“THE HOLISTIC MISSION OF THE CHURCH”
COVENANT WORLD MISSION CONFERENCE
January 31 - February 2, 2009

I’m back! Chicago was cold and snowy, but I survived. I’d like to share with you what I experienced at the first-ever Mission Conference prior to the Midwinter. This event brought together Covenant World Mission department leaders, Covenant missionaries, overseas partners, pastors, people who serve on local mission committees, seminary students--a very diverse group who all share one common passion: Christ’s mission. And it was fantastic! Challenging, stimulating, inspiring, stretching, refreshing, renewing--I can’t find enough superlatives to express how rich and meaningful this conference was. Let me describe it for you briefly, and who the presenters were. Then I want to list a bunch of the principles, perspectives, comments, and some rather unorthodox thoughts and approaches that these Covenant leaders offered, based on biblical, theological, and very practical experience.

The title of the conference says it all: holistic mission! The necessity of addressing the needs of the whole person, not just one part (physical, spiritual, emotional, educational, economic, etc.) in bringing people to faith in Christ. At first glance, this idea seems obvious. Indeed, for years missionaries have been concerned with the broader needs of the people they seek to reach for Jesus. However, Christians do not always practice this holistic approach to mission and ministry. Especially for evangelicals, the spiritual focus often takes priority over interests in caring for the total person (see my last blog on “evangelism”...). The conference brought important teaching, testimony, dialogue, and fresh and relevant perspective to this true and necessary way of evangelizing.


Rev. Steven David and Rev. Shekhar Singh, two pastors from the Hindustani Covenant Church, spoke about the “whole person” basis of their ministry and mission in India. Their denomination was started by the Swedish Covenant Church in the 1930’s, and when our sister Church turned over the ministry to the Indian Church in 1995, they had 782 members. Now they are nearly 16,000 strong in 109 congregations! These pastors are convinced that HCC’s understanding of holistic ministry and integral mission is what opened the door for the Holy Spirit to work in so many lives in India so quickly, bringing people of all ages to faith in Christ.

Dr. James Gustafson, former executive director of Covenant World Mission, is now coordinator for the Sustainable Development Research Foundation, a non-profit development foundation in Thailand directing socio-economic projects in aquaculture, agriculture, agro-forestry, education, ESL, etc.--in short, holistic development. Over and over again, Jim pointed out the way that his foundation is changing the lives of people in all four major regions of Thailand, and as this transformation happens, people are being drawn to Jesus.


Rev. Dennis Wadley is co-director of “Bridges of Hope,” which was created in response to the HIV/AIDS pandemic in South Africa. Dennis and his wife read a Time Magazine article about the AIDS crisis in Africa in 2001--and decided to do something about it! They moved to one of the most dangerous black townships in South Africa, where over 3 million people live in poverty, fear, and despair. A third of the residents are infected with the HIV virus. “Bridges of Hope” has discovered a model of community transformation that works! A boarding school for AIDS orphans, community health “evangelists” ministry, after school programs, orphan care, and other community response offerings have brought help and hope to the residents of Philippi, and in the process, people are coming to faith in Christ.

Holistic mission. Why is it so difficult for us to “get it” here in our Western evangelical churches? This dilemma has been much on my mind in recent years as I have read, studied, listened, and learned about the crisis in the American Church and the seismic shifts occuring in our culture that the Church seems incapable of addressing. As I have thought about it theologically, the doctrine of “faith and works” seems to be a key component in this issue, and in the struggle Christians have to simply do what we were meant to do: “We are God’s workmanship, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do!” (Ephesians 2:10) Our over reaction to “works righteousness,” our fear of linking our actions to salvation, and our absolute devotion to “justification by faith” alone have distorted our ability to rightly grasp holistic biblical truth regarding “good news” and “evangelism” and “mission.” These are meant to impact the whole person! The “gospel” is not just an intellectual concept. It involves the entire person; the totality of who we are. It is incarnational! It is about flesh and blood and feeling and emotions and soul--again, it’s about all that makes us human beings, created in God’s image. The “gospel” does not just target some artificially segmented component of a person that we label “spiritual!” But it seems like we in our churches have so completely sundered what God never meant to separate that it is nearly impossible for us to re-imagine holistic mission. (I’ve blogged on this :faith and works” issue before, so ‘nough said...) It is time for us to stop, let go, open ourselves to what God is doing today, and become re-educated, biblically and theologically, to what it truly means to “go and make disciples.” Too many of us raised in the West think we have all the knowledge, the answers, and the means and methods to provide solutions for those living in the rest of the world, including their realtionship with Jesus. We think we have it down; all figured out. We don’t have a clue about our spiritual pride. We are so calcified in our thinking and belief that we have no capacity to even be touched by the radical, tangible, insightful offerings from other countries and cultures regarding mission, especially from the Church in the Majority World. Yet this is precisely where Christianity is booming! The Christian center of gravity is no longer in the comfortable West. Now Asia, Africa, and Latin America dominate the missionary movements and Churches. Shouldn’t we be listening and learning from them?

This is what the Mission Conference offered to us: an opportunity to listen and learn from them!

The remainder of this blogpost will highlight the fresh, exciting background, ideas, perspectives, principles, convictions, results, and real life testimonies of how holistic mission is achieving mighty things for Christ’s Kingdom around the world. Prepare to be stretched. Prepare to be shocked! Prepare to be challenged and energized with innovative ways of faithfulness to Christ that you’ve never imagined before!
-------------------------
From the Hindustani Covenant Church: “The Lord Jesus made it clear from the very beginning of His ministry that he came to save and serve the lost. In His Nazareth manifesto, it became much more visible: ‘The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to preach the good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight to the blind, to release the oppressed, and to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.’ (Luke 4:18-19) What this manifesto means for HCC:
•Becoming Relevant to the Societ
•Becoming Meaningful in the Context
•Becoming A Positive Force in the Society
A witness to the Gospel in word and deed points to the dual necessity of both a propositional witness and an incarnational dimension of the life and mission of the Church. HCC draws its basis for holistic mission from its vision and mission statement which is based on a biblical mandate.”


“Words without deeds are empty, and deeds without words are dumb.”

If we ignore the world, we betray the Word of God, which sends us out to serve the world. If we ignore the Word of God, we have nothing to bring the world.

Amy Carmichael was criticized by fellow missionaries in India, who believed that her efforts to build an orphanage and school were “worldly activity” that distracted her from “saving souls.” To which she replied: “Souls are more or less firmly attached to bodies.” This tension continues to exist in the Church today. There is a dichotomy in Christian mission. The Church’s mission is to be modeled after the mission of Christ Himself.

“God so loved the world”--not just the Church! We are called into the world to let the love of God be known. Christ breaks all barriers; everything that separates people. The Church must stand, partner, and share in all the social issues that people are facing. Nothing is off limits! We must go into areas the Church hasn’t gone (“shouldn’t” go?) before, doing ministry where churches find it difficult to act. (ex. sex-trafficking) Currently, we are not doing it! But if not the Church, who? We must open our eyes (Matt. 9:36-37). The compassion of Jesus should help us see people in need. If we refuse or make excuses, the Lord is going to have a lot of questions for us when we stand before Him! (Matt. 25:31-46) To “pray the prayer” (of salvation) and to “embrace the gospel” are two different things.

Question: Is the Church relevant to social issues and needs, or just to our own issues and agendas? We need to learn, or re-learn, what is good and not good for the Church. God has called us to holistic ministry; to address the total needs of persons!

The power of youth and women to help the whole work of the Church (not just “worship”). Where there is empowerment of women, the Church grows day by day.

Development ministries, including the environment. ex. clean water: in 1967 a water project to drill 1000 wells among the poor and needy was encouraged by the Swedish Covenant Church in India. They did research and development on a hand pump--and this invention was given without royalty to UNICEF to be used in other countries! It continues to be used all over the world today. Because of this and other examples of innovative compassion, HCC has been invited into places where Christians are usually not allowed to go.


The Church must re-vision every five years! The context of Church and society constantly changes, so we must change over and over to help become more relevant to society. We must discover what the Church has been missing, and where to put its resources--i.e. where society’s issues are great, and are not being addressed. We must see society not with our agendas, but with “what are they looking for?” This is the key! God has resources for the Church--IF the Church is willing to take risks. No risks, and God can’t respond!

M. M. Thomas: Christ is not confined in the “koinonia” of the Word and Sacraments. He is also in the extension of that “koinonia” in social and secular life. Christ is discernable in other religions and ideologies. There is a “secular fellowship” outside the Church that is a sign of Christ’s redemptive activity as well as that of a ‘Christ-centered fellowship’ in other religions and ideologies.

In our enthusiasm about Christ, in talking to people of other faiths, we demean them; don’t treat them well. The question is: how do we preserve the uniqueness of Christ and at the same time not deny that God is the Creator of the whole world--and is working in all other religions too?! We must be open! Where is Christ involved elsewhere? In very mysterious ways! His Spirit is working in all contexts of the world. We need to show openness here. God is God, and God’s Truth is TRUTH, wherever! We must build on who we meet, what they are, what they have experienced, what they believe. (The Hinustani pastors shared how they don’t come at Hindus, Muslims, or Buddhists in confrontive, aggressive, critical ways. They try to find elements in the thinking, behavior, and beliefs of people that reflect the reality that God is already at work in the people and to affirm these good things that are happening in the lives and faith of these people! As relationships are established, the pastors move on in their witness from this point. hmmm...kind of sounds like Paul in Athens, talking with the philosophers on the Areopagus...)

Jim Gustafson - Sustainable Development Resource Foundation: God is a “seeper,” seeping into the world, moving down and in, into every culture. He reaches in with contextualization, and His content is grace and truth. We are to do the same movement of Jesus Christ (down and in, with contextualization). This is holistic ministry, and is what the Church must be about, for it is the central theme of God. His gospel is holistic--because people are holistic! The church that doesn’t minister holistically cannot reach people!

When God moves, follow Him! God decides what He is going to do, but we try to control and direct Him. How do we follow what God is doing?

Jim asks the Thai people: “Why would you ever need Jesus?” Then they see changes in others (transformation), God’s power alive and at work in their context (the Living Word, not preaching), and they want Jesus too. (“We used to worship spirits - they sucked the life out of us - we want Jesus!” - because Jesus pours His life down and in to people.)

We say Scripture says “be ye separate” and “come out” and we take it literally and try to cut ourselves off from the world--BALONEY! This is a mindset! This is supposed to be a way of thinking, not physical! Communities are where God wants to touch people, not extracting them from where they live.

RELATIONSHIPS!!!

God is the owner of holistic mission. Go down on your face and worship, because it is a privilege to join Him in what He is doing. Get rid of expectations--and move! Love people. When they know this (the radical love of Jesus), they will respond with love.

It’s not about being “Christian!” Christianity came after Jesus. Christianity is a culture of what Jesus is about. But Jesus enters cultures (plural)! People do not have to become “Christian.” ex: Jesus would applaud many things about Muslim culture. From a conference participant from Bangladesh: “I am Muslim, not Christian--and I believe in Jesus Christ.”

Plug people into Jesus, not to become Christian. Have them keep their cultural identity (ex: “new Buddhist”). Jesus stays unique and people remain who they are.

Dennis Wadley - Bridges of Hope: The “good news” is never just a message. God brings it into our world and into us, to transform us (incarnational).

Other places around the world have pieces of God’s bigger puzzle that we in the West don’t have. Yet we think we bring our abundance of everything to others.

Don’t go into a community with your agenda! Find the needs of the community, then empower and be a partner with them to achieve their desires.

Development = Discipleship. It takes faith to put it into action. The multiplication effect of discipleship takes time and relationship. Be patient!

Inside a church in Philippi township, above the altar: “This Church Is HIV/AIDS Friendly” Wow!

Other thoughts/comments: As Jesus sacrificed Himself as God and became human, the Church must empty itself for the sake of the Kingdom and for reaching out to people so they can enter the Kingdom.

We need to have an integral theology that supports an integral mission practice. We need to re-discover the Jesus of the Bible, who was aptly described by Dietrich Bonhoeffer as “the man for others.” The context in which Jesus carried out the ministry of Saving and Serving was the context of Suffering. (Mark 8:31)

The East has much to offer the West, including the practice of meditation, contemplation, a more integrated view of life, less of a focus on materialism, etc. (The HCC teaches yoga to children in their Sunday School classes!)

Let me close with this gem, again from the Hindustani pastors: “The Church has always needed apparent failure and suffering in order to become fully alive to its real nature and mission. And for a century, the Church has suffered less and it believes that it is successful.”

The reality of this comment pierces my soul.
-------------------------
Near the end of the conference, when we were all more tender with emotion and humbled in spirit by everything we had heard and received from our gifted, insightful, experienced speakers, Covenant missionary David Mark asked, with a voice quivering with deep conviction: “What about what our old teaching cost people before? The simplified, dumbed-down gospel--what do we say to them now? This is painful!” And Jim Gustafson replied: “Go back and confess!” These were perfect words from Jim too, because earlier in his presentation he had confessed that he makes as many mistakes in his ministry in Thailand now, at age 64, as when he was 20! But this is OK when you are in a community where you have deep, significant relationships. Confessing and forgiving is normal, natural, essential--especially within Christ’s Church!

I am still absorbing everything that I gleaned from this powerful mission conference. I am also considering what the implications are for us here at Hilmar Covenant Church. Many of the the things I heard at the conference parallel what I’ve been pondering for awhile, and what I already realize: about the Church and culture, what evangelizing looks like today, new understandings and practices in mission (both locally and globally), outdated beliefs, assumptions, and practices that are negatively impacting our congregation, and what it is going to cost us to change and grow from a “critical moment” church into a “healthy missional” congregation that engages our community and the world more profoundly and, thereby, impacting people for Jesus.

Thank you, everyone in the Department of World Mission, for providing this outstanding conference to the Covenant. I look forward to more opportunities for learning and growth. Now let’s keep the conversation going...