The Forgotten Ways by Alan Hirsch is a book about 'reactivating the missional church'. Alan calls us back to the beginning – to what he calls 'apostolic DNA'. This apostolic genius has six ingredients: Jesus as Lord, disciple-making, missional-incarnational impulse, apostolic environment, organic systems, and communitas.
Alan critiques contemporary church growth models, making a call for a movement away from what he calls the 'attractional' model approach. This has generated quite a bit of discussion and debate. Click here to read an article in Christianity Today by Dan Kimball (read the comments section too), as well as a response from Alan.
For me, I see the spreading of the gospel taking place through two approaches: 'go and tell' (Matt.28:18-20) and 'come and see' (John 1:40-42; 4:29-41). I think it is 'both/and' not 'either/or.' Of course, the 'come and see' approach only works if people are doing the 'go and tell' step first. We need to begin thinking and acting more like missionaries, even in our Western world context.
Alan is an insightful analyst of church and culture. This book is not a light read but it is an excellent discussion starter for where the church is now and where it should be going. Click here to visit Alan's blog.
Thanks for this great insight Mark. Must get the book and read it in full. May we all have a holy discontent to keep moving forward and upward to see a greater manifestation of the Kingdom of God. Shalom
Hello,
This is not related to your blog post, but I just wanted to say thank you for talking about the Holy Spirit this week, and also for sharing that you struggled with unbelief and apathy in the past. It’s so encouraging to know that other ppl also have these problems, and that God’s grace is sufficient even to deal with them. May Jesus increase in you, and you decrease in Him.