Michael Hanegan
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Missional Spiritual Formation
This topic has been the recipient lately of some serious thinking on my part. The questions have been as follows:
- How do you help an institutional church move from a "more Bible = more Godly" paradigm to a missional orientation of spiritual formation?
- What exactly is a missional orientation for spiritual formation? How do you know that is really what you are doing?
- Obviously, if you turn the boat around over night it probably won't go well. So how do you make the transition?
- Do you start on a corporate level and then work into smaller units (like Bible classes, small groups, and individuals) or should it be the other way around? Or is there a third alternative?
The Mission of God Chapter 1: Searching for a Missional Hermeneutic
In the first chapter of The Mission of God: Unlocking the Bible's Grand Narrative by Christopher J.H. Wright we embark on the journey to find a missional hermeneutic. In this first chapter the author will deal with first of all what a missional hermeneutic is not. He gives us the following list...
It is not a Biblical Apologetic for Mission
The weakness that Wright explains of this model instead of a missional hermeneutic is that it chooses to focus on one (such as the Great Commission) or a few texts. This not only leaves the "Biblical case for mission" incredibly thin, but often on its own cannot stand in conversations that engage with critical scholarship and other theological disciplines. Its foundation is simply too narrow, too specific, too small in comparison to the scope of Scripture itself.
It is not about Proof-Texting
This is where the Bible becomes a virtual mine where we find gems that point to the cause for which we are advocating or condemning. The weakness here is not only the few choice texts (possibly ripped very violently from their original context) but that they have a very myopic view of the testimony of Scripture. Wright quotes David Bosch from his book Transforming Mission as saying the following...
I am not saying that these procedures are illegitimate. They undoubtedly have their value. But their contribution towards establishing the validity of the missionary mandate is minimal. This validity should not be deduced from isolated texts and detached incidents but only from the thrust of the central message of both Old and New Testaments. What is decisive for the Church today is not the formal agreement between what she is doing and what some isolated biblical texts seem to be saying but rather her relationship with the essence of the message of Scripture.
Wright goes on in the remaining of the chapter to make a couple of significant points that are instructive for anyone who wishes to understand what a missional hermeneutic of Scripture might look like...
(1) There is more than one way to see and/or read and interpret Scripture.
This point is made in the fact that while the West (Europe and North America, more specifically the US) have been a virtual "powerhouse" of biblical scholarship for the last few decades we are beginning to learn that we must also pay attention to our brothers and sisters throughout the world. The "two-thirds world" has brought some significant issues to the table and they must be considered. This being said we must understand that the church was not unable to understand and live the mission of God as laid out in Scripture before US Biblical Scholarship came on the scene.
(2) We must explode the missionary stereotype
According to Wright we must break ourselves of old stereotypes as we begin to attempt to read and interpret Scripture as missionaries in our cultural context. The reason for this he suggests is that the majority of missionaries in the world today are neither white nor Western.
(3) A Missional Hermeneutic moves BEYOND Postmodern thought and hermeneutics
Because missional theology is rooted in theology and not culture or some other changing reality it has the ability (and must to be faithful) to transcend the worldview (whether modern, postmodern, animistic, etc.) that it is located in. A Missional hermeneutic is neither modern nor postmodern in a North American context. It is in fact supra-postmodern.
Wright closes this chapter with the following quotation from an article in Missiology by Martha Franks entitled, Election, Pluralism, and the Missiology of Scripture in a Postmodern Age. He writes...
Newbigin...argues that mission work in the world's plurality is "two-way." Hearing the new understandings of the gospel that arise when the message of Christ is brought to a new context is an important part of understanding the whole meaning of the Lordship of Jesus. This insight from mission work is sympathetic to the similar suggestion of postmodernism with regard to the meaning of texts--that communication by people, even when it is by book, is always "two-way." ... Moreover, Newbigin's understanding of mission points to the fact that Christian missiology has long preceded the postmodern world in recognizing the possible problem of the fact that transplanting language and concepts from one context to another leads to wholly new ways of understanding them. Having centuries of experience with the very problem on which the postmoderns have tumbled, it is appropriate to respond to the challenge of postmodernism not with revulsion, but with counsel. We know about these questions. We have something to offer.
We do have something to offer the world. Something bigger than all of us. A story that we find ourselves in. A mission that we are commissioned to join in by faith and trust in the Father, Son, and Spirit as they send us on that mission. What do we have to offer the postmodern world? We can offer them a place in the very mission of God. And in doing so we are well on our way to discovering the foundational concepts and realities of a missional hermeneutic.
The Mission of God: A Definition of Mission
Posts in this Series: Part 1
What is our mission? How can it be defined or understood. This is the first post in a series of many where I hope to bring out some things that I have found incredibly helpful from this book. The first in this series is Wright's definition of mission from the preface of the book. Here it is.
Fundamentally, our mission (if it is biblically informed and validated) means our committed participation as God's people, at God's invitation and command, in God's own mission within the history of God's world for the redemption of God's creation. ... Our mission flows from and participates in the mission of God. (pgs. 22-23)
He goes on to say the following in the introduction to section one:
Mission is what the Bible is all about, we could as meaningfully talk of the missional basis of the Bible as of the biblical basis of mission. (pg. 29)
Is he right? Is the mission of God really his and we are simply participants at God's invitation? How does this change the way that we see "evangelism" (a loaded word for another post)? How does this effect the way that we see and talk about the church? Does it really change anything? What do you think?
Presentations by Reggie McNeal...
The following are two sessions from the One Thing Conference of The Reformed Church in America by Reggie McNeal. He has a great sense of humor but knows how to hit you right in the heart. Let me know what you think about these. I really like the concepts in his blessing strategy. Each video is about 45 minutes but they are worth every minute. Enjoy!
The Mission of God: The Meta-Narrative of Scripture
Is there something that can help us bring the Bible as a whole together? Is there a theme that we can look to that permeates all of Scripture? I would say absolutely. It would be The Mission of God (in Latin, the Missio Dei). It is what some scholars would call the meta-narrative, or overarching story that is the foundation, cause, and effect of every story or narrative of Scripture.
The best book I have found that helps to lay this out clearly is called The Mission of God: Unlocking the Bible's Grand Narrative. In my previous post I linked to a short series of four posts from another site about this book. What I hope to do is in the coming days to begin a series based on some of the things that I have found helpful in this book.
This series will probably be a series of quotations, illustrations, and reflections. If you have a chance to buy this book and read it, then do it. This book is going to be and already has been very formative in my understanding of a Missional Hermeneutic of Scripture.
So what does it mean that there is a meta-narrative that shapes the way we read Scripture? Check back and I hope to share with you some of the impact that I believe the Missio Dei has on the way that we read Scripture and allow Scripture to read us. Check back soon!!
Links to Missional Articles on other Blogs...
Here is a great series from WDavidPhillips.com on the book The Mission of God by Christopher J.H. Wright. I have found this book to be one of the most helpful in providing a meta-narrative understanding of Scripture and to lay the foundation for a missional hermeneutic. In fact this book strongly influenced the working model of my Missional Hermeneutic. For the four part series on this book go here.
Over at Relevintage.com there is an insightful nine part series entitled: The "Sent" Church: A Missional People.
What is a Missional Church?
Over at FriendOfMissional.org you can find the following list that describes what a missional church is all about. This list is in no way comprehensive but it might give some a better idea of what it means to be a missional church.
So what do you think? Does this sound like the church you are at? Is there anything missing? Anything that makes you uncomfortable or confused?A missional church is a collection of missional believers acting in concert together in fulfillment of the missio dei. A missional church is one where people are exploring and rediscovering what it means to be Jesus' sent people as their identity and vocation. A missional church is individuals willing and ready to be Christ's people in their own situation and place. A missional church knows that they must be a cross-cultural missionary (contextual) people and adopt a missionary stance in relation to their community. A missional church will be engaged with the culture (in the world) without being absorbed by the culture (not of the world). They will become intentionally indigenous. A missional church understands that God is already present in the culture where it finds itself. Therefore, a missional church doesn't view its purpose as bringing God into the culture or taking individuals out of the culture to a sacred space. A missional church is about more than just being contextual, it is also about the nature of the church and how it relates to God. A missional church is about being -- being conformed to the image of God. A missional church will seek to plant all types of missional communities. A missional church is evangelistic and faithfully proclaims the gospel through word and deed. Words alone are not sufficient; how the gospel is embodied in our community and service is as important as what we say. A missional church understands the power of the gospel and does not lose confidence in it. A missional church will align all their activities around the missio dei -- the mission of God. A missional church seeks to put the good of their neighbor over their own. A missional church will give integrity, morality, good character and conduct, compassion, love and a resurrection life filled with hope preeminence to give credence to their reasoned verbal witness. A missional church practices hospitality by welcoming the stranger into the midst of the community. A missional church will see themselves as a community or family on a mission together. There are no "Lone Ranger" Christians in a missional church. A missional church will see themselves as representatives of Jesus and will do nothing to dishonor his name. A missional church will be totally reliant on God in all it does. It will move beyond superficial faith to a life of supernatural living. A missional church will be desperately dependent on prayer. A missional church gathered will be for the purpose of worship, encouragement, supplemental teaching, training, and to seek God's presence and to be realigned with God's missionary purpose. A missional church is orthodox in its view of the gospel and scripture, but culturally relevant in its methods and practice so that it can engage the world view of the hearers. A missional church will feed deeply on the scriptures throughout the week. A missional church will be a community where all members are involved in learning "the way of Jesus." Spiritual development is an expectation. A missional church will help people discover and develop their spiritual gifts and will rely on gifted people for ministry instead of talented people. A missional church is a healing community where people carry each other's burdens and help restore gently. A missional church will requires that its leaders be missiologists.
My Working Model for a Missional Commentary on Scripture...
This model for a missional commentary on Scripture is based on the hermeneutical model that I have already presented. You can look at the Missional Hermeneutic page to better understand how I believe it might work. So here are the questions that I feel need to be answered when we ask, "What would a missional commentary on Scripture look like?"
How can we find a balance in a commentary and still include the following important concepts and content?
The Mission of God, Exegesis, Reflection/Meditation, Praxis, Prayer, Contextualization, Discernment, and Accountability
The 3 Primary Elements of a Missional Commentary on Scripture:
GRASP: Understanding the Organic Divisions of the Book
FOCUS: Taking a Closer Look at texts within the Organic Divisions
ABSORB: Meditation/Reflection on sub-texts within the Organic Divisions
So here is what that might look like if we were to apply this model to the book of Philippians...
A MISSIONAL COMMENTARY ON THE LETTER TO THE PHILIPPIANS
GRASP: Understanding the Organic Divisions of the Book
Greeting and Blessing (1:1-11)
Paul’s Situation (1:12-26)
Living a Life Worthy of the Gospel (1:27-2:18)
Examples of Those the Philippians Know (2:19-3:21)
Summary, Exhortation, and Greetings (4:1-23)
FOCUS: Taking a Closer Look at texts within the Organic Divisions
Living a Life Worthy of the Gospel (1:27-30)
As Christ Did (a.k.a. “the Christ Hymn”) (2:1-11)
No Confidence in the Flesh (3:1-14)
Exhortations (4:4-9)
ABSORB: Meditation/Reflection on subtexts within the Organic Divisions
1:27-30 – Living a Life Worthy of the Gospel
2:5-8 – Christ’s Humiliation
2:9-11 – Christ’s Exaltation
2:12-13 – Continue to Work out your Salvation…
2:14-18 – Shining Like Stars
3:7-11 – No Confidence in the Flesh
4:4-7 – Rejoice in the Lord Always…Rejoice!
4:8-9 – Whatever is true…
4:19-20 – And my God will meet all your needs…
Other Sections or Attributes of a Missional Commentary on Scripture (Possibly)
- Space for Journaling
- Reflection and Application Questions
- Suggested Reading and Resources for the Material Mentioned
- Resources for Maps, Spiritual Disciplines, Theological Concepts, etc.
- Praxis Case Studies and Exercises
- What it looks like in a particular context…how to act upon what you study
- Supplementary Website??
- Full Text of the Book of the Bible being studied in that commentary
So what do you think? Are there any weaknesses? Anything that is missing? Let's talk about it!!
Understanding Missional Theology...
Craig Van Gelder over at Allelon.org has written a helpful document that both clarifies and dispels some misconceptions or distortions when talking about Missional Theology. This will be helpful for those especially who are newer to this concept. It will help you to sort out which "understanding" of missional is being used in the materials, books, and presentations thaty you come across in dealing with what it means to be missional.
Engaging the Missional Church Conversation as a
Framework for Developing a Missional Theology.
Missional Hermeneutic
This is my illustration of my Missional Hermeneutic. Go the page that I have devoted to this heremeneutic here to read more about it. Thanks!!
