선교적 교회의 관점에서 본 선교

Abstract

This study attempted to review how the discussion about missional church had come to the academic circle with reference to the origin and background of missional church. In actuality, the concept of missional church began with the publication of the book entitled Missional Church: A Vision for the Sending of the Church in North America (1998). Later, Darrell L. Guder wrote The Continuing Conversion of the Church (2000). Beside these, Craig Van Gelder and Dwight J. Zscheile co-authored The Missional Church in Perspective (2011). These works greatly contributed to the academic development of missional church as well as the recognition of the missional church all over the world.However, Lesslie Newbigin and David J. Bosch were the early advocates of the missional church. The former returned to England after he had finished mission work in South India. He discovered that England became the mission field calling for God’s mission. After this discovery, he began to articulate what would be the nature and the task of the church in terms of God’s mission. The latter returned to South Africa after he finished his biblical and missiological studies at Basel in Switzerland. He worked as a missionary among the natives to share the good news of the Kingdom with them as change agents. Later, he became a professor of missions at University of South Africa in Pretoria while writing Witness to the World (1980) and Transforming Mission (1991). The missional church learned a lot from these mission scholars and missionary leaders. The missional church needs to be sure of the Great Commission which was given to His disciples as well as all Christians today. The Great Commission must be reflected and carried out in the work of missional church while it becomes the foundation for world evangelization. The Great Commission is not an option but a mandate for the missional church participating in God’s mission. The mission work of the missional church largely depends upon the careful articulation and the faithful practice of the Great Commission. However, in addition to the Great Commission, God’s compassion for the lost becomes the motive for the missional church through which God’s Kingdom is realized in the world which God loves so much.The missional church needs to look at the mission as God’s mission rather than humans’ or churches,’ In essence, mission is the Trinitarian God’s work. In particular, the Holy Spirit empowers the missional church to carry on the mission work in the world as the light and the salt for the world. The Lord Jesus Christ encourages us to go into the world with the gospel message which is the same truth forever in response to the different cultures in which the unreached people live their lives according to their way of life and their way of thinking.The missional church needs to serve the people in the community outside of the church as well as the people inside of the church. The missional church carries out God’s mission through the holistic mission, that is, dong mission work through kerygma, koinonia, and diakonia. Further, the missional church needs to contextualize the gospel according the needs of the people within different cultural forms. The cultural forms are the most effective media of communicating the gospel message to the people. However, the missional church needs to practice critical contextualization in terms of indigenous ministry and indigenous theology in order to make the biblical message more meaningful to the people. This is the nature and the mission work of the missional church. The Triune God wants us to be a missional church for His Kingdom and glory. The missional church prays, “Your Kingdom come”(Mt. 6:10).