Christian Mission in the Modern World (IVP Classics) [Paperback]

It's hard to believe that Stott wrote this book in 1976, yet, I read it in 1999 for a Christian Mission class, and it seems so appropriate today. Dr. Stott was on the Lausanne Committee for World Evangelism, and has obviously thought about these and researched this deeply. He comes from an Evangelical Protestant heritage.

This is a particularly insighted book, an introduction to Christian Mission. The change from the plural, missions, to the singular, mission, is indicated by Stott as what all Christians should be doing, that is, both evangelism AND striving for social justice (that is, arguing the case of the orphan, widow, feeding the hungry, housing the homeless, fighting against oppression, etc.).

Stott defines a number of crucial terms and places them within the context of Christian theology, for instance, evangelism just means 'proclaiming the Good News,' specifically that of salvation through the Lord Jesus Christ. Yet, Stott is very practical and uses biblical theology (such as the theology of the Incarnation gives us an example of what it means to be involved with others, to share their sufferings and concerns, and to understand their culture and be able to dialogue with them at where they are at). And Stott is very good at providing negative examples, or warnings, such as that Christians are also to be 'salt and light,' maintaining their identity as Christians; that the Gospel is not liberation theology (although the influence of the Gospel may be seen in the culture in fighting against social injustices), the Gospel does not ensure health and wealth. Salvation does mean freedom from sin, to serve and obey God.

The book is divided between 5 large chapters that have a number of topics discussed. The first is Mission -- what is Christian Mission? As mentioned, evangelism, theology, social justice are all discussed.

The second chapter is Evangelism, and the priority and meaning (even definitions) of evangelism, and what we as Christians should be doing.

This leads into dialogue, and how we are to dialogue with others. Stott is very practical at the end of the chapter discussing what are some different arenas of dialogue, for example, with Muslims, within Great Britain, and Hindus.

The next chapter is on Salvation, what it doesn't mean, and what it means.

This leads us into Conversion, and discussion on theology (as well as the individual's responsibility) in matters, such as the Christian doctrines of regeneration, repentance, and the effects of conversion on the church, society, culture, and the role of the Holy Spirit (and even the necessity not to be stupid, like assuming that the Holy Spirit will overcome my own stupidity or lack of preparation).

In all, a very solidly theological and practical work, as all of Stott's works are.

In 1975, InterVarsity Press published Christian Mission in the Modern World by John Stott. It recently reissued the book as part of the IVP Classics series. Like almost everything Stott has written, the book repays careful reading.

Stott, who is British, is the type of evangelical Christian that we do not often see in America. In America, evangelicals generally work outside the structures of the so-called mainline churches. Stott is a priest of the Church of England and a participant in ecumenical dialogues. He is a pastor, theologian, activist, bridge-builder, and public intellectual. American evangelical leaders tend to specialize in one or two of those areas. Indeed, I cannot think of a precise American counterpart to Stott.

Christian Mission in the Modern World grew out of the 1975 Chavasse Lectures in World Mission that Stott delivered at Wycliffe Hall, Oxford. It investigates the meaning of five words in conversation with then-current trends in both evangelical and ecumenical missiology: mission, evangelism, dialogue, salvation, and conversion. As should be expected in a book published more than thirty years ago, some of the persons, events, and documents Stott discusses are no longer current. Even so, however, Stott's insights into the meaning of these words still provoke thought. Let us briefly take a look at them.

First, mission: What is the mission of the church? It is common to distinguish evangelical and ecumenical missiologies by saying that the former is concerned with evangelism and the latter with social action. There is an element of truth in this, although Stott points out that evangelicals are concerned with social action and ecumenicals with evangelism--at least according to the leading documents of their respective movements. Turning to John 17:18 and 20:21, Stott argues that Jesus sends the church into the world to do the same kinds of things the Father sent him into the world to do. Stott therefore defines mission as "Christian service in the world comprising both evangelism and social action."

Second, evangelism: If Christian mission comprises both evangelism and social action, is there nonetheless a priority between them? Stott argues that there is, specifically, that evangelism takes priority over social action. But what is evangelism? Stott defines it as "announcing or proclaiming the good news of Jesus." This proclamation centers around five things: (1) the facticity and significance of certain events, namely, Christ's death and resurrection; (2) the reliability of the witnesses of these events--both the Old Testament prophets and the New Testament apostles; (3) the affirmations that Jesus is both Savior and Lord because of these events; (4) the promises Jesus makes to those who come to him in faith; and (5) the demands of repentance and faith that Jesus requires of those who come to him in faith.

Third, dialogue: Given that evangelism is announcement or proclamation, is there any room for religious dialogue in evangelical missiology? That all depends on what you mean by dialogue. As an evangelical, Stott argues that entering into dialogue with others is a mark of authenticity, humility, integrity, and sensitivity. Dialogue neither requires us to abandon Christ or our faith, but it requires us to identify ourselves as sinners and the people we are evangelizing as the image of God. The goal of dialogue is "mutual understanding," but for the Christian dialogue is also "a necessary preliminary to evangelism."

Fourth, salvation: The crucial issue in both evangelism and dialogue is salvation, but what is salvation? Stott begins by stating that it is not psychophysical health or sociopolitical liberation. These options were common among non-evangelical theologians in the late 1960s and early 70s. Rather, salvation is "personal freedom" along the following three spectra: "from judgment for sonship," "from self for service," and "from decay for glory." I think it appropriate to use the theological terms justification, sanctification, and glorification as synonyms for what Stott is talking about when he uses the words salvation or personal freedom.

Fifth, conversion: Pluralism is the religious attitude of both modernity and postmodernity. Such an attitude has, as Stott puts it, a "distaste for conversion." But the message of Jesus was conversionist in nature. He preached, "Repent and believe the good news!" (Mark 1:15). Biblical conversion, according to Stott, has five elements: repentance, church membership, social responsibility, cultural discernment, and reliance on the power of the Holy Spirit.

As an Assemblies of God pastor, I find Stott's discussion of Christian mission useful as a corrective to missiological tendencies within my own fellowship that privilege evangelism at the expense of social action. Moreover, the theology that underlies Stott's missiology refuses to accommodate itself to a narrow understanding of conversion that focuses on decisions for Christ at the expense of discipleship in Christ. God's grace requires a two-fold response of faith and works, for authentic Christian belief produces changed behavior.

By the same token, however, I believe that ecclesiology is the missing element within Stott's formulation of Christian mission. It is not merely the individual Christian's mission to serve the world through evangelism and social action; it is the church's. It is not merely the individual Christian who practices evangelism and dialogue; it is the church. And when individuals receive the gift of salvation and choose conversion to Christ, they do so within the context of a church. The church, in other words, is God's mission. It is both the effect of God's mission to the world through Christ in the power of the Holy Spirit and the agent of Christ's continuing mission in the world.

Ecclesiology was not as prominent an issue in the early 1970s when Stott wrote Christian Mission in the Modern World. Thirty-four years ago, the church was still a quasi-Constantinian institution in both England and America; in other words, it was a respectable pillar of society. In 2009, we can no longer make that assumption about the church's role. Consequently, we must focus on the churchly character of mission, evangelism, dialogue, salvation, and conversion. But of course, no one should anachronistically fault Stott for failing to take into account these new conditions.

It's been a while since I have read John Stott, but this was definitely a book that will make me read more of him. This book is a necessity for anyone that considers themself a missiologist or is wanting a deeper look into what it means for us Christians to be in the world. Stott hammers away in only 190 pages so much depth that any review will leave the subject at hand wanting in a desperate way. It is still hard to believe that this was first written in 1975 as he hits some people today straight between the eyes with his theological and practical conclusions (myself included).

Stott hits on five subjects and really pinpoints them further for great discussion.

The Five Subjects that he hits are:

1. Mission

Stott breaks down the two movements that are most abused, which are evangelism only ministries and social action only ministries. After breaking down why neither of these are correct, he blends the two to show the biblical aspect of how these two need to work together, not separate.

2. Evangelism

Stott lays out what must be considered in evangelism. He shows the priority, the meaning and then unpacks what must be included while presenting the gospel according to Christ and the apostles.

3. Dialogue

In this chapter, Stott again shows the two extremes in dialogue. One where the dialogue is so open that you can't tell that a Christian is in the conversation and the other being where the Christian believes that no dialogue should be had with other religions. Stott shows a balanced view to this and gives great examples how this can work and has worked.

4. Salvation

Stott works to find the biblical answer to what this term means in the Scriptures. He works through what salvation truly is and the areas of difference within this. Some of these would be salvation from political oppression, salvation of sickness and poverty, etc. Then Stott answers the question of salvation theologically and shows why salvation is more than just what we see, but is really the salvation of what we don't see. Namely, salvation from God's wrath in regards to hell.

5. Conversion

In this chapter Stott gives a precedence for conversion to the Christian faith. He fights against the universalists and also those who believe that there is no need to be converted to Christianity because Christ can be found in other religions as well. After this defense, Stott then shows what one is converted to when converted to Christianity.

This book is so well rounded and Stott unpacks the extremes in each case above to even the heretical. He then gives the biblical reasons to balance the extremes or to deny the heretical and comes to conclusions. The arguments are very well thought out and linear so that the reader can follow very easily and understand the concepts and defenses put forth by Stott. I would urge any pastor or missionary to pick up this book. This book is something that would have helped the start of my study on the church's mission before going to deeper studies that I have already looked at. I would hope that people that are in the emergent circles (Rob Bell, Tony Jones, Brian McLaren, etc) and also in the IFB circles would pick up this book to see their errors in the thought of Christian mission. Overall, this "introduction" is a great balanced approach to our mission as Christians as we work, minister, educate and evangelize the world as we know it today. Whether one is abroad or in their own back yard, this book lays a great foundation so that one sees their errors of extremism in any of the above named topics. Highly Recommended.