ENGL 105 English Composition II: The Mission of God | Book Review

The book is a conclusion of decade thoughts of teachings done by Christopher Wright on the association between the mission and the Bible rather than mission alone. The mission unlocks the grand story of the canon of the bible. He digs through the Scripture and excavates evidence that the vein of God’s purpose is to restore and redeem humanity throughout the biblical texts. Notably, the mission of God in association with the nations offers the critical opening of the grand biblical narrative. The exemplification of a people and a God in mission provides an ideal situation of understanding the purpose of life through the appreciation that God is supreme and incomparable with idols. The passion of Jesus Christ cements the relationship between God and his people. The role of human beings in the mission is to restore the glory of God’s creation.

Notably, sin permeates every facet of human life and surrounding. The blood of Jesus will bring redemption from inequities among human beings. Wright envisions the fulfillment of the older Israel where Jesus Christ brings harmony among tribes to generate Israel and the nations. Therefore, the purpose of evangelism is important in achieving salvation. People should have compassion for others, and the church should serve to replicate the use of God for humanity rather than the focus on evangelical missions. Wright appears to be an ethicist who believes that the gospel should be an exercise of duty and action. Therefore, through love and care for the things around them, Christians identify themselves with the purpose and will of God towards his creation.

Strengths:

Wrights book has some strengths and weaknesses. First, wright centers his work on the cross. For him, the mission of the Bible implies that the gospel is at the heart of all Christian activities. According to him, thinking about the purpose of Gods people holistically needs to include the cross and the Christ in every dimension of the work. Moreover, Wright focuses on the biblical storyline to delineate his points. The understanding of who we are and the purpose we have in the world should be in line with Gods plot and ultimate mission in the universe. Therefore, wright does not disintegrate the work of Christians from the biblical implication of creation making his work more acceptable for Christian teaching.

Weaknesses:

However, Wright emphasizes on the mission living deriving optimism at some points. For instance, he focuses on Gods people as calling others to God. Indeed, he stresses the inseparability between doctrine and ethics and the significance it has on the lives of Christians. Notably, both are essential for the mission, but the focus of the people of God being attractive to the universe in their worship and admiration appears too simplistic. Wright also presents a holistic gospel without showing the epicenter and the implication it has on specific facets of life. Therefore, he does not uphold the focus of his gospel meaning that it is impossible to support his teachings without dichotomizing their effects. Therefore, wright ought to have come clear in his book to avoid misconception especially among those who may not have ardent knowledge of the bible and its teachings.

Relevance to the Ministerial Context:

The reading has great significance in my ecclesiastical life. Notably, Wright affirms that the mission is not merely about preaching and religious activities but a political, social and environmental endeavor. Therefore, as an evangelical minister, I am alarmed to know that people need more than the word necessitating me to cater for their physical and psychological requirements. Notably, Jesus himself emphasized the significance of exercising compassion for the poor and the suffering. Thus, evangelism calls for spreading the word and catering for those who listen to it. For instance, I would be of no importance to me as a missionary to tell patients to have faith that they will be healed and make no efforts to support them with medication to improve their condition.

However, I would put in mind that the gospel has a center. Wright acknowledges that the doctrine has a center in the cross of Christ. Therefore, I will put emphasize achieving the core purpose of evangelism that is to lead to the redemption of sins and forgiveness. Thus, as a missionary, I will help people to defeat the powers of evil and overcome death by following the way of the cross. Indeed, the gospel under the new mission requires that all people; Jews and Gentiles, are brought on board and reconcile them in the whole creation. Consequently, I will follow the isms embedded in the new dimension of the gospel enshrined in the New Testament and work ardently to achieve the purpose of the Christian missionary.

Bibliography

Flemming, Dean. Recovering the full mission of God: A biblical perspective on being, doing and telling. InterVarsity Press, 2013.

Niemandt, Cornelius JP. "Ecodomy in mission: The ecological crisis in the light of recent ecumenical statements." Verbum et Ecclesia 36, no. 3 (2015): 1-8.

Van Niekerk, Attie. "A centre for community life in its fullness." Verbum et Ecclesia 36, no. 3 (2015): 1-7.

Wright, Bradley RE, Michael Wallace, Annie Scola Wisnesky, Christopher M. Donnelly, Stacy Missari, and Christine Zozula. "Religion, race, and discrimination: A field experiment of how American churches welcome newcomers." Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion 54, no. 2 (2015): 185-204.

Wright, Christopher JH. Knowing Jesus through the Old Testament. InterVarsity Press, 2014.

Wright, Christopher JH. The mission of God: Unlocking the Bible's grand narrative. InterVarsity Press, 2013.