Picturing Theology, Revised Edition

352 | Picturing Theology, Revised Edition

verifying its credibility and enriching the depth of understanding among its hearers. Development work can function pre-evangelistically to prepare people to genuinely listen to the claims of Christ and his message of salvation. • Empowering Emerging Churches Emerging urban churches often have few physical resources with which to face the enormous needs of the city. Development work can partner with the pastors of planted-churches, giving access to resources and programs that can meet immediate needs within their congregation, encourage leadership development, and help their congregations engage in effective holistic outreach to their community. • Modeling the Implications of the Gospel We cannot hope to reproduce churches committed to engage in a task they have never seen lived out in practice. We engage in development work because we expect newly planted churches to do likewise. We want to provide a living example that the Gospel will necessarily move from belief to action, from word to deed. An Important Reminder One cautionary note is in order. We cannot, through our own efforts, bring the Kingdom of God. As Paul Hiebert reminds us, “Our paradigms are flawed if we begin missions with human activity. Mission is not primarily what we do. It is what God does” (Hiebert 1993, 158). Evangelism, church planting and development work all function, first and foremost, at the disposal of the Spirit of God. Knowing what should be done, and how we should do it, is never primarily determined through strategic diagrams or well-thought-out organizational approaches. Our first duty is to be faithful to the King, to listen to his instructions, and to respond to his initiatives. 4.2

An Ethic of Development We have stated that:

5. Introduction

Development workers enable individuals, churches and communities to experience movement toward the freedom, wholeness, and justice of the Kingdom of God. The process by which we move toward this goal, and the decisions we make to achieve these ends must be guided by an ethic which is consistent with God’s standard for human relationships.