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Mission as a Task?

The mere conceptualization of the Great Commission as a task molds involvement toward measurable goals, seemingly discounting the limitations of such empiricism.

Popular mission literature and mission agency publicity is full of comments about “finishing the task” or “completing the great commission”. Regular readers of Kouyanet will know that I am more than a little allergic to this sort of language (try this and this for examples).

With this in mind, I found the chapter by Ken Baker in Advancing Models of Mission to be very helpful and I’ll give a few example quotes below. Before I do this, just a quick note, if you disagree with the quotes, please go away and read the whole thing in context. I obviously can’t reproduce the whole chapter in a blog post and there is much more to what he says and why he says it than can be reproduced in a few one liners.

People do not live in “people groups”; they live in specific places in space and time. People live in communities.

I propose that the main concern lies in casting the Great Commission as a task. We have shaped it as something for us to do and finish. A task is necessarily linear, procedural, and agenda-driven, which means that “measuring” and “completing” naturally take a central focus. The mere conceptualization of the Great Commission as a task molds involvement toward measurable goals, seemingly discounting the limitations of such empiricism.

The focus on quantification is an unfortunate example of the axiom that if we can’t measure what is truly important (that is, transformative kingdom values), then we make important what we can measure.

The task perspective clearly sets a tone of doing and measuring how we are doing. We cannot avoid it, since the task mindset resonates well with Western cultural values of goal-setting, linear productivity, efficiency, etc.

Likewise, while task-oriented approaches and methods unfold in global contexts, they are largely conceived and promoted by those who are guests in the Majority World.

Of course, there is a task aspect of global kingdom engagement; there is much to do. The problem, though, is seeing our involvement as only a task.

I propose that we are better prepared for global engagement when we see our involvement as a role to live, instead of (only) a task to do.

Role focuses on who we are as much as on what we do.

As much of Scripture attests, the people of God have always had this role—i.e., a people among whom God dwells and through whom God intends to display an authentic witness of himself before the world.

When we shape the goal as “finishing the task,” we focus more on the expansion of the kingdom than on its character. But the character of the King must accompany the expansion of his kingdom.

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One reply on “Mission as a Task?”

Keep repeating (with variations!) this message Eddie – it’s a welcome counter-balance to the emphasis on a once-and-for-all approach to our ongoing commission to make disciples of all nations.

However, as a fellow-scientist (and perhaps a pedant) can I appeal to you to cease the incorrect use of the word “allergy”.

An allergic reaction is a response of the body’s immune system to a stimulus. I have no quibble with your adverse reaction to the use (and misuse) of scripture – but it is not an allergic reaction 🙂

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