THE MISSIONAL CHURCH

Discerning Where God Is at Work

In understanding the missio Dei, we find that God as a creating God also creates the church through the Spirit, who calls, gathers, and sends the church into the world to participate in God’s mission. Van Gelder, 18

Craig Van Gelder

To discern where God is at work a congregation needs to:

1. Engage proactively in its context. Van Gelder, 59

2. Examine the context through theological lenses.

The first question: What is God doing?

God is at work in the world beyond the church.

The church must seek to discern what the Spirit of God is doing in relation to the changes that are taking place within a particular context.

The church joins God and participates in the missio Dei.

The Church in Acts

The expanded mission and growth of the church in the book of Acts under the leading of the Spirit is characterized as much by conflict, disruption, interruption, and surprise as it is by any planned strategy.

This required the church to engage in discernment to interpret what was happening. Van Gelder 59

The second question: What does God want to do?

Congregations need to ask this question on a regular basis in light of the contexts they seek to serve. Van Gelder 60

The church must seek to understand how the intent of God, as expressed in the gospel, can work itself out in a particular context to contribute to the ministry of reconciliation.

The church must engage in focused missional planning in considering how to participate in what God wants to do in a particular place.

The Church in Acts

There are indications that some intentional strategies were used; for example, the Twelve chose to go to the temple daily to proclaim the good news about Jesus, even when forbidden to do so.

However, the church was at times redirected in how a strategy was actually to be carried out; for example, Paul and his companions were redirected to Macedonia. Van Gelder 61

The leading of the Spirit comes through the use of wisdom and planning to develop a strategy and through faith and discernment in the midst of unexpected change.

Case Study of Spirit-led Discernment and Decision Making

Van Gelder 95-96

A process of mutual discernment: Requires leadership. Requires time. Requires a mutual commitment among those

who are around the table. Van Gelder 98 Requires inviting the Spirit of God to guide

the conversation. Requires data from the context (and

congregation). Requires drawing from biblical and

theological foundations to frame the interpretation of the situation.

An essential dimension that Christian leaders must attend to in the midst of a discernment and decision-making process is how to keep God in the conversation.

This is done through accessing the teaching of Scripture and theologically reflecting on it, as well as in allowing God to function as an acting subject through the presence of the Spirit of God working in the midst of the community. Van Gelder 99

Reliance on the Spirit’s leading through a process of communal discernment maintains God’s presence in the process as an acting subject. Van Gelder 105, 107

The missional church discerns through prayer.

Reggie McNeal offers an example: Members were instructed to go to a coffee

shop, sit on a park bench, or stand in a mall parking lot and pray a simple prayer:

“Lord, help me to see what you see.” They were to listen for an hour to the voice

of God and then reconvene to share what they heard.

They began to see broken families, homeless people, at-risk children, stressed teenagers, etc.

The missional church discerns through “dwelling in the word.”

This is a way to read Scripture in community.

A short passage is read aloud while people are encouraged to listen to where their imagination was caught in the text.

Participants then pair up and listen to each other by attending carefully to what the other person heard and thus allowing the to speak freely. Van Gelder & Zscheile 151.

The posture of discernment:

Missional churches ask the question, What is God up to in the world?” from a posture of deep humility.

The church can easily distort its discernment toward selfish ends or fail to see God’s presence and activity, especially in the lives of people on the margins. Van Gelder & Zscheile 152

Discernment must be grounded in the Word of God, in attentive prayer and listening to the Holy Spirit, in community, and especially in relationship with the neighbor.

Missional discernment must take seriously the participation of those outside the church.

An example from South Africa is an all-white church that sought to become multiracial and multiethnic in the years after apartheid ended. The leaders of the church built relationships with black leaders, and invited a few to serve on the church board without becoming members. Their journey taught them that they could not discern how to move into a new future with their neighbors without having those neighbors at the table. Van Gelder & Zscheile 152

Another example from George Hunsberger:

Eight people meet once a month. Each one brings something they

have discerned to be the presence of the reign of God.

The group decides which one of these most needs to be reported.

The group decides to whom it needs to be reported and in what manner.

Then they do it!

Discerning the Reign of God in the World (Questions suggested by Jim Brownson):

1. Is it “according to the Scriptures?”2. Can Jesus be Lord in this?3. Does Christ’s death and resurrection matter?4. Is there a hopeful tension?5. Does it feel like a parable?

Liturgy of Discernment by Mark Yaconelli

Ritual Silence, a song, lighting a candle, some ritual that helps us recognize the presence of God.

Relating Attending to each other. “How are you?”

Receiving Attending to God through prayer; attentive to the Spirit of God e.g. Lectio Divina

Ruminating Listening to what each person noticed during the prayer, listening to God.

Liturgy of Discernment continued

Reflecting Given what is heard and shared, the group asks: “What is God’s word, invitation, and/or call to us?”

Responding Out of listening, we do our work. We commence with agenda items, decisions, etc.

Returning Intercession and/or closing prayer. We offer our ourselves/ our efforts to God.