Transforming Mission

Transforming Mission
David J. Bosch
Orbis Books (1993)
In this book the author describes a major paradigm shift that is needed in the context of the current state of Christian missionary efforts. He argues that the Christian church is experiencing a major crisis that is not reversible, and it is one that is also reflective of the challenges of postmodern society. This book examines the contemporary missional crisis through the lens of two thousand years of missionary history in the church.
The author of the book is David Bosch, an expert on Christian missionary efforts from South Africa who died tragically in an automobile accident in 1992. He broke the thirteen chapters of the book up into three sections. In the first section he clearly outlines the mission models found in the New Testament. Churches in the New Testament era are often held up as model versions of effective church activity, but the churches from that time period did not employ one specific type of missional model. They utilized a wide variety of models based on the context of the geographic regions and the movements of the Holy Spirit. In this sense, the author argues that “the New Testament witnesses to a fundamental shift when compared with the Old Testament. In surveying the paradigm shifts in missionary thinking I wish to suggest that the first and cardinal paradigm change took place with the advent of Jesus of Nazereth and what followed after that.” (15)
In the second section, Bosch describes several historical paradigms of mission. He describes many reasons for Christian leaders to be creative in bringing the message of the gospel to the modern context. He says that “one of the basic reasons for having to do this, lies in the fact that the Christian faith is a historical faith. God communicates his revelation to people through human beings and through events, not by means of abstract propositions. This is another way of saying that the biblical faith, both Old and New Testament, is ‘incarnational’, the reality of God entering into human affairs.” (181)
In the third section the author presents various aspects of relevant missiology including the paradigms of postmodernism, ecumenical missions, and the contemporary diversity in missional approaches within the church. Most importantly, all previous attempts at Christian missiology, especially those attempted during the Enlightmenmnet period of human history, will not be influential anymore. The modern pitfalls such as purposeless individualism and overconfidence in one’s self have given way to what Bosch describes as the need to “reaffirm the indispensableness of conviction and commitment.” (362) and the need to connect with other humans relationally for survival.
God is moving anew in today’s modern society, and I feel that He has placed me uniquely in this situation at North Way for the purpose that He has called me to. In many ways, the externally focused efforts at North Way are not understood as anything new in terms of the historical context of the church and the body of Christ. However, this book has taught me that while God may have moved in many different forms missionally in the past, He is up to something new in the postmodern context of history. This new form of missiology will require me to be multifaceted and multidimensional in my leadership approaches. The postmodern era is complex, and as Bosch put it, “our mission has to be multidimensional in order to be credible and faithful to its origins and character.” (512) As I see it, I need to lead with diverse strategies because I live and lead in a diverse world.