You Will Be My Witnesses: Theology for God’s Church Serving in God’s Mission

by Brian A. DeVries

Publisher:

Crossway

, 2024

Overview

A Theological Introduction to the Witness of the Church within the Mission of God

Mission is God’s work. God spoke the first promise of gospel hope, sent his Son into this fallen world, and commissioned his Spirit to empower his church for witness. Until the day Christ returns, God has called his people to participate in his mission through evangelism, apologetics, church planting, cultural engagement, gospel suffering, and many other activities that faithfully communicate gospel hope in Christ.

This practical introduction provides a biblical framework for understanding the church’s role in God’s mission. It reviews the biblical story of God’s mission, draws insights from the church’s witness since Pentecost, and studies aspects of contemporary Christian witness. Each chapter ends with study questions to encourage further reflection and discussion by church members and ministry leaders. Readers will gain refreshing insights into how they can participate in faithfully bearing witness to Christ through the church’s work in the world today.

Confessional and Contemporary: Precisely defines the biblical aspects of God’s mission and Christian witness, built upon time-tested theology, yet freshly applied for witness in the post-Christendom world

Accessible: Written for church members, college and seminary students, ministry workers, and church leaders who are committed to creating a community that bears witness to Christ in an unchurched society/

Practical and Motivational: Clear and crisp writing style, enhanced by many helpful figures and charts, and infused with a gospel passion to declare God’s glory among the nations

Spurs Discussion: Thought-provoking study questions at the end of each chapter to encourage further reflection and faithful action

Key Features

• Written for church members, college and seminary students, ministry workers, and church leaders
• Precisely defines the biblical aspects of God’s mission and Christian witness
• Includes study questions at the end of each chapter to encourage further reflection and faithful action

Contents

• Preface: Your Church Serving in God’s Mission
• Chapter 1: Christian Witness within God’s Mission

Part One: The Biblical Story of God’s Mission

• Chapter 2: Mission in the Old Testament
• Chapter 3: The Mission of Jesus Christ
• Chapter 4: The Mission of the Holy Spirit
• Chapter 5: Witness in the New Testament

Part Two: Concise History of Christian Witness

• Chapter 6: The Church’s Witness after Pentecost
• Chapter 7: Historical Themes in Christian Witness

Part Three: Our Witness in an Unchristian World

• Chapter 8: Christian Witness as Gospel Presence
• Chapter 9: Christian Witness by Gospel Message
• Chapter 10: Christian Witness by Gospel Response
• Chapter 11: Christian Witness in Gospel Community
• Chapter 12: Motivating Our Churches to Witness

Product Details

• Title: You Will Be My Witnesses: Theology for God’s Church Serving in God’s Mission
• Author: Brian A. DeVries
• Edition: First Edition
• Publisher: Crossway
• Print Publication Date: 2024
• Logos Release Date: 2024
• Era: era:contemporary
• Language: English
• Resources: 1
• Format: Digital › Logos Reader Edition
• Subjects: Witness bearing (Christianity); Church work; Theology, Practical
• ISBNs: 9781433591402, 9781433591396, 9781433591389, 1433591405, 1433591391, 1433591383
• Resource ID: LLS:WLBMWTNTFGCSGM
• Resource Type: Monograph
• Metadata Last Updated: 2024-09-02T21:23:46Z

About Brian A. DeVries

Brian A. DeVries (PhD, Southern Baptist Theological Seminary) is the president of Mukhanyo Theological College in South Africa and adjunct professor of missiology at Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary. DeVries has led three multiethnic church-planting teams in South Africa and currently serves as the pastor of Grace Reformed Church in Pretoria. He and his wife Lanae are blessed with five children.