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The Messenger, the Message and the Community 3rd edition by Muller, Roland (2013) Paperback
Excellent Book
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First published January 1, 2010
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
June 22, 2023
One of the most helpful books I’ve read on cross-cultural work and all that entails.
4 stars instead of 5 because of poor editing. Even though the material presented is largely given through the lens of a Muslim context, it is still relevant for all evangelism endeavors.
The biggest takeaway for me was the way he described the three worldviews that have come out of man’s response to sin—guilt, shame and fear- based cultures.
4 stars instead of 5 because of poor editing. Even though the material presented is largely given through the lens of a Muslim context, it is still relevant for all evangelism endeavors.
The biggest takeaway for me was the way he described the three worldviews that have come out of man’s response to sin—guilt, shame and fear- based cultures.
July 20, 2023
This book holds so much practical wisdom. Perhaps the most profound portion for me personally was Muller’s description of how our world’s three main worldviews tie directly back to Adam and Eve’s sin in the garden of Eden. God directly addresses each of these worldviews in scripture and has a plan of redemption in place for all peoples, nations, and tribes. Hallelujah!
April 23, 2016
The most transformational book I have ever read on sharing the good news!
April 9, 2022
This is one of the top three missiological texts that I have read to date. It is full of wisdom, probing questions, deep contextual awareness and a positive faith that God’s servants will bear fruit.
As the title suggests, there are three main sections to Muller’s work. He probes the depths of what it means to be a cross-cultural worker and proclaimer in the first two sections. He draws extensively from personal experiences, biblical texts (particularly the Pauline corpus) and years of interviews with missionary church planters. Having been a practitioner for 34 year - most of those in the Islamic world - I find his organization and clarity here on key challenges in the CP process to be superb.
The book eschews proscribing a model as if there is a singular CP model that fits every context. Instead, the writer focuses on guiding principles, New Testament attributes of ekklesia, and the collective wisdom of fruitful workers to provide the reader with a holistic understanding of the missionary task among unreached peoples.
Muller’s last section was a later appendage to his original work as he came to the awareness that community is the critical component for most Muslims making a faith commitment to Christ. This section is gold. Here is the real challenge of the missionary enterprise. By focusing on reproducing communities of faith, Muller taps into the biblical alternative to the Islamic ummah and builds a powerful argument for what the end goal must be in all our proclamation, I.e., a Spirit-led church that lives to proclaim Jesus.
I will consult this book many times moving forward.
As the title suggests, there are three main sections to Muller’s work. He probes the depths of what it means to be a cross-cultural worker and proclaimer in the first two sections. He draws extensively from personal experiences, biblical texts (particularly the Pauline corpus) and years of interviews with missionary church planters. Having been a practitioner for 34 year - most of those in the Islamic world - I find his organization and clarity here on key challenges in the CP process to be superb.
The book eschews proscribing a model as if there is a singular CP model that fits every context. Instead, the writer focuses on guiding principles, New Testament attributes of ekklesia, and the collective wisdom of fruitful workers to provide the reader with a holistic understanding of the missionary task among unreached peoples.
Muller’s last section was a later appendage to his original work as he came to the awareness that community is the critical component for most Muslims making a faith commitment to Christ. This section is gold. Here is the real challenge of the missionary enterprise. By focusing on reproducing communities of faith, Muller taps into the biblical alternative to the Islamic ummah and builds a powerful argument for what the end goal must be in all our proclamation, I.e., a Spirit-led church that lives to proclaim Jesus.
I will consult this book many times moving forward.
November 13, 2023
Another really relevant book on cross-cultural interaction and faith. A whole host of reflection questions to work through. The sections on different world views and on community particularly stood out to me.
Much food for thought.
I need to return now to the book and make some more notes in response to various questions.
Much food for thought.
I need to return now to the book and make some more notes in response to various questions.
February 28, 2025
I can’t believe no one told me to read this book before now. Aside from the Bible and Roland Allen’s Missionary Methods, no other book has challenged my church planting paradigms more. I would consider this book required reading (especially for those working with Muslims) and look forward to applying and testing the book’s principles.
September 29, 2020
Intriguing analysis of cross-cultural acceptance and community
January 5, 2015
My goals in my work and measures of "success" are quite different from Muller's. For instance, I'm not a church planter. But the real strength of Muller's writing is that he doesn't let his personal goals get in the way of conveying really insightful information on how Christians are seen and relate to others in Muslim contexts. He does a fantastic job of analyzing the differences between two different cultures without elevating one over the other at all, and suggests means to bridge between them via the Bible. This book was originally written in three different sections, and I found helpful information in all three.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews