God's Missionary People: Rethinking the Purpose of the Local Church

by Charles E. Van Engen

Publisher:

Baker Academic

, 1991

Overview

The author advocates a closer identification between the local congregation and the universal church. He works through the realities of church life and denominational organizations before challenging church leaders to redefine ecclesiology.

Key Features

• Explores the role of the local congregation in the missionary purpose of God
• Seeks to stimulate missionaries and pastors to reflect more deeply on the purpose for which their congregations exists
• Intends to encourage christian leaders to consider how their congregations can clearly and boldly demonstrate the good news of the gospel in their contexts

Contents

Part 1 Local Churches: God’s Missionary People

• A New Perspective of the Local Church
• The Impact of Modern Ecclesiology on the Local Church
• The Essence of the Local Church in the Book of Ephesians
• The Essence of the Local Church in Historical Perspective
• Restarting the Missionary Intention of the Local Church

Part 2 Local Churches: A New Vision of God’s Missionary People

• The Purpose of the Local Church
• The Local Church and The Kingdom of God
• The Role of the Local Church in the World

Part 3 Local Churches: Becoming God’s Missionary People

• Missional Goals in the Local Church
• Missionary Members in the Local Church
• Missionary Leaders in the Local Church
• Missional Administration in the Local Church

Product Details

• Title: God's Missionary People: Rethinking the Purpose of the Local Church
• Author: Charles E. Van Engen
• Publisher: Baker Academic
• Print Publication Date: 1991
• Logos Release Date: 2024
• Pages: 224
• Language: English
• Resources: 1
• Format: Digital › Logos Reader Edition
• Subjects: Church; Mission of the church; Religion › Christian Ministry--Evangelism
• Resource ID: LLS:GDSMSSNRYPPL
• Resource Type: Monograph
• Metadata Last Updated: 2024-08-26T21:00:03Z

About Charles E. Van Engen

Charles E. Van Engen (PhD, Free University of Amsterdam) is the Arthur F. Glasser Professor Emeritus of Biblical Theology of Mission at Fuller Theological Seminary and has taught in the School of Intercultural Studies since 1988. Previously he was a missionary in Mexico, working primarily in theological education. Van Engen also taught missiology at Western Theological Seminary in Michigan and served as president of the General Synod of the Reformed Church in America from 1998 to 1999. He is the founding president and CEO of Latin American Christian Ministries, Inc. Over the past thirty years Van Engen has been involved in extensive preaching, teaching and speaking on mission in Mexico and numerous countries in Latin America, Asia, Africa, the United States, Western Europe and Canada. A prolific author, Van Engen has published many books, chapters in books and papers in both English and Spanish. His wide-ranging publications include God's Missionary People, Mission-on-the-Way: Issues in Mission and You Are My Witnesses: Drawing from Your Spiritual Journey to Evangelize Your Neighbors. He is the coauthor of books such as Evaluating the Church Growth Movement, Communicating God's Word in a Complex World and Announcing the Kingdom: The Story of God's Mission in the Bible. He is also the coeditor of several books including Paradigm Shifts in Christian Witness, Evangelical Dictionary of World Missions, Footprints of God: A Narrative Theology of Mission, Missiological Education for the 21st Century, God So Loves the City, The Good News of the Kingdom and Evangelical, Ecumenical and Anabaptist Missiologies in Conversation. Van Engen is involved in the American Society of Missiology, Association of Professors of Mission, the International Association of Mission Studies, the Evangelical Missiological Society, the Academy of Evangelism in Theological Education and the Latin American Theological Fraternity.