Summary: Sustainable mission
depends upon clearly defined mission
structures that allow for the growth
and development of Christian faith
through connected communities of
believers. God's Mission is built for
growth through the structural connec-
tions of regional and national church
bodies, as stated in Matthew 28 and
John 15.
Matthew 28:19 is a clear directive
from Jesus to his followers. But what
does it mean for us today to "make
disciples of all nations"? As we
consider the realities of our sisters and
brothers in Southeast Asia or in
Mongolia, in the small nations of
Central America or in African cities and
rural villages, what does it mean to
Go therefore and make disciples of all
nations, baptizing them in the name of
the Father and of the Son and of the
Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey
everything that I have commanded you.
Matthew 28:19-20a
make disciples across the seas as well
as across the street?
There are many biblical principles of
engaging in God's Mission to the world
that direct church leaders and will
guide any missional program, but all
begin in one way or another with this
ringing call to "go!" but not just go
anywhere in a scattered approach! We
are called by Scripture to move toward
the formation of sustainable organiza-
tional structures which make it
possible to gather disciples not just in
isolated places but in "all nations", as
Jesus directs. The first century
Palestinians, Greeks, and Romans had
a different understanding of the word
nation
than we do today. For them,
"nations" meant sociological groups of
people, rather than sovereign political
states with defined geographic borders.
That is, we are called to form ongoing,
sustainable church structures among
the various ethnic and affinity people
groups, thereby creating Christian
communities connected by faith and
Connecting Communities,
Sustaining God s Mission
By The Rev. Dr. John Edward Nuessle
Mission Journal
2
discipline to the greater whole of
God's Church.
From John 15: 1-11, we understand
that no individual branch of a vine
bears fruit without being connected to
the whole vine. A single branch does
not have the capacity to draw upon its
own nourishment from the earth, for it
must be connected to a larger plant
structure. Similarly, for local worship-
ing congregations to grow and bear
fruit they need to be intimately
connected to the whole church-
structurally as well as conceptually.
This means that all missionaries and
any other church growth or planting
program must not isolate themselves
structurally from the Church universal,
and must be accountable and related
to the wider Church. Being formed
into regionally accountable church
structures, such as Methodist annual
conferences, allows for a nourishing
base of support from the central vine
of Christianity. We are then able to
plant local churches that grow and
expand into other local churches, just
The Value of the Vine
MISSION &
THEOLOGY
