Putting the Last First

Near the beginning of his public ministry, Jesus described his mission to people in his hometown of Nazareth. He went to the synagogue in the community where he grew up, opened a scroll, and read from the book of Isaiah:  “The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners, and recovery of sight for the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord’s favor.” (Luke 4:18,19)

After reading this, Jesus rolled up the scroll, gave it back to the attendant, and sat down. With every eye in the synagogue fastened on him, he declared, “Today this scripture is fulfilled in your hearing.” On that day, Jesus declared himself to be the anointed one of whom the prophet spoke, and appropriated the words of Isaiah as his own personal mission statement. He used these words to explain to people in his hometown who he was and why he came.

The passage that Jesus chose to describe his mission makes it clear that the hurting, the poor, and the oppressed would be the focal point of his ministry. Jesus would take those who had been pushed to the periphery – the suffering, the alienated, and the marginalized – and move them to the center.  The last would be first.

Near the end of his public ministry, Jesus describes a day when he will sit on his throne as judge and separate the righteous from the unrighteous based on how they responded to the needs of the poor. He says to the righteous: “I was hungry and you fed me”, and to the unrighteous “I was hungry and you did not feed me.” (Matthew 25:31-46) Acts of service to the poor are not only characteristic of righteousness, but are received by the king himself. They are not only good deeds, but they are acts of worship.

At the beginning of Jesus ministry, he stated that his mission was to preach good news to the poor, heal the sick, and release the oppressed. At the end of the age, he separates the righteous from the unrighteous based on how they responded to the needs of the poor, the sick, and the imprisoned. Jesus defined ministry to the poor as ministry to Himself. As his followers, we want our lives and ministries to reflect these values.

An Apologetic that Can be Seen and Felt

Allister McGirth in his book Mere Apologetics makes this observation: “The heart of apologetics is not about mastering and memorizing a set of techniques designed to manipulate arguments to get the desired conclusion. It is about being mastered by the Christian faith so that its ideas, themes, and values are deeply imprinted on our minds and in our hearts.” I would add that these ideas, themes, and values are not only deeply imprinted on our minds and hearts, but are reflected in our actions.

Especially in a time when religious truth is private and relative, we need an apologetic that “can be seen and not just heard, felt and not just argued”. It is not enough for people to hear the message of Jesus; they must also feel His touch.

Jesus sent his disciples to teach and preach, but he knew that words would not be enough. In the Sermon on the Mount, he said to his disciples and by extension to his church: “Let your light so shine before men, that they may see your good deeds and praise your Father in heaven” (Matthew 5:16).

At the International Wholistic Missions Conference, IWMC, the goal was to be mastered by Christ so that His ideas, themes, values, and actions are reflected in what we say and how we serve. We deliberately let our light shine by doing good deeds that lead people to give praise to our Father in heaven.
Terry Dalrymple

Victims of Circumstances or Stewards of Resources

The economically poor often see themselves as victims of circumstance rather than stewards of resources. The clear teaching of the Bible is just the opposite. Human beings were created to have dominion over creation, not to be dominated by it. Human beings are above creation, not one with it. They are commissioned by their Creator to manage and cultivate the garden in which He placed them.

This truth is empowering. It gives hope for change and vision of a better life. It inspires innovation, creativity, and ingenuity. It frees the human mind from fatalistic notions and passive acceptance of life in an impoverished state. Any belief that contradicts this truth is disempowering. Many of the world’s economic poor are captive to disempowering beliefs that ultimately hinder progress and stunt human development.

The Values of the Kingdom of Heaven

I’ve been reflecting on the values of the Kingdom of Heaven. On a number of occasions Jesus spoke directly about why he came and what he came to do. He said he came to do the will of the Father (John 6:38), to bring light into the darkness (John 12:46), to seek and to save what was lost (Luke 19:10), and to give his life a ransom for many (Matthew 20:28). He came preaching repentance, offering the Kingdom of God (Mark 1:15,38; John 18:37), and life to the full (John 10:10).

Jesus preached the good news of the kingdom of God. It was a message of forgiveness of sins and eternal life. It was also a message of compassion, justice, reconciliation and freedom in the present life. It was salvation for the sinner and good news to the poor and the oppressed (Luke 4:18-22). The gospel of the kingdom has implications for the present and the future.

I do not believe that we will bring the kingdom of God in its fullness by our ministries. Jesus will do that when He comes again. I do believe, however, that our ministries should reflect the priorities and values of the kingdom. We proclaim the forgiveness of sins through faith in Christ and call people to love and repentance in all areas of life.

Wholistic or Holistic?

I came to the conviction long ago that my ministry should be obedient to both the great commission and the great commandment. I joined the (w)holistic ministry camp. Two decades later, I still don’t know how to spell what I am. My spell checker rejects the spelling “wholistic”. (Technically, “wholistic” is not in the dictionary and is not an alternative spelling of the word “holistic”). On the other hand, many of my colleagues argue that “holistic” is closely identified with alternative medicine or eastern religion and is therefore inappropriate as a description of Christian ministry.

Now I am planning a (w)holistic ministry conference and have to face the question of how to spell the word head on. What do we name the conference? Do we name it the “International Holistic Ministry Conference” or the “International Wholistic Ministry Conference”?

Some of us spell the word with a “w”, and some without a “w”. Some of us use different words altogether, such as “integral” or “integrated”. Whatever word we use, we are united in the pursuit of loving God with all our being, loving all people selflessly, and reproducing disciples of Jesus around the globe.

With that as our united mission, let me invite you to join us at the first International Wholistic Ministry Conference facilitated by the Global CHE Network in Phoenix, Arizona, January 9-11, 2013. For more information, visit http://wholisticmissions.com/.

 

Integration Begins With Me

As followers of Jesus, our obligation is obedience to everything Jesus commanded. That means that we do not choose which command is most important (evangelism or social action), but we find ways to do both. For the sake of the discussion that follows, I will define integration as “obedience to everything Jesus commanded”, and specialization as “choosing which commands to obey”.

Integration in Christian ministry is fundamentally a mindset that is born out of a Biblical and wholistic worldview rather than a dualistic one. Integrated ministries are built on personal conviction that resists both internal and external pressures toward specialization.

When I arrived on the mission field in 1986, a senior colleague approached me with a word of advice: “If you feed someone today, they will be hungry again tomorrow. If you save their soul today, they will be saved forever.” That phrase summarized my colleagues’ philosophy of ministry and theology of mission. Our task was to save souls and plant churches, not to care for the physical needs of people. This is an example of what I will call external pressure toward specialization. Another good example of external pressure toward specialization is the reality that in a hostile environment it is easy to do acts of compassion, but harder to evangelize.

There are internal pressures as well. I might find it difficult or intimidating to talk with others about their need to repent of sin and put their trust in Christ. It might be easier for me to do good works, and wait for people to ask me how they can be saved. That is an example of internal pressure toward specialization.

Complete obedience to everything Jesus commanded requires resistance to both external and internal pressure toward specialization. It is rooted in convictions about what I must do, not just what I am gifted or trained to do.

I can teach what I know, but I reproduce what I am. If we want integrated ministries, then we must be integrated people. Integration begins with me. I must develop convictions that resist pressures toward specialization, and be willing myself to work outside of my comfort zone. If I am a community developer, I must evangelize. If I am an evangelist, I must involve myself with community development.

What are the implications of these ideas for those who are developing a program of training and equipping for wholistic ministry? Here are a few thoughts:

1. Training must be rooted in God’s Word and should focus on integration in the life and ministry of the individual.

2. Training should challenge assumptions of a dualistic worldview, and promote a mindset of ministry to the whole person and community. Individuals must be trained as generalists, not specialists.

3. Training must offer tools that are simple and transferable, enabling the individual to respond personally to the whole need of individuals and communities whether spiritual, physical, social, intellectual, or economic.

Integrating the Physical and Spiritual

I think I prefer the term “integral” to “transformational” as a description of the work we do. As Elly said commenting on my last blog, “Transformation becomes a serious issue when organizations say that this is what ‘they deliver’ as the result of their labor for the Kingdom. In this case, it becomes an indicator that needs precise clarification.” Our ministries can inspire hope and progress toward God’s ideals, but they cannot deliver the Kingdom of God in its fullness. Jesus will do that when he comes again. I love to tell the stories of “transformation” that I have seen in communities around the world, but these stories are only snapshots at a moment in time. Often communities will take three steps forward and two steps back – even as we do in our own personal lives.

If “transformation” describes an outcome, than “integration” describes a process. Both terms describe a corrective to ministry approaches that focus entirely on the forgiveness of sins while neglecting concerns of compassion and justice, or vice versa. By using either one of these terms we are expressing a conviction that evangelism and social concern are both part of Christian mission. We seek complete obedience to everything Jesus commanded – whether the great commission or the great commandment.

From the perspective of outcome (transformation), we believe that followers of Jesus who love their neighbor will contribute toward communities that are compassionate, just, and free. From the perspective of process (integration), we believe that followers of Jesus will minister in ways that are responsive to the whole need of persons and communities – whether physical, spiritual, moral, social, intellectual, or economic.

Complete obedience to everything Jesus commanded requires both compassion for the physical needs of people and proclamation of the forgiveness of sins through faith in Christ. We cannot choose which of Jesus’ commands is most important, but must choose to be obedient to everything Jesus commanded. That to me is the reason for “integral ministry”.

To divorce evangelism from the mission of the church is to separate Jesus from his kingdom. The proclamation that Jesus is the Christ (Lord), and the call to repent and accept the gift of forgiveness are fundamental to the gospel of the kingdom. To enter the kingdom requires a radical transformation in which the rule of God is established in the heart through repentance and faith. Entrance into the kingdom of God is a beginning, but it is not the whole story. The message of Jesus did not stop with the forgiveness of sins. The gospel of the kingdom must work itself out in life and community – in personal holiness, freedom, justice and compassion.

As a practical matter if we will maintain the integrity of a ministry that is obedient to everything Jesus commanded, integrated ministry must become a way of thinking that is constantly reinforced through teaching, modeling, methodology and evaluation. The following are methods we use in our ministries to accomplish this:

1. Leaders model integration: pastors teach physical topics and medical doctors teach spiritual topics.
2. Curriculums include both physical and spiritual topics.
3. Half of training time is spent on spiritual and moral topics, half on physical topics.
4. Every worker, whether paid or volunteer, is required to minister to both physical and spiritual needs in the community. People learn to see themselves, not as specialists, but as people serving people.
5. Regular reports and reviews require that each team measure their outputs against both physical and spiritual indicators.