The Biblical Basis Of Missions

Let me define some terms that will be used throughout the book. By mission, I mean the total redemptive purpose of God to establish his kingdom. Missions, on the other hand, is the activity of God’s people, the church, to proclaim and to demonstrate the kingdom of God to the world. The word mission comes from the Latin word mattere meaning to send. God is both the sender end the sent (in Christ). The church is sent by God on mission and cooperates with God to send missionaries. Missionaries are set apart by God and the church to cross natural or cultural barriers with the gospel. I make this distinction because missions always is in danger of becoming the expression of man. Missions places the church at the center of the world’s conflicts. Without a biblical base, the church will fail to be true to God’s mission. Missions can become identified easily with the culture of the sender or be seduced by elements of the culture in which it is being expressed. For example, the East India Company was charged with the task of missions to Indonesia, but it subordinated missions for the benefit of its financial empire. Resurgent nationalism around the world reacts to any attempt by outsiders to reform national cultures. People of other cultures quickly point out the inconsistent failures of Western civilization. They react to a perceived superiority complex by shouting, "Yankee, go home!" In spite of that reaction, many naïve Westerners believe that if modern business techniques and advertising methods were practiced, other nations would flock to Christ. It is possible to franchise hamburgers, but a Westernized packaging of the gospel is often unpalatable to people of other nations. God’s mission is the prime factor in missions. Just as the fruit is the product of the vine, so missions is the product--or result-- of God’s mission. The way to understand missions is to begin with the vine-the mission of God.