THE NEXT ADVENTISM
Taking Jesus to Other Lands BY DANIEL MORA
not require the renunciation of cultural identity, but rather, individual transformation and dignity. Above all, the gospel is a spiritual and ethical message that changes the human heart. It is not a culture in itself, nor does it belong exclusively to a particular people, language, or tradition. Jesus did not preach a specific cultural way of dressing,
speaking, or organizing social life; he preached universal principles such as love, justice, mercy, and reconciliation with God and with others. Tese values can be embodied in any culture without destroying it. Whenever bringing Jesus to people is viewed as a process
of colonization, the essence of proclaiming the gospel as a truth that challenges the conscience is lost. Tragically, it turns into a method for achieving quantifiable goals where success is measured by numbers: baptisms, attendance, tithes, or territorial expansion.
To All Ethnic Groups Matthew 28:19 says the gospel should go to “all nations,” but a better translation of the Greek panta ta ethnē would be to “all ethnic groups.” Te primary meaning of the Greek éthnos is a group of people considered as an entity, grouped together (Matt. 24:7, 14; Acts 17:26; Rom. 1:5).1 Tey may be grouped geographically, such as the Samaritans (Acts 8:9), or by custom and tradition (Acts 10:22). In its formal plural, it encompasses even non-Jews, since the message of salvation entered the Gentile world (Rom. 16:4; Gal. 2:12; Eph. 3:1). Te Bible shows multiple examples of this diversity. Although
Proclaiming the gospel to all nations is not merely a strategy for institutional growth. It is an essential dimension of Christian life. It arises from the very heart of God. It is based on biblical revelation. To speak of the gospel is to reflect on the what, the why, and the how of proclamation in light of God’s character and redemptive plan. Over the centuries the dynamic of sharing, the gospel under
the heading “mission” became oriented toward the listener accepting a series of propositions, creeds, and customs imposed by the religious institution as a requirement for access to the person of Jesus, even if this meant renouncing their cultural and ethnic identities. At its worst, it meant post-apostolic Christians conquering through political-religious power and Christianizing by force. Tis leſt historical and current tensions in Christianity, especially in contexts where the Christian faith has come from cultures different from the local ones. Jesus’ command to take the gospel to other lands shouldn’t
have necessitated annulment of the local cultures. A careful reading of the biblical message shows that the gospel does
44 AD VENTIS T T OD A Y
God names a special people in the Old Testament, we also see God relating to other peoples, such as the heathen Ninevites through Jonah (1:1). While their idolatry is condemned, their language, history, and symbols are respected. In the New Testament, Paul affirms that in Christ “there is neither Jew nor Greek”—not to eliminate cultural differences, but to affirm that no culture is superior to another before God. Te gospel is essentially unity, not uniformity. Te problem arises when those who share the gospel conflate
their own culture with it. More oſten than not, missionaries doing evangelism impose their cultural models on new believers, as if their own customs are an essential part of the faith. Tis widespread practice can lead to the loss of a believer’s traditions, artistic expressions, and in some cases even local language. Such a narrow and ethnocentric view of faith can cause deep wounds in communities, where converts oſten experience rejection—all because the ethnicity of missionaries was needlessly imposed on nationals.
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48
