Mission and Holiness

In 1 Corinthians 9:19-22, the Apostle Paul describes his method of reaching the Mediterranean world with the Gospel.

NRSV 1 Corinthians 9:19 For though I am free with respect to all, I have made myself a slave to all, so that I might win more of them. 20 To the Jews I became as a Jew, in order to win Jews. To those under the law I became as one under the law (though I myself am not under the law) so that I might win those under the law. 21 To those outside the law I became as one outside the law (though I am not free from God’s law but am under Christ’s law) so that I might win those outside the law. 22 To the weak I became weak, so that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all people, that I might by all means save some.

Paul describes an outreach strategy that modern thinkers would describe as contextual or indigenous. Paul worked to offer Christ to persons in terms of their own culture and thinking. Paul’s encounter with Greeks on Mars Hill is a classic example of this strategy. Paul’s conversation with a group of people on the Areopagus is recorded in Acts 17:16-34. He uses one of the Athenian’s own religious altars—one ascribed “To an Unknown God” as a vehicle for the proclamation of the good news about Jesus. In other words, Paul attempted to use some aspect of his target audiences own culture and belief system as a starting point or doorway into a conversation about Jesus Christ.

At least on the surface, most of us gravitate toward Paul’s strategy of “becoming all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some.” If we wish to live an evangelistic and missional lifestyle, there is much to learn here. This is a key element to learning to speak human.

For me, there is a key question: How does one embody such a mission strategy and stay true to the Gospel? Common answers such as, “I just follow Jesus” (though true) do not quite cut it because they are overly simplistic. In order to be the sort of persons who can follow in the footsteps of Paul and his co-workers (let alone the footprints of Jesus), we need to be profoundly touched by God. We need to be so rooted in God’s character that we are capable of adapting ourselves to new challenges, structures, and circumstances without losing the substance of who we are in Jesus. This means that deep character is more important than surface character.

Have you ever heard the phrase, “The clothes make the (wo)man.” In my thinking, this is completely backwards. If we want to be adaptable so that God can use us to reach the many, then we need to embody an ethos in which “the man [or woman] makes the clothes.”

This is not easy. It is even dangerous. In fact, Paul immediately follows up the above text with two strong warnings:

1) Paul uses an athletic metaphor to describe the seriousness of the danger:
NRS 1 Corinthians 9:24 Do you not know that in a race the runners all compete, but only one receives the prize? Run in such a way that you may win it. 25 Athletes exercise self-control in all things; they do it to receive a perishable wreath, but we an imperishable one. 26 So I do not run aimlessly, nor do I box as though beating the air; 27 but I punish my body and enslave it, so that after proclaiming to others I myself should not be disqualified.

Those of us who wish to reach out with God’s love to all persons need to realize the level of commitment necessary. Just as the athlete must continue her or his training to stay on top, so must we who follow Jesus be intentional and consistent in the nurturing our own relationship with God. To be an elite athlete requires a commitment to a training regimen that empowers the athlete to improve performance over time.

2) Then, in chapter 10 of 1 Corinthians, Paul reminds his readers of the unfaithfulness of Israel despite the fact that the Israelites were eyewitnesses of incredible acts of God.

The lesson is clear: our past history with God is no guarantee of our future faithfulness. Reflecting on Israel’s past tendency to be unfaithful in spite of God’s faithfulness, Paul warning in 1 Cor 10:14 “If you think you are standing strong, be careful that you don’t fall.”

The conclusion is this: our own personal holiness cannot be separated from the mission that God calls us to fulfill. Character matters. When the character of Jesus truly resides in us, we can adapt ourselves to new contexts and God will use us to reach others who desperately need the good news that is found only in Jesus. If we follow Jesus boldly, he will lead us into the darkest places in the world so that we can serve as light as Jesus shines through us.

Reflection:
1) How adaptable am I to new situations?

2) Am I more likely to be influenced by culture or to influence the culture for good?

3) What habits do I keep that help to nurture my soul and replenish me so that I am ready to reach out and serve others?

4) Reflect on your own understanding of the relationship between a missional lifestyle and personal holiness.

© 2006 Brian D. Russell, Revised 2016.

My latest book (re)Aligning with God: Reading Scripture for Church and World offers reflections on how to read Scripture in light of God's mission to bless all people.

From Maintenance to Missional: Transitioning Established Churches into Kingdom Outposts

 Pastors often ask me, “I am not planting a new church. God has called me to serve in an established congregation. How can I lead my church to transition from a maintenance mindset to a missional culture?”

I believe that this is the key question for existing communities of faith in the Western world. Every day in the Western world there are 5000 less Christians. This means that the West needs to be re-won for Jesus Christ. But there is good news. Footholds and resources are already in place from which to begin. Transitioning established congregations is not an easy task—but it is an essential one as we seek to be faithful stewards of all that God has given. 

Here are some thoughts:

The key is to create a new culture. I have written elsewhere about viewing leadership in the 21^st century in terms of shaping ethos. The following are key transitional points that push this along:

1) Reintroduce the Apostolic story of Acts. At the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2), a small group of persons whom God filled with the Holy Spirit began to turn the world upside down. The Church launched that day in fulfillment of Joel’s prophecy was a movement of dreamers and visionaries empowered by the promised Holy Spirit from God.

Don’t pass over the phrase dreamers and visionaries too quickly. In many struggling churches, the people of God have lost the capacity to dream of what God might do in and through the community. One of the first steps in transitioning to a missional model is to help followers of Jesus Christ to begin to dream again dreams shaped by the Scriptures.

2) Move from Surviving to Living.

Struggling churches are merely seeking to survive. When followers of Jesus Christ under the guidance of the Spirit begin to dream again, they slowly begin to realize that survival isn’t a goal. Survival is a prison that keeps a group from living. The goal of the Church of Jesus Christ is life in relationship to God. Living may sometimes means dying. Following Jesus Christ involves living as though you have already died (Matt 16:24). A vital relationship with Jesus moves us beyond fear to follow Jesus into the world on mission. This is the source of life.  Apostolic dreams lead to apostolic action.

3) Move God’s people from consumers of religious services to becoming collaborative influences for the Kingdom of God.

Missional churches are not about providing programs/resources to meet “felt needs” as ends in themselves. Missional churches call people to convert to the Gospel. This involves a reorientation from a life focused on self to a life centered on following Jesus Christ. The people of God shift from consuming to becoming Kingdom-rooted entrepreneurs who seek to extend the influence and reign of God to the ends of the earth. Congregations shift from inviting people to have their needs met to unleashing people to change the world.

4) Shift from Attractional Methods to Interactive Engagement.

Too many churches wait for people to show up at the door.  Missional churches are not opposed to advertising or raising awareness of the community of faith, but they do not sit round waiting for the World to show up. Instead, missional churches collaborate and envision ways to engage new Social networks. This is a key shift. The World no longer serves as a threat from which followers of Christ flee. Instead, the World becomes the venue for life and service in God’s mission. By engaging the world, we recapture the biblical vision of reaching the ends of the earth with the good news.

What are your thoughts?

© 2015 Brian D. Russell

Need a curriculum that helps trains disciples for mission rather than maintenance. Check out Invitation. Invitation introduces the narrative framework of Scripture through the lens of mission, character and community. Participants in the study will discover the missional DNA of the Christ following movement and learn to find themselves in the story of God's mission for humanity and all creation.

Reflections on Spiritual Gifts from a Missional Perspective

How do Spiritual gifts function in a missional community? Let's take a look at how the apostles described gifts in the house churches of the 1st century Christ following movement.

NIV 1 Corinthians 12:4-11 There are different kinds of gifts, but the same Spirit. 5 There are different kinds of service, but the same Lord. 6 There are different kinds of working, but the same God works all of them in all men. 7 Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. 8 To one there is given through the Spirit the message of wisdom, to another the message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, 9 to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, 10 to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues. 11 All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he gives them to each one, just as he determines.

NIV 1 Corinthians 12:31 – 13:13 But eagerly desire the greater gifts. And now I will show you the most excellent way. 13:1 If I speak in the tongues of men and of angels, but have not love, I am only a resounding gong or a clanging cymbal. 2 If I have the gift of prophecy and can fathom all mysteries and all knowledge, and if I have a faith that can move mountains, but have not love, I am nothing. 3 If I give all I possess to the poor and surrender my body to the flames, but have not love, I gain nothing. 4 Love is patient, love is kind. It does not envy, it does not boast, it is not proud. 5 It is not rude, it is not self-seeking, it is not easily angered, it keeps no record of wrongs. 6 Love does not delight in evil but rejoices with the truth. 7 It always protects, always trusts, always hopes, always perseveres. 8 Love never fails. But where there are prophecies, they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. 9 For we know in part and we prophesy in part, 10 but when perfection comes, the imperfect disappears. 11 When I was a child, I talked like a child, I thought like a child, I reasoned like a child. When I became a man, I put childish ways behind me. 12 Now we see but a poor reflection as in a mirror; then we shall see face to face. Now I know in part; then I shall know fully, even as I am fully known. 13 And now these three remain: faith, hope and love. But the greatest of these is love.


NIV Romans 12:3 - 9 For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the measure of faith God has given you. 4 Just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, 5 so in Christ we who are many form one body, and each member belongs to all the others. 6 We have different gifts, according to the grace given us. If a man's gift is prophesying, let him use it in proportion to his faith. 7 If it is serving, let him serve; if it is teaching, let him teach; 8 if it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully. 9 Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good.

NIV Romans 1:11-12 I long to see you so that I may impart to you some spiritual gift to make you strong-- 12 that is, that you and I may be mutually encouraged by each other's faith.

NIV 1 Peter 4:7-11 The end of all things is near. Therefore be clear minded and self-controlled so that you can pray. 8 Above all, love each other deeply, because love covers over a multitude of sins. 9 Offer hospitality to one another without grumbling. 10 Each one should use whatever gift he has received to serve others, faithfully administering God's grace in its various forms. 11 If anyone speaks, he should do it as one speaking the very words of God. If anyone serves, he should do it with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ. To him be the glory and the power for ever and ever. Amen.

Key Takeaways:
1) Avoiding the Disease of Conceit. 
A consistent theme running through several of these texts is the danger of individual members thinking too highly of themselves. Nothing kills community more than this.  The World values the wealthy, the beautiful, and the powerful. May this never be true in the Church of Jesus Christ. Each person has been created purposively with great potential by God. It is not the purpose of the body of Christ to downgrade or place on the sidelines any member. Rather we need to celebrate each person whom God sends into our communities as a gift from God. It is crucial that those with more visible roles publicly value those who do not and model humility and a proper sense of balance in the way that they interact with others. The leadership of a community can destroy any chance for the full participation of whole body if it explicitly or implicitly gives the impression that it is the most important component. 

2) Encourage Uniqueness over Cloning
When I read the Scriptures, I do not get the sense that every follower of Christ looks, talks, and acts in the same fashion.  For too long, communities of faith have operated by plugging people into programs. This amounts to making clones of people. The above texts speak of a plurality of gifts.  Yet in our drive for organization we often domesticate the unique gifts and talents of people to make them fit our programs and our perceptions.  What if instead of forcing members to fit our Church, we instead made it a core value to expand our vision for the community by reorganizing ourselves so that each person’s gifts, talents, and passions could be fully unleashed and utilized in a way that glorified the Giver of All Gifts.  How would our communities of faith be different?  Every person longs to be part of a community where they are loved authentically and invited to use their gifts, talents, and passions for something bigger than themselves.   

3) Deployed for the sake of the Body
God gives gifts to communities of faith.  What do all of these gifts have in common?  They are people. What if every community of faith valued each person who entered its doors? What if this valuing was not based on how much money a person could provide to fund a program or on how well a person would fit in to current ministry offerings? 
Gifts are for serving others and building up the faith of others.  The deployment of gifts is not for self-glorification, but for the praise of God and for the mutual benefit of all.  The offering of our gifts, talents, and passions for the good of the whole is part of our being shaped in the image of Jesus who “came not be served to serve and give his life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45).

4) Under the Umbrella of Love
The greatest of all gifts is love. This is not a sentimental, fleeting feeling, or a flippantly offered “I love you” but a love that embodies commitment, faithfulness, and a desire for authentic relationship with others. It is a love backed by action. Love is the distinctive mark of the Christian community. It is the tangible evidence of God’s presence. Apart from love the deployment of gifts often turns into opportunities for self-aggrandizement and fulfillment. As Peter says above, “Love covers over a multitude of sins.” No community is perfect. Our own brokenness often causes injury to others in our community, but in a community in which God’s love is authentically embodied, God can take all of the brokenness of each member and craft us into a masterpiece – a mosaic of transformed persons who have turned from self to God and others. Love creates an atmosphere of safety in which God through the Spirit can work powerfully to shape each of us into the people that he created us to be and to invite others to become part of the movement of followers of Jesus Christ.

5) Fuel for Mission
These texts may offer a false impression if not read missionally. On the surface, most of these passages offer the impression that gifts are purely for the "good" of the body. On one level this is true: When the body operates up to its potential, things happen.  Community grows. Prayers are offered.  Members are unleashed.  People discover their true humanity. 

But on the other hand, a healthy, vital, and vigorous body serves as a profound witness to the world. The biggest mistake that we make as followers of Christ is to believe incorrectly that visible acts of love in the world and evangelism are gifts that God gives only to certain parts of the body. This belief has hamstrung the movement of Jesus Christ as much as any heresy. The mandate for all believers is to MAKE DISCIPLES (Matt 28:18-20). Each follower of Jesus Christ needs to live a missional lifestyle. The power of the whole body working efficiently has its full impact when new persons enter our faith communities and encounter God working among us!

Reflection:
What would it look like for my community of faith to embody such a vision? How would we have to change?

What would it mean for me personally to live in such a community?

What kind of person do I need to become?

What if following Jesus Christ were the way to unleash all of the gifts, talents, and passions that God has implanted in us?

© 2015 Brian D. Russell (Revised 2017)

Missional Transformations for Local Churches

I often have this conversation with students at Asbury Theological Seminary: 

"I am not planting a new church. God has called me to serve in an established congregation. How can I lead my church to transition from a maintenance mindset to a missional culture?"

This is a critical question for the existing congregations in the Western world. The West needs to be re-won for Jesus Christ, but the good news is that there are footholds and resources already in place from which to begin. But transforming established congregations is not an easy task--but it is a vital one as we seek to be faithful stewards of all that God has given.

The key is to create a new culture or ethos. We must establish a missional "go to" mentality in keeping with the Scriptural story rather than the traditional/maintenance "build it and they will come/wait and see." 

The following are key transitional points that push this along:

1) Reintroduce the Apostolic story of Acts.

At the Day of Pentecost (Acts 2), God began to turn the world upside down by unleashing a small group of persons whom God filled with the Holy Spirit. The Church launched that day in fulfillment of Joel’s prophecy (Joel 2:28ff) as a movement of “dreamers and visionaries” empowered by the promised Holy Spirit from God.

Don’t pass over the phrase “dreamers and visionaries” too quickly. In many struggling churches, the people of God have lost the capacity to dream of what God might do in and through the community. One of the first steps in transitioning to a missional model is to help followers of Jesus Christ to begin to dream again dreams shaped by the Scriptures. We might call this a "'What If?' Future". 

What is God calling us to do today? What would the future look like if we followed God's calling faithfully now?

2) Move from Surviving to Living.

Struggling churches are merely seeking to survive. When followers of Jesus Christ under the guidance of the Spirit begin to dream again, they slowly begin to realize that survival isn’t a goal. Survival is a prison that keeps us from living. Survival simply means keeping the lights on. The goal of the Church of Jesus Christ is an abundant life in relationship to God by announcing and embodying God's kingdom in our communities. Living may sometimes means dying. Following Jesus Christ involves living as though you have already died (Matt 16:24). A vital relationship with Jesus moves us beyond fear of failure to following Jesus into the world on mission. This is the source of life. Apostolic dreams lead to apostolic action.

Regardless of our past, what new day is God calling us to live into now?

3) Move God’s people from consuming to becoming collaborative influencers for the Kingdom of God.

Missional churches are not about providing programs/resources to meet the needs of believers as as the purpose of the Church. Missional churches call people to convert to the Gospel. This involves a reorientation from a life focused on self to a life centered on following Jesus Christ. The people of God shift from consuming to becoming Kingdom-rooted entrepreneurs who seek to extend the influence and reign of God to the ends of the earth. Congregations shift from inviting people to have their needs met to unleashing people to change the world.

How is God calling our community to change the world? 

4) Shift from Attractional Methods to Interactive Engagement.

Too many churches wait for people to show up at the door. Missional churches are not opposed to advertising or raising awareness of the community of faith, but they do not sit round waiting for the World to show up. Instead, missional churches collaborate and envision ways to engage new Social networks. This is a key shift. The World no longer serves as a threat from which followers of Christ flee. Instead, the World becomes the venue for life and service in God’s mission. Missional churches exist for the world and in the world rather than as safe havens from the world. As Alex McManus says, "The Gospel comes to us on its way to someone else and someplace else." 

Pray: Who is my/our mission and allow God to put faces and networks in your mind.

5) Three Missional Ideas that Any Community Can Adopt

a. Host Recovery/Healing Groups. Offer support for families/individuals who are grieving. Host 12 Step Groups for persons seeking help for addictive behavior (drugs, alcohol, sex, co-dedependency). Present Divorce recovery workshops.  

b. Offer Debt Reduction/Financial Planning classes. Our world struggles with debt and money management. Missional churches can help by teaching clear principles for enjoying financial abundance. Dave Ramsey's materials are a great place to start.

c. Adopt local schools. Organize tutors and mentors for the schools in close proximity to your community of faith.


What would you add?

© 2015, 2017 Brian D. Russell (updated 7/26/17)

Some Marks of Missional Communities

Missional communities trust fully in the life, death, and resurrection as their foundation for faith.

Missional communities seek to embody the values and ethos of God’s kingdom for the sake of the world.

Missional communities love people and desire God's best for every human person.

Missional communities desire to steward the earth and honor God's original mission of creation care.

Missional communities are communities of transformation. God is in the business of transforming lives and igniting persons to live the lives of God’s dreams.

Missional communities read the Scriptures as a road map for living as God’s missional people who reflect God’s character to/for/in the world.

Missional communities stop worrying about being corrupted by the world and instead dream about ways to influence the world.

Missional communities focus on the needs of the world rather than on the likes/dislikes of insiders.

Missional communities speak human and incarnationally rather than communicating with shibboleths and other insider jargon.

Missional communities unleash all of God’s people to deploy their gifts, talents, and passions for God mission.

Missional communities stop worrying about the transitions in their neighborhoods and instead give thanks for all of the new people that God is sending their way.

Missional communities are more concerned with reaching the current culture than with the risks involved with interacting directly with contemporary culture.

Missional communities are led by the Spirit to create culture rather than to stagnate in some past (real or imagined) or to capitulate to the world’s culture.

Missional communities are less safe havens from the world and more staging areas for launching world changing initiatives.

Missional communities are not defensive with the wider culture “attacks” or challenges to the faith. Rather they use these opportunities as moments of traction to demonstrate reality and truthfulness of the Gospel.

© 2015 Brian D. Russell