What’s important for establishing a good partnership between a church and a foreign missionary?

9Marks
Theological agreement. A local church and a foreign missionary must share a rock-solid foundation of theological agreement.

Is it a lie to tell a government hostile to Christianity some but not all of your reasons for entering their country?

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An increasing number of missionaries use legitimate secular employment to gain access to restricted access countries. Some Christians may wonder if it’s a lie to include only their secular employment in official paperwork, even though their primary motivation for going to the country is to share the gospel.

We believe that it’s morally legitimate—it’s not lying—to list only one’s secular employment. Here are three reasons:

Why is pragmatism in missions particularly harmful?

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Pragmatism is the attitude that “results”—specifically, numbers of conversions—matters most in ministry. This attitude is particularly harmful in missions because

What are some common mistakes Christians make when thinking about missions strategy?

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How should Christians evaluate different missionary methods?

9Marks
A popular but misguided method of evaluation: evaluate short-term results, such as the number of people making professions of faith in Christ. What’s wrong about this? Jesus teaches that, when we faithfully sow the seed of the word, many will make professions, but not all professions will endure (see Matt. 13:1-23). So why evaluate a method’s “success” by something as ultimately unreliable as professions of faith?

How should churches evaluate the success of missionaries they support?

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That’s a tough question to answer because competing principles are at play.

Should small churches expect to do less missions work?

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By no means! While churches with fewer members and resources may not support missions work on the same scale as larger churches, they should still strive to do all they can to engage in the work of missions.

So how can small churches engage in missions work? The same way larger churches can:

How can churches cultivate a culture of missions?

9Marks
Preach expositionally. Scripture is filled with instruction to believers about God’s plan of salvation and our responsibility to spread the good news of salvation in Christ to the ends of the earth. Faithful Christ-centered, expository preaching should, over time, teach a congregation to heartily pursue local and international evangelism.

What is success in missions and how do you measure it?

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The Bible teaches several points with unavoidable clarity. 

Who is responsible to fulfill the Great Commission?

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All Christians. In John 20:21, Jesus says to all his disciples, “As the Father has sent me, so I am sending you.” Jesus was sent into the world to become the savior of those who would believe. We are sent into the world to proclaim what Christ has done and call people to faith in him. Therefore, every Christian should evangelize locally and, if possible, support the work of bringing the gospel to the ends of the earth.

What does the Great Commission require of local churches?

9Marks

In order to fulfill Jesus’ command to make disciples of all nations (Matt. 28:19), churches must:

What activities and goals are properly included under the term “missions”?

9Marks
The mission of the church, according to the Bible, is to worship God and to love the world by calling it to that same worship. The goal of missions, in other words, is to produce worshippers of God by proclaiming the good news of salvation through Jesus Christ:

What are some general guidelines by which pastors can counsel and encourage women in the church?

9Marks | 9Marks Journal: Miscellaneous Articles
As a pastor, your goal should be to set up practical boundaries to protect yourself, the woman, and the church: You want to protect yourself from unjust accusations (1 Tim. 5:19). Moreover, pastors are to be above reproach, so you want to build in boundaries that ensure you will both be above reproach and be seen to be above reproach. You want to protect the woman from any potential wrongdoing on the part of any church leaders.

Who is responsible for training pastors?

9Marks

Most evangelicals believe the answer to that question is obvious: seminaries are responsible. A man who decides he wants to be a pastor should go to seminary, get a degree, and then presto! He’s ready to be a pastor.

What are some practical ways that churches can invest in training pastors?

9Marks

Here are several ways that whole congregations can get involved in training pastors:

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