I’ve had a few interactions recently that strongly suggest to me that church tradition trumps Scripture when it comes to a definition of mission. Many Christians from a Protestant background would define mission as crossing from one culture to another…
This article is part of a series called ‘Christianity: a missionary religion.’ As I said in the introduction to the series: Mostly, I’ll look at recently published books. It is encouraging to see that, while most churches and Christian bookstores…
I posted seven articles earlier this year in a series called ‘Christianity: a missionary religion.’ At the time, I said the seventh one was the last – but I’ve changed my mind, having discovered that many good books on missions…
When missionaries are mentioned these days, the comments are often critical, even hostile. A hundred years ago, the general tone throughout society was much more positive – though that was often not the case up and down the coast of…
Missionaries have a tarnished reputation in the West – sometimes deserved, often not. They are probably more fondly remembered in Africa, Asia and Latin America. This truth came home to me several times as I participated in the Fourth Lausanne…
The Korean church welcomed the worldwide church with open arms last week. Everywhere we went, throughout the whole of the Lausanne 4 Congress at Incheon/Seoul, local Korean Christians smiled, guided and held signs of welcome. They were there all day…
Next week I will be in Korea, taking part in Lausanne 4, a global congress on world evangelization, September 22 – 28. Some 5,000 Christian leaders are expected from all over the world, with thousands more participating online. Michael Oh,…
The Paris 2024 Olympics begin one month from now. While we look forward with anticipation, this is also a good time to enjoy a unique anniversary. Eric Liddell won gold 100 years ago, at the 1924 Paris Olympic Games. Liddell…
The Lausanne Movement is having a big year. The fall, Lausanne 4 will draw together some 5,000 participants from all over the world in Seoul, Korea (and many more online). This follows up on three earlier gatherings: Lausanne 1974, Manila…
I began this series on ‘Christianity: a missionary religion’ in the lead-up to Mission Fest (February 15 – 17), both to remind people it was coming and to offer some insights into our rich missionary history and some of the issues…