Fill the Earth: The Creation Mandate and the Church’s Call to Missions
Ebook
Overview
Why does the church engage in missions? Where in the Bible do we find support for this work? These questions have been asked and answered by many throughout the centuries, though rarely does the investigation span across the entire canon of Scripture. In this study Newkirk explores the breadth and depth of biblical teaching concerning God’s mission for his people and the church’s call to spread the gospel to the ends of the earth. By beginning with creation and ending with new creation, this study reveals that rather than simply deriving from a few “missions verses,” the church’s call to missions is grounded in the full spectrum of biblical revelation.
“Matt Newkirk has done the church a great service in providing a
much-needed, exegetically robust, and biblical-theologically
nuanced account of the mission of God, the mission of the church,
and the place of ‘missions.’ Fill the Earth moves
effortlessly between careful and detailed exegesis of key texts and
sweeping discussions of the flow of biblical theology. Even if
readers may not agree with every single conclusion that is reached,
the rigor with which the text is handled will both enrich and
challenge. This book is a sure-footed guide to this most vital
subject—I know of no better place to start in thinking through a
biblical theology of missions.”
—Gary Millar, Principal, Queensland Theological College, author of
Calling On the Name of the Lord: A Biblical Theology of
Prayer
“There is a wholeness in the purposes of God in the building of his
kingdom. All creation. All peoples. Every tribe. Every tongue.
Every knee. We have long needed a book that addresses the wholeness
of God’s mission in the whole Bible. Matt makes this unique
contribution with biblical richness that causes our hearts to
worship God and to work for his global mission.”
—Michael Oh, Global Executive Director and CEO, Lausanne
Movement
“Fill the Earth is an important work in a time where there
is much confusion about cross-cultural foreign missions. Grounded
in a beautiful biblical theology, this book opens our eyes to see
missions as part of God’s larger drama of redemption. The
applications at the end are especially helpful for mission leaders
in the church!”
—Lloyd Kim, Coordinator, Mission to the World
“Matthew Newkirk has written a fine book that roots the missional
calling of the church in the vocation given to humanity in
creation. This is a much-needed emphasis today. The loss of a
doctrine of creation has crippled the evangelical church and led to
much misunderstanding of mission. Moreover, his narrative unfolds
with careful attention to the text of Scripture—again, a
much-needed emphasis in missional church literature today.”
—Michael Goheen, Director of Theological Education, Missional
Training Center, Professor of Missional Theology, Covenant
Seminary
Product Details
- Title : Fill the Earth: The Creation Mandate and the Church’s Call to Missions
- Author: Newkirk, Matthew
- Publisher: Pickwick Publications
- Publication Date: 2020
- ISBN: 9781532693427
Matthew Newkirk is President and Professor of Old Testament at Christ Bible Seminary in Nagoya, Japan. He received his PhD from Wheaton College and is the author of Just Deceivers: An Exploration of the Motif of Deception in the Books of Samuel.