What an amazing time we had in Argentina! The church there sends their greetings to Lighthouse, especially to those who have gone to Tucuman in the past. Despite the cold and that thirteen of our sixteen team members got sick along the way, the time working with the church there was a great blessing. God was gracious to give us opportunities to minister in four of the surrounding barrios. We also had an outreach night at the church and were able to invite those in the neighborhood immediately surrounding the church.
Each time we visit, it is a tremendous encouragement to see how the church is growing. The church leaders constantly introduce us to the families who have joined the church as a result of being saved through the campaigns we have been involved in. What a joy! God is definitely working through us in Argentina and it is a great privilege to be a part of His plan for the city of Tucuman. Please continue to pray for all those that heard the gospel these past few weeks. We were able once again to engage in some very good conversations with people and the church will be working diligently to follow up. Please pray because the fields are white for harvest in Argentina.
Tuesday, July 31, 2007
Monday, July 23, 2007
Controversial Statements on Missions
As Pastor Patrick stated in the previous entry, the role of the local church in the work of world missions is crucial and vital to fulfilling the Great Commission in making disciples, not just decisions. I realize that for some people, their view of the issue of missions has been often dictated by conferences, authors, and strategies that while helpful and often insightful to the work of missions, can often fall short of what the Scriptures would say regarding the issue of missions.
I find it interesting that there are always a number of people that might find my sermons controversial. I know that I often make statements that sound blunt and strong, but I do not find them controversial. If the Scriptures are to be taken as the final authority, it is strange for me to see people disregard what is clearly said in Scripture and go with what someone else has said regarding any particular topic. This seems to follow what Romans 12:2 explicitly calls us NOT to do, that is, to be conformed to worldly thinking. Instead, we are to discern what the will of God is, and that will is to always be found first and foremost in the Scriptures.
The Great Commission is clear - the call is to make disciples of Christ. This includes the work of evangelism, which is the front end, but the point is not to simply call for decisions. The point is to see people FOLLOW Jesus in an ongoing and daily relationship. This is where I would say that missions apart from the ministry of the local church often falls short. And this was clearly confirmed during our time in Ostrava these past few weeks. The theme for the retreat was "Disciplines of a Godly Man/Woman" and we addressed basic topics under the theme of 1 Timothy 4:7-8, to be disciplined for the purpose of godliness. What we found is that even in the most basic issues, there were many questions and some animated debates over what were simple biblical truths. We addressed the issue of spiritual disciplines, the roles of men and women in marriage and parenting, witnessing in the workplace, and serving in the church. These are not typically issues that generate a lot of controversy but they did. Why? It took me a few days to realize it but what I discovered was that the very foundations of thinking were being shaken for many people and so in mid-stream I gave a message on building a biblical worldview. We discovered that in the Czech language, there is no clear understanding of this concept. One other astounding discovery was that the very concept of accountability was something that was not understood in the Czech language. So it was during a weeklong opportunity to equip and teach the church that I realized all the more that the work of missions is not limited solely to evangelism, but as Matthew 28:19-20 describe, there is to be the "teaching of all that I commanded you" that is to take place, that is, the equipping of disciples with the teachings of Jesus so that they would grow and mature in their faith so as to provide an ongoing work of representing Christ in their part of the world.
How is this controversial? It is controversial because so many Christians have been limited in their understanding of missions. There is a lack of consideration given to having a comprehensive view of the work of missions in relation to God's overall plan and in isolating the aspect of evangelism to missions, it short-circuits the flow of the Great Commission to make disciples. That is why the local church is so crucial in playing a role both in sending and in the actual work of missions at any given location. It is not enough to simply evangelize. There must be the planting of churches. There must be the equipping of churches. It is not enough to just do humanitarian work or pursue social justice. While these are all good things and can be a part of the effort to help people's lives, to diminish the priority of planting and building up churches to do the work of ministry is to be short-sighted.
I made some comments that it is not enough to just do medical assistance or build houses or to address social injustices. It is because in the end, even if you do help in these areas, if you do not address the issue of preaching the gospel comprehensively for the sake of people not only to hear and believe in Christ, but to follow Christ as disciples, then you are not actually fulfilling the Great Commission.
I think it's great that there are ministries that try to help in all these various areas. But to call it "missions" can be misleading. I think we have to be more discerning when we talk about what God defines as the work of missions. This is why 2 Timothy 2:15 calls us to handle accurately the word of truth. There is a lax and often haphazard allegiance to the Scriptures and when this is confronted, people are often confounded by what they think is an attack on established practices. But we must be wise according to the Scriptures, not just to tradition. There is much to learn from those who have done various things for the sake of God's kingdom. But sincerity and results are not the final criteria to determine what is right. We must accurately represent what the Scriptures call us to do as Christians and I hope that we at Lighthouse will be careful not to be lazy when it comes to our theological foundations that are the basis for our practice as a church.
I find it interesting that there are always a number of people that might find my sermons controversial. I know that I often make statements that sound blunt and strong, but I do not find them controversial. If the Scriptures are to be taken as the final authority, it is strange for me to see people disregard what is clearly said in Scripture and go with what someone else has said regarding any particular topic. This seems to follow what Romans 12:2 explicitly calls us NOT to do, that is, to be conformed to worldly thinking. Instead, we are to discern what the will of God is, and that will is to always be found first and foremost in the Scriptures.
The Great Commission is clear - the call is to make disciples of Christ. This includes the work of evangelism, which is the front end, but the point is not to simply call for decisions. The point is to see people FOLLOW Jesus in an ongoing and daily relationship. This is where I would say that missions apart from the ministry of the local church often falls short. And this was clearly confirmed during our time in Ostrava these past few weeks. The theme for the retreat was "Disciplines of a Godly Man/Woman" and we addressed basic topics under the theme of 1 Timothy 4:7-8, to be disciplined for the purpose of godliness. What we found is that even in the most basic issues, there were many questions and some animated debates over what were simple biblical truths. We addressed the issue of spiritual disciplines, the roles of men and women in marriage and parenting, witnessing in the workplace, and serving in the church. These are not typically issues that generate a lot of controversy but they did. Why? It took me a few days to realize it but what I discovered was that the very foundations of thinking were being shaken for many people and so in mid-stream I gave a message on building a biblical worldview. We discovered that in the Czech language, there is no clear understanding of this concept. One other astounding discovery was that the very concept of accountability was something that was not understood in the Czech language. So it was during a weeklong opportunity to equip and teach the church that I realized all the more that the work of missions is not limited solely to evangelism, but as Matthew 28:19-20 describe, there is to be the "teaching of all that I commanded you" that is to take place, that is, the equipping of disciples with the teachings of Jesus so that they would grow and mature in their faith so as to provide an ongoing work of representing Christ in their part of the world.
How is this controversial? It is controversial because so many Christians have been limited in their understanding of missions. There is a lack of consideration given to having a comprehensive view of the work of missions in relation to God's overall plan and in isolating the aspect of evangelism to missions, it short-circuits the flow of the Great Commission to make disciples. That is why the local church is so crucial in playing a role both in sending and in the actual work of missions at any given location. It is not enough to simply evangelize. There must be the planting of churches. There must be the equipping of churches. It is not enough to just do humanitarian work or pursue social justice. While these are all good things and can be a part of the effort to help people's lives, to diminish the priority of planting and building up churches to do the work of ministry is to be short-sighted.
I made some comments that it is not enough to just do medical assistance or build houses or to address social injustices. It is because in the end, even if you do help in these areas, if you do not address the issue of preaching the gospel comprehensively for the sake of people not only to hear and believe in Christ, but to follow Christ as disciples, then you are not actually fulfilling the Great Commission.
I think it's great that there are ministries that try to help in all these various areas. But to call it "missions" can be misleading. I think we have to be more discerning when we talk about what God defines as the work of missions. This is why 2 Timothy 2:15 calls us to handle accurately the word of truth. There is a lax and often haphazard allegiance to the Scriptures and when this is confronted, people are often confounded by what they think is an attack on established practices. But we must be wise according to the Scriptures, not just to tradition. There is much to learn from those who have done various things for the sake of God's kingdom. But sincerity and results are not the final criteria to determine what is right. We must accurately represent what the Scriptures call us to do as Christians and I hope that we at Lighthouse will be careful not to be lazy when it comes to our theological foundations that are the basis for our practice as a church.
Wednesday, July 11, 2007
The Mission of the Local Church
I spent some time preparing today for a message I'm giving during one of the church services in Tucuman. Pastor Jorge asked me to focus on the theme of "Commitment and Devotion to Christ." As I was thinking through what specific topics I might address, I couldn't help but think of the Great Commission passage of Matthew 28:18-20. The reason why this passage stood out was because the church is to be committed to the commission that Christ has bestowed on her to make disciples of all the nations.
Now this is a pertinent passage because much of the evangelism in the church today is merely focused on making decisions, not disciples. This is not to say that people making decisions for Christ is not important. It is just not the end. When so many work only to get people to make some profession of faith over a shallow understanding of the gospel, it is no wonder that many "believers'" lives have been absent of the life-changing power of the cross. David Doran, in his book For the Sake of His Name, writes, "The Great Commission produces disciples, not decisions. It is certainly true that becoming Christ's disciple occurs at a decisive point in time and through a decision to receive Christ, but one of the sad evidences of a defective and unbiblical missions strategy has been the tendency to be satisfied with evangelistic decisions that yield no lasting fruit or transformation in the lives of those who have supposedly received Jesus Christ." He continues, "While claiming to guard the gospel of grace, this actually denies the power of grace to convert the soul and make the person who is in Christ into a new creation (cf. 2 Cor. 5:17)." This is a very important element in understanding the importance of the church's role in missions. If people are only committed to making decisions, churches are essentially unnecessary. But if the task is disciple making, churches are the vehicles in getting that task accomplished.
I thought about this for the trips that LBC has been taking to the Czech Republic and Argentina. Suppose we went out in the summers and saw hundreds of people make decisions for the Lord. Would that be fulfilling the requirement of the Great Commission. David Doran argues that it would fall short. He writes, ". . . the central focus of this passage is the command to make disciples. This is the essential task of the Great Commission. . . . The task before us is not simply announcing the good news of Jesus Christ; it is making disciples for Jesus Christ. We cannot make disciples without announcing the good news (Romans 10:14-17), but that is where the Great Commission starts, not stops." One of the reasons we have committed ourselves to the ministries in Ostrava and Tucuman is because of the church planting efforts in those two areas. When someone comes to know the Lord, we have a church there that can continue to the work of disciple making. We do not come home with the same concerns as the Apostle Paul with the church in Thessalonica, whether the people who responded to the gospel later turned from it and our work had been in vain (cf. 1 Thess. 3:1-5). There are established churches that we have partnered with that will continue to nourish and nurture these young converts so that they grow in respect to their salvation (1 Pet. 2:2).
All this isn't to say that God cannot use missions and evangelism outside the local church. It is not even to say that going on missions outside the local church cannot be helpful. In some ways it is extremely helpful to gain practical insight into methods and strategies. It simply makes sense to me that if the work of missions and evangelism is disciple making, then that will be accomplished through the ministry of the local church. It is the church, then, that should be remained committed to this kind of missions work.
Now this is a pertinent passage because much of the evangelism in the church today is merely focused on making decisions, not disciples. This is not to say that people making decisions for Christ is not important. It is just not the end. When so many work only to get people to make some profession of faith over a shallow understanding of the gospel, it is no wonder that many "believers'" lives have been absent of the life-changing power of the cross. David Doran, in his book For the Sake of His Name, writes, "The Great Commission produces disciples, not decisions. It is certainly true that becoming Christ's disciple occurs at a decisive point in time and through a decision to receive Christ, but one of the sad evidences of a defective and unbiblical missions strategy has been the tendency to be satisfied with evangelistic decisions that yield no lasting fruit or transformation in the lives of those who have supposedly received Jesus Christ." He continues, "While claiming to guard the gospel of grace, this actually denies the power of grace to convert the soul and make the person who is in Christ into a new creation (cf. 2 Cor. 5:17)." This is a very important element in understanding the importance of the church's role in missions. If people are only committed to making decisions, churches are essentially unnecessary. But if the task is disciple making, churches are the vehicles in getting that task accomplished.
I thought about this for the trips that LBC has been taking to the Czech Republic and Argentina. Suppose we went out in the summers and saw hundreds of people make decisions for the Lord. Would that be fulfilling the requirement of the Great Commission. David Doran argues that it would fall short. He writes, ". . . the central focus of this passage is the command to make disciples. This is the essential task of the Great Commission. . . . The task before us is not simply announcing the good news of Jesus Christ; it is making disciples for Jesus Christ. We cannot make disciples without announcing the good news (Romans 10:14-17), but that is where the Great Commission starts, not stops." One of the reasons we have committed ourselves to the ministries in Ostrava and Tucuman is because of the church planting efforts in those two areas. When someone comes to know the Lord, we have a church there that can continue to the work of disciple making. We do not come home with the same concerns as the Apostle Paul with the church in Thessalonica, whether the people who responded to the gospel later turned from it and our work had been in vain (cf. 1 Thess. 3:1-5). There are established churches that we have partnered with that will continue to nourish and nurture these young converts so that they grow in respect to their salvation (1 Pet. 2:2).
All this isn't to say that God cannot use missions and evangelism outside the local church. It is not even to say that going on missions outside the local church cannot be helpful. In some ways it is extremely helpful to gain practical insight into methods and strategies. It simply makes sense to me that if the work of missions and evangelism is disciple making, then that will be accomplished through the ministry of the local church. It is the church, then, that should be remained committed to this kind of missions work.
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