Mission and Evangelism

Preparing for the Second Sunday of Advent: One Day Before Sunday (Year C)

Scripture

Psalter: Luke 1:68-79

Old Testament: Malachi 4:1-6

Gospel: Luke 9:1-6

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Prayer

Hear our humble prayer that we may serve you in holiness and faith and give voice to your presence among us until the day of the coming of your Son, Jesus Christ, who lives and reigns for ever and ever. Amen.

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Reflection

Many churches today make a distinction between mission and evangelism. Mission is digging wells and building churches in far away places, while evangelism is telling folks about Jesus. Many churches have a missions committee and an evangelism committee. By default the two are viewed as two separate endeavors. But are they?

One of the interesting discussions that gets going in Christian circles from time to time is whether or not mission work should also be seen as a time for evangelism. After all, it is reasoned, if we are going to help people in need primarily in the hope that they will “come to Jesus” are we not viewing people as means to an end instead of ends in and of themselves? Shouldn't mission work teams be limited simply to doing the job that needs to be done and save evangelism for another day?

I think the mission/evangelism distinction is quite unfortunate, and quite unbiblical. Jesus would have known no distinction. In Luke, when Jesus sends out the twelve on their first missionary journey, he “gave them power and authority over all demons and to cure diseases, and he sent them out to proclaim the kingdom of God and to heal.” He doesn’t tell them to speak and not do, nor does he give them authority to do and not speak. For Christians, mission and evangelism should be intrinsically related to one another. Whether we are digging wells or sharing faith in conversation with someone, both are motivated by the belief that Jesus is the Savior and Lord of all the world. When I am digging a well I am embodying my faith in Jesus and when I am speaking of Jesus, I am presenting the reason for why I am digging the well—to assist whomever I can in need because Jesus, who is Lord of the World, would do no less. The mission/evangelism distinction assumes that mission is something other than evangelism and that evangelism is something other than mission. Mission is only doing and evangelism is only speaking. Can anyone who reads the Bible seriously believe this? Why can’t mission also be speaking and evangelism also be doing?

Jesus himself, who saw people as ends, nevertheless called people to follow him. The general scholarly consensus is that Jesus' basic message is summarized in Mark 1:15, “The time is fulfilled, and the kingdom of God has come near; repent, and believe in the good news.” Jesus did not separate his deeds of mercy from his preaching. Indeed, his entire ministry was an expression of the arrival of the kingdom. When we separate mission from evangelism we unwittingly undermine the New Testament notion that deeds of mercy are not signs of the kingdom come. In addition we lose sight of the fact that the resurrection of Jesus is not a provincial event meant to effect only a limited number of persons. Resurrection is a sign of God’s desire to transform the world.

I think what some Christians rightly object to and why they find the mission/evangelism distinction helpful is that some Christian groups can make “evangelism” a requirement to receive “mission.” I know of some churches who have soup kitchens, but make listening to the “come to Jesus” speech a requirement to get a hot meal. Other Christians will stop helping certain persons if they have not converted within a certain period of time. Such an approach to mission and evangelism, does view people as a means to an end. While every Christian should hope that all persons accept Christ as Lord and Savior (and I do mean that), that should never be a precondition for the ministry of the church. We must minister in the name of Jesus, and let the Holy Spirit do the rest. If Christians are to see people with the eyes of Jesus, they must have compassion on them in their need and act accordingly regardless of the faith commitment or the lack thereof of the recipients. At the same time, the kingdom of God has come in Jesus Christ, and every kingdom citizen should want others to become kingdom citizens too.

Finally, the last command Jesus gave to his followers before his Ascension was to make disciples of all nations. It is not always easy to know how to follow Jesus’ instructions, but we must follow them. Whether or not we should take Jesus seriously should not be up for debate. Jesus said make disciples; we must make disciples. I sometimes wonder if “mainline” Christians emphasize the mission/evangelism distinction as a way of avoiding calling people to conversion, and if evangelical Christians emphasize the same distinction as a way of not having to do manual labor along with having to come up with the expense involved. Of course, I am speaking in over-generalized fashion, but sometimes overgeneralization helps advance the discussion.

Mission must be more than glorified relief work. Evangelism must be more than simply presenting information.

It is high time we discard the mission/evangelism distinction in the church. It distorts both mission and evangelism.

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