Summary of James F. Engel’s Book, Changing the minds of Missions, 109 – 123

1           Introduction

The author opens the chapter (titled “The church in Missions”) with a problem of the church through the observation of one Pastor Geoff Finch. In the past the church took center stage in the life of the community and society. Today people feel the church has become irrelevant to the needs of society. Statistics, however, show that people still have interest in religious issues but hardly do these turn to the church for answers. 

The reason, the author argues, stems from the fact that the moral codes offered by the church are “abstract” and do not touch on the “post modern’s spiritual quest for personal fulfillment”[1]. The church invests in huge structures and auditoria to draw the community. Meanwhile changing work patterns, shifting family demands, road traffic and long commutes among others, take all the time of people. In essence the church in building large auditoria does not address the problem of the people and fails all together to connect with the people. 

The author establishes the fact that this creates a disconnect between the society and the church and sets forth to investigate this issue.

2           What factors contribute to the disconnect of the Church (distortion of the organic nature of the church)?

In what the author calls the “two contrasting models of the church”[2] he describes the institutional structure of the church as too rigid (to take advantage of cultural changes) and too adaptive (to modern institutional influences). The result is a distortion of what he describes as the organic nature of the Church.

2.1         How does institutionalization distort the organic nature of the church?

In answering this question the author identifies the following five problems encouraged by the structure of today’s church:

• Individuality: the church is more responsive to individual needs that are far from obedience to a Holy God.
• Program orientation: Programs of the church do not consider the contribution of the people it seeks to form. Rather these programs are driven by pre-established goals that embrace “efficiency and growth as the ultimate criteria of success”. The church thus endeavors to fit people into its programs at the expense of the lay initiative of members of the church.
• A preoccupation with numbers. The church is more disposed towards numerical strength and, thus, base its programs on activities that attract the most newcomers whilst retaining existing members. To achieve this the church often times employ skillful business marketing techniques; messages that will create discomfort for members are restrained for messages that keep members happy all the time.
• Passivity: The institutional structure of the leadership of the church creates an atmosphere in which little or nothing is asked of participants in the worship. All activities of the church are controlled and initiated by the leadership. Consequently the majority in the church are passive participants.
• Resistance to change. A concern for the church to protect and preserve Christian practices has created an over resistance to change in the light of an ever changing society. In effect rigid programs replace “spirit-filled mobilizations”. In essence there is no room for the dynamic leading of the Holy Spirit. This makes it difficult for people of different cultures and time to appreciate what God is doing in their lives.

3           What are the Challenges of church leaders in trying to restore the organic nature of the church?

The author identifies two challenges (as applied to Pastor Geoff Finch):

• How to deal with unresponsive and inflexible structures
• How to identify elements of culture that can effectively communicate the gospel

He concludes that the above challenges can find solution in consciously presenting the church as an organism (responsive to change) rather than an [dead] organization. In effect this will preserve the biblical identity of the church, which is important to the church remaining relevant to society.

4           What is the biblical identity (organic nature) of the church?

The author moves to show that the biblical identity of the church is rooted in the following theological realities;

• It is a living temple: The church as the people of God is constituted by the indwelling of the Christ through the Spirit.
• Its ministry is through gifts of the Spirit. The church is made up of people who are gifted through the Holy Spirit to lead. Every member of the body of Christ, thus, has a useful contribution to make for the sake of the building up of the church into maturity
• It is a society of mutual love and service. The church is characterized by a mutual loving service that burdens each member for the moral demands of Christianity on members within and outside the church.
• It promotes servant leadership: The leadership pattern of the church is one that, through servitude, encourages and empowers other members to take initiatives in the work of the church. (as opposed to a leadership that forces members to participate in programs predesigned by someone else)
• It is a Community: The church is a living community of people who exhibit mutual care for one another without dissension.
• It has an outward focus: The church is focused on making known the God’s saving work to the world (or in the world). Everything the church does must God into the world as well bring the world to God. 

5           Steps to restoring the biblical identity (organic nature) of the church

The author at this point is convinced that the “institutionalized bones”[3] of the church can “live” again if efforts are made to restore the organic nature of the church. He identifies the following;

• A conviction that numerical growth is the work of the Holy Spirit and not a human set goal
• A commitment to intentional spiritual formation that unearths and utilizes the spiritual gifts in a manner consistent with the mission of Jesus Christ.
• A church identity that maintains a good countercultural message as expressed by Jesus through prophecy and love for the persecuted
• A genuine commitment to servant leadership characterized by Christian vision and empowerment
• A concept of church programming built on the basis of encouraging lay initiative
• A conscious effort to build a community expressed in the form of small cells throughout the church.
• A committed effort to carrying the message of the gospel to the world starting from the church’s locality and making progress beyond
• A conscious commitment to follow the New Testament Model of the church as it is adapted to a contemporary world.

6           Conclusion 

The church seemed to have lost its position in the socio-cultural setup of the community because of its rigid institutional patterns that has ceased to be effective over time. As society evolves the church must make a conscious effort to evolve but not at the expense of her biblical identity. In essence the church must constantly review its institutional policies so that whilst there is a conscious effort to maintain the biblical identity of the church there is a responsive attitude towards changing culture and society

Thus Geo Finch’s conclusion on a solution to the problem of the church was to start with proper Biblical vision of the Great Commission of Jesus Christ.

[1] James F. Engel and William Dyness, “Changing the mind of Missions”, (Downers Grove: Inter Varsity Press, 2000), 112

[2] James F. Engel et al, “Changing the mind of Missions”, 112

[3] James F. Engel et al, “Changing the mind of Missions”,120