Missional Church: A Vision for the Sending of the Church in North America (The Gospel and Our Culture Series (GOCS))

The only major weakness in the book is excessive use of “Church Babble” making it challenging for most of us.

I am a pastor at a church in Hawaii this book is helping me understand my culture better. This quotation from the book is fantastic, "All too typical is the woman who, after attending worship and disliking the sermon, asked her visiting friend, “Now tell me, what did you get out of that worship service?” The woman was taken aback when the friend replied, “That’s not a question I ask myself. I ask myself, ‘Did this community of God’s people worship God today?’ ” (Kindle Locations 2043-2045). I would recommend this book to all people who want to help God use the church to help accomplish his mission in the world.

Guder provides here a good introduction to missional theology and ecclesiology. While not for the casual reader or average church layperson, this book does provide fascinating scholarly insights into the depth of the missional church movement. Guder serves as the general editor, compiling together a number of authors' thoughts on various aspects of missional theology and ecclesiology. Topics include: missional church, missional witness, missional community, missional leadership and missional structures.This volume is deep and academic in tone, but for the pastor or scholar wanting to get a better understanding of the missional church movement today, it will not disappoint.

I do not recommend this book. Many fail to see that the theology it reflects is not biblical, especially from what it does NOT affirm. It either reflects the liberal, social gospel or it is a setting forth of Liberation Theology. Also it flirts with a postmodern epistemology. As to Liberation Theology, first, it asserts that "particular Christian communities" can be delivered from evil social powers by "conversion to the reign of Christ." In turn, second, by entering into the reign of Christ, evil social powers may be overthrown. Third, there is no mention of the blood of Christ that saves individuals from sin; the book especially disdains "individual conversion" and opts instead for a focus on particular communities' conversion (into "the reign of Christ"). Note especially page 229, where Christ's temptation in the garden is seen as an example to follow for particular Christian communities to overcome social power structures contrary to their mission. Is this the meaning / intent of Christ's temptation? No. As to postmodernism, read pages 40-41. The author(s) weaves in and out, in and out, making one statement that implies the getting of absolute truth, but then turns around by saying that we cannot really know what the intent of a biblical passage is, since we are so influenced by our particular cultures. Pages 40-41 set forth what I call "an epistemology without a compass," and the rest of the book should be read with this section in mind! Moreover, note some of the people that are footnoted in the book. For example, why do the authors make use of Pasolini (via Newbigin; pp. 219-20) and liberal theologians and Liberation theologians? What is the purpose? Could it be to promote a Marxist-type liberation theology that sees Jesus ONLY as a deliverer from the evil power structures of our world? (Some might respond that these various Liberation theologians and Marxists are quoted "descriptively." This is the case sometimes, but not all the time.) To be sure, in a full-fledged biblical theology of the gospel of Jesus, this notion of deliverance in the just-stated way must be included, but when it seems to be the only focus (remember, no blood atonement, individual salvation, etc.--again, note what the authors leave out, not only what they state), there is something afoot, and it is Liberation Theology coupled with a possible postmodern hermeneutic of relative truth. On another note, on page 8 four theologians are mentioned as having been consulted deeply in the production of this book. Do a search on some of them, including Douglas John Hall, and see what you find. Perhaps the worst thing I see this book accomplishing is when it is discussed in Christian settings where Christians take their biblical, classically orthodox theology / soteriology and read it into the book, assuming that the authors are of the same camp. Some of these Christians may be led astray, implicitly, by the book's content and truncated presentation of the person and work of Jesus.

This book was written really well. We had to read it for school and I was surprised at how much I liked it. If you like this book I strongly encourage you to NOT read the missional church in perspective. The missional church in perspective, the review of this book however is a waste of time, and I will indicate that in the review.

I read this after reading Newbigin, Vos, Van Til, Schaeffer, and a little Keller. Christianity Today identified this book as seminal in the missions church movement. However, I found it uneven and without clear definition of the problem it wants to address as well as without clear definition of a way forward. I guess I'll need to look elsewhere for clarity on the topic of a missions church.

Book was too difficult to read - however the writer held a seminar and he was an excellent speaker who was able to describe much of what the book was trying to say. Book was passed along to another congregational member.

A decent read. I read it for a class. Some of the information was decent but it is generally geared toward people that have no understanding of the postmodern worldview.My biggest issue is that some chapters flow beautifully and some chapters are like trying to run through neck deep maple syrup. I believe this is due to the multiple authors and their distinct writing styles.

Gruder is an exellent theologian of mission. Missional church teaches where the North American church has to go in postmodernity.