What Fuels the Mission of the Church?

by Daniel Hames, Michael Reeves

How the Church’s Mission and Knowledge of God Are Intertwined Many Christians  know  they should be passionate about evangelism, but in reality they often find it daunting. In this concise version of  God Shines Forth , Daniel Hames and Michael Reeves urge Christians to grow in their knowledge and enjoyment of God―as they know God more, they will be spurred on to authentic service through missions and evangelism. To illustrate how the nature of God influences evangelism and missions, Hames and Reeves address biblical themes such as the glory of God, Christ’s sacrifice, the fallenness of man, and the church’s future hope. They invite readers to look to Jesus as the glory of God in the world, which is the Christian’s ultimate motivation to share the love of God with others. 

Genres: Evangelism, Faith

80 pages, Paperback

Published October 11, 2022

Reviews

[Anne Michal]

Read for D-group. Thought provoking book about what should fuel our desire to take the Gospel to our neighbors.

[Jamie Thompson · Rating 5 out of 5]

“Mission fueled by the fullness of God is able to deal with the weakness of its missionaries. Wounded soldiers, struggling saints, and stumbling preachers are not dismissed from the Lord's army, because they are not expected to be full in and of themselves. In our suffering, our battle with sin, and our lack of experience or boldness or eloquence, we are nonetheless invited to delight ourselves in the Lord and find fullness in him.”

this one was really good 🥹

[Nicholas Potts · Rating 4 out of 5]

Another very good book. Highly recommended.

[Brady Chubb · Rating 4 out of 5]

Spoiler ahead! The answer is Jesus. A tremendous reminder.

[Lauren Williams · Rating 4 out of 5]

“Knowing that we are empty ones, now full of him, we always place Jesus himself at the foreground rather than ourselves. It is Jesus we have to offer the world.”

[Jimmy · Rating 5 out of 5]

Do you want to read a book that encourages you to evangelize and participate in the Great Commission? This book is great towards that end. It is theological and practical in a heart-focused way. The two authors are involved with teaching at the Union School of Theology in the United Kingdom and this booklet is part of the Union Series put out by the Publisher Crossway and after reading this work I do want to read more titles in this series.
With an introduction titled “The Great Admission” that talks about the challenge Christians feel about evangelism and the guilt from manipulative ploy to try to motivate Christians to evangelize the first chapter then talks about the Glory of God since the authors wants readers to be motivated by the Glory of God as one’s reason to do evangelism and participate in missions. There’s seven other chapters that follow with the second titled “The Lamb on His Throne,” then “Fullness,” “Emptiness” and “Born in Zion.” Chapter six is titled “Arise, Shine!” and seven is “Those Who Look to Him are Radiant” and finally “We will See Him as He is.”
What I like about this work is how so God-centered. Chapter one in the first sentence states “Happy Mission Presupposes happy Christians” and later also states “Christians who don’t enjoy God can’t and won’t wholeheartedly commend him to others” (19). That is so true. The book also add “At the heart of happy Christianity is knowing God rightly, which means beginning al our thinking with Jesus Christ.” Amen! Both Reeves and Hames articulate it really well how the mission’s motor is basking in the sunshine of a loving and generous God as defined by the terms of the Bible. The book goes over attributes of God and the glory of God in proper perspective and how that moves one to engage in the Great Commission. This is not so much a “how to” book that’s step by step to do something but it is practical since the authors addresses the heart and the heart’s motivation. I do recommend this.

[Cait Hutchison · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5*
Helpfully touched on the mission of how we should view God and how that encourages us to share about Him. I appreciated the honesty Reeves shared about the disconnect we often have between the desire/fire we feel to share, and actually doing it. Although I was hoping he would go a bit deeper into the theology behind mission, but still a worth while read!

“The God of mission is no different to the God of the Gospel”
“Unless Christians are carried into mission by genuine enjoyment of the Lord, their mission will not embody the glory of the living God.”

[Jessica · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Many of us silently grumble that in being recruited to evangelism we are being put upon. We first came to know Jesus, very happily receiving His mercy and invitation to new life, but then came along this additional step of having to be a witness to Him to the World."😳

The problem with this is the root of a wrong view of God. We become what we delight in. We tell others if Him when we know and love Him most.

Excellent listen on audio.

[James Bunyan · Rating 4 out of 5]

“The foundation of all our mission is our knowledge and enjoyment of God.” Pg55

Very simple book- belief and joy in the gospel fuels the mission of the church. Hames, therefore, unpacks the gospel clearly and then shows how this above all is what helps the church move outwards in mission.

[Miranda · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is more simply about the “fuel” and less the mission- which means the book is still filled with great truth. The chapters that married joy in Christ and mission specifically were standout chapters.

[Ashley Mayhew · Rating 4 out of 5]

A great short read on the call to evangelize!

[Bailey Dykes · Rating 4 out of 5]

a good simple read to tackle if you’re looking for eternal perspective. So so focused on the gospel!