At school in Kansas City, I worked under a Korean missionary called to America. I volunteered at a church that reached out to the Chinese community through ESL (English as a Second Language) lessons—led by a Taiwanese pastor working on a doctorate at a school in another state. I’m reading books by Latin theologians arguing that Western “development” is actually a new form of domination.
If this ministry melting pot doesn’t catch your attention, I’m not sure what will.
Missions is changing, and changing fast. Relentless global developments are opening up new opportunities and challenges for a church called to show God to the world. Some are unbelievably exciting—others are rather scary. But in the midst of all the change, one thing is sure: our call, our hope and our God will always remain strong.
In particular, I’d like to point out three especially significant areas of change and endurance.
Changing Church, enduring story
The global Church is changing quickly. Writers like Philip Jenkins (The New Christendom) have pointed out that these days the greatest growth and population of the Church is in the global south and east.
But that’s not the whole story—just as the world has globalized, so has the Church. Increasingly, advances in communication and travel are allowing the church in all parts of the world to cooperate with each other in incredible ways. The old wells of Christian tradition are now realizing they are increasingly surrounded by hosts of equal partners from all cultures and nations.
Because of this, many are saying it’s important for the Church in all world areas to give up on the idea of “independence” in mission. Instead (as David Bosch pointed out in his epic Transforming Mission), mission is best accomplished in “interdependence,” by relying on each other and our own unique gifts.
It’s true that this probably means that Western missionaries are less and less frequently going to fill the role of evangelists and are filling other roles, but this is hardly a bad thing—rather, it’s unbelievably exciting to see how creative, mutual partnerships in mission are telling the old, old story in incredible new ways. After all, cooperation and servanthood have been the story of the Body ever since Jesus washed Peter’s feet.
Changing context, enduring faith
The world, and how we reach it, is also changing. We’ve already mentioned how globalization is creating new forms of interconnectedness, but it doesn’t stop there. Migration and relocation of people groups is creating multicultural situations where they didn’t used to exist. (I’m writing this in Oklahoma City, where Burmese and Sudanese refugees are appearing constantly, and the student sitting next to me is speaking Vietnamese.)
And although it’s been harped on over and over, we can’t ignore that post-modernism, secularism and religious pluralism have overhauled much of Western culture, turning it into a challenging mission field.
What does this mean for missions?
First, as John Stott (of the Lausanne Movement) has famously pointed out, missions is no longer to “places,” so much as to “people.” Being a missionary is no longer restricted to going overseas—obviously, as you can cross cultural lines in minutes right here in Oklahoma City! Combine that with the reality of a globalized church—where non-Western countries like Korea are sending out large numbers of missionaries—and you get an incredible new picture of missions. To echo Peruvian missiologist Samuel Escobar, missions is now from everywhere to everyone. It’s churches from all peoples of the world taking the gospel to every other people.
Understandably, this will kind of change our methods. It may be more feasible now for, say, a Brazilian to enter Iraq than an American, while the Iraqi missionary finds a place in a post-modern culture hungering for a new perspective, and the American finds new opportunities in universities in Vietnam. The creative possibilities truly are limitless! But, of course, what has not and never will change, is that we all embark on this journey united in one faith, and witness together to the God who has called us all.
Changing methods, enduring message
Because of a changing context and incredible new advancements in technology, new methods for missions continue to appear. This creates exciting new possibilities for communicating the eternal love of God for all people.
One of the most noticeable opportunities comes from new ways of providing education.
For example, distance education, temporary classes in remote areas, and contextual programs like Nazarene Theological Seminary’s 365m program (www.nts.edu/365-days-in-mission) are changing the way we educate ministers throughout the world. Education is now open to more people than ever before, and many missionaries are finding the best way to serve the church is in theological training. Also, educational development in many countries has created a demand for English language and international perspectives, opening a multitude of opportunities for Christians to enter countries as educators because those countries are closed to missionaries.
Ease of international travel and communications has also opened up other possibilities. Short-term missions has exploded, requiring the church to ask both energetic and cautious questions about their contributions to God’s long-term perspective. In the same vein, cross-cultural partnerships are allowing churches from entirely different continents to cooperate on mission projects.
This sort of thing brings with it challenges as well as opportunities. For instance, many such partnerships make use of Western resources for development projects, and some scholars want to question whether such “development” is really helping. Maybe the resources are better used in evangelism or education—or maybe not. There is no easy answer, but asking the tough questions is just part of doing mission in the 21st century.
Changing times, unchanging God
While I have been sitting here, a Middle Eastern family has sat in the booth next to the Vietnamese student, and I’m reminded once again of how the world is changing. This new world of missions is certainly daunting, but the incredible new ways we are finding God at work in His people can’t help but stir our hearts. Certainly, the passion of the global church should call all of us to an earnest response. A world of opportunity is before us and, clinging to the cross, we are encouraged that God will be faithful to His name. Personally, I can’t wait to see what happens.
-- Chris Troutman is a graduate student at Nazarene Theological Seminary (NTS). He grew up as a missionary kid in Mozambique, Africa, and graduated from Southern Nazarene University. Since leaving Africa, he has traveled abroad on volunteer trips to an orphan project in Malawi and to teach ESL in East Asia. In the fall, he participated in NTS’s new 365 Days in Mission program, and hopes to pursue cross-cultural ministry as his vocation.
