[Over the next few months, as part of a Missional Synchroblog collaboration at Missio Dei, I will be sharing and reflecting on being "missional." This is first post of the series. See the bottom of the post for a participant link list.]
I want to let you in on a little secret. Some of you may not really like it, in fact I’m not sure I do completely. Maybe that is a good thing.
I think that in the next 20-25 years, maybe even sooner, evangelism will be replaced. I think that in the 21st century if Christianity is to be relevant to the world around it evangelism in its current form must die, because when you really get down to it evangelism in its current form is, for many people, nothing more than coercive colonialism and is not really centered on showing people who Jesus is and what Christians are, but on showing people a particular culture and demanding that they conform.
So what will happen? I think many of us, especially those of us in emergent circles, will abandon the word evangelism altogether. We will replace it with a much more vibrant and generative word.
And that word is missional.
Now, part of me doesn’t really like this. Part of me hates it actually. Maybe it’s my uber evangelical upbringing, but deep down inside part of me wants to redeem words like “evangelical” and “evangelism.” And maybe they can be redeemed, but more and more I am led to think that in our post-Christian age, where the Christian narrative is no longer the dominant or most compelling story to most, evangelism and evangelicals will continue to weaken until they are almost no more.
And on a certain level, that’s really unfortunate. Given the original meaning of “evangelism” and “evangelical” I find myself wondering how the words ending up being perverted into what they are today. Shane Claiborne, in his first book, “The Irresistible Revolution,” puts it like this:
“Sometimes folks ask me if I am an evangelical Christian. I want to make sure we have a proper understanding before I answer. I always find it important to note that the Greek word evangelion…is an ancient word that predates Jesus. It is a word Jesus takes from the imperial lexicon and turns it on its head. For instance, in 6 BCE there was a saying inscribed around the Roman Empire: “Augustus has been sent to us as Savior…the birthday of the god Augustus had been for the whole world the beginning of the gospel [evangelion].” The early evangelists announced another gospel, proclaimed an allegiance to another emperor, and conspired to build another kingdom. If by evangelical we mean one who spreads the good news that there is another kingdom or super-power, an economy and a peace other than that of the nations, a savior other than Caesar, then yes, I am an evangelical.”
Wow. Now tell me, how did we go from that to where we are today, where we dominant people and coerce them (most times) into becoming what we think should be someone exactly like us: a good, imperial, capitalist, American, Christian.
It’s beyond me.
So, I think a lot of us are going to start reclaiming that original meaning, but with a different word that doesn’t have as many negative connotations. We will call ourselves missional
Well, what’s the point of this excursus? The point is many people are beginning to opt for the word missional over evangelism and that number is likely to grow. SO—given all that, what does missional living look like?
Many of us will say we know what missional living looks like and we would be able to point to a certain instance and say, “There! That is missional!” But when asked to describe what that actually looks like in finite human language, well, some of us get tripped up. It seems easy to point out, but hard to describe.
So bear with me as I humbly try to articulate.
Simply put, missional living is, to me, participating in God’s work in the world, accepting the invitation of grace and responding to it and being part of God’s story, being part of God’s life. When I see people intentionally and earnestly seeking to discover what God is already doing in the world and when I see people partnering with God as co-creators, participating in divine, redemptive action in the narrative of history, that’s where I see missional living taking place.
But just as important, when I see people living missionally, it is always local, always within a particular context. Missional Christians go to great lengths to understand the context around them and how they might own that context while faithfully and creatively living the gospel message, the good news of redemption and subsequent restoration. In fact, when you think about it, that is the essence of the incarnation. God becoming human, putting skin and bones on, God getting local, pitching a tent among us, and showing us in our context how to live in God’s story and how to participate in the synergetic process of creativity, nurturing an alternative reality of reconciliation a.k.a the kingdom of God. Friends, it doesn’t get much better than that.
I’ve probably gone long enough. Since it’s always easier and more effective to offer an example, and especially since this post is titled “What does Missional Living Look Like” and not “What Is Missional Living,” I will do so.
It’s really funny how things work out. Maybe this is coincidence, or maybe it’s providence (though I’m a bit apprehensive about that), but this past week I was trying to gather my thoughts about this missional business and how all my attempts to describe it would ultimately fall short. Then the most beautiful thing happened. My friend Josh (and I hope he doesn’t mind me using him as an example) started doing what he does best, dreaming and co-creating. And he’s come up with an imaginative dream, a dream that embodies what it means to live missionally in the world, to bear the gospel message in a context, and to creatively participate in God’s story and live into God’s life.
So, I’ll shut up now and you can go and see a tangible, vibrant example of what missional living looks like here, here, and especially here.
And, of course, don’t forgot check out the rest of the synchrobloggers too, the links are below in no particular order.
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List of Participants:
Jonathan Brink – “Meeting God Where He’s Already Working”
Ben Wheatley – “Are the Things You are Living For Worth Christ Dying For?”
Alan Knox – “Living the Love of God”
Dave Devries – “What Does Missional Living Look Like to Me?”
Bryan Riley – “What Does Missional Living Look Like to Me?”
Jeromy Johnson – “What is Missional Living to Me?”
Tim Jones – “Living Like the Word Says”
Dave Wierzbicki – “We Are Missioning”
Nathan Gann – “Inevitability”
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