when you talk about your dreams for missions, how do people respond?
Experiential factors: Go on a 6 week missions trip or internship
how did it go?
your "calling" should be more than
"God laid x on my heart"
God may be calling you without you
realizing it, conclusions conerning calling
T or F Not all Christians are "gifted" for full-time or cross-cultural ministry
T
Many who ARE called to full-time or cross-cultural ministry
DO NOT RESPOND
"For most of us, God does not lay out the entire life plan in a single call. Rather, he leads step-by-step along the way."
Paul's primary concern
community of mature believers
Missionary Preparation
character traits: both spiritual, importance of flexibility. ministry or professional skills: engaging, specialized knowledge: knowledge specific to culture, social skills: social skills of the culture in order to prevent culture shock.
culture=
language
Why the Need to be strong spiritually on the Mission field?
less direct supervise (fall into temptation)
pressure to compromise
you cannot transfer what you do not have
increased responsibility, pressure and stress (2 Cor. 11:23- 29)
visibility and prominence may lead to pride
failure does more damage
(James 3: 1-6)
spiritual warfare (reality)
the struggle that Christians have to live faithful Christian lives in the face of onslaughts of spiritual powers of darkness
spiritual character traits important for missions
genuine dependence on God
humility/teachability
fruit of the spirit (through spiritual discipline)
The measure of spirituality is change lives
resulting in sacrifice.
The ultimate reason for developing a strong devotional life is to
develop a relationship with God.
you cannot know unless you are
learning about God.
How toe read theologically:
pray
What does this say about God?
What does this say about God's people?
examine context:
literary context-book as whole
immediate context- before and after
narrative itself
canoncial context-scrip
historical
focus on theological care
consider the level at which a text is authorative
consider the role of culture
Prototype
the first way something was done
archetype
the way it was always intended to be done
biblical role of prayer in evangelism
NOT to pray for God to open hearts, but rather to pray for workers anf for opportunities and courage to proclaim the message
Jn 1:14
becomes flesh, dwells among us. (incarnation)
*incarnational ministry- identificational, becoming like those of whom we minister.
Jn 20:21
21 Again Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.”
Mt 9:35
35 Jesus went through all
the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, proclaiming the
good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness.
Phil 2: 6-8
6 Who, being in very nature[a] God, did not consider equality with God something to be used to his own advantage; 7 rather, he made himself nothing by taking the very nature[b] of a servant, being made in human likeness. 8 And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to death— even death on a cross!
I Cor 9:19- 22
19 Though I am free and belong to no one, I have made myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible. 20
To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the
law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the
law), so as to win those under the law. 21
To those not having the law I became like one not having the law
(though I am not free from God’s law but am under Christ’s law), so as
to win those not having the law. 22
To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to
all people so that by all possible means I might save some.
Mt. 25: 31-46
eat and drink
James 4:13- 17
boasting about tomorrow
Lk 4:18-19
proclaim good news
Rev. 5:9
worthy, purchased by God
Jn 4: 35-38
hardwork, labor
Ps. 50:10-12
mine (God's world)
Acts 10: 34
4 Then Peter began to speak: “I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism
acculturation and enculturation:
the process by which one acquires the knowledge, skills, attitudes, values, and behaviors that enable one to become a functioning participant of a new host culture.
contextualization
finding appropriate wys to communicate so that comm is understandable to ppl in their context
identification
recognizing, adapting to, and working within the individuals needs and social contexts of peoples
extractionism
the method of pulling people out of their own cultures and into the missionaries' arena
GOAL of identification
achieve cross-cultural understanding in order to effectively communicate the message of Christ.
SLA and LAMP
methods of learning languages.
worldview
the way people understand and interrupt the world around them.
monoculturalism
assumption that all other people are like us, resulting in the tendency to judge other peoples' actions and attitudes on the basis of our own. caused when one grows up knowing only one culture and language.
ethnocentrism
belief that one's own people group or cultural ways are superior to others. it is deep-seated cultural pride, the belief that my type of person is better thatn other types of people.
egocentrism
I am better than you
ethocentrism
belief that my culture is better than yours
cross- culturalism
the learned skill of relating to people of other cultures within the contexts of their cultures. Cross-culturalists learn to recognize both cultural strengths/weaknesses.
Motives for Missions
fundamental: God's love and compassion (most foundational of fundamental motivations for missions)
secondary: humaritarian and personal
(desire to help, desire for adventure)
defective motives:
making a name for oneself
reacting to guilt
Stages of the On Field Missionary Cycle:
galmour (honeymoon stage)
anxiety stage, culture shock
adaptation or rejection stage
before you go:
personality
methodology
doctrine
(agree on atleast 2)
number is not important
(team=# committed to go)
disadvantages of a team:
danger of dominating a church
learning to relate to one another
advantages of a team:
abilities
Must be at least one person or couple who simply says, " We're going."
