Reason number 6: WT workers recognize that our calling remains the same, but the means or mode for communicating the message of Christ is in constant flux.
Our hearts continue to be driven by the simple mandate given to all disciples of Jesus: “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.” We desire that others become part of the worshipping community that offers up praise and thanks to the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit.
Our history as a mission is replete with different ways and approaches to sharing this message of Christ with unreached peoples.
However, the world and cultures around us continue to change at rapid speed. Former ways of sharing the message may not be the best any more. Technology has created a new avenue of ways to communicate Christ. It has been noted that a large percentage of people in parts of Africa have committed their lives to Christ by watching a video on their cell phones.
The message, the task has not changed. How we carry out that task, how we communicate the message of Christ calls for new and innovative thinking and ideas. Andrew Walls, Scottish church historian, stated it so well when he wrote: “The essentially missionary nature of the church, the essentially missionary calling of the Christian, is where we began …what is changing is not the task, but the means and the mode.”
WT will change, not in its driving purpose and vision, but in the contextualized ways we seek to fulfill that vision and communicate the message of God.
In case you missed the first five (5) reasons:
Reason number 1: As the Gospel becomes more and more central to all our affections, it will work itself out in fresh ways in our ministries.
Reason number 2: Workers are rediscovering ‘the rush’ of walking with Jesus.
Reason number 3: Experienced workers are realizing that we are moving from being doers of the ministry to equippers for the ministry.
Reason number 4: New workers are arriving in greater numbers
Reason number 5: We are convinced that community is better than independence
Filed under: Change & transition, Contextualization |
Thoughts Along The Journey 
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