Podcast Download: Episode 14 - The Forgotten Ways - Chapter 5

Download: Podcast Episode 14 - The Forgotten Ways Chapter 5

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Chapter Five Quotes – Missional-Incarnational Impulse

It is the thesis of this chapter that unless we embrace this mode, we will in effect lock up the genius of the apostolic church, namely, to seed and embed the gospel in different groups’ cultures and societies and to thus sow the seeds of rapid multiplication. – p 128

The missional-incarnational impulse is, in effect, the practical outworking of the mission of God (the mission Dei) and of the Incarnation. It is thus rooted in the very way that God has redeemed the world, and in how God revealed himself to us. – p 128

Darrell Guder concludes, “We have learned to speak of God as a “missionary God.” Thus we have learned to understand the church as a “sent people.” “As the Father sent me, I am sending you” (John 20:21; cf. 5:36-37, 6:44, 8:16-18, 17:18). As God sent the Son into the world, so we are at core a sent or simply a missionary people. – p 129

Therefore, a genuine missional impulse is a sending rather than an attractional one. – p 129

The evangelistic-attraction pattern is only generally effective within m0 and m1 contexts of mission and less effective in genuinely missional contexts where the church has to reach beyond significant cultural barriers. – p 131

This is easily corrected – just embed mDNA, let go, and stop insisting on attractional church. We will have to learn to trust the kingdom of God to do the job of scattering, watering, and growing the seeds (1 Cor 3:6-7). But as simple as it sounds, it’s a hard lesson for control freaks to learn. (footnote) – p 131

…we can identify at least four dimensions that frame our understanding of the Incarnation of God in Jesus the Messiah. They are

Presence: … Jesus was no mere representative or prophet sent from God; he was God in the flesh.

Proximity: God in Christ has approached us not only in a way we can understand, but in a way that we can access…

Powerlessness: In becoming “one of us,” God takes the form of a servant and not that of someone who rules over us…

Proclamation: Not only did the Presence of God directly dignify all that is human, but he heralded the reign of God and called people to respond in repentance and faith… -- p 132

To say the Incarnational should inform all the dimensions of individual and communal life is surely an understatement. In becoming one of us, God has given us the archetypal model of what true humanity, and by implication true community should look and behave like. …

Presence: The fact that God was in the Nazarene neighborhood for thirty years and no one noticed should be profoundly disturbing to our normal ways of engaging mission. Not only does it have implications for our affirmation of normal human living, it says something about the timing as well as the relative anonymity of incarnational ways of engaging in mission. There is a time for “in-your-face” approaches to mission, but there is also a time to simply become part of the very fabric of a community an d to engage in the humanity of it all. Furthermore the idea of presence highlights the role of relationships in mission. …

Proximity: Jesus mixed with people from every level of society. …

Powerlessness: In seeking to act in a Christlike way, we cannot rely on normal forms of power to communicate the gospel but have to take Jesus’s model with absolute seriousness (Matt 23:25-28; Phil 2:5ff) This commits us to servanthood and humility in our relationships with each other and the world. …

Proclamation: The gospel invitation initiated in the ministry of Jesus remains alive and active to this very day. A genuine incarnational approach will require that we be always willing to share the gospel story with those within our world. … We are essentially a “message tribe,” and that means we must ensure the faithful transmission of the message we carry through proclamation. – p 133-134

Incarnational ministry essentially means taking the church to the people, rather than bringing people to the church. – p 135

Addison notes that preexisting relationship are a critical factor for the exponential growth of a movement. “New religious movements fail when they become closed or semi-closed networks. For continued exponential growth, a movement must maintain open relationships with outsiders. They must reach out into new, adjacent social networks.” – p 141

Many established churches are also adapting to the new conditions by totally reworking their buildings and resources to allow for more genuine participation by the broader community around it, for example, sports venues, learning centers, cafes, and medical centers. – p 141

Many established churches are also adapting to the new conditions by totally reworking their buildings and resources to allow for more genuine participation by the broader community around it, for example, sports venues, learning centers, cafes, and medical centers. – p 141

The leader of Missio, Hugh Halter, says it this way:

We move from an “attractional model” to an ”incarnational community” approach.

We limit transfer growth and build momentum from a spiritually curious culture.

We learn how to “enflesh” the gospel in ways that make sense to saints and sojourners.

We bring big values to a valueless culture: no need for “seeker services.”

We structure our lives as leaders, our money, and people in ways that propel missional activity. – p 142

Christology determines missiology, and missiology determines ecclesiology. This is just a smart-aleck’s way of saying that in order to align ourselves correctly as a missional movement, we first need to return to the Founder of Christianity and, having done that, recalibrate our approach from that point on. – p 142