Mission and Discipleship

Mission is what the church is called to do. We are supposed to engage with other people - but what we are about is bringing them in to full particpiation in (and enjoyment of) kingdom things. As Stephen Cottrell says: "Mission .. can never be reduced to proclamation; it overflows into discipleship. It begins with our longing to share with others all that we have received in Christ, but it cannot end with initiation. .... The missionary church is the church that participates in God's mission, by enabling all people to become disciples of Christ. And by disciples I mean people who work toward the building of God's kingdom by responding to human need in loving service, and seek to transform the unjust structures of society. Therefore, the first task of a mission-shaped church is to ask how it can serve and be a blessing to its local community." (Stephen Cottrell in his chapter "Letting your actions do the talking" in "Fresh Expressions in the Sacramental Tradition" ed. Steven Croft and Ian Mobsby, Canterbury Press, 2009, p. 70). Going and telling is important - and it is the starting point; but we are not about something superficial. Jesus said, 'go!' But he said, 'go - and make disciples!'