Mission In The Early Church

Reflecting upon mission activities imply expounding on the church itself since evangelism cannot exist without the church. The early church witnessed various evangelists pursuing various activities that aimed at spreading the gospel. The ancient Christian mission applied various methods to preach the word of God including contact and relational evangelism. Evangelism in the early church plays a significant role in the theology and mission practices in the contemporary world. Thus, the church including its mission activities is part of the Christian community thus should not be ignored. Mission activities were merely viewed as actions of human in response to the good things that the Lord had done but as Christology, where God acted as the major source of salvation of all humanity and indicated God’s union with humanity.

Mission was understood as the expression of the Lordship of Christ including its institution. The coming of Christ was depicted as his servant-hood to the sinful man, which culminated in his death and resurrection. Even more, the ministry of Christ’s Lordship has been manifested and established worldwide. For example, the book of Mathew indicates that the prophecy of Zechariah was fulfilled when Jesus entered into Jerusalem (Matt. An example is where Jesus together with his disciples sought to go from one door to the other when ministering the gospel. Thus, the approach is considered as crucial in the development of Christianity to the later society where groups like Jehovah Witness, the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, and Mormons have adopted the door-to-door form of evangelism.

The early church, therefore, emphasized on Jesus as the only light of the world. Through the door-to-door strategy, salvation was to reach each corner of the earth. Jesus was exclusively perceived as the only source of light of the world including the Gentiles. Lifestyle Form of Evangelism Just as there exist various factors that enabled the expansion of Christianity in the contemporary world, so were are factors that enhanced the expansion of Christianity in the ancient society, which include lifestyle evangelism. The early believers demonstrated their faith by teaching the parables of Jesus to attract large magnitudes of people thus characterizing lifestyle evangelism6. Such activities aimed at impressing multitudes of people with how God could affect peoples’ lives in various ways until they could be converted to Christianity.

Furthermore, Christian missionaries believed that Jesus drew people to God by perfuming good deeds and showing them kindness including miracles, a strategy that was later adopted by his disciples. The quality of life of the early Christians witnessed them not writing massive treaties or apologies but instead sharing the word of the Lord. It was crucial to approach the missionary works by acknowledging that they were part of the larger team. Just like Jesus sent his disciples in pairs of twos, so should the evangelists go forth working together in spreading the Glory of God. Thus, a group of missionaries could not only offer a companion to one another but also use this strategy as one way through which they could proclaim the gospel even further.

Through such groups, they were able to teach love, respect, care, and compassion to the multitude congregations they encountered10. Sharing everything symbolized love and unity, and hoped that such witness would touch the hearts of the unbelievers. Their prayers were answered, which can be evident in the manner in which the place where they were gathered was shaken including them being filled with Holy Spirit that witnessed them speaking the word of God with boldness unlike before. The developed courage was used as a testimony that helped the unbelievers develop faith in Christ. Considering the Needy Besides praying, another strategy used by the early church to attract a greater multitude of people to Christhood was having compassion for the needy. Their selfless character was a testimony of how God loved the world (2004, p.

They did not only take care of the needy but also sought to assist the disabled, ill persons, and the bereaved. Evangelism, used terms that aligned with the faith of the unbelievers, which would help them open the door for the gospel. Such methods made it easier for anyone to hear the gospel being explained to them. The gospel did not purpose to trick the Pagans or Jews into Christianity but aimed at converting and transforming them into believing in the coming of the Messiah. Thus, early missionaries were not trying to promote false religion but to bring people out of idolatry and help them develop an optimum relationship with the risen Lord. The method is considered instructive since it attempted to contextualize the continuity of Christianity amid other religions.

However, the missionaries targeted both individuals and groups of both believers and non-believers. They preached the word in the form of sermons and aimed to reach those who had the potential to develop their trust in Christ while reasoning with those who doubted the gospel. Often, the method included altering calls where people would be invited to come forward and accept Christ as their savior. Through these strategies, they were able to relate salvation to their personal experiences with Christ. Even more, they responded to crucial questions while encouraging the reluctant hearers to build their faith in Christ. For example, Peter directed his attention to preaching in Jerusalem while Paul and Barnabas worked with the missionary church in Syrian Antioch. Churches were established in the various regions.

Each of these churches strengthened the course of Christianity, which helped extend the gospel to more people. Thus, it is a personal commitment to Christ the Saviour, not the church that makes one a true Christian. However, the growth and expansion of Christianity require the church, indicating the need for the development of more churches if Christianity is to be enhanced. The nature of evangelism was both spontaneous and passionate. Early missionaries did not have the freedom to gather in large groups in public or even plan highly involved outreach programs. Instead, they sought to proclaim the gospel in their daily routines. They relied on the Spirit, which helped them preach the word authentically whenever they had the opportunity18. Furthermore, the zeal for evangelism in the early church is well documented in the New Testament including other writings.

The early missionaries preached the restored gospel mostly in the streets. Furthermore, the itinerant wanted the admonition of Christ to declare the Kingdom of God to a significant part of the world. Although the evangelists lacked any formal training, they emphasized learning with the forceful delivery of the gospel. Their passionate appeal to sainthood prompted their congregation to experience spiritual witness in the gospel message. Likewise, church elders resolved to preach in church buildings and public halls including homes and public squares, where crowds frequented to discuss social political and religious issues19. The messages passed defined the need for righteous ways and as a way through which more people would seek to inquire about the Christian doctrine. Regardless of the method used by the early evangelists, the major aim was to persuade all kinds of persons to grow faith in the gospel and thus become a follower of Jesus.