Why Do Christians Fail in Their Mandate - Research Proposal Example

Christian Responsibility and the Great Commission: Why do Christians Fail in their Mandate? Introduction The following proposal will discuss the issue of why Christians are failing in their mandate of the Great Commission in contemporary practice. In discussing this issue the first issue that must be raised is whether or not there has been a failure in following the teachings of Christ that created the Great Commission and its responsibilities. The assumption of this paper is that there is a failure in the actions of Christians in taking on this great responsibility, so therefore the Commission must be discussed as well as the observation that it is not being attended properly. Once that has been established, the reasons that the Great Commission has been largely abandoned will be explored in order to seek answers to the reasons that Christians are no longer as vigilant about attending the mandates that would define their personal ministries. Background One of the important messages that Mathew gave to the followers of Christ was that they should go forth and spread the message of the sacrifice that Christ made for the world.1 In creating and participating in missionary work, the followers of Christ would support the message of love and forgiveness and spread the message that salvation was available through belief. Culpepper writes “The Great Commission comes to us from the context of a caring community of faith”.2 Missionary work is more than just spreading the message of salvation. It is a method of showing what the love of Christ means and serving the world so that suffering can come to an end. Missionary work is intended to motivate people to think about the world and their culture, putting Christian beliefs into context with how change will make a difference in their lives. This is done by preaching, by witnessing, and by showing the light of Christian care for the troubles of the world. Where many religions tried to make people believe that their suffering was intended by their god or gods, Christians intend to show others that their burdens can be lifted through God. Much of this is through service to the suffering.3 Purpose of the Study The fact remains, however, that there has not been a continuation of increased numbers, suggesting that the mandate to continue the spread of Christianity has met with less effort. The purpose of this study is to find reasons and excuses that are being used by Christians for not putting significant effort into missionary work. Through an examination of the literature associated to the question, the topic will be explored and examined in order to find answers to the questions that have been put forth. Significance of Study The significance of this study will become relevant as the work leads to conclusions about the reasons that people are no longer following the Great Commission. The significance of a study is to define how the information will be used in the greater context of the human condition.4 In finding reasons that people are neglecting this mandate, further study may allow for finding solutions to the apathy that is currently being expressed in relationship to the Great Commission. The theoretical implications of the study will be provided as the study reveals why the Great Commission is being neglected and defines the ways in which the late post-modern world cultures are creating Christians that no longer feel the drive to witness and share their story, provide missionary care for potential followers, and spread the faith among those who are currently without a relationship with Christ. Literature Review The ‘Great Commission’ is given to Christians in Mathew 28 where followers were given the instructions to spread the message of Christ. Klauber and Manetsch discuss that through most of the history of Christ the idea of missionary work was not attended as it should have been until the last few hundred years where evangelical missions spread the hope of the Christian faith. In 1500 only 19% of the world was Christian where in the year 2000 32% of the world has been converted to Christianity.5 Between 1750 and the year 1900 the number of Christians quadrupled, leaving the total percentage of the world Christian at 34%, but in the next 100 years that percentage dropped by 2% rather than continuing towards the increases that had been seen in the previous centuries.6 At 32% there is still a large population of Christians. Raschke discusses the idea of global Christianity and that it is no longer a ‘West’ faith, but a ‘rest’ faith with the spread of the organization of Christianity having reached most parts of the world. Raschke writes that “GloboChristianity is the decisive trend of the late postmodern era that is sweeping us beyond the postmodern”.7 Raschke does not see that there is a problem with the current development of Christianity, citing a more homogenized version of the church because the indigenous variations that once existed are now beginning to be abandoned in favor of one culture of Christian understanding.8 This comes from more uniformity in the translation of Christian faith and an inclusion in the globalization of the world which works towards making cultural translation minimized and world translation optimized. Mission work is not only limited to spreading the message of salvation. Christian missionaries have been involved in social causes for centuries. Christian missionaries in the 1860s who were working in China finally helped to establish social change so that the feet of infant girls were no longer bound in order to create lotus feet, a painful folding of the foot for aesthetic reasons. Rev. John Macgowan of the London Missionary Society campaigned for 15 years to end the practice. In 1929 the Church of Scotland Mission campaigned for the end of female genital cutting in Kenya, but that issue has yet to be resolved. Working towards social change towards relief from dangerous or disfiguring cultural practices has been one of the mandates for the missions of the Christian church.9 It is important to note that the Great Commission is not just about recruiting Christians, but in being a vehicle for social change. Statement of Problem One of the primary reasons that Christians have begun to avoid their own responsibilities in pursuing the Great Commissions is because of a shift in the traditional model in which all members are responsible for the actions of the church to the clergy-dependent model in which the congregation depends on the clergy to act as a missionary on their behalf. The members of the church are the recipients of the care that is given by the pastor with the minister having the primary responsibility of spreading the message among the members.10 Aim and Research Questions The aim of this study is to discover the primary reasons and excuses for not pursuing the Great Commission by Christians who profess to having faith. The following questions will be used to frame the discussion: 1. What is the difference between Christians who pursue missionary work and those who still profess the faith but do not contribute to the mission of spreading the message of Christ? 2. What has contributed to the decrease that has been seen in the last century in the number of Christians in the world? 3. Why are Christians not prioritizing Christian missionary work as a part of their practice of faith? Thesis Statement Late post-modern Christians have neglected to continue the mandates of the Great Commission because they have shifted from being an active member of service in the church to the clergy-dependent model in which missionary work is centered on the leader of the congregation in the form of the pastor, minister, or priest. Assumptions: The following assumptions have been made about what will be discovered during this inquiry. The current Christian follower does not understand that part of their faith is to serve as a missionary to the world in order to help to alleviate suffering and spread the message of salvation. The current level of missionary work has decreased in the last century due to the rise of consumerism and the need to make money for consumption. One of the primary reasons for the decrease in missionary priorities is because of the shift to the clergy-dependent model of the church. The tenets of Christianity are true and valid. The mandate by Mathew in book 28 for the Great Commission is mandatory for the life in faith and in service for Christians to express their faith. The Great Commission nor any other work is required for salvation. Christians desire to be good representations of their faith. Scope and Delineations The scope of the investigation will be the members of the Christian faith and through defining the concept of the mission of the Great Commission. Delineations are required in order to set boundaries for a study.11 The following delineations will help to limit the inquiry: The inquiry will be defined by the scope of Christian missionary work. The inquiry will be defined by secondary research through which the inquiry will be made. The boundaries of this study will be defined by a belief in the importance and necessity of the Great Commission. Proposed Logic: Structure and Strategy of Study Rationale and Theoretical Framework According to work done by David, Lynn and Ills, research that is done in both rational and irrational beliefs should “investigate the role of unconscious information processing … correlate rational and irrational beliefs with other cognitive constructs relevant to feelings…and be connected to influential contemporary conceptualizations of affect”.12 The nature of religion is that includes both rational and irrational beliefs, one based on what is known through history and facts, and the other known through what is defined as faith. Taking faith as the basis of a value in a study means making an assumption about truths that cannot be proven, but are accepted as beliefs. The theoretical framework through which this study will be defined is the grounded theory or inquiry that depends upon investigation to lead to conclusions rather than for the research to define a hypothesis then prove the facts that support that hypothesis.13 Although there is an assumption that there is a lack of Christian involvement in the Great Commission, there is also the assumption that the inquiry will lead to a larger understanding of the issues in question. Structure The structure of this study will be as follows: The introduction will allow for a development of the understanding of the problem. It will explore the significance of the problem as well as the issues that will be involved in researching the problem. It will establish that a problem exists. The second part of the study will be a literature review in which the relevant literature will be examined to further develop the background of the issue that is being examined. The third part of the study will develop an account of the method of study that will be pursued to define and examine the problem. The fourth part of the study will reveal the findings and the fifth will discuss and put into context all that has discovered in relationship to the problem. Strategy This inquiry will be based on a search of secondary literature in order to frame the nature of the inquiry by what is known about the topic. Google books will be one of the search engines that will be used to find relevant literature on the topic. As well, the use of key words to search for relevant topics in databases will provide for a larger and more credible means through which to expand the topic. The databases that will be used are Ebesco and Jstor in order to find works by scholars on the topic of the Great Commission. The secondary information will be coded and placed into a grid in order to find commonalities and diverse topics can be examined. This will be used as the data through which to examine the topic. Limitations and Weaknesses The study will be framed by the following limitations: The research will limited by a study of secondary research. The study will be limited by the availability of information through the chosen databases and search engines that can provide information for the work. The study will have the following weaknesses: The study is limited by one religious perspective that is the focus of the study The study is limited by denominational belief systems that might frame the study from a specific point of view. Summary This study intends to form an inquiry into secondary research about why Christians in the late post-modern world are not participating in the Great Commission. The need to take a mission into the world and support social change, to serve the suffering, and to spread the message of Christ in order to create salvation has been largely neglected by the greater part of the Christian world. Through a secondary research based study, the grounded theory will lead the research to conclusions that can be used towards further evidentiary research that can provide solutions to the problems being seen in Christ’s church. Resource List Ariola, Mariano M. Principles and Methods of Research. Manila: Rex Book Store, 2006. Chilcote, Paul Wesley, and Laceye C. Warner. The Study of Evangelism: Exploring a Missional Practice of the Church. Grand Rapids, Mich: William B. Eerdmans Pub. Co, 2008. Culpepper, Raymond F. The Great Commission: The Solution. Cleveland, TN: Pathway Press, 2009. Culpepper, Raymond F. The Great Commission Connection. Cleveland, TN: Pathway Press, 2011. David, Daniel, Steven J. Lynn, and Albert Ellis. Rational and Irrational Beliefs: Research, Theory, and Clinical Practice. New York: Oxford University Press, 2010. Klauber, Martin I., and Scott M. Manetsch. The Great Commission: Evangelicals and the History of World Missions. Nashville, Tenn: B & H Publishing Group, 2008. Kwame A. Appiah. The Art of Social Change. The New York Times. Found at http://dss.ucsd.edu/~gmackie/documents/NYT%20Magazine.pdf , 22 October 2010. Schwartz-Shea, Peregrine, and Dvora Yanow. Interpretation and Method: Empirical Research Methods and the Interpretive Turn. Armonk, NY: M.E. Sharpe, 2006. Raschke, Carl A. GloboChrist: The Great Commission Takes a Postmodern Turn. Grand Rapids, Mich: Baker Academic, 2008. Reinders, Eric Robert. Borrowed Gods and Foreign Bodies: Christian Missionaries Imagine Chinese Religion. Berkeley: University of California Press, 2004. Bibliography Barrett, David B., and Todd M. Johnson. World Christian Trends, AD 30 - AD 2200: Interpreting the Annual Christian Megacensus. Pasadena, Calif: William Carey Libr, 2001. Brackney, William H. Studying Christianity. London: Continuum, 2010. Butler, Daniel L. ‘Go into the World’: Study of the Great Commission Texts. New York: Xlibris, 2009. Jenkins, Philip. The Next Christendom: The Coming of Global Christianity. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2011. Myser, Catherine. Bioethics Around the Globe. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2011. Piper, John. Let the Nations Be Glad!: The Supremacy of God in Missions. Grand Rapids, Mich: Baker Academic, 2010. Rankin, Jerry. The Challenge to Great Commission Obedience: Motivational Messages for Contemporary Missionaries. Nashville, Tenn: B & H Pub. Group, 2006. Towns, Elmer L., and Gary McIntosh. Evaluating the Church Growth Movement 5 Views. Grand Rapids, Mich: Zondervan, 2004. Willard, Dallas. The Great Omission: Reclaiming Jesus' Essential Teachings on Discipleship. San Francisco: HarperSanFrancisco, 2006. Wright, Christopher J. H. The Mission of God's People: A Biblical Theology of the Church's Mission. Grand Rapids, Mich: Zondervan, 2010. Read More