Archive for the ‘Dmin Project’ Category

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Over the past year I have had an increasing number of conversations with pastors and church leaders about the church’s inability to “reach” their local communities. Many local churches have come to the realization that they have lost the ability to “attract” people to church programs and events. They sense that something has changed, but [...]

The Epistles and Revelation In the Pauline Epistles, there are several clear uses of sending vocabulary, “each conveying a different theological perspective within the larger salvific sphere.” [1] In Romans, Paul speaks of God “sending his own son in the likeness of sinful man to be a sin offering” (8:3). In Romans, Paul also asks how [...]

When considering the theological and biblical underpinnings of the missional church conversation I find the two most helpful topics to address include the concept of missio Dei, or mission of God, and the language of “sending” found throughout Scripture. The chief element to grasp about the missio Dei is that the mission is God’s. We are not [...]

The Missional Language of “Sending” – Introduction The Missional Language of “Sending” – The Pentateuch The Missional Language of “Sending” – The Historical & Poetic Books The Missional Language of “Sending” – The Prophetic Books The Gospels Some people might argue that “as a collection of documents telling the story of Jesus, the Gospels do [...]

The Prophetic Books utilize the language of sending more than any other portion of the Old Testament. There is a clear “association between God’s sending and the office of prophet.” [1] “The prophets were first and foremost men whom God had sent.” [2] Perhaps the most dramatic example of sending in the prophetic books is found in [...]

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The Historical Books The books of Joshua, Judges and 1 Samuel continue the vocabulary of sending in passages that reflect on the Exodus event (Josh. 24:2-6; Judg. 6:8; 1 Sam. 12:8). Furthermore, in 1 Samuel God sent Jerub-Baal, Barak, Jephthah, and Samuel to deliver his people (12:11). He sent Samuel to anoint Saul as king [...]

Johan H. Bavinck, the Dutch missiologist and missionary to Indonesia, observed:  “At first sight the Old Testament appears to offer little basis for the idea of missions. . . . Yet, if we investigate the Old Testament more thoroughly, it becomes clear that the future of the nations is a point of the greatest concern.” [1] The [...]

When considering the theological and biblical underpinnings of the missional church conversation I find the two most helpful topics to address include the concept of missio Dei, or mission of God, and the language of “sending” found throughout Scripture. The chief element to grasp about the missio Dei is that the mission is God’s. We [...]

Lesslie Newbigin Tribute

Posted: 8th December 2009 by Brad Brisco in Books, Dmin Project, Ecclesiology, Lesslie Newbigin, Missional

Today Lesslie Newbigin would have been 100 years old. In honor of the centennial of his birth, Andy Rowell offers an interesting tribute here. For a little more on Newbigin’s influence you can also check out a couple of earlier posts I did here and here. Update: Two more links on Newbigin. First an article [...]

History of Missional Church – Part I History of Missional Church – Part II History of Missional Church – Part III Other Notable Authors and Contributors There are a number of other authors who have contributed significantly to the missional church conversation in the past decade. Two of the more notable voices have been that [...]

History of Missional Church – Part I The British Gospel and Culture “Programme” The British version of the Gospel and Culture movement was initiated by Newbigin in Britain during the 1980s and came to be known as a “programme.” Newbigin had been entrusted by the British Council of Churches with the task of planning a [...]

As presented in an earlier post, Christianity in North America has experienced a move away from its position of dominance as it has witness the loss not only of numbers but of power and influence within society. “The United States is still, by all accounts, a very religious society. The pollsters affirm that Americans and [...]

Missional Church Bibliography

Posted: 20th October 2009 by Brad Brisco in Books, Dmin Project, Missional
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For those who are interested in doing more research on the missional church conversation, here is the 12 page bibliography that was a part of my dissertation. Missional Church Bibliography

Here is another small section of chapter one of my dmin project. This portion follows a discussion on the marginalization of the church in America, as well as part one shared in the previous post. To achieve a move from treating the church as a vendor of religious services to being a body of people sent [...]

Following is another section of chapter one of my dmin dissertation. This comes immediately after a discussion on the marginalization of the church, which I shared a portion of here. While the disestablishment of the church from the dominant seat of culture is disturbing to many Christians in North America, it is seen as a [...]