God Shines Forth: How the Nature of God Shapes and Drives the Mission of the Church (Union)
Digital Logos Edition
Overview
Evangelism and missions are parts of the Christian life often accompanied by fears, insecurities, and cultural pressures. In this addition to the Union series, Daniel Hames and Michael Reeves argue that an individual’s relationship with God influences their evangelism and missions more than anything else. Scripture clearly shows that a believer’s responsibility is to make God known in the world, but this cannot be done without first knowing and enjoying God.
To illustrate how knowledge of God influences evangelism and missions, Hames and Reeves address biblical themes such as the glory of God, Christ’s sacrifice, the fallenness of man, and the church’s future hope. There is hope for those who find these topics intimidating—when believers focus on the glory of the lamb of God, the gospel will shine through them.
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- Addresses different biblical themes to illustrate how knowledge of God influences evangelism and missions
- Encourages believers to focus on the glory of the lamb of God and let the gospel shine through them
- Argues that an individual’s relationship with God influences their evangelism and missions more than anything else
- The Glory of God
- The Lamb on His Throne
- Fullness
- Emptiness
- Born in Zion
- Arise, Shine!
- Those Who Look to Him Are Radiant
- We Will See Him as He Is
The church in the West is experiencing a lull in evangelism at a time when the need has never been greater—nor the opportunity brighter—for the church to tell the world the good news in Jesus. In God Shines Forth, Daniel Hames and Michael Reeves take us to the heart of the biblical motivation to share Christ: a proper vision of our great and glorious God. The more we are overflowing with the glorious love of God, the more we will overflow with words of the gospel to others. This book will show you how to overflow with gospel love.
- Ed Stetzer, Executive Director, Wheaton College Billy Graham Center
I could hardly put this book down—it made my heart sing. God Shines Forth is an immensely joyful and faith-building encouragement to all who love and long to enjoy and participate in God’s mission.”
- Gloria Furman, coeditor, Joyfully Spreading the Word; author, Missional Motherhood
After decades of mission work, I’ve witnessed the various motivations driving missionary efforts, from the worst (a guilty conscience or vain ambition) to the good (a genuine concern for the lost). But Hames and Reeves call us to remember the best: that knowing and loving God deeply, fully, with a reckless abandon is our first and most essential priority for missions. They make it clear that when we truly know the nature of our loving, giving, gracious God, when we delight in him, we have the true fuel from God for missions. Don’t let anyone you know go to the mission field without reading this book.
- J. Mack Stiles, former Pastor, Erbil Baptist Church, Iraq
The big idea of this book is both simple and life-transforming: ‘It is precisely because God is outgoing and communicative that he is so good and delightful.’ Thus, as this God’s beloved people delight in him, they are propelled to speak about his goodness to others by communicating the good news. Yes, evangelism is a biblically commanded duty for all Christians. Yes, the Great Commission is a scripturally grounded purpose of the church. Yes, missions is a theologically supported enterprise for the benefit of the world. Ultimately, however, this endeavor is an overflow from knowing God. This book gets this truth right!
- Gregg R. Allison, Professor of Christian Theology, The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary; Secretary, Evangelical Theological Society; author, Historical Theology; Sojourners and Strangers; and Embodied
Missiology tends to be long on pragmatics and short on theology. What a mistake! This book grounds our missiology in our theology, and provides a vision for how the truths of the Bible shape us and authentically motivate us toward the Great Commission.
- Josh Moody, Senior Pastor, College Church, Wheaton, Illinois; President and Founder, God Centered Life Ministries