daily engulfs us in today’s society of mass communications”.

Unlocking the Church’s Potential

Unlocking The Church's Potential

Succeeding

Some people continue to defend trickle-down theories which assume that economic growth, encouraged by a free market, will inevitably succeed in bringing about greater justice and inclusiveness in the world. This opinion, which has never been confirmed by the facts, expresses a crude and naïve trust in the goodness of those wielding economic power and in the sacralized workings of the prevailing economic system. Meanwhile, the excluded are still waiting. To sustain a lifestyle which excludes others, or to sustain enthusiasm for that selfish ideal, a globalization of indifference has developed. Almost without being aware of it, we end up being incapable of feeling compassion at the outcry of the poor, weeping for other people’s pain, and feeling a need to help them, as though all this were someone else’s responsibility and not our own. The culture of prosperity deadens us; we are thrilled if the market offers us something new to purchase. In the meantime all those lives stunted for lack of opportunity seem a mere spectacle; they fail to move us.

In the Jewish-Christian tradition, care of the powerless is central to the lifestyle of the people of God. The Law by which they were meant to implement God's covenant protects human rights, especially those of the most vulnerable.

Sacrificial giving is the kind that is done at great personal cost to the giver. But a wealthy person, by definition, is someone who has so much money that he can weather losses with ease. The very function of wealth is to shield its owner so that it is hard for him to do anything at great personal cost. Indeed, for this very reason Jesus says, “How hard it is for the rich to enter the kingdom of God” (Luke 18:24). It is not that the poor are more righteous in God’s sight than the rich; no, we are all equally hopeless (Romans 3:10). It is just that the rich are more likely to try to get along without God’s help. The upshot is that a wealthy person, in order to reach the point of sacrifice, must give a much larger amount than a poor person would. Christian generosity is certainly more complex than any particular dollar amount or percentage rate. But practically speaking, if a wealthy Christian wants to begin giving sacrificially, he must sit down and calculate a number large enough that it will cut noticeably (even painfully) into his standard of living, and start giving at that level. For those who need help determining that number, missiologist Ralph Winter offers this suggestion: “Deliberately and decisively adopt a missionary support level as [your] standard of living and [your] basis of lifestyle regardless of income.” If this “wartime lifestyle” seems hopelessly out of reach, consider what Jesus says to the rich: “What is impossible with men is possible with God” (Luke 18:27).

Intentionality

The cross was carried by Christ, before it was carried by Simon. The arrangement might have been different: he might have borne the burden the first part of the way, and then it might have been laid on the Master. But our comfort is, that the cross which we must carry has been already carried by Christ, and therefore, like the grave which He entered, been stripped of its hatefulness. It might almost be said to have changed its nature through being laid on the Son of God: it left behind it its terribleness, its oppressiveness: and now, as transferred to the carrier, it is indeed a cross, but a cross which it is a privilege to bear, a cross which God never fails to give strength to bear, a cross which, as leading to a crown, may justly be prized, so that we would not have it off our shoulders, till the diadem is on our brow. It is one of Christ's last and most impressive sermons. He would not leave the world without furnishing a standing memorial, that His disciples must bear the same cross as Himself, inasmuch as, like Himself, they must endure the world's hatred as champions and examples of truth. And together with this memorial He would show, by a powerful instance, that, in religion, a temporizing policy is sure to defeat itself, so that to fly from the cross is commonly to meet it, dilated in size, and heavier in material. But He had one more truth to represent at the same time — the beautiful, comforting truth, that He has borne what His followers have to bear, and thereby so lightened it, that, as with death, which He made sleep to the believer, the burden but quickens the step towards the "exceeding and eternal weight of glory." And that He might effect and convey all this through one great significant action, it was ordered, we may believe, that, as they led away Jesus, carrying like Isaac the wood for the burnt-offering, the soldiers laid hold on one Simon, a Cyrenian, coming out of the country, and him they compelled to bear His cross.

Where does this leave the church? Church gatherings represent one of just a handful of remaining opportunities available to people to have regular face-to-face contact with people, other than family, who share their interests and background. Realize, too, that growing numbers of people now judge the validity and relevance of a church by the church’s use of technology. Their perception is that if a church is intimately connected to the new digital world, it is more likely to understand their pressures and challenges, and is therefore more likely to offer relevant commentary and solutions.

On the other hand, the boundaries between pastoral care of the faithful, new evangelization and specific missionary activity are not clearly definable, and it is unthinkable to create barriers between them or to put them into watertight compartments. Nevertheless, there must be no lessening of the impetus to preach the Gospel and to establish new churches among peoples or communities where they do not yet exist, for this is the first task of the Church, which has been sent forth to all peoples and to the very ends of the earth. Without the mission ad gentes, the Church's very missionary dimension would be deprived of its essential meaning and of the very activity that exemplifies it.

Though it is true that this mission demands great generosity on our part, it would be wrong to see it as a heroic individual undertaking, for it is first and foremost the Lord’s work, surpassing anything which we can see and understand. Jesus is “the first and greatest evangelizer”. In every activity of evangelization, the primacy always belongs to God, who has called us to cooperate with Him and who leads us on by the power of His Spirit. The real newness is the newness which God Himself mysteriously brings about and inspires, provokes, guides and accompanies in a thousand ways. The life of the Church should always reveal clearly that God takes the initiative, that “He has loved us first” (1 Jn 4:19) and that He alone “gives the growth” (1 Cor 3:7). This conviction enables us to maintain a spirit of joy in the midst of a task so demanding and challenging that it engages our entire life. God asks everything of us, yet at the same time He offers everything to us.

INTENTIONALITY: A Minute With John Maxwell, Free Coaching 

Intentionality

Divine direction

The Bible talks about divine direction in the scriptures. God has a road map for each and every one of us. God knows exactly where to take us. He knows the minute details of our life. He has the blue print for our whole life already. We do not have to ask Him to put a new plan for our lives. All we have to do it just fit in His plans for our lives. His Word of God declares in Jeremiah 29:11, ' For I know the thoughts that I think toward you, says the Lord, thoughts of peace and not of evil, to give you a future and a hope'.

There are conceptions which deliberately emphasize the kingdom and which describe themselves as "kingdom-centred." They stress the image of a Church which is not concerned about herself, but which is totally concerned with bearing witness to and serving the kingdom. It is a "Church for others" just as Christ is the "man for others." The Church's task is described as though it had to proceed in two directions: on the one hand promoting such "values of the kingdom" as peace, justice, freedom, brotherhood, etc,, while on the other hand fostering dialogue between peoples, cultures and religions, so that through a mutual enrichment they might help the world to be renewed and to journey ever closer toward the kingdom.

So we want welcomers - these are individuals with the spirit of Christ Himself (Luke 15:2). They welcome all who respond to the invitation. Individuals with this gift instinctively know what to do and how to make people feel warmly welcomed. “But the Pharisees and the teachers of the law muttered, ‘This man welcomes
sinners and eats with them.’”

When Christians turn to God's Word for guidance, they will learn to think of themselves as missionaries. Therefore, when men go back into the business world on Monday, they will be doing so not just as an opportunity to make money, but because this is where Christ is sending them. They will see themselves as missionaries to the business world. When the women of the church return to their tasks in the home, the neighborhood, and the world of commerce, they will do so not just because this is the nature of their lives, but because they are being sent by Christ to these places. They, too, are missionaries. And finally, young men and women who have been taught God’s Word will return to their schools and colleges not just because it is a good thing to get an education, but because this is where Christ is sending them. In truth, the role of missionary is assigned to all in the kingdom of God, not just a few. Consequently, the true measure of a church is not necessarily to be found in its foreign evangelism budget or in the number of preachers it supports. It is, instead, to be found in the portion of its own members who understand that because they are saved by Christ, they are sent by Him as missionaries to a lost and dying world. In the plan and purpose of God, all are meant to go. Therefore, the idea that “some can go” falls far short of the truth.

In Nehemiah’s story of rebuilding the wall around Jerusalem, halfway through the project people got discouraged and wanted to give up. Like many churches, they lost their sense of purpose and, as a result, became overwhelmed with fatigue, frustration and fear. Nehemiah rallied the people back to work by reorganizing the project and recasting the vision. He reminded them of the importance of their work and reassured them that God would help them fulfill his purpose (Neh. 4:6-15).

The Bible says, as the Spirit of the Lord works within us, we become more and more like Him and reflect His glory even more. This process of changing us to be more like Jesus is called sanctification. You cannot reproduce the character of Jesus on your own strength. New Year's resolutions, willpower, and best intentions are not enough. Only the Holy Spirit has the power to make the changes God wants to make in our lives. The Bible says, "God is working in you, giving you the desire to obey him and the power to do what pleases him." Mention "the power of the Holy Spirit," and many people think of miraculous demonstrations and intense emotions. But most of the time the Holy Spirit's power is released in your life in quiet, unassuming ways that you aren't even aware of or can't feel. He often nudges us with "a gentle whisper." Christlikeness is not produced by imitation, but by inhabitation. We allow Christ to live through us. "For this is the secret: Christ lives in you."' How does this happen in real life? Through the choices we make. We choose to do the right thing in situations and then trust God's Spirit to give us His power, love, faith, and wisdom to do it. Since God's Spirit lives inside of us, these things are always available for the asking. We must cooperate with the Holy Spirit's work. Throughout the Bible we see an important truth illustrated over and over: The Holy Spirit releases His power the moment you take a step of faith. When Joshua was faced with an impassible barrier, the floodwaters of the Jordan River receded only after the leaders stepped into the rushing current in obedience and faith.' Obedience unlocks God's power. God waits for you to act first. Don't wait to feel powerful or confident. Move ahead in your weakness, doing the right thing in spite of your fears and feelings. This is how you cooperate with the Holy Spirit, and it is how your character develops. The Bible compares spiritual growth to a seed, a building, and a child growing up. Each metaphor requires active participation: Seeds must be planted and cultivated, buildings must be built-they don't just appear-and children must eat and exercise to grow. While effort has nothing to do with your salvation, it has much to do with your spiritual growth. At least eight times in the New Testament we are told to "make every effort" in our growth toward becoming like Jesus. You don't just sit around and wait for it to happen. Paul explains in Ephesians 4:22-24 our three responsibilities in becoming like Christ. First, we must choose to let go of old ways of acting. "Everything ... connected with that old way of life has to go. It's rotten through and through. Get rid of it!" Second, we must change the way we think. "Let the Spirit change your way of thinking." The Bible says we are "transformed" by the renewing of our minds. The Greek word for transformed, metamorphosis (used in Romans 12:2 and 2 Corinthians 3:18), is used today to describe the amazing change a caterpillar goes through in becoming a butterfly. It is a beautiful picture of what happens to us spiritually when we allow God to direct our thoughts: We are changed from the inside out, we become more beautiful, and we are set free to soar to new heights. Third, we must "put on" the character of Christ by developing new, godly habits.

Dear heavenly Father, there’s simply no other god as merciful, gracious, and engaged as You. Your forbearance is immeasurable; Your kindness is inexhaustible; Your plans are irrepressible.

While evangelization is the controlling objective of the missionary enterprise, it is useless if it doesn't produce Christ-like character in both the giver and the receiver.

All the other reasons for not loving God as we should-- like being encumbered by much serving, being distracted from our first love by ministry-- will also pale and fade away when we learn to see God and understand His love for us.

Receiving Divine Direction

Christ's global cause

The story of Adam and Even grips our hearts because it is not simply an ancient account of two people and their tragic mistake. It is our story as well. It is our personal tragedy. We share in this story both because Adam and Eve are our spiritual ancestors and because we mirror their behaviour in our own lives. Like the first humans, we have rebelled against God. Thus we live outside of God’s paradise. We yearn for the peace for which we were created, but never experience that peace, except in bits and pieces. Though we were meant to live in peace with God, our neighbours, our world, and even ourselves, we experience brokenness in all of these relationships.

For instance, we often assume that money exists for our own benefit, rather than for God or others. Pastor Andy Stanley tells a story about a little boy who was scolded by his mother because he refused to share his lunch with a classmate who had brought no lunch to school that day. The ironic point, Stanley says, is that we expect our children to know that possessions are for sharing, yet when it comes to our own affairs, we act as if possessions are for keeping. But why else, according to the Bible, should we give? First, we should give because it is a reasonable response to all God has done. Because God has shown such great mercy to His people by sending Christ to suffer in our place, it is fitting that we should offer ourselves as sacrifices to Him (Romans 12:1) and specifically in part by giving our money (2 Corinthians 8:8-9). Generous giving is an act of Christian worship. Second, we should give to show the genuineness of our Christian confession. Many people say they know Jesus, but those who really know Him show it by their lives, especially by their generosity (Matthew 25:31-46). When we give to the Lord, we put our money where our mouth is, so to speak. Third, we should give because the Lord Jesus (Luke 12:33) and His apostles (2 Corinthians 8:7) command us to give. Christian giving is certainly much more than a duty, but the biblical commands are unavoidable. Fourth, if specific instruction from the Scriptures were not enough, we should give because God promises to reward us for doing so (Luke 12:33). As it turns out, to give is not to throw money away, but rather to invest it for a staggering return. The Bible is certainly not lacking for reasons that we should give. Why would we not give?

We also remember Ecclesiastes 12 verse 14, which promises, "God shall bring every work into judgment, with every secret thing, whether it be good, or whether it be evil" as well as Romans 2 verses 5 and 6, where Paul speaks of the day of God's wrath "when his righteous judgment will be revealed. God will give to each person according to what he has done". It is a fearful thing even to imagine standing before God "from whose face the earth and the heaven fled away", and have nothing but our own wicked works to show for the time on earth the Almighty had given us. On that day the words of Paul the apostle will come true: "Now we know that whatever the law says, it says to those who are under the law, so that every mouth may be silenced and the whole world held accountable to God". (Rom 3 verse 19) The final word, of course, will be God's.

Recently, mega-church pastor Rick Warren found another way to describe what it means to live as a World Christian with the helpful phrase “the purpose-driven life”. The idea of being impelled and focused on God’s global concerns has encouraged many. But in the long run, to flourish in a purpose-driven life, we need to know first what it means to live a Person-driven life. For all of our activities and general support for Kingdom work, many may not be, in fact, the Person-driven people we thought we were.

To avoid any spirit of trivial “triumphalism”, however, let’s be clear on one thing: Christ’s missionary story not only initiates harvest fields, it also instigates battlefields — just as the children experience in Narnia at the climax of Aslan’s return. Any war is costly, sometimes bloody. Skirmishes are lost and won. Not every moment in the service of Jesus’ Kingdom offers visible, unalloyed advances in His mission. There are Forces of Darkness opposed to God’s promises, ready to fight them, and us, to the death. This, too, is part of the narrative of Christ’s global cause in which we each play our part.

What it means to be a World Christian

Catch The Vision! My World-Sized Part With Christ

God accomplishing His purposes

There was a time not too long ago when people thought the oceans extended without end and the world was flat. Now we know the exact extent of the surface of the oceans, and it is still magnificent to us in it’s scope. But it is limited. The oceans have shores, and those shores were created by our God. God has measured out not only the waters of the earth, but His entire creation.

God measures our gifts with a measure different from that of the world. He is not impressed with large numbers. Rather, He measures according to (1) the giver’s capacity (because He knows what we possess) and (2) the giver’s attitude (because He knows the state of our hearts). Jesus spoke to this question directly when He compared the temple gifts of the rich men with the gift of the poor widow (Luke 21:1-4). By Jesus’ reckoning, the widow gave more than the others because she gave all she had to live on. Her capacity was prohibitively little, but her attitude was extravagant. The rich, on the other hand, had so much wealth that even large gifts required little devotion of them. Biblical generosity is not any given dollar amount. Nor it is even just a given percentage rate (although percentage of assets is an important indicator of attitude, which is of great importance to God.) To be biblically generous is to recognize God’s infinite beneficence toward us in Christ, and to give extravagantly in worship to Him, relative to what one has. To put it differently, biblical generosity is best gauged by asking not, “How much am I giving to God?” but, “How much am I keeping for myself?”

The world is growing at an extremely rapid pace, and we are charged with preaching the gospel to the whole world. When a missionary goes into a new region, their primary goal is to develop their converts to become effective ministers to their own people, who know the culture, the language and pathways to the heart of people in their own culture, things that would take many years to teach an outsider. Western youth culture needs young men and women who understand the cultural language through a Biblical perspective and can effectively speak enticingly to that culture about the impact of the gospel.

Evangelism, of course, is a legitimate name and a legitimate endeavor. It is the work of the Church to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ in order to bring souls into the Kingdom of God. True evangelism follows the spreading of the pure Gospel with the planting churches and the discipling of believers that will guard the biblical truths and practices vital to sustaining a viable relationship between individual believers and the Lord Jesus Christ.

"The Bible gives us plenty of proof that God uses all types of personalities. Peter was a sanguine. Paul was a choleric. Jeremiah was a melancholy. When you look at the personality differences in the twelve disciples, it is easy to see why they sometimes had interpersonal conflict. There is no 'right’ or 'wrong’ temperament for ministry" (The Purpose Driven Life p. 245).

Statement of Faith

The God Who Accomplishes His Purposes

Our own conflicts in identity

In practical terms, how do we seek God’s righteousness and justice? We treat all people with respect and dignity, even and especially those who are most helpless and defenseless. We make sure our practices and policies reflect God’s revealed values, even when we operate in “the world.” We use the power and opportunity given to us to be people of biblical justice. We don’t turn the other way when we see injustice, but invest our energies so that God’s justice and righteousness might take form in and ultimately transform our world.

Christians have often (but not always) perceived Islam as a political, economic and theological threat, and have painted Islam in negative hue, in contrast to their own positive self-image. Many Muslims, likewise, have been inclined to regard Christianity and Christendom - often identified with each other and with the West - as engaged in an ongoing crusade against the Muslim world. The mass media continue with few exceptions, to perpetuate such images.

C.S. Lewis’ view of paganism and Christianity is much less dualistic in its perspective than that of the majority of mainstream Christianity. While Lewis had certain misgivings and concerns about paganism, he saw it as essentially related to Christianity at its most fundamental level. It was this relatedness that gave Lewis the passion to articulate a dynamic dialogue in his fiction and non-fiction alike between paganism and Christianity. The question before us, then, is: what conclusions and implications does this leave us as Christians? Many object to the idea that paganism and Christianity are related and view Lewis’ conceptions as radical, if not dangerous or heretical. Is Lewis alone in his assertions? Anglican theologian and priest A.G. Hebert writes --

Yet many of the early Fathers, and the best Christian theologians generally, have been ready to allow a measure of truth in pagan religions. More than this, we have before our eyes the Prologue of St. John’s Gospel, which was almost certainly written in Ephesus, in the midst of the splendour [sic] of Greek civilization, and speaks of the Divine Word as the source of all that was good and true in the pagan world.

Basic principles of unity

We need to emphasize the unity and basic Biblical principles we share as believers in Christ.

“Denomination” takes on a less-than-ideal sense when one considers its popular use in the lexicon of “Christendom.” “Christendom” is a term that embraces the entire religious terrain that professes any identification – however remote the connection may be – with Jesus Christ. This would include every kind of organism, from the Unitarian Universalist Church, to the various cults that allege an association with Christ (e.g., Christian Science, the Watchtower movement, etc.).

The study of sacred liturgy is to be ranked among the compulsory and major courses in seminaries and religious houses of studies; in theological faculties it is to rank among the principal courses. It is to be taught under its theological, historical, spiritual, pastoral, and juridical aspects. Moreover, other professors, while striving to expound the mystery of Christ and the history of salvation from the angle proper to each of their own subjects, must nevertheless do so in a way which will clearly bring out the connection between their subjects and the liturgy, as also the unity which underlies all priestly training. This consideration is especially important for professors of dogmatic, spiritual, and pastoral theology and for those of holy scripture.

Sunday school is more content-centered and less experience-centered. Evening youth groups are more experience-centered than content-centered. Because our understanding of education in general is so content-centered, we sometimes forget about the power of learning that comes through fellowship and shared experiences. Sunday evening youth groups often exert as much, or more, impact on the spiritual development of youth than does content-centered learning by itself.

Examining the New Testament, Newbigin simply did not find there the same concern for results or anxiety about numbers that characterizes Church Growth thought. Paul, he pointed out, never agonizes about results. Instead, in one of his most profoundly missiological passages, he speaks of salvation in eschatological terms and suggests that no one is perfect until the end. God “has consigned all people to disobedience in order that he may have mercy on all.” (Romans 11:32-36). It is then, says Newbigin, that “the fathomless depths of God’s wisdom and grace will be revealed.” Meanwhile, “creation groans in travail.” (Romans 8:22). Thus, Christians should be neither anxious about their failure or boast about their success, but should faithfully witness “to the one in whom the whole purpose of God for cosmic history has been revealed.” Newbigin preferred to speak of the “logic of mission,” predicated on the truthfulness of the message as one that cannot but be proclaimed. We do not control the result. This is the Holy Spirit’s task. Some people may join the church, others may respond in ways that are invisible to us.

Reaching India

Post-liberalized India has grown richer, but the gap between the rich and the poor also seems to be widening. For instance, while Mumbai boasts of the world’s most expensive home ($2 billion) built by one of India’s foremost industrialist, it is also host to Asia’s largest slum in Dharavi. Amartya Sen, Indian economist and Nobel laureate, writes that the 20-year span (1991-2011) of economic liberalization and globalization has seen the GDP grow, but many of the benefits have not reached the poor. While the number of billionaires has dramatically increased, there is also the tragic fact that in the last 15 years, 250,000 farmers have committed suicide in India, due to various reasons. This has also facilitated the rise of violent Maoists movements. The Church needs to courageously and compassionately stand in this gap.

They teach from the ancient Vedas that there is a spark of divinity in man, and hence to call a man a sinner is blasphemous; there is, then, no need for a saviour.

Persian Christian

In the last ten years a new term has become widespread throughout Iran, which can be literally translated “Persian-Christian,” or as they would conceptually translate it “Muslim-Christian” (farsimasihi). For centuries, it was assumed that if you were a Christian, you were Armenian. If someone saw you wearing a cross they might ask, “Are you Armenian?” or “Have you become Armenian?” But today the question has changed.

This new identity is highly significant, testifying to the presence of a truly indigenous, self-reproducing movement. It has long been believed that a breakthrough among Persians could have significant impact on surrounding peoples in Central Asia and the Middle East. This has certainly proved to be the case in Iran itself. Persian missionaries are now being sent to nearby minority peoples, such as the Azeri, Luri and Kurds, with funding coming directly from the Persian believers themselves.

Christward movement

A Church-Planting Movement (CPM) is in many ways actually a church leadership multiplication and development movement. The difference between planting churches and seeing sustained movements is usually linked to leadership development. No matter how many churches are planted, unless the cultural insiders become leaders, the churches will remain foreign and either reproduce slowly or reach a plateau when the initial leader(s) become overloaded.

Can we as outsiders recognize or create a truly indigenous church? First we need a working definition of an indigenous church. A community of believers who worship Christ according to their cultural norms. The structure and methods of the community are created through the host culture seeking God in Scripture. To help us separate our conception of church with seats and western music and logical/academic sermons I’ll use the term Christward movement to describe what may be called an indigenous church.

While local church engagement seems to be normative in Scripture and church history, Christ's parables about the Kingdom suggest other interesting possibilities. The kingdom, we're told, is small (a mustard seed), almost imperceptible, and spreads in surprising ways. It's a vision that seems spiritually compatible with the "weakness" and incarnational nature of insider movements. In Luke 13, the kingdom is like a "little bit of yeast," that when tossed into the dough, leavens the whole loaf. It's like the "smallest of seeds," that when it is grown, will host the birds of the air. In Matthew 13, it's a treasure hidden in a field.

The Bridges of God

Christward Movements in Contemporary India

C-5 Contextualization

For several decades some missionaries from organizations like Frontiers, Wycliffe, SIL, YWAM, and others have adopted a form of contextualization known as C-5 contextualization (or “Insider Movements”). These missionaries believe that followers of Christ should remain in the religion of their birth i.e. a Muslim should remain a Muslim, a Hindu should remain a Hindu, etc… Many of these missionaries suggest that asking someone to convert to Christianity is wrong. In Muslim contexts, “C-5 believers” frequently hold views about Christ that mirror the beliefs of the general Muslim population. They may continue to identify themselves as Muslims, continue to affirm Mohammad as God’s prophet, continue to affirm the Qu’ran as God’s word, and reject a belief in the divinity of Christ. Western missionary organizations promoting C-5 contextualization have produced new translations of the bible that harmonize the place and people names with those used in the Qu’ran and replace terms like Father, Son, Baptism, etc.. with alternative language that Muslim audiences find “less offensive.”

Among the reasons for which the Holy Scripture is so worthy of commendation - in addition to its own excellence and to the homage which we owe to God's Word - the chief of all is, the innumerable benefits of which it is the source; according to the infallible testimony of the Holy Ghost Himself, who says: "All Scripture, inspired of God, is profitable to teach, to reprove, to correct, to instruct in justice, that the man of God may be perfect, furnished to every good work." That such was the purpose of God in giving the Scripture to people is shown by the example of Christ our Lord and of His Apostles. For He Himself Who "obtained authority by miracles, merited belief by authority, and by belief drew to Himself the multitude" was accustomed in the exercise of His Divine Mission, to appeal to the Scriptures. He uses them at times to prove that He is sent by God, and is God Himself. From them He cites instructions for His disciples and confirmation of His doctrine. He vindicates them from the calumnies of objectors; He quotes them against Sadducees and Pharisees, and retorts from them upon Satan himself when he dares to tempt Him. At the close of His life His utterances are from Holy Scripture, and it is the Scripture that He expounds to His disciples after His resurrection, until He ascends to the glory of His Father. Faithful to His precepts, the Apostles, although He Himself granted "signs and wonders to be done by their hands" nevertheless used with the greatest effect the sacred writings, in order to persuade the nations everywhere of the wisdom of Christianity, to conquer the obstinacy of the Jews, and to suppress the outbreak of heresy. This is plainly seen in their discourses, especially in those of Peter: these were often little less than a series of citations from the Old Testament supporting in the strongest manner the new dispensation. We find the same thing in the Gospels of Matthew and John and in the Epistles; and most remarkably of all in the words of him who "boasts that he learned the law at the feet of Gamaliel, in order that, being armed with spiritual weapons, he might afterwards say with confidence, `The arms of our warfare are not carnal but mighty unto God.' " Let all, therefore, especially the novices of the ecclesiastical army, understand how deeply the sacred Books should be esteemed, and with what eagerness and reverence they should approach this great arsenal of heavenly arms. For those whose duty it is to handle doctrine before the learned or the unlearned will nowhere find more ample matter or more abundant exhortation, whether on the subject of God, the supreme Good and the all-perfect Being, or of the works which display His Glory and His love. Nowhere is there anything more full or more express on the subject of the Saviour of the world than is to be found in the whole range of the Bible. As St. Jerome says, "To be ignorant of the Scripture is not to know Christ." In its pages His Image stands out, living and breathing; diffusing everywhere around consolation in trouble, encouragement to virtue and attraction to the love of God. And as to the Church, her institutions, her nature, her office, and her gifts, we find in Holy Scripture so many references and so many ready and convincing arguments, that as St. Jerome again most truly says: "A man who is well grounded in the testimonies of the Scripture is the bulwark of the Church." And if we come to morality and discipline, an apostolic man finds in the sacred writings abundant and excellent assistance; most holy precepts, gentle and strong exhortation, splendid examples of every virtue, and finally the promise of eternal reward and the threat of eternal punishment, uttered in terms of solemn import, in God's name and in God's own words.

If you believe obedience is not essential to salvation, then according to Jesus' word you fail to understand what it means to accept Him. As in Matthew 7:21-27, He will say, "Depart from me..." [James 1:21-25; John 15:14; Phil 2:12f; Acts 2:40; 1 Tim. 4:16; 2 Pet. 2:20-22]

In both Insider Movements and the C-scale identity matters, there is some overlap. However identity is a subset of either community or form/style. The primary factors that describe the two terms must be teased apart for there to be an intellectual conversation about the issues at hand. It also seems that the primary controversy surrounds this misunderstanding dealt with today.

What terminology (or terms of identity) of the surrounding culture is so closely tied to the predominant non-Christian religion that, if the new believer were to continue using them, would cause the non-Christian community to believe that the so-called new believer still adheres to the non-Christian religion?

The special vocation of missionaries "for life" retains all its validity: it is the model of the Church's missionary commitment, which always stands in need of radical and total self-giving, of new and bold endeavors. Therefore the men and women missionaries who have devoted their whole lives to bearing witness to the risen Lord among the nations must not allow themselves to be daunted by doubts, misunderstanding, rejection or persecution. They should revive the grace of their specific charism and courageously press on, preferring - in a spirit of faith, obedience and communion with their pastors - to seek the lowliest and most demanding places.

The so-called “Insider Movement(s)” is an important discussion taking place among those attempting to take the gospel globally. On the table is what level of separation from former pagan religions is required of those who would be disciples of Christ? Can a Buddhist who has professed belief in Jesus Christ retain certain features of Buddhism? If so, which features and how much? Can he still chant at the Buddhist temples? Can he still reference Buddhist teachings? Can he continue to believe in pantheism or the Noble Eightfold Plan? Most Christians would recognize that there is a cut-off point at which a former Buddhist, now professing Christ, must separate himself from his former religion, but just where is that point? In other words, how far “inside” Buddhism can an individual be and yet still claim to be a Christian?

Muslim Followers of Isa?

BASIC ELEMENTS OF C5 CONTEXTUALIZATION

John Piper’s Church Takes a Stand on Contextualization

Contextualization Among Hindus, Muslims, and Buddhists

CONTEXTUALIZATION

The C1 to C6 Spectrum: A Practical Tool for Defining Six Types of ‘Christ-centered Communities’ (‘C’) Found in the Muslim Context

A BIBLICAL CRITIQUE TO C5 STRATEGIES AMONG MUSLIMS

Insider Movement vs C5: Is there a difference?

Missions and Muslims: “C-5,” “Insider movements,” and Hyper-Contextualization