Christopher J. H. Wright's The Mission Of God

Christopher J.H Wright delivers an excellent treatment of the scriptures in his book “The mission of God. Following YHWH through the cannon of scripture, he truly captures The Mission of God. Wright’s larger argument is that there is a missional framework through which we can see the entire scriptures. God has been on mission from eternity past to eternity future, and he has woven his people into his story to display his glory. Wright puts on display through scripture the character of God and his mission. He seeks to define who is this God and what does his identity have to do with his mission. Wright further strings his missional hermeneutic through the people of God. How does the nation of Israel and God’s Word that has been entrusted to
them have to do with his mission? Finally, how does God execute his mission throughout time and space? God in his sovereignty carries out his mission though different peoples and era’s for his own purposes. Though he has captured the Mission of God brilliantly, Wright has misunderstood and lost the focus of the mission of the Church. In part one of the Mission of God, Wright is trying to resist the traditional idea of the “Biblical basis of Mission” to “The Missional basis of The Bible.”. His concept is that the entire cannon of scripture should contribute to the missional hermeneutic of the Church. All scripture reveals the mission of God. Wright uses Luke 24 and Matt 28 to illustrate this concept (Wright, 60). Jesus says in Matt 28 to make disciples because all authority on heaven and earth has been given to him. Jesus reveals in Luke 24 that his death and resurrection have already been foretold in the Old Testament. Wright teaches the concept of imperative followed by indicative. Jesus commands his disciples upon his authority. Jesus bolsters their belief in his death and resurrection based on Old Testament prophecy. Jesus isn’t expanding missional hermeneutic to include the Old Testament, he’s using the Old Testament hermeneutic to explain and justify the hermeneutic he’s giving now. In part 2 of Wright’s mission, he teaches how God wills to be known by all the nations, through Israel, the other nations, and ultimately though Jesus. In the end of chapter 2, Wright says “Human beings therefore are summoned to know God, on the clear assumption that they can know him and God wills that they should know him” (Wright, 74).
As the creation, we are equipped to know our creator, and yet completely dead in our sins, Wright observes about Israel: “The only thing that Israel will do in the whole scenario is they will come to know YHWH conclusively though these events” (Wright, 76) As the reciepents of the covenant with YHWH, Israel has been entrusted with the Word of God to know him and worship him, and bless the nations by making known to them the one true God. Wright says “Because there is none like YHWH, all the nations will eventually come to worship him as the one true God. (PS 86:8-9)” (Wright, 77). In the grand crescendo of this mission of God, Wright reveals that “The God of Israel, whose declared mission was to make himself known to the nations through Israel, now wills to be known to the nations through the messiah, the one who embodies Israel in his own person and fulfills the mission of Israel to the nations.” (Wright, 123) This is an incredible story of God’s great revealing to all the nations that he is the one true God and there is no other. Though God would reveal himself to all nations, Israel had a special role to play in this
endeavor. Wright communicates brilliantly the position of Israel on the grand stage of the Earth. They are God’s chosen people and they have been entrusted with the law. God says to his people “I will take you as my own people, and I will be your God. Then you will know that I am the LORD your God, who brought you out from under the yoke of the Egyptians.”(EX 6:7, NIV) Israel being God’s covenant people is contingent upon their obedience to his law. If they do not obey The Law of God, they are just like all the other nations. God also move the other nations around the globe and gives them land. God will also bless the other nations as his tool of judgment. If the other nations had the Word of God, they would also be blessed for their obedience. God has future plans to make one nation out of many (like a salad bowl). God is building a nation that will worship and glorify him forever. (including but not limited to Israel.) Part 4 of Wrights book explores the times and places in which The Mission of God takes place. Wright advocates for creation care, social justice, YHWH’s name among the nations through Israel, and YHWH’s name among the nations through Jesus.
Wright’s primary argument for creation care is the mandate given to Adam and Eve in the garden to have dominion over and care for the Earth. His missional appeal is that through caring for the Earth, Christian’s are allowing creation to testify to the glory of God. Though the mandate to care for creation and be good stewards of this earth stands, God will care for his Earth, and he is sovereign over when the Earth will come to an end. As far as his missional appeal to care for the Earth so that it will bring God glory. God’s creation will testify to his glory all on its own. Eternal life comes through the hearing of God’s Word. “How beautiful on the mountains are the feet of those who bring good news, who proclaim peace, who bring good tidings, who proclaim salvation, who say to Zion, "Your God reigns!" (Isa 52:7, NIV).
Wright argues in chapter 13 that social justice is a part of Christian mission. He gives examples to illustrate that Christians should be at the forefront of human suffering to declare that human suffering does not belong in the kingdom of God. Wright says “Sin spreads horizontally within society and sin propagates itself vertically between generations.” (Wright, 431) He comments that sin affects all aspects of human life, and even affects social structures. Similar to creation care for the glory of God, Wright makes a similar argument that through people care, one brings glory to God and proclaims the future kingdom of God. “Nowhere in this book are they presented as being in danger of hell. On the contrary, physical death is presented as the “ultimate” and “the most terrible” of enemies (439).” Wright even asks the question: “What lies beyond death?” and yet he does not answer it. Just as Israel was an enemy of God for their lack of obedience to his covenant, so all Humans face the reality of eternal death if they do not know the hope that is found in Christ alone. Then Wright turns his attention to Jesus, the only representative to rightly be a blessing to the nations, proclaim the name of YHWH alone, and put an end to suffering and death, once and for all.
Jesus sends his disciples out with the good news of his death and resurrection. He in his own itinerant ministry had a primary focus on his own people. There were times however when he shared the gospel with gentiles. He sent his disciples out to share the gospel, proclaim the glory of God, and teach obedience to the commands of Jesus to everyone. At first they struggled through sharing the gospel with the gentiles. Paul and the early Church soon developed momentum in sharing the gospel, and everyone who believed and received the Holy Spirit had their life drastically changed. The Mission of God has not changed. The Mission of God has been revealed to us through the scriptures. As history unravels in the bible, God continued to reveal his mission to his people. God is on a mission to bring his name glory, crush the head of the serpent, and redeem his people. God stays the same through the ages. God took a chosen people to Know and obey him and be a blessing to the nations. God commands his people to teach others to obey everything that he has commanded. Through Jesus Christ the Old Testament has been fulfilled and the command is to make disciples who believe in his death and resurrection, and submit to his Lordship.