A Humble Missiology

To the Edge: Reflections on Kingdom Leadership, Mission, and Innovation was released earlier this month. If you have not purchased a copy, I hope you get one and share it with others. In this post, I want to share with you an excerpt from the book.Knowledge gained can lead to arrogance. This is true in all areas of life, including missiological thought. A biblical missiology is a humble missiology.-----Arrogance is a blight in the Field of the Kingdom. Manystruggle with it. Some of us privately. Some of us publicly.Unconfessed, it grows and consumes, grieves and quenches,and it always results in death. The individual may accomplishmany great things while covered with this blightand gain the praise of many. But the Lord will not toleratearrogance because it takes glory away from Him.Knowledge puffs up. And so does missiology—our studyof mission. Yet, the Lord calls us to walk humbly with Him,which includes the way we approach Him, His mission, HisChurch, and His world. We all have a missiology by whichwe live. But is it a humble one?Among many things, a biblical missiology is humble,always willing to grow in understanding of God’s truthand the application of means to the real world for the multiplicationof disciples, leaders, and churches.A biblical missiology is humble, clinging tenaciouslyto a scriptural foundation, holding tightly to principles,but loosely to strategy, methods, traditions, organization,and structures.A biblical missiology is humble, focused and sure beforearriving on the field, but allowing the Spirit and contextto shape the application of never-changing truth.A biblical missiology is humble, patiently and graciouslybringing brothers and sisters along in the journey whohave not been eating and drinking Kingdom-expandingconcepts for as long as you have.A biblical missiology is humble, knowing with confidencewhat it knows but open to correction and newdirections.I have observed a great deal of arrogance over the yearsin both my life and in the lives of many others. And weevangelicals seem to be okay with it as long as such peopleseem to be successful. But what will it ultimately profitus to make many Great Commission accomplishments inthe name of the King only to have those successes rejectedby the King? Remember, some people will do great things forthe King, but He will deny knowing them (Matthew 7:21-23).The Farmer is never okay with blight in His Field.If we truly recognize that we are “unworthy servants”(Luke 17:10) on this journey, we must run to the Spirit toenable us to turn from that which so easily entangles us.We must plead for grace to embrace our great salvation,commission, other brothers and sisters, and the world witha contrite and broken spirit and a heart filled with love.We must move forward, wearing a towel instead of actingas if we are sporting a kingly robe.May the Savior empower us and show us the way tolive with a humble missiology in light of the four billionsouls who do not know the Lord!