2 Question Survey for all Missional Tribe Peeps
Preface: Based on the comment-ratio of past blogs I’ve posted on this network, I have a notion that we won’t get 5 people to respond to this, but I’d love to be proven wrong. There are over 300 folks on this network. I’m curious to see how many actually respond. My guess is 3.
Two questions:
1. In one sentence, what is the Grand Mission of God in your opinion?
2. In one sentence, what is the central mission of the *local* expression of the Body of Christ (the ekklesia) in our day?
Looking forward to your answers … the both of you who will actually read this.
I’ll be holding your comments in the moderation folder for a few days so there will be no cheatin’ :-)
RELATED:
God’s Eternal Purpose: A Critical Addition to the Missional Conversation
Book Review: ReJesus by Michael Frost and Alan Hirsch
Interview with Alan Knox: Thoughts on the Missional Church Debate
January 26th, 2009 in
missional
Hi Frank
My stab at answers are a follows-
1. The invitation to his children to participate in a new kingdom, characterised by love.
2. The establishment of loving communities of agents of this new kingdom, who exist to be a source of service and blessing to their wider context.
Cheers!
Chris
First the question you didn’t directly ask: It seems like the forums are where people are discussing while the blogs tend towards the output only, i.e. a place to make a statement.
Now on to the chewy bits:
1) God’s overall grand mission is obviously beyond our grasp. However, his mission with regard to us is, in my opinion, fairly clear: Creating a “one body” built on relational love and road-tested in the trenches that he can have a loving relation with.
2) Feed the sheep.
1) God’s grand mission is to reclaim the whole cosmos.
2) To “be” his people and participate in his grand mission.
Wow… Hope you’re proven wrong. Here’s me:
1. To borrow from NT Wright a little - the grand mission of God is: God’s working to “put the world to rights”.
2. In our day? To provide an alternative to the narrative of consumerism which pretty much dominates the world and particularly youth culture. To take part in some kind of redemptive process to save individuals and communities from the myth that money/possessions = happiness.
Well, we got 4 replies. I was off by 1
I need to adjust my mind-reading cap.
Heres my go at it.
God’s grand mission is the establishment of his family.
The central expression of the local expression of the body of Christ is to know Jesus and make him known.
Too late to add?
1) Reconciliation.
2) Reconciliation.
Didn’t read the others before responding, though they’d already appeard and it’s always a temptation to peek!
1. Although I don’t believe God is a modernist with ONE “the” Grand Mission, if you’re forcin’ me to say it all in one sentence, I think the big-picture theme is this: God’s into doing stuff that’s so cool in the here and now, based on who He is, that all of creation will be talking about it and Him for all of eternity.
2. The central mission of the local expression of the Body of Christ is to live within and live out that coolosity of God’s character and activities, and thus give the rest of creation reason to find awe in God.
Now its your turn Frank to give us your answers in one sentence each ;-).
Alrighty Rick …
1. The Grand Mission of God is His “original” intention (which preceded the Fall and Redemption) and it is to expand the fellowship of the Godhead among a visible creation.
2. The mission of the local ekklesia is to fulfill God’s original intention which is to corporately express the Triune God who is known and revealed in Jesus Christ, and to constitute for Him a bride, a family, a house, and a body which bears His image and exercises His authority in creation.
All of the above are by Him, through Him, and to Him … they are not for the benefit of humans. That’s simply a by-product.
1. Redemption
2. Reconciliation