Foundations for Christian Mission, Mentor's Guide, MG04

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F O U N D A T I O N S F O R C H R I S T I A N M I S S I O N

Christian Mission and the Poor

Welcome to the Mentor’s Guide for Lesson 4, Christian Mission and the Poor . The final lesson of our Foundations for Christian Mission module focuses on the role and primacy of the poor in terms of Christian mission. Rather than being a footnote of the Gospel’s emphasis, we hope to show that the issue of the poor is an integral to mission, as mission is integral to the Church. Regarding mission and the Church, Kirk establishes plainly that the very nature of spirituality, given the nature of the Great Commission is to go, to be going, to be sent. “Mission” conveys the biblical idea of “being sent,” classically expressed in Jesus’ saying, “As the Father has sent me, I am sending you” (John 20.21). The parallel between God sending Jesus and Jesus sending his disciples describes both the method and the content of mission. The church’s mission, then, encompasses everything that Jesus sends his people into the world to do. It does not include everything the church does or everything God does in the world. Therefore, to say the church is mission is an overstatement. Nevertheless, to ignore or compromise the commission to go into all the world as Jesus’ representatives shows a defective life. “A church exists by mission as a fire exists by burning.” ~ J. A. Kirk. “Missiology.” The New Dictionary of Theology . S. B. Ferguson, ed. (electronic ed.). Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity Press, 2000. p. 435. If Kirk is correct that “a church exists by mission as a fire exists by burning,” for whom and for what are they to be burning? Does God give any sense at all of the particular object, target, or population he would have his mission concentrate upon? Since the Gospel is for the entire world (e.g., John 3.16; 1 John 2.12), wouldn’t be partial and bigoted to say that any group would garner more attention or concern from God from others? Wouldn’t this undermine his absolute justice and partiality as God ? These and related questions have plagued the minds of sincere and godly believers who have come to disagree about the nature of the answer to them. On the one hand, some have argued convincingly that God’s partiality precludes any discussion of God maintaining a “preferential option for the poor” in any way; he must be equally concerned about all if he is to retain his partiality. On the other hand,

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