The root of the word ‘mission’ means ‘sending’.
All Christian mission has its fountainhead in the God revealed in Scripture, who sent his Son for us, sends his Spirit to us, and summons all people to himself. The privilege and responsibility of his church, sent into all the world, is to testify by his words and deeds to Jesus Christ, God’s unique son, crucified, risen and ascended.
The East-West partnership in missiological exploration expounds a variety of Old and New Testament texts, and examines a wide range of issues. The authors’ desire is that Jesus Christ might be glorified more and more in the church and in the world; their eager expectation is that one day the whole creation will find its consummation in him, and God will be all and in all.
Table of Content
Contents
General preface 9
Preface 11
Part 1. World horizons
1. The glory of Christ (Colossians 1:15-23) 17
2. Life and dominion (Genesis 1:26-31; 2:15-20) 33
3. The incomparable God (Isaiah 44:24 – 45:25) 53
4. The Word made flesh (John 1:1-18) 69
Part 2. The international purposes of God
5. Chosen to bless (Genesis 12:1-4) 89
6. A distinctive people (Deuteronomy 10:12-20) 107
7. A resentful servant (Jonah 1 – 4) 124
8. A ready servant (Isaiah 49:1-26) 140
Part 3. Three-in-one mission
9. The freedom Jesus brings (Luke 4:16-30) 157
10. The mandate Jesus gives (Matthew 28:16-20) 172
11. The way Jesus commands (John 12:20-26; 13:34-35) 191
12. The Spirit of mission (Acts 2:1-47) 208
13. A model of mission (Acts 19:8-41) 225
Part 4. Doxology
14. The consummation of creation’s song (Psalm 104) 243
15. Certainties of the new covenant (Revelation 21:1 – 22:5) 261
Study guide 277
About the author
Vinoth Ramachandra lives in Colombo, Sri Lanka. He holds both a BS (summa cum laude) and a Ph D in nuclear engineering from the University of London. An Anglican lay-theologian, writer, teacher and human rights advocate, he combines multiple interests in his international work with IFES, a global partnership of over 150 university-level Christian movements.