Missio Dei: The Mission of God

What does it mean to be Missional?

Today, the word "missional" is in vogue.  I remember when I first encountered this term in Seminary back in the late 90's.  In its inception, the problem that was identified was the tendency of the Christian congregations in the United States to be too focused on its internal needs, which resulted in an insular approach.  Added to this was a society  moving to a post-Christian orientation.  The result is that many congregations had lost their relevance and found themselves in a position of having to be "missionary" churches in their own neighborhoods.  Early missional discussions sometimes included a criticism of the marketing and programmatic emphasis of the church which focused too closely on certain desired demographics.  Currently, the “missional” book landscape is a veritable land-mine of various outlooks, philosophies, and definitions, some good, some not so good.  Some continue to define the mission of the church only in terms of membership recruitment, church growth strategies, analysis assessments or church management.  Others have taken evangelism and made it the overarching concern or the one element that defines of the church, and thereby leaving out some critically important foundations that guide the church's faith, life and worship.  

Missional in the Reformed context

So, how should we think about the mission of Christian congregations?   A place to start is with any of the Old Testament stories that witness to the saving acts of God in creating, calling, and bringing out the people of Israel from the bondage of slavery into the wilderness in order to worship God.  Why start there?  Simply because all theology starts and ends with God, as it is really God's mission that shapes our mission.  God always seeks us out first.  Like the people of Israel who were chosen by God, the Christian community is also a covenant people bound to God and called to be a worshipping and living witness of the acts of God in bringing about a new world.  The signs given to us of God’s gracious covenant are Baptism and Holy Communion.  John Calvin correctly defined the church as existing where the “Word of God is rightly preached and heard, and the Sacraments administered according to Christ’s institution.”  Building on the New Testament we further understand the church as the people called by God into a new and living covenant in Jesus Christ.  The Sacraments point us to Jesus Christ whose body we are baptized into and whose body and blood we share in Holy Communion. It is Jesus alone that shapes the worship of the church and he is at the heart of its mission, and makes the church the salt and light of the earth. 

The role of the Sacraments

Joseph Small describes two functions of the Sacraments as follows… “the purpose of the sacraments have the same function as scripture and preaching to proclaim the truth of the gospel and to communicate the presence of the living Christ to us.”   Closely tied to our proclamation of the Sacraments are two important commands given by Jesus at the core of its mission; the Great Commission and the Great Commandment.  Both are rooted in strong Sacramental language, “go and make disciples of all nations baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit,” and (at the Last Supper) “a new commandment I give to you that you have love one for another.”  (John 14:34)  It is from this orientation that the mission of the church stems.  We meet with the risen Christ, we are commissioned to go and to in the same spirit of grace, love and peace.  The missional movement rightly recognizes that the church should be concerned with its witnesses.  However, this witness to others can only be affirmed if the church is sent as a worshipping people shaped in mission by Jesus Christ, and guided by her confessions.

How can Christian congregations become more missional today?

First, ironically, being "missional" has to begin with the local congregation and its internal concerns.  Just two questions by way of illustration: first, how can we in Christian congregations speak to others outside our church family about our faith when we have such a hard time sharing our own faith which each other?  By speaking about our faith I mean sharing our lives together, sharing our struggles together, and sharing how our beliefs are shaping our lives together.  We know that often matters of religion and politics are just too controversial, or personal and so we hesitate to "go there".  Yet, building mutual respect, civil discussion, displaying a certain amount of courage, and open mindedness is critical if we are to truly know one another.  We have to learn how to share our faith with each other and how to listen to each other. 

Second, if we cannot love each other when we tend to have much in common as believer,  how will we be able to love anyone outside the church with their differences?  How will we be able to bridge the different cultural, religious, social or economic divides?  Exploring our own spiritual life and sharing it with others is something the church has to learn to do if it has any hope of being a “missional” church.  Sharing Christian hospitality with those who come into contact with the church is vital and each "missional" congregation should ask itself "to what end is our hospitality directed?"  Are we only interested in membership recruitment?  Do we think of people only as potential financial donors?  Do we see people only as needing a conversion of the soul for heaven, or do we see Jesus only as a humanitarian model to copy?  The mission of God in sending Jesus was to proclaim forgiveness of sins and to open to us a new hope, a new way of being, and an entirely new creation in this world and in the world to come.  We are asked to participate in this together and to invite others to participate with us.  

Missional, Reformed, but Never Perfect

We must then explore both the "Good News of the Gospel" and the nature of the "Kingdom of God" as proclaimed and fulfilled in Jesus Christ.  Whether it be worship, Christian education or service, none of our actions or calling can be separated cleanly one from the other.  Most of us have to start exactly where we happen to be.  Imperfect as always, a mix of good and bad motives, (some selfish, some sincere), yet each of us is called both collectively and individually to discern the will of God to this end.  While the pastors, priests, deacons, or elders, may provide leadership and guide the church, it is ultimately up to each individual member to play their role in the body.  Each congregation must come to terms with the kingdom message that Jesus calls us to in the gospel.  We are to seek that "pearl of great price", and answer the call to take up our cross on a daily basis. 

Relying only on the grace of God, empowered by the Spirit of God, and looking to Jesus who is the self revelation of God to us all, each congregation must be willing to apply itself both to understanding God's mission and to God's redemptive acts in history.  In addition, the missional congregation needs to engage in self-reflection on the nature of the commission given to us by Jesus.  Looking both to itself and outside itself, each congregation will find itself relying daily on the Spirit of God to work in us so that we can reflect the love of God those around us.  Can we live out what we believe in the Sacraments?  Can we invite others to be part of that spiritual journey?  Can we stand up to divisions that are social and economic to invite all to the Table of fellowship?  Can we throw open the doors to our hearts to welcome in the hungry, tired, soiled, and downtrodden of spirit?  This is the call of the missional church.  This is the call of any Christian church.  Resisting the tendency to make missional only evangelism, or only member recruitment, we are inviting people to become part of the people of God, the community of faith.  To get in line with what God is doing in our lives and the lives of those around us, always looking to Jesus as the center of our life and faith.