I read an interesting description of ministry by Tim Dearborn in his book Beyond Duty: A Passion for Christ, a Heart for Mission. He writes that churches that engage only in evangelism, seeking to covert souls while leaving the rest of people's lives unchanged, are relating only to ghosts, souls without bodies. Churches passionately pursuing social justice and welfare, but unwilling to call people to repentant faith in Jesus, are caring only for corpses, i.e. bodies without souls. (I prefer to substitute the word zombie for corpse. I'm weird like that.)
Dearborn challenges us to love people wholly with both hands of the Gospel: the hand inviting them to reconciliation to God through Jesus; and the hand embracing their physical and emotional well being, the hand of social justice, mercy and compassion, embodying the goodness of God's kingdom on earth. Dearborn sees this as living out Jesus' Great Commandment to love the Lord with all our heart, soul, strength and mind, and to love our neighbors as ourselves (Mark 12:28-34).
Is your ministry focussing more on ghosts, zombies, or people?
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