Aimed at practitioners, church leaders, academics, and students of mission and world Christianity, Mission in the Twenty-First Century provides fresh insights on the theology and practice of mission in our age. It brings together scholarly reflection on practice, case studies and stories, and questions for discussion. Addressing the "five marks of mission ???????????????????????????????????????????????? evangelism and proclamation, discipleship, social service, social transformation, and ecological concern ???????????????????????????????????????????????? chapters examine these marks in the context of such important factors as globalization, migration, Islam, "old Christendom," and peace and reconciliation. In addition to the editors, the international group of contributors includes Desmond Tutu, Jehu Hanciles, Anne Marie Kool, David Zac Nirigiye, Tony Gittins, Lamin Sanneh, Ashish Crispal, Melba Maggay, Hami Tutu Chapman, Gerald Pilay, Kwame Bediako, and Moonjang Lee.

Like many women in the Church, Joy Loewen didn't fully understand Muslim women or their roles in the Muslim culture and religion. In fact, she was afraid of them and not particularly interested in befriending them. But with prayer, wisdom, and a lot of love, Joy overcame these obstacles, found that she actually liked them, and that many of these women are irresistibly attracted to the love of Jesus. For the last thirty years she has used this knowledge to build authentic connections with Muslim women, reaching out to them in a sensitive, effective way.
In this practical and very personal book, Joy shares not only her insights into befriending Muslim women, but many helpful stories from her own experiences. Her goal is to help readers "move from fear to love and compassion" so that they, too, can love as Christ does. Woman to Woman is essential reading for Christian leaders, ministries, and any layperson who wants to grow in love for and understanding of Muslims.

HOW CAN WE KNOW WE'LL GO TO HEAVEN? A recent poll indicated that for every American who believes he or she is going to hell, there are 120 who believe they're going to heaven. This optimism stands in stark contrast to Jesus Christ's words written in the Bible: "Enter by the narrow gate. For the gate is wide and the way is easy that leads to destruction, and those who enter by it are many. For the gate is narrow and the way is hard that leads to life, and those who find it are few" (Matthew 7:13-14). The truth is that according to the Bible we don't automatically go to heaven. In fact, hell--not heaven--is our default destination. Unless our sin problem is solved once and for all, we can't enter heaven. That's the bad news. But once that's straight in our minds we're ready to hear the good news of Jesus Christ. Jesus took upon himself, on the cross, the hell we deserve so that we could experience for eternity the heaven we don't deserve! THE ONLY TWO OPTIONS There are two possible destinations when we die: heaven or hell. Can we really know in advance where we'll go? John, one of the writers of the Bible, said this: "I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God that you may know that you have eternal life" (1 John 5:13). We can know for sure that we'll go to heaven when we die. Do you? To sin means to fall short of God's holy standards. Sin is what ended paradise in the Garden of Eden. And all of us, like Adam and Eve, are sinners. "For all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:23). Sin separates us from a relationship with God (Isaiah 59:2) and it deceives us and makes us think that wrong is right and right is wrong (Proverbs 14:12). Sin has terrible consequences, but God has provided a solution: "For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord" (Romans 6:23). Jesus Christ, the Son of God, loved us so much that he left the riches of heaven to become a man and deliver us from our sin. "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life" (John 3:16). He came to identify with us in our humanity and our weakness, but he did so without being tainted by our sin, self-deception, and moral failings (Hebrews 4:15-16). Jesus died on the cross as the only one worthy to pay the penalty for our sins demanded by the holiness of God: "For our sake he [God] made him [Jesus] to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God" (2 Corinthians 5:21). But in victory over death, God raised Jesus from the grave, defeating the consequences of sin (1 Corinthians 15:3-4, 54-57). When Christ died on the cross for us, he said, "It is finished" (John 19:30). In those times "It is finished" was commonly written across certificates of debt when they were canceled. It meant "Paid in full." Christ died so that the certificate of debt consisting of all our sins could once and for all be marked "Paid in full." THE CRITICAL DECISION Only when our sins are dealt with in Christ can we enter heaven. We cannot pay our own way. Jesus said, "No one comes to the Father except through me" (John 14:6). "There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved" (Acts 4:12). Because of Jesus Christ's sacrificial death on the cross on our behalf, God freely offers us forgiveness. To be forgiven, we must recognize and repent of our sins. Forgiveness is not automatic. It's conditioned upon confession: "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness" (1 John 1:9). Christ offers to everyone the gifts of forgiveness, salvation, and eternal life. "Let the one who is thirsty come; let the one who desires take the water of life without price" (Revelation 22:17). There's no righteous deed we can do that will earn us a place in heaven (Titus 3:5). We come to Christ empty-handed. We can take no credit for salvation. "For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast" (Ephesians 2:8-9). This gift cannot be worked for, earned, or achieved. It's dependent solely on Christ's generous sacrifice on our behalf. Now is the time to make things right with God. Confess your sinfulness and accept the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on your behalf. You are made for a person and a place. Jesus is the person, and heaven is the place. They are a package-- they come together. You cannot get heaven without Jesus or Jesus without heaven. "Seek the Lord while he may be found; call upon him while he is near" (Isaiah 55:6). For all eternity you'll be glad you did. If you understand what God has done to make forgiveness and eternal life possible for you, you may want to express it in words like these: "Dear Lord, I confess that I do not measure up to your perfect standard. Thank you for sending Jesus to die for my sins. I now place my trust in him as my Savior. Thank you for your forgiveness and the gift of eternal life."

The New Evangelicalism was born with the formation of the National Association of Evangelicals in 1942. This new group was in the main led by younger professing fundamentalist scholars and leaders who had become dissattisfied with their heritage and wanted to establish an evangelical middle ground between fundamentalism and neo-orthodoxy. This book is an analysis of the break-away movement in terms of the issues, ideas, and practices that led to its beginning, its expansion to an apogee in the 1970s, its subsequent loss of biblical and doctrinal stability, and its slide toward virtual irrelevancy in a postmodern world culture of the 21st century.

Drawing from research conducted in Nigeria, Senegal, and Uganda, Christianity, Islam, and Liberal Democracy offers a deeper understanding on how Christian and Islamic faith communities affect the political attitudes of those who belong to them and, in turn, prospects for liberal democracy. While many analysts have thought that religious diversity in developing countries is most often an obstacle to liberal democracy that creates political instability, the book concludes just the opposite. Robert A. Dowd draws on narrative accounts, in-depth interviews, and large-scale surveys to show that Christian and Islamic religious communities are more likely to support liberal democracy in religiously diverse and integrated settings than in religiously homogeneous or segregated settings. Religious diversity, in other words, is good for liberal democracy. In religiously diverse environments, religious leaders tend to be more encouraging of civic engagement, democracy, and religious liberty. The evidence, Dowd argues, should prompt policymakers interested in cultivating religiously-inspired support for liberal democracy to aid in the formation of religiously diverse neighborhoods, cities, and political organizations.

A collection of essays that demonstrates that to be effective in the twenty-first century, mission must be prophetic as it encounters other cultures and religious traditions.

"When we speak as mission as dialogue, then, we are about as far away from imagining mission as 'conquering the world for Christ' and missionaries as 'marines of the Catholic Church' as we probably can get. There has indeed been a radical shift, both in the world in which the church does mission and within the church's own consciousness of the goodness and even holiness of that world." These words from one of the essays in this superb collection clearly demonstrate the changing of mission today.

In this volume, Fathers Bevans and Schroeder address a primary challenge faced by Christians missioners today: How can they bring the Christian tradition to interact respectfully and effectively with members of other cultures and traditions from around the globe and still be prophetic?

How the Jesuit accomodation to internal events in China laid the foundation for modern study of China in the West.

Ride the subway or a bus in New York, London, Los Angeles, or any number of other cities around the country or around the world, and you will be impressed by a cacophony of languages, a crazy quilt of skin colors and a ceaseless array of cultural histories. Excitingly and sometimes confusingly, this is the world the church now serves. Pastor Stephen Rhodes, in whose congregation thirty-two nationalities gather weekly, fervently believes Christians should embrace the varied cultures that now surround us. In Where the Nations Meet he sets forth a biblical, ministry-tested pastoral theology of multiethnic ministry. He shows how God's creation was always intended to be multicultural, how the church is called to evangelize, serve and include all ethnicities, how the church can bring healing to increasing conflict in a world of so much difference, and much more. Peppered his prose with inspiring and challenging stories from multicultural congregations, Rhodes not only provides a theological basis for multicultural ministry but also suggests how such ministry can be successfully conducted in all churches. He offers a valuable guide for all pastors and laypersons who want their church to be a place of unbounded celebration where the nations meet.

BUILDING A CHURCH TO LAST tells the remarkable story of the phenomenal growth and transformation that occurred at a 250 year old mainline congregation located in Pawleys Island, South Carolina after its senior pastor and his rag-tag army of believers implemented a first century worship and leadership model. BUILDING A CHURCH TO LAST describes a proven method for planting new churches and for re-planting existing ones, especially those within mainline denominations.BUILDING A CHURCH TO LAST is a God story-a beautiful example of what can happen when the Lord grabs hold of a small congregation and turns it on its head. Dr. Luis Palau, Luis Palau Association, Portland, OregonWith sober precision, Ross Lindsay unfolds the narrative, and all who long for God to show his hand more widely in our midst today will find this book an absorbing page-turner.Dr. J. I. PACKER, Regent College, Vancouver, CanadaMy sincere belief is that the first century worship and leadership model expounded upon in this book can enable any local congregation to experience the many blessings that All Saints Pawleys has.Canon Malcolm Widdecombe, Pip 'n' Jay, Bristol, EnglandROSS M. "BUDDY" LINDSAY, III, M.A., J.D., L.L.M., Ph.D. is a successful lawyer, CPA, and hotelier. After experiencing first-hand the growth and transformation that occurred at All Saints Church in Pawleys Island, South Carolina, he earned a Ph.D. in Church Growth from Brunel University and an L.L. M. in Canon Law from Cardiff University Law School. Today he serves as President of Sonship Ministries, Inc. where he coaches church planters and entrepreneurs who want to move from empire building to Kingdom building.

In May 1873, Father Damien De Veuster voluntarily became the first resident clergyman and part-time physician for the leper colony on Moloka'i's remote Kalaupapa peninsula. This volume traces the life of Father Damien from his boyhood in rural Belgium to his death at Kalaupapa after sixteen years of remarkable accomplishments. It analyzes much new information about Damien and his years in Hawai'i, giving a fuller understanding of the extent of Damien's work at the settlement and the tensions underlying his relations with Church bureaucrats. It is the story of one humble man with faith in God and in himself, who faced gargantuan challenges and triumphed.