Biblical Foundations: For 21st Century World Mission

1. God is the first missionary.
Thomas Schirrmacher
Thomas Schirrmacher Biblical Foundations for 21st Century World Mission

God was the first missionary. He spoke of judgment, but also of grace. Immediately after the
Fall of man, when humanity’s history already appeared doomed, God did not leave things as
they were. Rather, in his grace he himself came into the Garden of Eden to search for Adam
and Eve and to ask, “Where are you?” (Genesis 3:9). Like every good missionary, God was
Biblical Foundations
not deterred by the fact that humanity did not want to hear the good news. He proclaimed
judgment to them, and then he proclaimed the coming redemption (Genesis 3:14–21).
If a missionary is someone who brings the message of judgment and God’s gracious answer
for that judgment to people, not all of whom want to hear it (John 1:11: “He came to that
which was his own, but his own did not receive him”), then God himself is and was the first
missionary.” (Thesis 1) for 21st Century World Mission
Prof. Dr. theol. Dr. phil. Thomas Schirr- 69 Theses Toward an
macher, PhD, ThD, DD (born 1960),
serves the World Evangelical Alliance Ongoing Global Reformation
[networking 600 million Protestants] as
Associate Secretary General for Theolo-
gical Concerns (responsible for Theolo-
gy, Intrafaith and Interfaith Relations,
Religious Freedom and Persecution) and
as Chair of its Theological Commission.
As President of the International
Council of the International Society for
Schirrmacher calling for more Asian missionaries to Europe in Human Rights (with sections in 55 coun-
Yoido Full Gospel Church, Seoul tries), and as Director of the Internatio-
nal Institute for Religious Freedom (Bonn, Cape Town, Colombo, São Paulo), Schirrmacher is
one of the leading experts on human rights worldwide and regularly testifies in parliaments
and courts worldwide, the OSCE and the UN in Geneva and New York.
Schirrmacher is visiting professor of the sociology of religion at the state University of the
West in Timisoara (Romania) and Distinguished Professor of Global Ethics and International
Development at William Carey University in Shillong (Meghalaya, India). He is president of
‘Martin Bucer European Theological Seminary’ (Bonn, Berlin, Prague, Istanbul, São Paulo),
where he teaches ethics and comparative religions.
His has authored and edited 102 books, which were translated into 17 languages, his ne-
west dealing with ‘Suppressed Women’ (2015), ‘Corruption’ (2014), ‘Human Rights’ (2012),
‘Human trafficking’ (2011), ‘Fundamentalism’ (2010) and ‘Racism’ (2009). World of Theology Series 11
sponsored by:
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9 783862 691517 Dr. Thomas Schirrmacher World of Theology Series 11
Thomas Schirrmacher
Biblical Foundations for 21st Century World Mission
World of Theology Series
Published by the Theological Commission
of the World Evangelical Alliance
Volume 11
Vol 1 Thomas K. Johnson: The First Step in Missions Training: How
our Neighbors are Wrestling with God’s General Revelation
Vol 2 Thomas K. Johnson: Christian Ethics in Secular Cultures
Vol 3 David Parker: Discerning the Obedience of Faith: A Short Histo-
ry of the World Evangelical Alliance Theological Commission
Vol 4 Thomas Schirrmacher (Ed.): William Carey: Theologian –
Linguist – Social Reformer
Vol 5 Thomas Schirrmacher: Advocate of Love – Martin Bucer as
Theologian and Pastor
Vol 6 Thomas Schirrmacher: Culture of Shame / Culture of Guilt
Vol 7 Thomas Schirrmacher: The Koran and the Bible
Vol 8 Thomas Schirrmacher (Ed.): The Humanisation of Slavery in
the Old Testament
Vol 9 Jim Harries: New Foundations for Appreciating Africa:
Beyond Religious and Secular Deceptions
Vol 10 Thomas Schirrmacher: Missio Dei – God’s Missional Nature
Vol 11 Thomas Schirrmacher: Biblical Foundations for 21st Century
World Mission
Thomas Schirrmacher
for 21st Century World Mission
69 Theses Toward an
Ongoing Global Reformation
Translated by Richard McClary

Edited and Revised by Thomas K. Johnson
Assisted by Bruce Barron

Culture and Science Publ.
Bonn 2018
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Contents
Preface: The Reformation and the 69 Theses

by Thomas K. Johnson .............................................................................................. 7
Biblical Foundations for 21st Century World Mission

69 Theses Toward an Ongoing Global Reformation
by Thomas Schirrmacher .......................................................................................21
Section I: World Mission is Part of the Essence of Christianity ...........21
Section II: The Entirety of the Holy Scriptures Justifies World

Mission .........................................................................................37
Section III: Mission in Light of Cultural Diversity .....................................42
Section IV: Mission and Religious Freedom—TWO Sides of the Same

Coin ...............................................................................................51
Section V: Conversion and Social Change .................................................62

Preface: The Reformation and the 69 Theses
By Thomas K. Johnson
When a German Protestant theologian decides to use the terminology of

69 Theses in the title of a book to be published for the 500th anniversary of
the Protestant Reformation, there is obviously a reference to Martin Lu-
ther’s famous 95 Theses, which were issued from Wittenberg, Germany, on
October 31, 1517. So an important question is, “Exactly what is the con-
nection between the new 69 theses and the old 95 theses?” This requires
that we take a little walk down history’s lane to discuss things.
There long has been a historian’s debate about whether or not Luther re-
ally nailed his theses to the church door in Wittenberg. Public notices
and invitations to academic disputations were commonly placed on a
prominent door in the era before newspapers, but we should not worry
too much about whether or not Luther followed all the customs of his
day. And historians have also debated whether or not Luther intended to
use his 95 Theses to spark debates that would change the structure of
Christendom. Whatever his intentions, Luther’s theses came to symbolize
the founding of the new Protestant or Evangelical movement, which Lu-
ther himself soon recognized had roots at least as far back as the efforts
of Jan (John) Hus (1369-1415).
When I first read Luther’s 95, the professor who was tutoring me insisted
that I should read them in the context of the other short texts that Lu-
ther wrote in that era so that I could experience from the primary
sources how Luther was progressively working out the theological and
ethical principles that shaped the early magisterial Reformation. My pro-
fessor said I should give special attention to the short treatises which Lu-
ther published before the end of 1520, by which time the content of clas-
sical Protestantism was taking its distinctive shape.1 And then I would
also begin to grasp why the Reformation was not merely a theoretical de-
bate about questions related to indulgences; then I would understand
why Reformation was also a history-changing force whose power extend-
ed far beyond its European origins.
1
My tutor was Dr. Ralph Vunderink at Hope College.
8 Biblical Foundations for 21st Century World Mission – 69 Biblical Theses
In his great retrospect on “The Expanding Effect of Christianity” in the

era after the Reformation, Kenneth Scott Latourette, the pioneering his-
torian of missions, analyzed the effects of the Reformation not only on
the religious and moral dimensions of life but also on several other di-
mensions of western political, cultural, social, and intellectual life. About
the religious and moral dimensions of life he observed, “Perfection did
not come with the Reformation, whether in Protestantism or in the Ro-
man Catholic Church. Not all the clergy, whether Protestant or Roman
Catholic, were well educated or were of high moral character. . . . Yet the
Reformation wrought distinct improvement, both in the areas served by
Protestants and in the Roman Catholic fold. . . . For the rank and file of
the laity the level of intelligent comprehension of the Christian faith was
lifted by both the Protestant and the Catholic Reformation. . . . For the
instruction of church members catechisms for their respective constitu-
encies were prepared by both Protestants and Roman Catholics. Among
Protestants the circulation of the Bible in vernacular translations mark-
edly increased. . . . Most and perhaps all awakenings within Christianity
have given rise to hymns and singing. The Reformation was no excep-
tion.”2
Latourette then sketched some of the expanding effect of Christianity in

the supposedly non-religious dimensions of life which came as a result of
the Reformation. For some thirty five years I have found this sketch to be
inspiring. He noted the post-Reformation beginnings of international
law, the attempt to say that the relationships among states should be
regulated by something other than military force (such as moral or legal
reasoning), and with it the claim that there are moral norms, even if rare-
ly followed, that apply even to decisions of whether one may go to war
and how a morally justifiable war may be fought. In the political realm,
Latourette continued, “When carried to its logical conclusion, Protestant-
ism made for democracy. Its basic principle, justification by faith and the
priesthood of all believers, issued in governments in which each citizen
had a voice and possessed rights and responsibilities equal with those of
each of his fellows.”3
In the sphere of business and the economy, Latourette disagreed with the
standard twentieth-century assessment of the influence of the Protestant
2
Kenneth Scott Latourette, A History of Christianity, revised edition, vol. II: A.D.
1500—A.D. 1975 (Harper & Row, 1975), p. 972.
3
P. 977.
Preface: The Reformation and the 69 Theses 9
work ethic, not because it was essentially wrong, but because it did not
sufficiently recognize the role of renewed Catholicism in the rapid eco-
nomic growth in the West during the post-Reformation era nor that some
of this growth started before the Reformation. Nevertheless he summa-
rized the nature and influence of the Protestant work ethic, “The Re-
formed faith made incumbent on all its adherents a kind of asceticism. It
taught that every Christian, and not alone clergymen, should regard his
occupation a vocation which he should pursue in response the ‘call’ of
God. In it he should work conscientiously as in the sight of God. He was to
seek to produce what would be useful for the community. He was not to
be idle nor was he to spend in selfish or luxurious fashion the fruits of his
labors. He was to make all he could, spend only what was necessary, and
save the surplus, although giving part of it for worthy causes. This led to
the accumulation of private wealth and so made capitalism possible.
Moreover, while Luther followed the precedent of the Church of the Mid-
dle Ages and forbade the taking of interest, Calvin permitted it. This also
furthered capitalism.”4
Latourette continued to sketch the wide-ranging benefits of post-

Reformation Christianity through social activism, including aid for the
sick and poor, orphanages, prison reform, exalting the role of women,
and promoting marriage (partly by having married clergy). This was par-
alleled by spectacular growth in intellectual life, including the natural
sciences, mathematics, and philosophy, not to speak of the great growth
of theology as a field of learning, all of which swirled together with grow-
ing support for popular education and the establishment of schools for all
children.
Very likely, Martin Luther was not thinking about the ensuing holistic
moral and cultural developments that would follow from his 95 theses
and his related treatises. He was concerned about recovering the Chris-
tian gospel for himself and his fellow Christians. But already in these ear-
ly works of Luther we see the crucial convictions that pointed in the di-
rection observed by Latourette. Let me glance at the famous 95 and then
rehearse some of those convictions of Luther which surround the theses,
which will then shed light on Schirrmacher’s holistic 69 theses on mis-
sions which are before us.
4
P. 979. Latourette also disagreed with Max Weber’s understanding of calling in
Protestant ethics.
The 95 Theses of Luther begin,5
1) When our Lord and Master Jesus Christ said, “Repent” (Mt 4:17), he
willed the entire life of believers to be one of repentance.
2) This word cannot be understood as referring to the sacrament of pen-

ance, that is, confession and satisfaction, as administered by the clergy.
3) Yet it does not mean solely inner repentance; such inner repentance is
worthless unless it produces various outward mortification of the flesh.
4) The penalty of sin remains as long as the hatred of self (that is, true in-
ner repentance), namely till our entrance into the kingdom of heaven.
5) The pope neither desires nor is able to remit any penalties except those
imposed by his own authority or that of the canons.
6) The pope cannot remit any guilt, except by declaring and showing that
it has been remitted by God; or, to be sure, by remitting guilt in cases
reserved to his judgment. If his right to grant remission in these cases
were disregarded, the guilt would certainly remain unforgiven.
Later in the theses Luther continued,
11) Those tares of changing the canonical penalty to the penalty of purga-
tory were evidently sown while the bishops slept (Mt 13:25).
12) In former times canonical penalties were imposed, not after, but before
absolution, as tests of true contrition.
13) The dying are freed by death from all penalties, are already dead as far
as the canon laws are concerned, and have a right to be released from
them.
14) Imperfect piety or love on the part of the dying person necessarily
brings with it great fear; and the smaller the love, the greater the fear.
15) This fear or horror is sufficient in itself, to say nothing of other things,
to constitute the penalty of purgatory, since it is very near to the hor-
ror of despair.
5
English translation taken from www.luther.de/en/95thesen.html. Confirmed 9
Feb 2017.
16) Hell, purgatory, and heaven seem to differ the same as despair, fear,
and assurance of salvation.
17) It seems as though for the souls in purgatory fear should necessarily
decrease and love increase.
Lest the terminology of medieval theology disguise to us the existential

issues on Luther’s heart, notice some of the key words in theses 13
through 16: dying, death, fear, horror, penalty, despair, hell, and purgato-
ry. But then one phrase stands in shining, almost blinding contrast, “as-
surance of salvation.” Luther’s quest was how to find assurance of eternal
salvation and freedom from guilt before God. And at the same time, Lu-
ther was deeply concerned that the quest for assurance of salvation and
freedom from purgatory was driving people to inappropriate means, es-
pecially indulgences, which might lead to false security before God. And
even if the popular sermons of the day were contrary to the complex
theology of indulgences and contrary to what was taught by the hierar-
chy of the Catholic Church, it was what was heard by many an average
Christian. In response Luther said,
27) They preach only human doctrines who say that as soon as the money
clinks into the money chest, the soul flies out of purgatory.
28) It is certain that when money clinks in the money chest, greed and ava-
rice can be increased; but when the church intercedes, the result is in
the hands of God alone.
Luther’s world was ripe for someone to step forward and say believers
are justified before God and can receive assurance of salvation by faith
alone in the gospel, not by indulgences or any other human activity. And
a clear doctrine of justification transformed way the Christian life (and
really all of Christian ethics) was conceived. To quote Luther’s 95 Theses
again,
45) Christians are to be taught that he who sees a needy man and passes
him by, yet gives his money for indulgences, does not buy papal indul-
gences but God's wrath.
46) Christians are to be taught that, unless they have more than they need,
they must reserve enough for their family needs and by no means
squander it on indulgences.
47) Christians are to be taught that they buying of indulgences is a matter

of free choice, not commanded.
With these simple lines, Luther set new priorities and standards for
Christian ethics in light of justification by faith. Care for people in need is
given pride of place; provision for one’s family ranks far above indul-
gences; and a new standard is introduced by means of which Christians
are taught to evaluate social institutions and practices, that which is
“commanded,” meaning that which is commanded by God in the Bible.
Once free from the false security of earning or buying God’s favor by
means of indulgences or any other effort (such as taking inappropriate
vows, especially related to a monastery), assured of one’s justification,
Christians are taught to turn to everyday life in a distinctive manner: lov-
ing those in need, caring for one’s family, and asking what social institu-
tions and practices are legitimized by being addressed in the Bible. The
institutions of indulgences and monasteries were not legitimized by be-
ing addressed in the Bible, whereas marriage, family, and work are ad-
dressed in the Bible and especially in the Ten Commandments. So as not
to multiply quotations, notice how Luther connected these principles in
his 1520 treatise The Babylonian Captivity of the Church, “Anyone who has
plighted his troth to a woman cannot rightly take a monastic vow. His
duty is to marry her because it is his duty to keep faith. This precept
comes from God, and therefore cannot be superseded by any human de-
cree.”6 In Luther’s view, monastic vows (and everything related to mon-
asteries) are merely human decrees, whereas keeping one’s word to a
woman to whom you are engaged to be married is required because God
requires truth telling and promise keeping in the Bible.
To grasp Luther we must see that he quickly turned from questioning the
religious system of his time, including monasteries, vows, the penitential
system, sacramental system, and indulgences, and turned toward expli-
cating what he had found in the Word of God. And for Luther the key
principle for understanding and applying the Word of God properly was
the relationship between the commands of God and the promises of God,
which he also called the relationship between God’s moral law and the
gospel. It was this principle, I believe, that led to the distinctively
6
Martin Luther: Selections From His Writings, edited with an introduction by John
Dillenberger (New York: Anchor Books, 1961), p. 335.
Protestant type of cultural renewal and development in the lands shaped

by the Reformation.
Luther’s 1520 treatise The Freedom of a Christian illustrates his positive ap-
plication of the Word of God, using striking rhetoric to both distinguish
and connect the promises and the commands of God:7
 “A Christian is a perfectly free lord of all, subject to none.”
 “A Christian is a perfectly dutiful servant of all, subject to all.”
To explain this paradox Luther used language that sounded vaguely Hel-
lenistic or dualistic, though his intent was neither Hellenistic nor dualis-
tic. “Man has a twofold nature, a spiritual and a bodily one.” The freedom
of one’s internal spiritual nature does not come from anything external;
such freedom comes only from the gospel of Christ. “What can it profit
the soul if the body is well, free, and active, and does as it pleases? . . . On
the other hand, how will poor health or imprisonment or hunger or
thirst or any other external misfortune harm the soul? . . . One thing, and
one thing only, is necessary for Christian life, righteousness, and free-
dom. That one thing is the Word of God, the gospel of Christ.” But in re-
gard to one’s bodily nature, “Each one should do the works of his profes-
sion and station, not that by them he may strive after righteousness, but
that by them he may keep his body under control, be an example to oth-
ers who also need to keep their bodies under control, and finally that he
may submit his will to that of others in the freedom of love.” Then when
Luther talks about being a dutiful servant of others in the realm of the
bodily nature, he frequently quotes verses in the Bible in which Chris-
tians are given commands to obey, in this case from Romans 13.
In one’s internal spiritual nature, Christians should experience the free-

dom of knowing they are justified before God by means of trusting in the
promises of God, by trusting in the gospel. Christians do not have to fol-
low any external rules, regulations, or expectations to be justified before
God. This internal spiritual freedom allows one externally to submit to
the commands of God in submission to the needs of one’s neighbors in
love, to be a servant to all. Rather than being dualistic, this approach to
faith and life is based on distinguishing commands from promises, the
7
Dillenberger, p. 53. Subsequent quotations from this treatise come from pages 52
to 85 in the text edited by Dillenberger.
law from the gospel, a type of differentiation without dualism. “The en-
tire scripture of God is divided into two parts: commands and promises.
Although the commands teach things that are good, the things taught are
not done as soon as they are taught, for the commandments show us
what we ought to do but do not give us the power to do it.” “When a man
has learned through the commandments to recognize his helplessness
and is distressed about how he might satisfy the law . . . here the second
part of Scripture come to our aid, namely, the promises of God.”
There is a distinct irony to be noticed in looking at the 95 Theses and the

historical/cultural results of the Reformation. As of October, 1517, Luther
does not seem to have intended anything resembling the results that
Latourette so ably chronicled. Luther was interested in finding assurance
of salvation, avoiding the two fatal distortions of works salvation or false
security. But while mining the scriptures for answers to his life quest,
seemingly by accident, in addition to a renewed understanding of the
gospel, he also discovered a new understanding of ethics and society. Eth-
ical life was not about purifying oneself or searching for new levels of
self-denial. Instead he found a renewed motive for ethical behavior, love
for neighbor; a new standard for the legitimation of social institutions, if
they are addressed in the Bible; and a renewed view of the importance of
correctly distinguishing while relating God’s commands with his promis-
es, relating God’s moral law with the gospel. Thus, we can regard Luther’s
culture redirecting holism as accidental. In his younger years it was
probably impossible for him to conceive of the possibility that his spir-
itual discoveries would change the course of history and nations. At least
through the time of the 95 Theses he was mostly interested in eternal
salvation and discovered the biblical doctrine of justification by faith
alone; inadvertently he changed the direction of western civilization by
his renewed approach to ethics.
This is precisely the difference when we turn to Thomas Schirrmacher’s

69 theses. The inadvertent and accidental holism of Martin Luther’s early
years has become conscious and intentional. Schirrmacher’s understand-
ing of the Christian gospel is largely the same as that of Luther; what has
changed is that Schirrmacher is thinking not only about eternal salvation
but also about the culture changing power of the Word of God.
At first glance, one does not see a lot about justification by faith alone in
Schirrmacher’s 69 theses. Indeed, the term “justification by faith” does
not appear at all in Schirrmacher’s theses. However, it would be a terrible
misunderstanding to suppose that Schirrmacher has left Luther’s im-

portant discovery behind. To avoid such a misunderstanding of Schirr-
macher, one can simply note what he taught in his studies on the New
Testament book of Romans, published when he was a young man.8 In
these early studies we see how Schirrmacher closely tied the New Testa-
ment to the Old Testament, which is also an interesting characteristic of
his missiology. While explaining Romans 3:21-31, a crucial biblical source
for understanding justification by faith alone, he notes, “Righteousness
by law-keeping, that is the claim that one can become just by means of
doing the law, cannot be described as based on the Old Testament, for
even there [in the Old Testament] faith came before righteousness, as
Paul will show in Romans 4 by means of the example of Abraham. Right-
eousness by law-keeping is, rather, a distortion of the Old Testament. We
Christians may not accept this distorted picture of the Old Testament and
then set the New Testament against it.”9 About Romans 4 (the justifica-
tion of Abraham) he notes, “Especially the promise to Abraham, and
thereby to Israel, to which the Jews so frequently referred, is a decisive
proof that righteousness is based on a promise and trust (faith), not on
the law and its observance. . . . Paul concludes with the explicit statement
that Abraham is not only a good example. What applied to Abraham in
the Old Testament applies to us today (Romans 4:22-25), for the juridical
foundation for our faith is the same as it was for Abraham: God-given
faith leads to righteousness.”10
Turning to Schirrmacher’s theses on mission we find two distinctive em-

phases, the first on the Trinity and the second on missions in the Old Tes-
tament:
1) God is the first missionary.
2) Jesus is the missionary par excellence.
3) God the Holy Spirit is the most successful missionary.
4) The sending of Jesus’ church is rooted in the fact that God first sent
himself into the world as a missionary (missio dei).
8
The following quotations are translated from Thomas Schirrmacher, Der Römer-
brief, 1. Band, Für Selbststudium und Gruppengespäch (Nürnberg: VTR & Ham-
burg: RVB, 1994).
9
P. 181, 182.
10
P. 205.
5) Since mission belongs to the heart of the Christian God and to the es-
sence of the Trinity, Christianity without a concern for mission is un-
thinkable.
These first theses are brought together in thesis 9.
26) Mission is rooted in the marvelous eternal covenant of election among

the Father, the Son, who died for us while we were still sinners, and the
Holy Spirit, who was poured out at Pentecost.
These themes must be linked with how Schirrmacher understands the

relation of the two testaments, the topic of theses 26 through 31.
27) In the New Testament, world mission is not primarily justified by Jesus’
Great Commission but rather by the Old Testament.
28) The Old Testament rationale for New Testament mission shows that
world mission is a direct continuation of God’s actions of salvation his-
tory since the Fall of man and the choosing of Abraham.
29) The choosing of the Old Testament people of the covenant occurred
with regard to reaching all peoples, such that world mission is already
a topic found in the Old Testament.
30) For this reason, in the Old Testament there are already many examples
of Gentiles hearing the message of God through the Jews and finding
faith in the one true God. Moreover, many passages from the Old Tes-
tament prophets are directed at Gentile peoples.
31) Accordingly, world mission efforts cannot be presented and practiced

independently of the Old Testament, the history of salvation in the Old
Testament, and the destiny of the Jewish people.
32) The letter to the Romans also demonstrates that world mission has to
rest upon healthy biblical teaching and that a healthy systematic theo-
logy always leads to mission.
It is worth noting that Schirrmacher sees the book of Romans as much as

a book of missiology as it is a book of systematic theology which, in a
manner familiar to students of Protestant theology and ethics, serves as
key to a proper linking of many biblical themes such as the Trinity, law
and gospel, Old and New Testaments. This leads to the holistic approach
to mission found in his following theses which are much more conscious-
ly culture-changing than were Luther’s theses.
32) The diversity of peoples and cultures is principally not a consequence

of sin but rather desired by God. What is to be discarded from a culture
is only that which expressly contradicts God’s holy will, and not the
diversity of human expression and lifestyle.
33) Christians have been freed from all sorts of cultural bondage. They no
longer have to recognize human traditions and commands in addition
to God’s commands.
34) Christians can judge other cultures in light of the Bible when and if
they have learned to distinguish between their own cultures, even
their own devout culture, and the commands of God that are valid for
all cultures.
What we see Schirrmacher recommending in theses 33 and 34 is what we

saw Luther doing in his theses. Luther rejected many practices and insti-
tutions of medieval Christendom which he thought were not rooted in
God’s commands, including indulgences, priestly celibacy, and monaster-
ies, based on a sharp distinction between his own devout culture and the
commands of God. For Schirrmacher this is part of a culture-changing
theory of missions, whereas for Luther it was part of finding assurance of
salvation by faith alone, instead of finding assurance of salvation via the
religious practices of his day. This culture-changing missiology is sum-
marized in Schirrmacher’s thesis 41.
56) Not only is the proclamation of the gospel to be formulated for various
cultures, but the gospel should be enculturated in the life of each com-
munity and its entire culture.
The culture changing motif continues in several more theses.
56) The individual’s peace with God, i.e., personal redemption owing to the
gracious sacrifice of Jesus on the cross, is the first and most urgent goal
of mission from which all other goals emerge.
57) Even if personal salvation is the first and highest goal of missions, that
does not mean that there cannot be any wider objectives. Rather, all
wider objectives gain their significance from personal salvation. From

inner transformation follows external transformation, and from the
transformation of individuals comes change in the broader, symbiotic
community.
58) Social work within the Christian church was institutionally anchored,
from the very beginning of the New Testament church, in the office of
the diaconal ministry, and this in light of cultural differences.
59) In Acts 6, social responsibility within the church indeed has central
significance, but that does not contradict the centrality of proclaiming
God’s word and of prayer, which was institutionalized in the offices of
elder and apostle.
60) Social responsibility on the part of Christians does not stop at the
boundaries of the church.
61) The Bible is not a book purely for private edification. On the contrary, it
repeatedly addresses many social concerns.
62) Whoever is in favor of diaconal work must also address the reasons
why certain emergencies exist in the first place, as the Old Testament
prophets did.
63) Human dignity and human rights are founded in the nature of human
beings as creatures of God.
64) Whoever does not actively advocate for society to pursue a good and
proper course intentionally or unintentionally accepts the standards of
his or her environment.
One area in which Schirrmacher’s theses seem to move beyond Luther

and the Reformation is the central role given to religious freedom. One
can wish that Luther’s bold statements about Christian liberty would
have immediately led him and his fellows to advocate full liberty of reli-
gion and conscience. But the Reformers were too much children of their
age, which we still call the “Constantinian Age,” to imagine the extensive
separation of church and state needed to have freedom for several reli-
gions within one state. It took time for that conclusion to be drawn. That
conclusion was drawn by Christians well before our day, though many
Christians live in cultures were that conclusion has not yet been drawn
by the culture and legal system. Therefore Schirrmacher theses on mis-
sions address this need in a section entitled, “Missions and Religious

Freedom—Two Sides of the Same Coin.” Here we find the following:
42) Dialogue, in the sense of peaceful contention, honest and patient listen-
ing, self-critical reflection, winsome and modest presentation of one’s
own point of view, and learning from others, is a Christian virtue.
43) Dialogue in the sense of giving up Christian truth claims or giving up

world mission is inconceivable without abandoning Christianity.
44) Paul’s address in Athens shows how good and important it is to study
other religions and worldviews, including their texts, and to adjust the
terminology and starting point of our proclamation so as to address the
adherents of other religions and worldviews intellectually and linguis-
tically.
45) Ethics and mission belong together. Christian witness is not an ethics-
free space; it requires an ethical foundation so that we truly do what
Christ has instructed us to do.
46) Gentleness is not only an inevitable consequence of the fact that Chris-
tians proclaim the God of love and should love our neighbor. Rather, it
is also a consequence of the knowledge that Christians are themselves
only pardoned sinners and are not God.
47) Mission efforts esteem human rights and do not desire to disregard the
dignity of human beings. Rather, mission efforts seek to honor and fos-
ter human dignity.
48) It is reprehensible to bring about conversions through the use of coer-

cion, deceitfulness, trickery, or bribery. By definition, such actions
cannot result in a true conversion and turning towards God from the
depths of one’s heart in belief and trust.
49) Peaceful mission efforts have been essentially embedded as a human

right.
50) One must differentiate between advocating human rights and religious
freedom for adherents of other religions, or for individuals without any
religious affiliation, and endorsing their truth claims.
51) Religious freedom applies to all people, not only to Christians.

52) Since the state does not belong to any religion and is not to proclaim
the gospel but rather desires what is good and just for all people, and
because God has granted human dignity to all people since he has crea-
ted everyone (Genesis 1:26–27; 5:1), Christians should work together
with the adherents of all religions and worldviews for the good of
society, to the extent that other groups allow this and reciprocate.
53) The task of the state is to protect worldly justice, including religious
freedom, not to promote our religion.
Freedom of religion is one of the results that should eventually flow from
the proclamation of the biblical message. In an age of extreme religious
persecution joined with widespread religious extremism and religious
nationalism, this merits extensive mention in our missiology.
So I invite you to read Schirrmacher’s 69 modern theses in light of Lu-

ther’s 95 historic theses, linking the Reformation with twenty-first centu-
ry missiology. I see the quest for assurance of eternal salvation as initially
having unintentional but real culture-changing effects as Luther mined
the Bible for answers; further mining of the Bible shows that the impact
of the Word of God on society and culture should become intentional and
conscious within our understanding of God’s mission and ours.
for 21st Century World Mission
11
69 Theses Toward an Ongoing Global Reformation
By Thomas Schirrmacher
SECTION I: WORLD MISSION IS PART OF THE ESSENCE OF

CHRISTIANITY
1. God is the first missionary.
God was the first missionary. He spoke of judgment, but also of grace.
Immediately after the Fall of man, when humanity’s history already ap-
peared doomed, God did not leave things as they were. Rather, in his
grace he himself came into the Garden of Eden to search for Adam and
Eve and to ask, “Where are you?” (Genesis 3:9). Like every good mission-
ary, God was not deterred by the fact that humanity did not want to hear
the good news. He proclaimed judgment to them, and then he proclaimed
the coming redemption (Genesis 3:14–21).
If a missionary is someone who brings the message of judgment and

God’s gracious answer for that judgment to people, not all of whom want
11
Translated from the German, first published as “Biblische Grundlagen evange-
likaler Missiologie” in five parts in Evangelikale Missiologie vol. 30 (2014) 4: 171-
183 and vol. 31 (2015) 1: 3-8; 2: 60-673; 115-121, published for the 30th anniver-
sary of this journal and in the year remembering the 500 years anniversary of
the Reformation. They are a largely revised version of the thesis published on
the 10th anniversary of the journal in Evangelikale Missiologie 10 (1994) 4: 112-120
(numerous reprints). The Dutch version is found in “Bijbelse Principes van evan-
gelische Missiologie.” Informatie Evangelische Zendings Alliantie 26 (1995) 5 (Oct/
Nov): 20-21 + 6 (Dec/Jan): 21-22 + 27 (1996) 1 (Feb/Mar): 18-20 + 2 (Apr/May): 24-
26 + 3 (Jun/Jul): 19-20 + 4 (Aug/Sep): 20-21 + 5 (Oct/Nov): 21-22 + 6 (Dec/Jan): 20-
21. English version in: Thomas Schirrmacher. God Wants You to Learn, Labour and
Love. Reformatorischer Verlag Beese: Hamburg, 1999.
to hear it (John 1:11: “He came to that which was his own, but his own did
not receive him”), then God himself is and was the first missionary.
2. Jesus is the missionary par excellence.
God the Father sent Jesus to earth as a human being so that he could take
humanity’s punishment on himself at the cross, in order both to effect
and to proclaim salvation. Before the creation of the world, God had al-
ready decided (Ephesians 1:4) not to leave people to their self-imposed
fate (John 3:16), but rather to send himself in Jesus as a missionary into
the world (John 3:16).
3. God the Holy Spirit is the most successful missionary.
The sending of the Spirit is linked to Jesus as well as to the Father. The
Spirit is the Father’s pledge to his Son: “Exalted to the right hand of God,
he has received from the Father the promised Holy Spirit and has poured
out what you now see and hear” (Acts 2:33). Regarding the Holy Spirit,
Jesus said, “When he comes, he will convict the world of guilt in regard to
sin and righteousness and judgment” (John 16:8). The Holy Spirit partici-
pates in each conversion and is thus more successful than even the best-
known human evangelist.
4. The sending of Jesus’ church is rooted in the fact that God

first sent himself into the world as a missionary (missio dei).
God the Father has sent his Son and his Spirit as the first missionaries.
Foreseeing what was ahead, God spoke of the resurrection of the Christ,
stating that he was not abandoned to the grave, nor did his body see de-
cay. The Spirit remains the most successful missionary, and the church is
only continuing the mandate in parallel fashion by going out into the
world in mission. That is the reason for the existence of the New Testa-
ment church. Christian mission is unthinkable without the Triune God
Section I: World Mission is Part of the Essence of Christianity 23
himself, without God as the one sending, and without God, in the Persons
of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, as being sent.
In the New Testament, Jesus’ sending of the apostles is understood as the

direct continuation of the sending of Jesus by his Father (Matthew 10:40;
Mark 9:37; Luke 10:16; Acts 3:20, 26; about 50 times in John, initially in
John 3:17; compare Isaiah 48:16) and the sending of the Holy Spirit by the
Father and Jesus (Father and Son are mentioned in John 14:26; 15:26; the
Son is mentioned alone in Luke 24:49). In John 17:18, Jesus says to his Fa-
ther, “As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world.” In
John 20:21, he turns this into a personal address to his disciples: “As the
Father has sent me, I am sending you.”
To begin with, missio dei means that God himself first of all becomes a
missionary before he commissions people as his missionaries. Thus, God
is not only always the sender, but also the one sent. Missio dei also means
that this was not only historically the case in the Fall of man, in the send-
ing of Jesus, or in the sending of the Spirit; rather, God in the Holy Spirit
also remains the actual missionary, the one sent.
5. Since mission belongs to the heart of the Christian God

and to the essence of the Trinity, Christianity without a
concern for mission is unthinkable.
A presentation of the Christian teaching on God (referred to as “the doc-

trine of God”) without a presentation of missio dei is not possible. Whoev-
er wants to construct a form of Christian belief without a concern for
mission must construct another God than the Father, who has revealed
himself and still reveals himself in Christ and through the Holy Spirit.
Theology is always missional because the God of whom it speaks is mis-
sional.
6. Jesus chose the twelve disciples/apostles specifically to

prepare them for the task of world missions.
Jesus chose the apostles “that they might be with him and that he might
send them out to preach” (Mark 3:13-16). Their intensive training
through living with and working alongside Jesus thus prepared them for
fulfilling the Great Commission once they were sent out on their own.
The training that they received from the missionary par excellence, Jesus
Christ, did not happen randomly and casually, but according to Jesus’
conscious plan. This primarily becomes clear by the fact that (1) Jesus
first of all solely proclaims, (2) then proclaims while his disciples observe,
(3) then lets his disciples proclaim while he observes, (4) subsequently
sends his disciples out for a limited time on their own and talks about
their experience when they return, (5) and finally he sends them out
completely on their own, though as the ascended Lord he naturally stays
with them (Matthew 28:20). The disciples subsequently began to do the
same thing with other Christians. The first, limited sending is reported in
Matthew 10:1–11:1, Mark 6:7–13, and Luke 9:1–6. Jesus “sent out” (Mat-
thew 10:5) and “sent them out two by two” (Mark 6:7). Given this exam-
ple, the training of disciples in the direction of independence is a central
element of mission.
7. Jesus’ most important concern between his resurrection

and his ascension was world mission.
With respect to the time between Jesus’ resurrection and his ascension,
all four evangelists primarily communicate complementary justifications
for mission and commands to conduct world mission as the mandate that
the disciples received (above all Matthew 28:16–20; Mark 16:15–20; John
20:10–23, especially 21–23; Luke 24:13–53, especially 44–49; Acts 1:4–11).
Jesus’ various recorded statements demonstrate that during this period
of time, he proclaimed world mission in constantly new forms as the
most important result of his suffering, death, and resurrection.
8. Christianity worships its founder in the same way as God

himself.
Jesus is not only the originator or re-discoverer of metaphysical and ethi-

cal teachings for the church, like Buddha or Confucius. He is also not only
the one sent to receive revelation from a God who reveals himself, like
Moses or Mohammed. And he is not only an incarnation of the Lord of
the world who proclaims divine wisdom, like Krishna. Rather, he is all
these things together and, beyond that, he is God himself. He is, through
his birth, death on the cross, resurrection, and ascension, the focal point
and the turning point of world history and also the goal of world history,
in that he is the judge of the world in the last (final) judgment.
9. Mission is rooted in the marvelous eternal covenant of

election among the Father, the Son, who died for us while
we were still sinners, and the Holy Spirit, who was poured
out at Pentecost.
God’s eternal decree to elect people to salvation, people to whom he ap-

plies salvation by the Holy Spirit and for whom salvation has been ac-
complished by Christ, has its source and foundation in God alone (John
6:37, 44; Ephesians 1:4); Father, Son, and Holy Spirit joined together in a
missionary covenant. The motivation is God’s own love, his eternal mer-
cy, and his own glory. (Exodus 19:4–5; Hosea 11:1–4; Jeremiah 31:3). For us
humans this remains mysterious, far beyond our understanding, but a
proof of his unearned grace. The missionary covenant of God is not only a
matter of his covenant people; it also has to do with individuals (Matthew
22:14; John 15:19; Romans 8:29; 9:13–22) whom God has chosen for a par-
ticular purpose (Isaiah 43:20–21; 45:4).
The Bible contains innumerable texts indicating that God plans all events
from eternity and not only those that are good. Rather, evil cannot hap-
pen without his assent (Isaiah 45:5–6; Lamentations 3:37–38; the entire
book of Job). This also relates to salvation, for God pardons those whom
he chooses (2 Thessalonians 2:13–14; 2 Timothy 2:10). At the same time,
many Bible passages speak about individuals’ personal responsibility for
their life and salvation (Deuteronomy 30:15; John 5:40; Hebrews 4:2) or
about the responsibility of entire peoples. Today, in all Christian denomi-

nations there is a growing recognition that these two truths are not mu-
tually exclusive but rather complementary. After all, the Bible often ad-
dresses both of them in the same breath (John 6:37; Philippians 2:12–13;
Ephesians 2:8–10; 1 Corinthians 15:10).
10. Pentecost makes it clear that world mission in the power

of the Spirit is the most important mark of Jesus’ church.
Jesus instructed the disciples repeatedly to wait until the Holy Spirit
came before beginning their mission to all people (Mark 16:15–20; Acts
1:4–11). The Holy Spirit was to come in the place of Jesus to convince the
world of the gospel (John 16:7–11). When the Holy Spirit fell upon his
church, both the New Testament church and world mission began. On the
day of Pentecost (Acts 2:1–40), speaking in tongues and the miracle of
understanding on the part of hearers from all parts of the Roman Empire
made it clear that the gospel in the power of the Holy Spirit transcends
all language and cultural barriers.
Acts 1:8 clarifies what mission looks like: “But you will receive power
when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jeru-
salem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” Who
conducts world mission? Jesus (Matthew 16:18) and the Holy Spirit (Acts
1:8). It cannot occur without the Spirit of God. The Holy Spirit will “con-
vict the world” (John 16:8). The Holy Spirit is the guarantor of mission. If
Pentecost had never happened, there would be no world mission. Refer-
ence to Pentecost does not mean an individual should overstep proper
boundaries and limitations. Rather, Pentecost means God’s Spirit has be-
gun his work of world mission and has brought people into that activity.
11. Without the Holy Spirit, every form of world mission

and every mission strategy are doomed to fail.
Only the Holy Spirit can convict people of their sin (John 16:7–10), lead
people to the knowledge of God and of the saving work of Jesus, and
make them new people in Christ (John 3:5). Even if God enlists Christians
for work in world mission and wants them to use their intellect to reach
others (consider, for example, Paul’s many detailed travel plans and his
general strategy, as described in Romans 1 and 15 or in 1 Corinthians), all
such mission strategies are under the caveat of tentativeness, because
God alone decides whether they will lead to success (1 Corinthians 12:4–6;
Romans 1:13).
12. The topic of the history of salvation and of personal his-

tory with God is that God comes near to us. Herein lies a
significant difference between Christianity and Islam.
In Christian faith, God in his revelation comes “near” to people (Ephe-

sians 2:13, 17; cf. Hebrews 4:16). He comes to people, speaks with people
in a language that they can understand, and gives the relationship be-
tween God and man a sustainable foundation by binding himself to his
word as the one who is absolute faithfulness and enables authentic faith
and trust. Precisely for this reason, the continuing revelation of God in
salvation history edges toward a written version that makes reliability
more palpable and brings it closer to all people through human language.
For its part, written revelation again moves toward fulfillment in a man-
ner in which God comes even closer to us. God became human in Christ
and made his dwelling among us (John 1:14). In Christ, God is Immanuel,
“God with us” (Matthew 1:23). For that reason, the incarnation of God in
Jesus does not suspend the written revelation. Rather, it fulfills it as the
actual Word of God.
And yet, even that is not enough! God wants to come even closer to us.
After the resurrection, Jesus, who is true man and true God, left the earth
with his new body and sent in his place the Holy Spirit (John 16:7–11),
who can come closer to all of humanity than Jesus could. Since Pentecost,
the Spirit lives in all believers, testifies to their spirits (Romans 8:16; cf.
Romans 9:1), and gives them internal power to live according to the will
of God (Romans 8:3–4). God cannot come closer to us than that!
13. Though the individual side of the relationship to God is

important, there is no such thing as lone-ranger Christianity.
Rather, one is a Christian in community with Christ and his
body, the church—i.e., with all our brothers and sisters.
On one hand, it is true that an individual should not be showy in display-

ing his faith. Rather, the individual should pray to the Father privately
(Matthew 6:6). On the other hand, at the end of the Bible there is a formi-
dable picture of a vast flock worshiping God together (Revelation 7:9–10).
So, on one side, it can be seen that the Holy Spirit fills the individual
(Ephesians 3:16; 1 Corinthians 3:16; Romans 15:13), but also the Holy Spir-
it fills the entire church (Ephesians 2:21–22; 4:4) and simultaneously as-
signs to all believers the gifts of the Spirit. The result is that together
they serve to benefit the church (1 Corinthians 12:7, in the context of
12:1–13; Ephesians 4:11–13; 1 Peter 4.12–13). The individual nature of be-
ing a Christian is inseparably bound with service to a community, in
which we carry out our joint service for and with God.
The complementarity of personal faith and affiliation with a local church

congregation and the worldwide body of Christ should not be rendered
asunder.
14. The fruit of mission, and God’s chosen tool of mission, is

the body of Christ, the church, and indeed the universal
church of Jesus as well as the local church, according to the
New Testament example of an organized church congrega-
tion.
For this reason, the church carries many honorable and high designa-
tions. It is, for instance, the “bride” of Christ (Revelation 19:7; 21:2, 9). In-
deed, it is “the church of the living God, the pillar and foundation of the
truth” (1 Timothy 3:15).
Christ’s church, visibly assembled in its local form, which together prais-
es God and is also active in the world, is indispensable for mission. With
regard to the very first local church in Christian history, one reads: “They
devoted themselves to the apostles’ teaching and to the fellowship, to the
breaking of bread and to prayer” (Acts 2:42). This same church estab-
lished the first diaconate as a means of fighting poverty (Acts 6:1–5). And
Hebrews 10:24–25 justifies the necessity of Christians’ having regular fel-
lowship with other Christians: “And let us consider how we may spur one
another on toward love and good deeds. Let us not give up meeting to-
gether …” The church teaches, exhorts, and consoles.
15. Christian theological training of leading workers is root-

ed in the training of the disciples of Jesus or Paul’s workers
to become missionaries and inspiring church leaders; for
that reason, God’s mission must be seen as the foundation,
motivation, and goal of theological training.
The church cannot present and pursue special theology (the doctrine of
God) nor theology in the broadest sense without placing the missio dei in
the center, which both transcends and unifies all topics and questions to
be studied. For this reason, theological training has to be missional and
can never be purely theoretical. Theological training should motivate
and equip future leaders for the present implementation of the kingdom
of God.
Jesus chose the apostles “that they might be with him and that he might
send them out to preach” (Mark 3:14). Their intensive fellowship with
and dependence upon Jesus had as its goal their being sent out as mis-
sionaries. The disciples were not meant to always live in close fellowship
with Jesus. Rather, they were to continue Jesus’ mandate independently.
Theological training also has to have sending and the Great Commission
in mind, just as Jesus always had these same goals before his eyes when
training the disciples (Theses 6 and 7).
Jesus’ training of the disciples (Thesis 6) finds its continuation in Paul’s

discipling of fellow workers and the first church leaders. The letters to
the Thessalonians are the best witness to the fact that Paul, and more
specifically Paul and his co-workers (at that point Silas and Timothy; see
1 Thessalonians 1:1), not only proclaimed “simply with words” (1 Thessa-
lonians 1:5) and communicated “the gospel of God” (1 Thessalonians 2:8)
but were also prepared “to share … our lives as well” (1 Thessalonians
2:8).
Training through living together and through intensive cooperation

within a small group is not limited to the cases of Jesus and Paul. Rather,
this approach was understood as programmatic and is documented in 2
Timothy 2:2, where Paul described his discipling and his training of fu-
ture leaders as a continuing program: “And the things you have heard me
say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will
also be [or: should also be] qualified to teach others.” This is a command
as to how co-workers are to be trained. Training must assist those trained
to become independent, not promoting long-term dependence on their
trainer.
16. The spiritual success of world mission as the result of the

invisible Lordship of Jesus Christ has been guaranteed and
does not rest upon human activities or the condition of the
church. The spiritual success of world mission attests to the
Lordship of Jesus.
In the Great Commission according to Matthew, Jesus justifies world mis-

sion by saying, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to
me” (Matthew 28:18) and that he would always be with his church (Mat-
thew 28:20). The Great Commission is for that reason not only a com-
mand. Rather, it is also a promise, even a prophecy. Jesus himself will en-
sure that all peoples become followers, for, as Jesus says, “I will build my
church, and the gates of Hades will not overcome it” (Matthew 16:18).
So as to be unmistakably clear that it is Jesus and not his followers who

are the guarantors, Matthew reports directly prior to the Great Commis-
sion on how Jesus’ disciples received him: “but some doubted” (Matthew
28:17). Doubters could not guarantee the success of the mission.
The Revelation of John repeatedly announces that people of all languages

and cultures will belong to an innumerable throng of those who have
been redeemed: “And they sang a new song: ‘You are worthy to take the
scroll and to open its seals, because you were slain, and with your blood
you purchased men for God from every tribe and language and people
and nation. You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to serve our
God’ ” (Revelation 5:9–10; similarly Revelation 7:9; 10:11; 11:9; 13:7; 14:6;
17:15). This promise in the book of Revelation develops and fulfills a line
of promises found both the Old Testament book of Daniel and also in the
parables of Jesus. (See Thesis 17.)
17. Growth is included in the nature of God’s kingdom, as in

particular the book of Daniel makes clear in his prophetic
pictures and Jesus makes clear in several parables.
Nebuchadnezzar’s dream ends with a stone destroying a statue that re-

presents the kingdoms of the world (Daniel 2:34–35), even becoming a
“huge mountain” that “filled the whole earth” (Daniel 2:35; see also v. 45).
Daniel comments: “In the time of those kings, the God of heaven will set
up a kingdom that will never be destroyed, nor will it be left to another
people. It will crush all those kingdoms and bring them to an end, but it
will itself endure forever” (Daniel 2:44). Similarly, Daniel sees the end of
the worldly kingdoms as represented by beasts (7:9–14, 26–27). The end of
these kingdoms will come when the Son of man (Daniel 7:13)—a designa-
tion that Jesus later uses for himself—ascends into heaven and there
(with the ascension) receives authority, glory, and sovereign power, with
the result that “all peoples, nations and men of every language worshi-
ped him” (Daniel 7:14). This kingdom will be everlasting (Daniel 7:14, 27).
Whereas great political kingdoms will build up earthly power but then
crumble at some point, the Kingdom of God will always persist, grow, and
include all peoples.
Jesus actually established his kingdom at the time of the Romans—

beginning with his disciples and the first churches—and foretold in many
parables that it would grow until it fills the entire earth (e.g., the Parable
of the Weeds: Matthew 13:24–30, 36–43; the Parable of the Mustard Seed:
Matthew 13:31–32; the Parable of the Yeast: Matthew 13:33–35).
18. The promise of growth in the Old and New Testaments

relates to all levels: the internal as well as the external, the
spiritual and the material, the individual and the corporate
or communal, etc.
The internal and external growth of the kingdom of God and of the
church of Jesus Christ does not automatically mean that every individual
Christian church, denomination, or group participates in this growth.
God can indeed chasten his church or allow apostate churches to com-
pletely die out (see Revelation 2:5; Romans 11:20–21). Old Testament Isra-
el always found means to continue, often with only a “stump” out of
which new branches grew; however, large parts of Israel were judged. In
the same way, the church of Jesus has a guarantee of existence, but this
guarantee does not apply to every component part of Christianity.
The growth that is promised is no reason to feel Christian superiority, for

God grants the growth despite (not because of) our participation. Paul also
admonishes us, “So, if you think you are standing firm, be careful that
you don’t fall!” (1 Corinthians 10:12).
19. The histories of salvation and mission belong inseparably

together, and for this reason our future, prophesied hope
(eschatology) is integral to world mission.
The history of salvation is rooted in the Triune God. This history unfolds
in a triple set of stages, running from creation through the fall of man-
kind toward the grand goal of eternal fellowship with God in a new heav-
en and a new earth, beginning with the return of Jesus. Then the entire
creation will live in peace (“shalom”), harmony, and justice under the
lordship of Christ (Ephesians 1:10; Colossians 1:20). For that reason, the
history of creation, humanity, and God’s mission is to be understood as
simply linear and teleological, not cyclical. This truth already applies in
the Old Testament and especially with regard to God’s covenant with
Abraham (Genesis 12:1–3), which was designed for the blessing of all peo-
ples and for the coming of the Messiah.
In his ministry, Jesus seized upon prophetic and apocalyptic elements of

Old Testament eschatology, both to fulfill them and to expand them into
a still greater future vision. This fulfilled and expanded eschatology en-
compasses the creation, the proclamation that the kingdom of God is
near in Jesus, and the future moment when the kingdom of God will
comprise the entire world, because all peoples will have heard the gospel
and Jesus will come again (Matthew 24:14; 26:13; 28:19; Mark 13:10; 14:9).
Ultimately, it encompasses the eternal kingdom of God in which believers
will sit together along with Abraham, with all the believers throughout
history, and with Jesus himself. According to Matthew, the Great Com-
mission clearly demonstrates its eschatological dimension under the
Lordship of Jesus.
For that reason, Paul and the other apostles linked the eschatology real-
ized in Christ (most clearly recognized in the resurrection, as indicated in
Ephesians 1:18–21) with the proclamation of the realized kingdom of God,
in which God will make all his promises and prophecies true. World mis-
sion is the time between Pentecost and the return of Christ; it is framed
by fulfilled and unfulfilled eschatology. In the final event, it even goes
beyond humanity to comprise the entire “creation” (Romans 8:20; see
8:17–25).
20. To become a follower of Jesus means to escape judg-

ment here and in eternity and to personally experience the
power of the resurrection.
For this reason, a personal hope for the future and the individual’s escha-
tology, as well as a future hope and eschatology of the entirety of hu-
mankind and, indeed, the entire creation, is at the center of the gospel.
In addition to individual eschatology, general eschatology is also closely

linked with the history of salvation and the gospel (Romans 8:17–25).
Here I am limiting myself to the areas of eschatology that, according to
early confessions of faith, are binding for all Christian churches and are
common to all. For instance, it is said regarding Jesus in the Apostles’
Creed that “he will come again to judge the living and the dead.” The
creed closes with the words, “I believe in … the resurrection of the body
and the life everlasting.” The glorious return of Christ, the judgment, and
the final resurrection mark the end of world mission and the beginning
of eternal life, to which world mission alludes and toward which it aims.
21. World mission speaks of both judgment and grace, death

and resurrection, warning and joyful anticipation, and it does
not allow itself to be taken in with one-sided optimism or
pessimism.
In one of his parables regarding the growth of the kingdom of God, the
Parable of the Weeds (Matthew 13:24–30, 36–43), Jesus states clearly that
not only the kingdom of God but also evil will prosper and mature. Evil
may mature only because God also allows his church to grow and mature.
Were the church of Jesus not in the world, the final judgment would have
come upon the earth long ago (cf. Genesis 18:22–23).
Wherever the church and the world become too optimistic, we must so-
berly proclaim that this world is fallen, humankind is evil, and the world
can be saved only through hope in Christ. Wherever the church and the
world become too pessimistic, the great hope for the future must be pro-
claimed, which casts a shadow over the here-and-now and gives us a
taste of things to come.
In situations ripe for judgment, Christians should not spread panic, res-
ignation, and an end-times attitude. Rather, Christians should pray and
act for their people as Abraham did (Genesis 18:20–33) and not behave
like Jonah (Jonah 4:1–5) or Jesus’ disciples (Luke 9:54–55), who desired
judgment and doom. They should resemble Abraham, Moses, and the
many prophets who have stood in the gap for the church and the world
(Psalm 106:23; Ezekiel 22:30, cf. 13:5). In such situations ripe for judgment,
the church must first be self-critical, repent, and change directions,
above all because doing so can also lead to a change of direction in a soci-
ety or societies: “If my people, who are called by my name, will humble
themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways,
then will I hear from heaven and will forgive their sin and will heal their
land” (2 Chronicles 7:14).
When everything seems catastrophic for believers, perhaps because of

severe persecution and martyrdom, believers should seek to also cele-
brate the grace already received, the resurrection, and our hope for the
life to come.
22. The growth and the final success of the kingdom of God
do not exclude the suffering of Jesus’ Church. Rather, it en-
compasses suffering.
Paul did not become arrogant or unrealistic as a result of knowing the

peace with God that is achieved by Jesus’ grace. Rather, he wrote, “Not
only so, but we also rejoice in our sufferings, because we know that suf-
fering produces perseverance; perseverance, character; and character,
hope. And hope does not disappoint us, because God has poured out his
love into our hearts by the Holy Spirit, whom he has given us” (Romans
5:3–5).
23. World mission is accompanied by martyrdom. Christian

suffering is a continuation of Christ’s suffering and receives
its distinctiveness from this.
The church’s suffering cannot be understood unless one looks at Calvary.

Martyrdom belongs to the nature of the church, although it is never vol-
untarily sought. Suffering is an integral feature of the church and its mis-
sion: “We must go through many hardships to enter the kingdom of God”
(Acts 14:22). For that reason, Paul wrote, “In fact, everyone who wants to
live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted” (2 Timothy 3:12). And
from the Old Testament Paul draws the following teaching: “At that time
the son born in the ordinary way persecuted the son born by the power
of the Spirit. It is the same now” (Galatians 4:29). Every Old Testament
prophet was persecuted (Acts 7:51–53; 1 Thessalonians 2:14–15; Hebrews
11:35–38; 12:1). Indeed, Jesus himself announced to his disciples, “If they
persecuted me, they will persecute you also” (John 15:20).
24. Persecution does not automatically lead to church

growth or to purification and strengthening of the faith.
Persecution can lead to a strengthening of the church, as has occurred

recently in China. However, it can also weaken the Jesus’ church, for in-
stance in the prior German Democratic Republic. Persecution can also
even completely extinguish the church, as has repeatedly happened
throughout history on a regional basis, such as in areas of the Near East.
Even if martyrdom should sometimes lead to abundant fruit, there is no
automatic relationship between the two. Rather, it is a matter of the
grace of God.
According to the Parable of the Sower (Matthew 13:3–8, 20–22), persecu-

tion of and pressure upon the faith are as dangerous as wealth and greed.
Which is a greater threat for the faith, persecution or wealth? Christians
in the West have tended to glorify Christian persecution, and Christians
in countries where they experience persecution have tended to glorify
freedom and affluence. The success of mission and evangelization cannot
be forced or automatically expected, either through great freedom or
through persecution.
25. Christianity is not a fair-weather religion whose follow-

ers encounter no problems and know nothing about difficul-
ties.
The dubious nature of all teachings promising that a truly believing

Christian will experience only wealth, health, or other blessings is clear
from Romans 5:1–5. I emphasize the word only here, because God can and
will give all these things to those (Matthew 6:25–34) who keep his com-
mands and serve the cause of peace within the creation, but at the time
that he considers appropriate.
Christian fair-weather prophets cut believers off from the invaluable ex-
perience of a significant implication and application of their faith, name-
ly patience, testing, and hope, three things that even the Lord Jesus
Christ, our role model, had to learn (Hebrews 5:8).
Section II: The Entirety of the Holy Scriptures Justifies World Mission 37
SECTION II: THE ENTIRETY OF THE HOLY SCRIPTURES

JUSTIFIES WORLD MISSION
26. In the New Testament, world mission is not primarily

justified by Jesus’ Great Commission but rather by the Old
Testament.
If one looks at the New Testament passages on the justification of mission

efforts, it is astonishing to observe that at those points where Jesus or
specifically Jesus’ Great Commission is quoted, the Old Testament is al-
most always quoted as well. The Great Commission is the fulfillment of
the Old Testament. In a certain sense, it was the completion of that which
had long been foreseen, prepared for, and partially fulfilled but was now
finally to be placed into high gear.
The letter to the Romans provides an obvious example. In this letter, Paul
continuously quotes from the Old Testament (e.g., Habakkuk 2:4) to justi-
fy mission. In Romans 15:14, he seamlessly segues from Old Testament
quotations about the peoples of the world and goes directly to his practi-
cal mission plans, repeating much of what he had already said in the in-
troduction. If one contrasts the introduction (Romans 1:1–15) with the
concluding section of Romans (15:14–16:27), one recognizes mission as
the current occasion for the letter and in the process finds the topic of
the letter in the first and last verses (Romans 1:1–6; 16:25–27). “Obedience
to the faith” is to be proclaimed and planted among all peoples, as the Old
Testament had stated in advance (compare, for example, Romans 15:21
with Isaiah 52:15 and the broader context of Isaiah 52:5–15, from which
Paul often quotes in Romans).
Acts 13:46–49 reports that Paul and Barnabas were rejected by the Jews
and explains why they turned to the Gentiles in Antioch. In this connec-
tion, they quote Isaiah 49:6 (= Acts 13:47): “For this is what the Lord
commanded us: ‘I have made you a light for the Gentiles, that you may
bring salvation to the ends of the earth.’ ” The context of the passage in
Isaiah makes it clear that the apostles are taking up a Great Commission
proclaimed already in the Old Testament: “It is too small a thing for you
to be my servant to restore the tribes of Jacob and bring back those of Is-
rael I have kept. I will also make you a light for the Gentiles, that you may
bring my salvation to the ends of the earth” (Isaiah 49:6).
In his final address to the Apostolic Council in Acts 15:13–21, James justi-
fies Paul’s right to proclaim the gospel to Gentiles by using Amos 9:11–12
(see also Isaiah 61:4; Psalm 22:27–28; Zechariah 8:22). There, the rebuild-
ing of “David’s fallen tent” (for James, the church), the remnant of the
Jews, is brought together with those Gentiles who come in (“many peo-
ples and the inhabitants of many cities”). As a justification for preaching
the gospel to the Gentile Cornelius, Peter links Jesus’ Great Commission
to the Old Testament: “He commanded us to preach to the people and to
testify that he is the one whom God appointed as judge of the living and
the dead. All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes
in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name” (Acts 10:42–43).
27. The Old Testament rationale for New Testament mis-

sion shows that world mission is a direct continuation of
God’s actions of salvation history since the Fall of man and
the choosing of Abraham.
In the Great Commission according to Luke, Jesus expressly confirmed

the Old Testament’s justification of New Testament mission: “ ‘This is
what I told you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled
that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the
Psalms.’ Then he opened their minds so they could understand the Scrip-
tures. He told them, ‘This is what is written: The Christ will suffer and
rise from the dead on the third day, and repentance and forgiveness of
sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.
You are witnesses of these things’ ” (Luke 24:43–48).
These words from Jesus do not simply indicate that his coming, the cross,
and the resurrection were described in all the several parts of the Old
Testament. Rather, world mission is also directly mentioned, in that for-
giveness would be proclaimed to all nations.
28. The choosing of the Old Testament people of the cove-

nant occurred with regard to reaching all peoples, such that
world mission is already a topic found in the Old Testament.
Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob were called so that all peoples of the earth
could be blessed (Genesis 12:3; 18:18; 22:17; 26:4; 28:14). Jonah was wrong
when he desired salvation exclusively for the Jews and envisioned only
judgment for heathen peoples (Jonah 4:1–3).
The promise to the patriarchs is repeatedly cited as the reason for mis-
sion efforts among non-Jews (Luke 1:54–55, 72; Acts 3:25–26; Romans
4:13–25; Ephesians 3:3–4; Galatians 3:7–9, 14; Hebrews 6:13–20; 11:12).
29. For this reason, in the Old Testament there are already
many examples of Gentiles hearing the message of God
through the Jews and finding faith in the one true God.
Moreover, many passages from the Old Testament prophets
are directed at Gentile peoples.
The book of Ruth reports on the conversion of a Gentile, and the book of
Jonah reports that Jonah went on a missionary journey to Nineveh, de-
spite his initial desire to avoid making the trip. As a result, Nineveh was
converted. Virtually all the Old Testament prophets called upon Gentile
peoples to repent. Naaman the Syrian, Moses’ father-in-law, and the
prostitute Rahab are only three of many examples of people who were
born Gentiles but turned to the living God. Circulars by world rulers di-
rected at all peoples, in which they praise the God of Israel, are frequent-
ly found in the Old Testament (including the books of Daniel, Esther, Ez-
ra, and Nehemiah).
30. Accordingly, world mission efforts cannot be presented

and practiced independently of the Old Testament, the his-
tory of salvation in the Old Testament, and the destiny of
the Jewish people.
Paul documents this truth above all in Romans 9–11. In the process, two
sides have to be considered regarding the relationship of Christian mis-
sion to the Jewish people: the election of the Jews, on one hand, and their
prevailing disobedience on the other hand. “As far as the gospel is con-
cerned, they are enemies on your account; but as far as election is con-
cerned, they are loved on account of the patriarchs” (Romans 11:28). Paul
also makes it clear that the future turning of the people of Israel to their
Messiah Jesus Christ will have unimagined positive effects on the evange-
lization of all peoples (Romans 11:15, 24–26).
31. The letter to the Romans also demonstrates that world

mission has to rest upon healthy biblical teaching and that a
healthy systematic theology always leads to mission.
The letter to the Romans is written from the standpoint of practical mis-
sion work and seeks to establish a foundation for the legitimacy and ne-
cessity of global proclamation of the gospel. The letter to the Romans is
at the same time a systematic biblical presentation of the gospel and of
the Christian faith. It depicts Paul as a missionary with a deeply moved
heart and soul as well as a highly educated theologian whom God used to
formulate significant portions of the New Testament.
In the letter to the Romans, Paul wishes to proclaim the gospel to all peo-
ple without exception, regardless of their language, culture,
race/ethnicity (“Greeks and non-Greeks,” Romans 1:14), education, or so-
cial class (“both the wise and the foolish,” Romans 1:14). It is for that rea-
son that he wishes to come to Rome (Romans 1:15). From this practical
missionary concern, Paul directly transitions to the primary topic. In
Romans 1:16–17, Paul begins his instruction with “For … .” In the end,
Paul returns to his practical missionary concerns. Paul thus substantiates
by way of instruction in Romans 1:16–15:13 what he wants to do practi-
cally according to Romans 1:8–15 and 15:14–16:27. The “obedience of
faith” has to be comprehensively presented and proclaimed and planted

in all peoples.
Whoever only conducts missions practically and thinks that he can

thereby dispense with doctrine ends up conducting mission only on his
own behalf and disregarding why God has said what he has given us in
the Scriptures.
SECTION III: MISSION IN LIGHT OF CULTURAL DIVERSITY
32. The diversity of peoples and cultures is principally not a

consequence of sin but rather desired by God. What is to be
discarded from a culture is only that which expressly con-
tradicts God’s holy will, and not the diversity of human ex-
pression and lifestyle.
God is the Creator of all peoples: “From one man he made every nation of
men, that they should inhabit the whole earth: and he determined the
times for them and the exact places where they should live” (Acts 17:26;
cf. Deuteronomy 32:7–9; Psalm 74:17; 86:9). For that reason, a Christian
must love people from all cultures and respect the otherness of other cul-
tures (Revelation 1:6–8; Psalm 66:8).
The variety of distinct cultures and languages is not to be understood

negatively as a consequence of sin. To get an appropriate perspective on
the multiplicity of cultures around the world, one should look carefully at
what God did through the confusion of languages at the building of the
Tower of Babel (Genesis 11:1–9), and especially notice how this relates to
the teaching of the previous parts of the book of Genesis. The sin to
which God responded at Babel was not only arrogance, seen in the peo-
ple’s desire “that we may make a name for ourselves”; in their sin they
also desired a city with a large tower, “otherwise we will be scattered
over the face of the whole earth.” They were resisting God’s plan that
people actively begin inhabiting the entire planet. Through the confusion
of languages, God restrained their arrogance but also restored humanity
to the destiny and mandate, indeed even the command that he had given
humankind, which was to spread throughout the entire earth (“fill the
earth,” Genesis 1:28; 9:1). He envisioned the splitting up of humanity into
a diversity of families, peoples, and cultures as well as professions, abili-
ties, and services. As we understand the book of Genesis, it is a positive
development that from the sons of Noah “came the people who were
scattered over the earth” (Genesis 9:19) and that “the maritime peoples
spread out into their territories by their clans within their nations, each
with its own language” (Genesis 10:5). For this reason, the emergence of
Section III: Mission in Light of Cultural Diversity 43
individual peoples can be explained through family trees (Genesis 10:1–

32), at the end of which one reads: “From these the nations spread out
over the earth after the flood.” Up to the present day, cultures and lan-
guages continuously change with each new generation, and in fact new
cultures gradually develop in the process.
God repeatedly announced in the Old Testament that he envisioned the

salvation of all peoples (e.g., Genesis 12:3; Isaiah 49:6) in such a manner
that does not indicate that the existence of multiple people groups and
cultures is a problem. Their problem is the lack of salvation. Jonah’s Great
Commission illustrates God’s intent that salvation be proclaimed to all
peoples already in Old Testament times. Pentecost makes it clear that Je-
sus’ church transcends all cultural and language barriers. The church is
for that reason inherently multicultural (Revelation 5:9–10; 7:9; 10:11;
11:9; 13:7; 14:6; 17:15; Daniel 7:13–14; Ephesians 2:11–19).
33. Christians have been freed from all sorts of cultural

bondage. They no longer have to recognize human tradi-
tions and commands in addition to God’s commands.
This becomes particularly clear in Mark 7:1–13, where Jesus vehemently

criticized the Pharisees because they raised their human culture to the
level of God’s obligatory commands. “You have a fine way of setting aside
the commands of God in order to observe your own traditions!” (Mark
7:9). We are always in danger of wrongly absolutizing our own traditions
(even our religious traditions) and making them the standard by which
other cultures are measured. In so doing, we place ourselves in the posi-
tion of God, who alone is the lawgiver (James 4:12) and who alone has the
right to set standards by which all cultures are to be measured.
34. Christians can judge other cultures in light of the Bible

when and if they have learned to distinguish between their
own cultures, even their own devout culture, and the com-
mands of God that are valid for all cultures.
Mark 7:1–13 is again the best starting point. Very honorable, pious mo-
tives initially prompted the Pharisees to issue numerous guidelines in
addition to the word of God—and even against God’s word—and to make
them binding for everyone. Jesus criticized them because they had made
themselves into lawgivers alongside God: “They worship me in vain; their
teachings are but rules taught by men” (Mark 7:7; Matthew 15:9).
Beyond the truth claims that undergird Christian mission, there should
be no claim to superiority on the part of one’s own culture above another
culture. There should also be no claim to superiority of one’s own reli-
gious culture or expression of Christianity. Unfortunately, due to political
and national issues, there have been times when Christians have export-
ed their cultures, what Jesus described as “rules taught by men,” along
with the gospel. At this point, Christians should also make a clear distinc-
tion between the church and state, recognizing that knowledge of the
truths of Jesus does not make one infallible in questions of culture and
politics. Indeed, Christians are citizens living among other citizens, just
like everyone else. Colonialism and racism must be kept separate from
Christian proclamation.
35. No religion contains such self-criticism in its fundamen-

tal writings as Old Testament Judaism and New Testament
Christianity.
Jesus rejects the words of the Pharisees, “God, I thank you that I am not
like other men,” and praises the words of the tax collector, “God have
mercy on me, a sinner” (Luke 18:11–14). Faith begins in the Bible with the
recognition of one’s own inadequacy. Christians cannot back away from
this reality, even when discussing questions of ultimate truth.
There is no other religion in which the faith’s adherents are depicted in

such a bad light as in the Jewish and Christian Scriptures. The mistakes of
their most important leaders are laid unsparingly bare; for example, Mo-
ses, David, and Paul were all murderers; and Peter committed the worst:
the betrayal of Jesus. God had to use a rooster to bring Peter to his senses!
The fact that Jews and Christians are sinners and capable of evil is vividly
clear in the Bible. Most of the time, the primary focus is not on the atroci-
ties and errors of heathen peoples but on the apparent or actual people of
God. The Bible does not recognize belief and unbelief according to racial,
ethnic, or national membership. Gentiles and unbelieving Jews are for
that reason labeled with the same words in the Old Testament as well as
in the New Testament.
Christianity itself becomes an abhorrent religion if it renounces the true

power of faith (2 Timothy 3:5: “having a form of godliness but denying its
power”) or when it places human laws and commands in the place of di-
vine revelation (Mark 7:1–13; Isaiah 28:13–14). For instance, Jews are crit-
icized because they overlook that which is essential, namely Jesus (John
5:39), and because they strive toward God but do not actually live in a
suitable manner (Romans 2).
36. To show regard for an individual in the church on the ba-

sis of cultural, economic, educational, ethnic, racial, or other
points of view contradicts the nature of God and of the
Christian faith.
God does not show favoritism. Not only are state courts instructed not to
show partiality (Deuteronomy 1:17; 10:17–18; 16:18–20; 2 Chronicles 19:7;
Proverbs 18:5; 24:23; Job 13:10; Isaiah 3:9), but New Testament churches
are also to reject any favoritism (Colossians 3:25; Ephesians 6:9). James
writes: “My brothers, as believers in our glorious Lord Jesus Christ, don't
show favoritism. … If you really keep the royal law found in Scripture,
‘Love your neighbor as yourself,’ you are doing right. But if you show fa-
voritism, you sin and are convicted by the law as lawbreakers. … Speak
and act as those who are going to be judged by the law that gives free-
dom” (James 2:1–12).
For this reason, every form of racism must be foreign to the New Testa-
ment church. Humanity is a single race and family in which all individu-
als, peoples, and ethnic groups are equal and equally worthy. Jesus died
for all people, and people from all cultures and languages will praise him
in heaven for eternity (Revelation 4:11; 21:1).
37. Christians are citizens of the world!
At all times, Christians should properly have the entire world in view.
They should never have only their own family, their own people, or their
own country in view. They do not believe in a tribal god, but rather in the
Creator who has made the entire world and all peoples and wants all to
be redeemed (Genesis 1:1; John 3:16; Matthew 28:18-20; Revelation 4:11;
21:1). They also do not belong to an international club with narrow-
minded concerns. Rather, they belong to Jesus’ international church,
which is not bound by language, people, culture, social class, age, gender,
or any other factor that separates people (Romans 1:14; Ephesians 1:13–
14; Revelation 5:9–10; Revelation 21:24–25). And they belong to the
church, whose mandate could not be greater and more international:
“Therefore go and make disciples of all nations” (Matthew 28:19).
Indeed, Christians want every individual soul as well as the entire world
to be saved, and this desire should be expressed visibly as well as invisi-
bly! Their perspective is private when they are praying, but it is also very
public. It has to do with the individual’s relationship to God and with the
entire world’s relationship to God. It also affects our relationship with
our immediate neighbor and our relationship with all fellow human be-
ings.
Christian hope is hope for all cultures and nations: “In his name the na-
tions will put their hope” (Matthew 12:21; similarly Romans 15:12). God
does not show partiality; “For this we labor and strive, that we have put
our hope in the living God, who is the Savior of all men, and especially of
those who believe” (1 Timothy 4:10).
38. Since Christians belong solely to Christ and are solely

under the restraint of his word, they not only see their own
and other cultures critically but are obligated, out of love, to

adapt to the culture of others.
In 1 Corinthians 9:19–23, Paul justifies the necessity of adapting to others

in evangelization: “Though I am free and belong to no man, I make my-
self a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible. To the Jews I became
like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one un-
der the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those
under the law. 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. To the weak I became weak, to win
the weak. I have become all things to all men so that by all possible
means I might save some. I do all this for the sake of the gospel that I may
share in its blessings.”
Luther poignantly generalized and summarized this complementarity: “A

Christian man is the most free lord of all, and subject to none; a Christian
man is the most dutiful servant of all, and subject to every one.”
39. Christians are responsible not only for declaring the

message of redemption in Jesus Christ but also for ensuring
that it is understood.
A Christian accustomed to his own culture may not notice that in the best
case he is not understood and in the worst case he could actually hinder
(cf. 1 Corinthians 9:12) an understanding of the gospel due to his cultural
baggage.
The fact that the words of Jesus Christ and the gospel about his work on
earth were not disseminated in Aramaic (or Hebrew) as part of the Bible
but rather in a Greek translation or via Greek authorship establishes that
it was intended to reach people in a language that was as widely under-
standable as possible.
Additionally, the gospel of Jesus Christ was not announced simply in one
document. Rather, the one gospel is found in four recorded versions
(Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John) aimed at four different target groups.
This rationale also establishes that the Bible should be translated into
every language and that the gospel can and should be expressed in every
dialect and every cultural form.
40. World mission does not bypass preexisting sociological

facts; rather, its strategy is determined by those facts. For
that reason, Paul founded churches in areas with a high
population density, left it to those churches to penetrate
their surrounding regions, and went on to found new
churches in areas unreached by the gospel.
Paul primarily founded churches in centrally located cities, quickly in-

stalled elders whom he had trained, and traveled on. The complete evan-
gelistic penetration of a region with the gospel was left to the city
church. For example, we read the following about the church in Thessa-
lonica: “And so you became a model to all the believers in Macedonia and
Achaia. The Lord's message rang out from you not only in Macedonia and
Achaia—your faith in God has become known everywhere. Therefore we
do not need to say anything about it” (1 Thessalonians 1:7-8).
When Paul wrote in Romans 15:19 that “from Jerusalem all the way
around to Illyricum, I have fully proclaimed the gospel of Christ,” he did
not mean that he proclaimed the gospel to every single individual there.
Rather, he meant that he had founded churches in all the important are-
as. The same meaning pertains to his statement that “now that there is
no more place for me to work in these regions” (Romans 15:23). Paul was
moving on to look for areas with people “who have not heard” (Romans
15:20), where preaching had not occurred (Romans 15:21), and where no
indigenous churches existed.
41. Not only is the proclamation of the gospel to be formu-

lated for various cultures, but the gospel should be encultur-
ated in the life of each community and its entire culture.
Just as God spoke through prophets in the people’s language, and just as
Christ became a human being in space and time whom people could see
and understand—in the process linking the word of God to the history
and culture of all peoples—so it is God’s desire that the gospel today
should not only reach people from all cultures but penetrate them and
demonstrate through their new expressions that the gospel is not bound
to any certain space or time, let alone to any respective preacher.
Since God himself has brought about the diversity of cultures (Thesis 32),
he does not want to limit this diversity through the gospel. Rather, he
wants to strengthen and refine it. It is not a coincidence that through
world mission—above all through the work of Bible translation—many
small cultures and languages of the world have been retained.
Let us consider a parallel to our individuality. Does God destroy our per-
sonality when we become believers? Does he make everyone the same? If
that were the case, something would be terribly wrong. After all, God
created us with distinctive personalities, and he loves the tremendous
diversity which he has created in humanity. God does not employ coer-
cion, so that in redemption he forces us to become something truly other
than what he created us to be. This was the point of wisdom in older the-
ological slogans about redemption renewing creation or about grace re-
storing nature. Therefore, coercion and compulsion are the marks of evil,
indeed of the devil (e.g., Mark 5:25). Evil and the devil do not support or
help us to become our true selves; rather, they mislead and coerce us and
bring us to the point of sinning before we manage to reflect on things.
The devil is the enemy of self-control, of deliberation on what is truly
good for us and whence the power comes to implement it.
In contrast, God gives us everything, and he wants the distinctive per-

sonalities he has created to demonstrate self-control and act calmly and
with a level head so that God will then move within us with the power of
the Holy Spirit. To become a Christian does not mean to lose one’s per-
sonality. Rather, it means to gain one’s personality, freed from evil bal-
last. When God’s Spirit works in and through individuals, it makes them
into true personalities and not into marionettes. As a clear illustration of
this fact, various gifts of the Spirit are granted to every Christian so that
everyone can serve the same purpose, but each in his own particular way
(Romans 12:4–7; 1 Peter 4:12–13; 1 Corinthians 12; Ephesians 4:11–13).
Something similar applies to cultures. God does not destroy them; rather,
God’s Spirit frees them from evil and leads them to greater blossoming. In
the end, a divine diversity of cultures is erected, as seen in the church of
Jesus Christ around the world, not a uniform church or a uniform culture.
Section IV: Mission and Religious Freedom—TWO Sides of the Same Coin 51
SECTION IV: MISSION AND RELIGIOUS FREEDOM—TWO

SIDES OF THE SAME COIN
42. Dialogue, in the sense of peaceful contention, honest and

patient listening, self-critical reflection, winsome and mod-
est presentation of one’s own point of view, and learning
from others, is a Christian virtue.
A dialogue between convinced Christians and adherents of other reli-

gions and worldviews is possible in the sense that Christians should will-
ingly speak with others peacefully about their faith (1 Peter 3:15–16: “Be
prepared to give an answer … But do this with gentleness and respect”),
willingly listen to others (James 1:19), learn from the life experiences of
others in many areas (see the entire book of Proverbs), and remain open
to having their own lives and behavior questioned.
43. Dialogue in the sense of giving up Christian truth claims

or giving up world mission is inconceivable without abandon-
ing Christianity.
If one interprets dialogue to mean suspending the innermost truth claims

of Jesus Christ (John 14:6), of the gospel (Romans 1:16–17; 2:16), and of the
word of God (2 Timothy 3:16–17; Hebrews 4:12–13; John 17:17), or as sus-
pending the missional essence of the Christian faith (either temporarily
or in principle) and placing biblical revelation on a par with the revela-
tions of other religions (either fully or in part), then dialogue cannot be
reconciled with Christian mission or with the essence of Christianity.
The truth claim of the Christian faith is expressed above all in its teach-
ing on the final judgment and on eternal life. Hebrews 6:1–2 speaks of
“the resurrection of the dead and eternal judgment” as two of the six
most important foundations of the faith. The church has held to these
truths throughout all times, as demonstrated by its confession of faith:
“he will come to judge the living and the dead.”
However, that conviction also implies that we Christians must leave

judgment up to God and do not know his judgment in advance. Christians
are glad that God himself is the judge and that every final judgment is
withheld. Only God himself can look into the heart of an individual, and
in the end we do not know his judgment: “Man looks at the outward ap-
pearance, but the Lord looks at the heart” (1 Samuel 17:7).
44. Paul’s address in Athens shows how good and important

it is to study other religions and worldviews, including their
texts, and to adjust the terminology and starting point of
our proclamation so as to address the adherents of other re-
ligions and worldviews intellectually and linguistically.
According to the book of Acts, the apostles engaged the mission discus-
sion precisely at those points where the Christian worldview and listen-
ers’ worldviews diverged, while simultaneously developing whatever
common presuppositions were to be found. For that reason, when they
spoke with Jews, they did not discuss the creation and the inspiration of
the Old Testament. Rather, they entered directly into discussion about
Jesus Christ and placed their presentation of Christ into the unfolding
story of God’s redemptive work since the earliest times in the Old Testa-
ment. With the Gentiles, they went significantly further back and also
discussed creation, explaining what could be known and was presup-
posed about the Creator in the respective culture and then presented the
biblical testimony (e.g., Acts 14:8–18; 17:16–34). For this reason, Paul was
able to attest to an awareness of the existence of the Creator by reference
to quotations from Greek philosophers in his famous speech in the Are-
opagus in Athens (Acts 17:16–34) without expressly reverting to the bibli-
cal testimony.
This address demonstrates that Paul had studied the Greek philosophers
intensively and had specifically planned his address for this particular
audience. He also did not simply revert to generally known dictums. Ra-
ther, he also relied on obscure texts. This strategy is illustrated by the
fact that in Titus 1:12 Paul quoted Epimenides, whom he also cited in Acts
17:28. Paul understood the philosophers and paraphrased their thoughts,
for instance in pointing out that God does not need any help from people
(Acts 17:25). That thought did indeed contradict Greek religious practice
but could be found almost word for word in Plato, Euripides, and other
Greek philosophers.
Paul’s address thus becomes the classic example of a missions sermon. It

has a lot to say to a missionary today, not only with regard to content but
also in terms of the manner by which one should proceed. In Acts 14:15–
17, Paul proceeded very similarly with respect to the worshipers of Zeus,
even though we do not come across quotations from philosophers at that
point—perhaps because of the less educated audience or simply due to
the brief form of reporting. Many commentators have pointed out that
the address in Acts 17 is only a practical application of the first chapters
of the letter to the Romans (especially Romans 1:17–2:4).
45. Ethics and mission belong together. Christian witness is

not an ethics-free space; it requires an ethical foundation so
that we truly do what Christ has instructed us to do.
In 1 Peter 3:15–17, one finds an instance of complementarity. On one

hand, we learn of the necessity of Christian testimony, indeed apologetics
(in the Greek text, the word apologia originally signified an address used
to defend oneself before a court). On the other hand, we are also told to
demonstrate “gentleness and respect,” thus acknowledging the dignity of
other human beings: “Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone
who asks you to give the reason (apologia) for the hope that you have. But
do this with gentleness and respect.” The dignity of human beings does
not allow us to hide our hope. Rather, we want to express it clearly, ex-
plain it, and defend it. And yet, being challenged with questions behind
which evil intentions lie does not authorize us to trample our question-
er’s dignity underfoot. Both sides complement each other, in the same
way that both are essential building blocks of our faith.
According to 1 Peter 3:15–17, people do not speak directly with God when
they speak with us. On one hand, we can certainly be God’s messengers
and bear witness to the hope that is in us. On the other hand, we are
saved solely through God’s grace and not based on our own virtue. We
want people to find peace with God, receive his forgiveness, and trust
God as the sole truth. However, they have not sinned against us. They
should not bow before us; we are not the embodiment of truth nor are we
in possession of the truth in everything we say. No Christian is a “Doctor

Know-It-All.” Rather, Christians are normal people who have special
knowledge only insofar as they bear witness to the revealed truth of Jesus
Christ and the gospel as written in the Bible, and to their personal expe-
rience of it.
Whoever presumes to have found the truth in Jesus—the truth about our
relationship to God and how we find peace with God through grace, for-
giveness, and redemption—and invokes the written revelation of Judeo-
Christian tradition must simultaneously take into consideration every-
thing that the Scriptures teach regarding content and demeanor, which
represents serious restraints on how we converse with someone who
thinks differently. Truth and love (Ephesians 4:15) belong together, espe-
cially in dialogue and in missionary witness.
46. Gentleness is not only an inevitable consequence of the

fact that Christians proclaim the God of love and should
love our neighbor. Rather, it is also a consequence of the
knowledge that Christians are themselves only pardoned
sinners and are not God.
Our partner in conversation needs to be reconciled with our Creator, not

with us. For that reason, we can always step back, admit our own finite-
ness and shortcomings, and point out clearly that we can only claim au-
thority with regard to another person insofar as we genuinely and under-
standably proclaim the good news. Showing esteem for people is a
consequence of the fact that we look at people with God’s eyes, i.e., as his
creatures, made in the image of God. That prohibits us from treating any-
one as sub-human or as mentally inferior if he or she disagrees with us.
Christians do not have an answer to every question. Rather, they can only
defend God’s message where God has revealed himself throughout the
course of history in the Scriptures and in Christ. Jesus strictly distin-
guished between God’s commands and the commands of men within
their respective religious traditions and cultures (e.g., Mark 7:1–15; see
Theses 33 and 34). A Christian cannot approach interactions with the
claim to know and be able to defend the truth about everything. Rather,
he or she can only speak about truth claims as a fallible person at those
points where God authorizes it, and these understandings are to be tested
and refined repeatedly (Romans 12:2). Therefore, Christians can learn
much from their discussion partners without having to lower their own
sights when it comes to central questions of the faith.
47. Mission efforts esteem human rights and do not desire to

disregard the dignity of human beings. Rather, mission ef-
forts seek to honor and foster human dignity.
Christians always look at other people as in the image of God (Genesis

1:26–27; 5:1), even if those individuals have other views. From the point
of view of Christianity, human rights are not derived from whether one
believes in God or is a Christian. Rather, they are grounded in the fact
that everyone is in equal measure created by God and according to God’s
image. Indeed, everyone is created equal, whether man or woman. For
that reason, all people should be treated equally, without showing favor-
itism toward any person (Romans 2:11; James 2:9). Some religions grant
human rights only to their own adherents. Christians, however, should
defend the human rights of, pray for, and love their enemies (Matthew
5:44; Luke 6:27).
48. It is reprehensible to bring about conversions through

the use of coercion, deceitfulness, trickery, or bribery. By
definition, such actions cannot result in a true conversion
and turning towards God from the depths of one’s heart in
belief and trust.
A conversion is (more specifically, it should be) a deeply personal, well-

thought-out stirring of an individual’s heart towards God. When people
say to us that they want to become Christians, we always have to grant
them room and time to decide, refrain from badgering them, and not
hastily baptize them in an unexamined manner. Instead, we should be
sure that they truly know what they are doing and are acting from a posi-
tion of conviction and belief.
Honesty and transparency should also hold sway as far as what the Chris-
tian faith consists of and what is expected of Christians after their con-
version. Christianity is not a secret association. Rather, it is open to the
general public and transparent to everyone. Christians have nothing to
hide (Matthew 10:26–27) or to conceal beforehand, only to reveal later to
the initiated. Jesus said to those who wanted to become his followers,
“Suppose one of you wants to build a tower. Will he not first sit down and
estimate the cost to see if he has enough money to complete it?” (Luke
14:28; see verses 27–33). Christians have to help people count the cost and
not cause them to make premature commitments, only to discover later
that they have been misled.
49. Peaceful mission efforts have been essentially embedded

as a human right.
Mission efforts have repeatedly been embedded as a human right in glob-

al human rights texts. Human rights in missions are derived from the
right to freedom of expression (including freedom of the press), as well as
freedom of conscience and freedom of religion. All these rights were
clearly articulated in The Universal Declaration of Human Rights, issued by
the United Nations in 1948.
On one hand, mission efforts are nothing other than an implementation

of freedom of expression. Just as this freedom applies to how political
parties, popular movements, advertising entities, and media outlets pub-
lish their view of things and attempt to convince others, so it also applies
to religions.
Alongside this freedom is the right to public exercise of religion. This

right encompasses freedom to solicit interest in one’s own convictions,
which may occur through the use of all sorts of media.
50. One must differentiate between advocating human

rights and religious freedom for adherents of other religions,
or for individuals without any religious affiliation, and en-
dorsing their truth claims.
Though it may seem self-evident to many, yet it bears explicit mention: it

is possible to advocate liberty, religious freedom, and freedom of con-
science for others without implying that their convictions are true or
sharing those convictions. Conversely, one never has the right to oppress
another individual or group of people with whom one disagrees with re-
gard to issues of ultimate truth.
Christians who proclaim the gospel might deeply regret with bleeding
hearts that other people reject the offer of redemption in Christ, but they
must never declare these people to be less than human, to attack them
with words, to stir up state powers to hatred against them, to call for
judgment against them, or to carry out such judgment.
Historical experience, in fact, has taught that even groups who have
largely agreed on questions relating to religion have nevertheless en-
gaged in wars against each other, even on religious issues. Many major
armed conflicts have occurred within a single religious tradition, and
Christianity is not an exception to this rule.
51. Religious freedom applies to all people, not only to

Christians.
This is not only a political demand made upon Christians. Rather, it arises
from the Christian faith itself. As already stated, God has created all peo-
ple in his image (Genesis 1:26–27; 5:1), not only Christians. God desires, as
the Old Testament repeatedly stresses, to be loved with all one’s heart,
not out of coercion. Accordingly, the innermost orientation of an indi-
vidual’s conscience and heart cannot be forced.
God has forbidden us from carrying out any type of sentence upon our
critics or from punishing people for their unbelief. Jonah also experi-
enced that God was more merciful toward “godless” Nineveh than was
Jonah himself, who would have preferred to have seen judgment execut-
ed against the city (Jonah 4:1–10). And Jesus clearly rejected the thinking
of his disciples, who wanted to see fire sent down from heaven upon the
villages that spurned him (Luke 9:51–56). In this light we see that Chris-
tians are forever forbidden from punishing other people for rejecting Je-
sus or the gospel.
52. Since the state does not belong to any religion and is not
to proclaim the gospel but rather desires what is good and
just for all people, and because God has granted human dig-
nity to all people since he has created everyone (Genesis
1:26–27; 5:1), Christians should work together with the ad-
herents of all religions and worldviews for the good of socie-
ty, to the extent that other groups allow this and recipro-
cate.
This principle applies directly to maintaining religious freedom, to all

human rights, and fundamentally to peace and justice. Christians should
always be involved with adherents of other religions and worldviews in
seeking to establish a just state. In Romans 13:1–7, Paul did not presup-
pose that the “authorities” are Christians. On the contrary, he placed
Christians in submission to the state, which is obligated to maintain jus-
tice, regardless of which religion or worldview its representatives es-
pouse.
Paul admonished Christians, “If it is possible, as far as it depends on you,

live at peace with everyone” (Romans 12:18). In this regard, he was con-
sistent with Jesus, who said, “Blessed are the peacemakers” (Matthew 5:9)
and “When you enter a house, first say, ‘Peace to this house’ ” (Luke 10:5).
James, the brother of Jesus, expressed similar sentiments: “Peacemakers
who sow in peace raise a harvest of righteousness” (James 3:18). In 1
Timothy 2:1–2, Paul expanded this command to encompass the world of
politics: “I urge, then, first of all, that requests, prayers, intercession and
thanksgiving be made for everyone—for kings and all those in authority,
that we may live peaceful and quiet lives in all godliness and holiness.”
Christians must build relationships of trust and love with all people, reli-
gious and non-religious. This is a precondition for peaceful and function-
ing coexistence. Tension and conflict between people can be resolved on-
ly if they speak with each other.
53. The task of the state is to protect worldly justice, includ-

ing religious freedom, not to promote our religion.
When we consider which tasks the New Testament ascribes to the state,
we see that the propagation and promotion of a certain religion is not
among them, but pursuing peace and justice for everyone is among them.
Christians are subject to the state in issues of worldly justice. Indeed, Paul
described the non-Christian state as nothing less than “God’s servant”
when it punishes Christians who do wrong (Romans 13:1–7). Despite the
fact that throughout history Christians have often handled this com-
pletely differently in so-called “Christian” countries, no Christian should
perceive it as a compromise of the faith to advocate full religious freedom
for other religions or for atheists. Rather, this understanding of religious
freedom arises organically from our understanding of faith as a convic-
tion of the heart and from our understanding of the biblically defined
tasks of the state.
According to the biblical understanding, the state has a monopoly on the

force needed to enforce justice. It has neither the task of proclaiming the
gospel nor that of enlarging the Christian church, and it should keep it-
self out of questions of conscience and religion (in Romans 13:1–7, Paul
discusses punishment for those who do evil, not for how they think,
which implies that the state as “God’s servant” is expressly obligated to
punish even Christians if they do wrong).
The state is responsible for protecting Christians only to the extent that
it should protect everyone who does what is good. It should restrain or
punish Christians only insofar as they impede the state’s ability to pro-
vide justice and peace to everyone, and it punishes everyone who plans
or exercises violence, regardless of whether those actions are religiously
motivated. Christians thus demand for themselves no greater right to re-
ligious freedom than others. And they should want to “live at peace with
everyone” (Romans 12:18), not only with those who are like them.
54. Religious freedom includes religious freedom for one’s

own children.
As bitter as the experience might be when the children of committed

Christians do not make the Christian faith the center of their lives, and as
much as the Bible calls Christians to raise children so that they will love
God and their neighbors (Deuteronomy 5:6–9), raising a child also means
bringing the child into adulthood, the point at which he or she becomes
independent (2 Timothy 3:17; Ephesians 4:11–16). This independence in-
cludes issues of faith (2 Timothy 3:14–17; Deuteronomy 31:12–13). Exer-
cising any form of coercion upon the next generation so that they do not
leave the church is unbiblical, whether it emanates from the parents, the
environment, the church, or the state. Belief in God cannot be forced. Ra-
ther, it is the most profound and most personal decision and heart atti-
tude of each individual who turns in love toward the Creator and Re-
deemer who loves him or her.
The Baptists at the time of the Reformation and the later Baptist-oriented
free churches expressed this understanding directly. They rejected infant
baptism and accepted only the baptisms of people who demonstrated re-
ligious maturity, just as the voluntary nature of faith and of church
membership was and is central for them. Since not all Evangelicals come
from such churches, this view of baptism has not become universal
among them. However, the need for an independent decision by young
people raised in Christian homes can be clearly maintained among those
who practice infant baptism, such as through the practice of confirma-
tion, the mature Protestant view of which was devised by Martin Bucer
and strongly promoted by Pietists.
In any case, the issue of not coercing one’s children is common to all
Evangelicals, regardless of their position on the best timing of baptism.
As deeply as Evangelicals wish to guide their children to turn to Christ by
example and by persuasive discussion and teaching, true conversion re-
quires a personal decision and commitment based on an individual’s own
faith. Consciously Christian childrearing should seek, in reliance on the
Holy Spirit, to bring young people to the point where they can make such
a commitment with full understanding and without coercion (see Thesis
65).
The (international) Evangelical Alliance spoke out in favor of the most

radical form of religious freedom at the time of its founding in 1846. This
viewpoint recognizes a special form of religious freedom, namely that of
one’s own children. It excludes child rearing by the state church, denies
the possibility of any culturally prescribed inheritability of the Christian
faith, and rejects child rearing by coercion.
55. We need a biblically renewed point of view regarding

those who violate state laws for the sake of the gospel.
Peter and the apostles evangelized despite state prohibitions (Acts 4:19–
20; 5:29) and were frequently arrested and punished (e.g., Acts 12:1–3).
Christians called Jesus “Lord” (Greek kyrios) and “king” despite state op-
position (“defying Caesar’s decrees,” Acts 17:6–7; cf. Acts 4:12).
“We must obey God rather than men!” (Acts 5:29) does not contradict the
Christian responsibility to obey those in power when they justifiably and
equitably exercise their authority. However, when these authorities seek
to prevent Christians from doing what God has ordered them to do or to
force them to do something that God has expressly forbidden them from
doing, God must take the priority. Indeed, God is the one who legitimates
human authority in the first place (Romans 13:1), and his righteousness is
the standard that exposes human and state injustice.
If religious freedom is suppressed and Christian mission is prohibited,

Christians are justified in being peacefully disobedient.
SECTION V: CONVERSION AND SOCIAL CHANGE
56. The individual’s peace with God, i.e., personal redemp-

tion owing to the gracious sacrifice of Jesus on the cross, is
the first and most urgent goal of mission from which all oth-
er goals emerge.
Jesus stated very clearly in Matthew 16:26 that salvation of the soul is
more important than any other matter: “What good will it be for a man if
he gains the whole world, yet forfeits his soul? Or what can a man give in
exchange for his soul?”
Accordingly, in his letter to the Romans, Paul first explains why both
Jews and Gentiles are lost before God in their sins and why Jesus alone is
the source of salvation. “Therefore, since we have been justified through
faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ, through
whom we have gained access by faith into this grace in which we now
stand” (Romans 5:1–2). Beginning at this point, he speaks about personal
ethics and then addresses shared, cultural, and political ethics.
57. Even if personal salvation is the first and highest goal of

missions, that does not mean that there cannot be any wid-
er objectives. Rather, all wider objectives gain their signifi-
cance from personal salvation. From inner transformation
follows external transformation, and from the transfor-
mation of individuals comes change in the broader, symbi-
otic community.
According to Matthew 28:18–20, the Great Commission contains the

summons to make learners (“disciples”) of all people. The first step is to
address individual people so that they will change their ways; after all,
baptism can be conducted only with individuals. Nevertheless, the Great
Commission suggests that in this way entire “nations” are to be won
Section V: Conversion and Social Change 63
over. The presence of a high percentage of Christians in a people group

does not contradict the top-priority need for each individual to turn per-
sonally to God.
This personal turning to God is not the endpoint but rather the point of
departure for personal renewal, and for the renewal and transformation
of family, church, commerce, the state, and society. It is for this purpose
that all people are to be made into disciples. When Jesus charged his dis-
ciples with the task of “teaching them to obey everything I have com-
manded you,” he called them to convey the entire range of biblical ethics.
Through this, the individual, his or her everyday life, and his or her envi-
ronment will be changed and transformed, and sinful structures and visi-
ble injustices will be overcome.
58. Social work within the Christian church was institution-

ally anchored, from the very beginning of the New Testa-
ment church, in the office of the diaconal ministry, and this
in light of cultural differences.
The installation of deacons in Acts 6 and in the New Testament church in

general is of tremendous importance. It is astonishing that in the New
Testament church, in addition to the offices of overseer (bishops) and el-
ders, who are responsible for leadership and teaching, there is only one
additional fixed office, namely that of deacons (Philippians 1:1; 1 Timothy
3:8–10) and deaconesses (Romans 16:1; 1 Timothy 3:11–13). Their task is
of a social nature. The social responsibility of the church for its members
is so institutionalized in the office of deacon and deaconess that a church
without it is as unthinkable as a church without biblical teaching or lead-
ership.
The church is socially responsible for its own members in a comprehen-

sive manner, insofar as relatives cannot take the responsibility for
providing such care upon themselves (1 Timothy 5:1–4). This does not
simply entail making donations or giving symbolic assistance; rather, it is
a matter of comprehensive responsibility.
59. In Acts 6, social responsibility within the church indeed

has central significance, but that does not contradict the
centrality of proclaiming God’s word and of prayer, which
was institutionalized in the offices of elder and apostle.
The apostles gave the following reason as to why they did not want to al-
so take over the “responsibility” of caring for widows: “We will give our
attention to prayer and the ministry of the word” (Acts 6:4). Prayer and
proclamation of the word are slotted ahead of social engagement and
provide the justification and motivation for social engagement. Ministry
of the word and prayer, then, always belong together. According to 1
Samuel 12:23, the prophet Samuel’s service was to pray and to teach.
Social responsibility and the social work of the diaconate may not sup-
plant proclamation and worship services. Rather, these activities should
arise organically from verbal proclamation and worship.
60. Social responsibility on the part of Christians does not

stop at the boundaries of the church.
Proverbs 3:27 states clearly, “Do not withhold good from those who de-
serve it, when it is in your power to act.” Thus, the responsibility men-
tioned in Galatians 6:10 certainly applies to all people, even though the
“family of believers” is specifically highlighted there: “Therefore, as we
have opportunity, let us do good to all people, especially to those who
belong to the family of believers.” We should recall that in New Testa-
ment times, people who became Christians were often oppressed and
persecuted and lost their traditional forms of social support.
Since Christians should always be expressing love for their enemies, and
since they are to bless those who curse them (Romans 12:14), Christians
are always to help others willingly and without favoritism anywhere in
the world, wherever it is possible for them do so. This includes being
prepared to help individuals in emergency situations, exposing sinful so-
cial structures on the basis of biblical commands, and seeking to change
such structures, albeit without violence.
For instance, this universal application of the call to love others applies
when we seek to fulfill the many biblical commands to take care of wid-
ows and orphans (e.g., Deuteronomy 14:29; 16:11; 24:19–21; 25:12–13).
“Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look
after orphans and widows in their distress and to keep oneself from being
polluted by the world” (James 1:27).
Christian hope is also hope for the poor, the weak, and the suffering, “so
that the poor have hope” (Job 5:16) and “the hope of the afflicted [will
never] perish” (Psalm 9:19). Those who are imprisoned unjustly are
“prisoners of hope” (Zechariah 9:12); the lonely widow “puts her hope in
God and continues night and day to pray and to ask God for help” (1 Tim-
othy 5:5). This hope is for eternal fellowship with God as well as hope for
change in the here-and-now.
Church history has been deeply marked by Christian movements that

have powerfully demonstrated hope for all levels of society. Examples
have included the Evangelical anti-slavery movement, Methodism, the
Salvation Army, the Blue Cross, and deaconess associations and orders.
We should seek to connect such endeavors with contemporary global de-
velopment issues and, like Jesus, to demonstrate hope for every individu-
al in the world, regardless of whether that individual has been written off
by a host of others.
61. The Bible is not a book purely for private edification. On

the contrary, it repeatedly addresses many social concerns.
The Bible addresses innumerable questions of familial, economic, legal,

civil, and organizational importance. It speaks about inheritances, educa-
tion, caring for the poor, debt, inflation, salaries, taxes, prostitution, kid-
napping, property borders, compensation, judges, kings, bribery, military
spending, self-defense, caring for creation, perjury, abortion, profits, the
welfare of the aged, protection of the blind and the deaf, and much more.
Indeed, most sins mentioned expressly in the New Testament are social
sins. Therefore, any attempts to understand the Bible and the law of God
as consisting simply of instructions for individuals are to be rejected. It is
naturally the case that all Christian ethics and every change within the
individual and in everyday life begin with the individual, but they have
immense social consequences.
The Bible is so permeated by ordinances and instruction relevant to our

communal and social existence that any attempt to distill the biblical law
found in the Old and New Testaments down to something exclusively ap-
plicable to the private sphere of life is equivalent to abolishing the law
and its goal, which is a just peace (shalom).
62. Whoever is in favor of diaconal work must also address

the reasons why certain emergencies exist in the first place,
as the Old Testament prophets did.
Surely, one should always first give food to those who are hungry (1 John
3:17). However, one also has to ask why the person is hungry. Does he (or
she) not have an income? Does he have no work? Is he unable to work?
Have his parents cast him out? Is he the victim of war? Is he the victim of
his religion? For instance, the person could be a Hindu who is the poorest
of the poor and cannot take up a profession associated with another
caste.
The Old Testament prophets were not reluctant to address situations in

which widows, orphans, and others were engulfed by distress due to the
behavior of greedy and power-hungry people. Old Testament prophets
brought accusations against unjust systems (e.g., Isaiah 1:23; Jeremiah
5:28; Hezekiah 22:7; Malachi 3:5) that oppressed the widows in violation
of the biblical law, which states, “Do not take advantage of a widow or an
orphan” (Exodus 22:22; see also Deuteronomy 24:17; 27:19; Proverbs 23:10;
Isaiah 1:17). The Bible says that God “defends the cause of the fatherless
and the widow” (Deuteronomy 10:18; Psalm 82:3), which involves more
than only providing for them. Jesus complained about the scribes, “They
devour widows' houses and for a show make lengthy prayers. Such men
will be punished most severely” (Mark 12:40 = Luke 20:47).
63. Human dignity and human rights are founded in the na-
ture of human beings as creatures of God.
The idea of human rights is based on the claim that all people have equal
rights to be treated as individuals with dignity, regardless of the differ-
ences among them in race, religion, gender, politics, or social and eco-
nomic status. What is the basis for people’s equality, if not the fact that
God has made them all equally and with the same dignity? For that rea-
son, every Christian justification for human rights begins with the crea-
tion story found in the first two chapters of the Bible. There one reads:
“Then God said, ‘Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let
them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the live-
stock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the
ground.’ So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he
created him; male and female he created them” (Genesis 1:26–27). An in-
dividual’s human rights do not depend on whether he or she believes in
Jesus Christ or is a Christian; they are conferred simply because that indi-
vidual has been created.
For that reason, the state does not create human rights, but only formu-
lates and protects them. For example, a human being has the right to life
inherently, not because it is bestowed by the state. Thus, the state cannot
legitimately decide that its citizens no longer have a right to life. Fur-
thermore, the right to marry and to have a family, mentioned in the Uni-
versal Declaration of Human Rights, is not granted by the state, and chil-
dren and families do not belong to the state. Rather, the state is
responsible for protecting the prescribed, created order of marriage and
family.
64. Whoever does not actively advocate for society to pur-

sue a good and proper course intentionally or unintentional-
ly accepts the standards of his or her environment.
No person can live without standards and values. Anyone who does not
actively take a stand for healthy, just, Christian standards and values in
all societies around the world, or who thinks that Christian standards are
not even intended for society, has to look for standards somewhere else—
and generally that means looking somewhere in the environment around

us.
According to Paul’s command, whoever places himself completely in the

service of God and who does not want to be conformed to this world, has
to continually scrutinize his thinking and have it renewed so that he can
test and approve the will of God (Romans 12:1–2).
65. Mission begins in the Christian church and family, where

by example, education, and instruction the word of God will
be passed on to the next generation.
In addition to proclaiming the Word of God to people outside the church,

Christians must not neglect their own families. Having a healthy Chris-
tian family is a precondition for all New Testament leadership offices (1
Timothy 3:4–5; 3:12–13; Titus 1:6–7). When Christians give up the rearing
of children to others, it hardly makes sense for them to bother with a
Christian orientation for the church, the economy, the society, and the
state, because they have let the best and most powerful way to mold and
transform people for good to be taken out of their control. This emphasis,
however, does not contradict the religious freedom of children (Thesis
54).
66. A hope for visible peace grows out of an invisible peace

with God in small and in great things, for God desires a fu-
ture full of peace, in the smallest context of life as well as in
worldwide shalom.
Jeremiah 29:11 states, “For I know the plans I have for you,” declares the
LORD, “plans to prosper you and not to harm you, plans to give you hope
and a future.” A personal ethic and communal life within a societal
framework according to the purposes of Jesus Christ arise out of the
peace that an individual experiences with God. And Christians not only
receive peace for themselves; they also pass it on and promote it. This is
why Jesus says, “Blessed are the meek, for they will inherit the earth”
(Matthew 5:5).
Christians wish to live peacefully with adherents of other religions and

worldviews and to work with them for the common good and for recon-
ciliation. “If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with
everyone” (Romans 12:18).
67. Society’s destiny is also the destiny that Christians face.
Christians, like everyone else, cannot live without the earth! Indeed,
there will one day be a new heaven and a new earth (Revelation 21:1), but
even then there will only be human life on an earth, just as we hope for
eternal life with a new body (“heavenly dwelling”), not eternal life with-
out a body (see 2 Corinthians 5:1–8). This is surely not the sole reason
why Christians are interested in the destiny of this world and attempt to
save what can be saved. However, it is also a biblically legitimate reason,
because the future of this world is related to Christians’ own future. It is
not for their own sake that Christians are concerned about ways in which
the world around them may be breaking apart, but so that this world
might experience as much peace, justice, and mercy as possible.
Thus God called on the Israelites in pagan Babylon to do good for Baby-
lon, because the destiny of Babylon was the destiny of the people of God:
“Also, seek the peace and prosperity of the city to which I have carried
you into exile. Pray to the Lord for it, because if it prospers, you too will
prosper” (Jeremiah 29:7). In the New Testament, Paul enjoined the
church to pray for the government, “that we may live peaceful and quiet
lives in all godliness and holiness” (1 Timothy 2:1–3).
In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus instructed Christians not to place

their lamp under a bowl but to become the salt of the earth. Directly after
the Beatitudes, using the examples of salt and light, Jesus made it clear
that believers should not live and act only for themselves (Matthew 5:13–
16). He challenged them to act boldly and openly, on behalf of and in
front of all people: “In the same way, let your light shine before men, that
they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven” (Mat-
thew 5:16), even if in this connection Christians must also experience rid-
icule and persecution.
68. Christian hope includes hope for the entire creation, in

its consummation as well as in the here-and-now.
The final deliverance of creation encompasses the entire life-filled uni-

verse: “For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own
choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope” (Romans 8:20;
see also verse 24). For that reason, the description of the new heaven and
the new earth encompasses a description not only of the people there but
also of the earth itself (Revelation 21).
The environmental movement has elevated the safeguarding of creation

to its primary agenda. Christians, in contrast, must reaffirm that there is
no creation without the Creator and no hope for the creation without
hope in the Creator. However, the converse is also true: whoever has
hope in the Creator must also have hope for the creation.
Indeed, the dominion that people have been granted over the earth is in-
tended, first and foremost, to serve people. However, it also serves the
creation. Whoever holds to God’s creation ordinances will, in contrast to
godless egoists, work for the benefit of creation: “A righteous man cares
for the needs of his animal, but the kindest acts of the wicked are cruel”
(Proverbs 12:10). In the creation story, humankind received the mandate
to “work” and to “take care” of the world (Genesis 2:15), or both to
change and to preserve. In theory, these ideas might sound mutually ex-
clusive, but in everyday life they belong inseparably together. The two
types of transformation—changing, renewing, and re-creating on one
hand and preserving, strengthening, and protecting on the other hand—
belong together like two sides of the same coin.
69. There is hope for the world if the church repents.
Does the Christian church’s sense of ultimate hope mean that it should
euphorically run after every suggestion for improvement and be blind to
how easily good plans are shipwrecked by evil? No. On the contrary, the
desired reformation should begin with believers—first with individual
renewal and then proceeding to renewal of the family, congregations,
and the Church as a whole. “For it is time for judgment to begin with the
family of God” (1 Peter 4:17). After all, what Paul said about the Jews in
his demonstration that all have sinned is consistent with the Old Testa-
ment: “God’s name is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you”
(Romans 2:24; cf. Isaiah 52:5). Gottfried Schenkel aptly wrote shortly after
World War II, “The judgment which comes upon the world is not only a
judgment of dictators, totalitarianism, revolutionary absolutism, and rad-
ical pretension. Rather, it is also a judgment that at the same time comes
upon Christians on account of their un-Christian-ness, and on account of
the weakness of Christians over against other earthly powers.”
Therefore, the only way for Christians to work toward renewal of the
church and of society is to see what is going wrong from the viewpoint of
the word of God and how God desires to have things reordered. We may
again recall 2 Chronicles 7:14 at this point: “If my people, who are called
by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn
from their wicked ways, then will I hear from heaven and will forgive
their sin and will heal their land.” At that point, the church will truly be
able to intercede for the society and the state. Let us hope that what God
had to appallingly discern through Ezekiel does not apply to us: “I looked
for a man among them who would build up the wall and stand before me
in the gap on behalf of the land so I would not have to destroy it, but I
found none” (Ezekiel 22:30).
World Evangelical Alliance
World Evangelical Alliance is a global ministry working with local churches
around the world to join in common concern to live and proclaim the Good
News of Jesus in their communities. WEA is a network of churches in 129 nations
that have each formed an evangelical alliance and over 100 international organi-
zations joining together to give a worldwide identity, voice and platform to more
than 600 million evangelical Christians. Seeking holiness, justice and renewal at
every level of society – individual, family, community and culture, God is glorified
and the nations of the earth are forever transformed.
Christians from ten countries met in London in 1846 for the purpose of
launching, in their own words, “a new thing in church history, a definite organiza-
tion for the expression of unity amongst Christian individuals belonging to differ-
ent churches.” This was the beginning of a vision that was fulfilled in 1951 when
believers from 21 countries officially formed the World Evangelical Fellowship.
Today, 150 years after the London gathering, WEA is a dynamic global structure
for unity and action that embraces 600 million evangelicals in 129 countries. It is a
unity based on the historic Christian faith expressed in the evangelical tradition.
And it looks to the future with vision to accomplish God’s purposes in discipling
the nations for Jesus Christ.
Commissions:
 Theology  Women’s Concerns
 Missions  Youth
 Religious Liberty  Information Technology
Initiatives and Activities

 Ambassador for Human Rights  International Institute for Islamic Studies
 Ambassador for Refugees  Leadership Institute
 Creation Care Task Force  Micah Challenge
 Global Generosity Network  Global Human Trafficking Task Force
 International Institute for Religious  Peace and Reconciliation Initiative
Freedom  UN-Team
Church Street Station

P.O. Box 3402
New York, NY 10008-3402
Phone +[1] 212 233 3046
Fax +[1] 646-957-9218
www.worldea.org
Giving Hands
GIVING HANDS GERMANY (GH) was established in 1995 and is officially
recognized as a nonprofit foreign aid organization. It is an international
operating charity that – up to now – has been supporting projects in about
40 countries on four continents. In particular we care for orphans and street
children. Our major focus is on Africa and Central America. GIVING HANDS
always mainly provides assistance for self-help and furthers human rights
thinking.
The charity itself is not bound to any church, but on the spot we are co-
operating with churches of all denominations. Naturally we also cooperate
with other charities as well as governmental organizations to provide assis-
tance as effective as possible under the given circumstances.
The work of GIVING HANDS GERMANY is controlled by a supervisory
board. Members of this board are Manfred Feldmann, Colonel V. Doner
and Kathleen McCall. Dr. Christine Schirrmacher is registered as legal man-
ager of GIVING HANDS at the local district court. The local office and work
of the charity are coordinated by Rev. Horst J. Kreie as executive manager.
Dr. theol. Thomas Schirrmacher serves as a special consultant for all pro-
jects.
Thanks to our international contacts companies and organizations from
many countries time and again provide containers with gifts in kind which
we send to the different destinations where these goods help to satisfy
elementary needs. This statutory purpose is put into practice by granting
nutrition, clothing, education, construction and maintenance of training
centers at home and abroad, construction of wells and operation of water
treatment systems, guidance for self-help and transportation of goods and
gifts to areas and countries where needy people live.
GIVING HANDS has a publishing arm under the leadership of Titus Vogt,
that publishes human rights and other books in English, Spanish, Swahili and
other languages.
These aims are aspired to the glory of the Lord according to
the basic Christian principles put down in the Holy Bible.
Baumschulallee 3a • D-53115 Bonn • Germany

Phone: +49 / 228 / 695531 • Fax +49 / 228 / 695532
www.gebende-haende.de • [email protected]
Martin Bucer Seminary
Faithful to biblical truth

Cooperating with the Evangelical Alliance
Reformed
Solid training for the Kingdom of God

 Alternative theological education
 Study while serving a church or working another job
 Enables students to remain in their own churches
 Encourages independent thinking
 Learning from the growth of the universal church.
Academic
 For the Bachelor’s degree: 180 Bologna-Credits
 For the Master’s degree: 120 additional Credits
 Both old and new teaching methods: All day seminars, independent study, term papers, etc.
Our Orientation:
 Complete trust in the reliability of the Bible
 Building on reformation theology
 Based on the confession of the German Evangelical Alliance
 Open for innovations in the Kingdom of God
Our Emphasis: Our Style:

 The Bible  Innovative
 Ethics and Basic Theology  Relevant to society
 Missions  International
 The Church  Research oriented
 Interdisciplinary
Structure Missions through research

 15 study centers in 7 countries with local partners  Institute for Religious Freedom
 5 research institutes  Institute for Islamic Studies
 President: Prof. Dr. Thomas Schirrmacher  Institute for Life and Family Studies
Vice President: Prof. Dr. Thomas K. Johnson  Institute for Crisis, Dying, and Grief
 Deans: Thomas Kinker, Th.D.; Counseling
Titus Vogt, lic. theol., Carsten Friedrich, M.Th.  Institute for Pastoral Care
www.bucer.eu • [email protected]
Berlin ❘ Bielefeld ❘ Bonn ❘ Chemnitz ❘ Hamburg ❘ Munich ❘ Pforzheim
Innsbruck ❘ Istanbul ❘ Izmir ❘ Linz ❘ Prague ❘ São Paulo ❘ Tirana ❘ Zurich

Biblical Foundations: For 21st Century World Mission

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1. God is the first missionary.

Thomas Schirrmacher Biblical Foundations for 21st Century World Mission

Verlag für Kultur und Wissenschaft

(Culture and Science Publ.)

Translated by Richard McClary

Verlag für Kultur und Wissenschaft

Publishing Distribution Center:

Preface: The Reformation and the 69 Theses

Biblical Foundations for 21st Century World Mission

Section I: World Mission is Part of the Essence of Christianity ...........21

Section II: The Entirety of the Holy Scriptures Justifies World

Section III: Mission in Light of Cultural Diversity .....................................42

Section IV: Mission and Religious Freedom—TWO Sides of the Same

Section V: Conversion and Social Change .................................................62

When a German Protestant theologian decides to use the terminology of

In his great retrospect on “The Expanding Effect of Christianity” in the

Latourette then sketched some of the expanding effect of Christianity in

Latourette continued to sketch the wide-ranging benefits of post-

The 95 Theses of Luther begin,5

2) This word cannot be understood as referring to the sacrament of pen-

Later in the theses Luther continued,

Lest the terminology of medieval theology disguise to us the existential

47) Christians are to be taught that they buying of indulgences is a matter

Protestant type of cultural renewal and development in the lands shaped

 “A Christian is a perfectly free lord of all, subject to none.”

 “A Christian is a perfectly dutiful servant of all, subject to all.”

In one’s internal spiritual nature, Christians should experience the free-

There is a distinct irony to be noticed in looking at the 95 Theses and the

This is precisely the difference when we turn to Thomas Schirrmacher’s

misunderstanding to suppose that Schirrmacher has left Luther’s im-

Turning to Schirrmacher’s theses on mission we find two distinctive em-

1) God is the first missionary.

2) Jesus is the missionary par excellence.

3) God the Holy Spirit is the most successful missionary.

These first theses are brought together in thesis 9.

26) Mission is rooted in the marvelous eternal covenant of election among

These themes must be linked with how Schirrmacher understands the

31) Accordingly, world mission efforts cannot be presented and practiced

It is worth noting that Schirrmacher sees the book of Romans as much as

32) The diversity of peoples and cultures is principally not a consequence

What we see Schirrmacher recommending in theses 33 and 34 is what we

The culture changing motif continues in several more theses.

wider objectives gain their significance from personal salvation. From

One area in which Schirrmacher’s theses seem to move beyond Luther

sions address this need in a section entitled, “Missions and Religious

43) Dialogue in the sense of giving up Christian truth claims or giving up

48) It is reprehensible to bring about conversions through the use of coer-

49) Peaceful mission efforts have been essentially embedded as a human

51) Religious freedom applies to all people, not only to Christians.

So I invite you to read Schirrmacher’s 69 modern theses in light of Lu-

SECTION I: WORLD MISSION IS PART OF THE ESSENCE OF

1. God is the first missionary.

If a missionary is someone who brings the message of judgment and

2. Jesus is the missionary par excellence.

3. God the Holy Spirit is the most successful missionary.

4. The sending of Jesus’ church is rooted in the fact that God

In the New Testament, Jesus’ sending of the apostles is understood as the

5. Since mission belongs to the heart of the Christian God

A presentation of the Christian teaching on God (referred to as “the doc-