Click here to access part 1, part 2, and part 3.
This four-part series explores the foundations of Christian mission through the lens of missiology, the study of God’s mission and our participation in it. It begins with the character and mission of God, then considers the nature of human culture, the challenge of contextualization, and the story of the church’s missionary witness across history. Together, these reflections offer a biblical and practical vision for joining God’s redemptive work in the world.
A complete account of the history and theory of missions would reach back to the book of Acts and even further, to the calling of Israel in the Old Testament. While most Christians have access to the biblical story, far fewer are familiar with the history of missions from that point forward. Studying this history provides perspective and offers a wide range of movements and methods shaped by different times and cultural contexts. These examples give us insight and inspiration as we seek to engage in missionary work today.
Although missionary movements are diverse, there are common threads that consistently appear when the gospel advances and takes root in new places. Paul Pierson identifies seven recurring features [1]. First, missionary movements usually begin with spiritual renewal. Second, they often emerge from the periphery of the church, as God works through unexpected people in unexpected ways [2]. Third, they involve both the local church and additional mission structures. Fourth, they are driven by key leaders. Fifth, they tend to arise amid significant historical changes. Sixth, they reflect a contextualized spirituality. And seventh, they are accompanied by the distribution of information, spreading as others hear what God is doing.
Those familiar with Calvary Chapel should take special note of this list, as each of these factors has played a defining role in our own movement.
The history of missions is not only a record of movements but also a series of long seasons, each shaped by shared contexts and approaches. Gailyn Van Rheenen identifies six major epochs that make up church history [3]. The first, Jewish Emergence, is recorded in the New Testament. In what follows, we will briefly walk through the remaining five.
Gentile Engagement (100–500 AD)
Van Rheenen describes the next four centuries (100–500 AD) as the epoch of Gentile Engagement. During this period, the gospel continued to spread throughout the Roman Empire and was eventually endorsed by Emperor Constantine, after which it became the majority religion of the empire.
How did a small Jewish sect come to influence the Roman world so profoundly? While pastors and apologists played an important role, the personal testimony of ordinary believers was key. “The early church spread the gospel primarily through personal context and example… The church established no elaborate missionary societies or organizations; instead, Christians shared and demonstrated the gospel in their daily lives” [4]. Christians lived differently, and their neighbors noticed.
Institutional Entrenchment (500–1200 AD)
With the Christianization of the Roman Empire, the epoch of Institutional Entrenchment began. This period lasted from 500 AD to the beginning of the 13th century. During this time, for both better and worse, the church became closely aligned with the empire. Christianity spread beyond Roman borders into barbarian people groups who came under the influence of Rome. Even in cases where Rome was defeated, Christianity often remained, as entire groups adopted the faith [5]. By 1200, Christianity had become the dominant religion across Europe [6].
This widespread growth was largely due to missionaries who contextualized the gospel in foreign languages and cultures and demonstrated the power of Jesus over the native gods [7]. The faith also spread internally through the empire, reaching towns and villages far from the urban centers. This was accomplished through the establishment of monasteries throughout the Roman world. Monks, through lives marked by piety and compassion, contributed to “the total eclipse of rural paganism throughout the early Greco-Roman world” [8].
Evangelistic Exploration (1200–1600 AD)
The next epoch, known as Evangelistic Exploration, spans from 1200 to 1600. It represents a troubling season for the church in Rome. This period begins with the Crusades and ends with a church so deeply corrupt that it prompted the Protestant Reformation. However, even as Christianity in Europe was in decline, the gospel was spreading to new parts of the world.
Missionaries carried the message of Christ as far as Asia, often through monastic orders such as the Franciscans, Dominicans, and Jesuits. These orders marked a shift from earlier monastic traditions, exchanging “fixed monasteries” for “mobile ministries” [9]. Their focus was to bring the gospel to places where it had never been heard.
Colonial Expansion (1600–1900 AD)
The Reformation eventually gave rise to the next epoch, which Van Rheenen calls the epoch of Colonial Expansion. This period, spanning from 1600 to 1900, is aptly named because “missionary expansion during this period focused on areas with European colonies” [10].
Missionaries were sent out in great numbers from Great Britain and the United States, primarily through missionary societies. These ecumenical, parachurch organizations emphasized personal conversion, a devout and regenerated life, renewed zeal for bearing witness to God’s saving love in Christ, and active concern for social needs [11].
Global Embracing (1900–Present)
After 1900, the world entered what some describe as a “post-Western, post-colonial, and post-ideological era” [12]. This marked the beginning of the epoch of Global Embracing. In this period, the center of missionary activity began to shift from the West to a truly global effort. As Alton James notes, “The greatest increase in the missions force today is from churches in Africa, Asia and Latin America” [13].
A key innovation in this epoch is the focus on reaching not only every nation but also every unreached people group. These are defined as “a people group within which there is no indigenous community of believing Christians able to evangelize this people group” [14]. This vision reflects the global scope of God’s mission and looks forward to the day when people from every nation, tribe, people, and language will worship Jesus Christ together with one voice (Revelation 7:9ff).
Continuing the Story of Mission
In one sense, this brief summary of church history demonstrates the continuity of Christian witness. In every age, God has called and sent people to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ. At the same time, we can see the church growing in its understanding of both its calling and its methods.
Most importantly, we must see ourselves as participants in this ongoing missionary history. We should rejoice in the work of those who have gone before us—or more truly, in the work that God has done through them—but we must go beyond admiration. We are called to follow in their footsteps and continue the work, trusting that God desires to use us in our own time and place.
Bibliography
Anderson, Justice, “Medieval and Renaissance Missions (500-1792).” In Missiology, edited by
John Mark Terry, 157-172. Nashville, TN: B&H Academic, 2015.
Anderson, Justice, “The Great Century and Beyond (1792-1910).” In Missiology, edited by
John Mark Terry, 173-192. Nashville, TN: B&H Academic, 2015.
James, R. Alton “Missions in the Twentieth and Twenty-First Centuries.” In Missiology, edited
by John Mark Terry, 217-232. Nashville, TN: B&H Academic, 2015.
Pierson, Paul Everett. The Dynamics of Christian Mission: History through a Missiological
Perspective. Pasadena, CA: William Carey International University Press, 2009.
Terry, John Mark, “The History of Missions in the Early Church.” In Missiology, edited by
John Mark Terry, 141-156. Nashville, TN: B&H Academic, 2015.
Van Rheenen, Gailyn, and Anthony Parker. Missions: Biblical Foundations and Contemporary
Strategies. Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan, 2014.
Winter, Ralph D, and Bruce A. Koch, “Finishing the Task: The Unreached Peoples Challenge.”
In Perspectives, edited by Ralph Winter and Steven C. Hawthorne, 531-536. Pasadena,
CA: William Carey Library. 2014.
References
[1] Pierson, 6-7
[2] Pierson, 6
[3] Van Rheenen, Chapter 8
[4] Terry, 147-148
[5] Van Rheenen, 180
[6] Anderson, 160
[7] Van Rheenen, 185
[8] Frend, quoted in Anderson, 160
[9] Van Rheenen, 185
[10] Van Rheenen, 190
[11] Anderson, 173
[12] Pierson, 315
[13] James, 232
[14] Winter and Koch, 536
