基督教信仰入門 11

基督教信仰入門第十一課

 

第十一課：認識宣教

 

1. 何謂宣教？
   1. 宣教（mission）的字根來自拉丁文missio，意指「差遣」(sending)。
   2. 這意味著這差遣的過程中有一位差遣者和被差遣的人。
   3. 在聖經中，三一上帝是那位差遣者；上帝的子民是被差遣的群體。整部聖經記載了三一上帝向外的差遣活動和祂的子民（舊約）與教會（新約）如何參與在其中。
   4. Christopher Wright 說得好：「宣教不是我們的，而是上帝的。當然，上帝的宣教是先存的實在，我們參與的宣教源自這實在。有句話說的好：上帝並非把宣教使命委託祂的世上的教會，而是擁有一個在世上為祂宣教的教會。宣教不是為教會而設的；教會是為宣教—上帝的宣教—而設的。」[1]
       
2. 宣教的上帝
   1. 命令
      1. 我們通常看宣教為一項命令，必須遵守（例：太28：18-20）。
      2. 「我們往往把宣教理解成是『上帝賦予教會的大使命』，是一份屬於教會、被託付給教會的大使命；換句話說，是教會所做之事，而非上帝要做的事，這麼一來就忽略了上帝在宣教中的主動性：上帝不只是透過我們宣教，祂乃是在行動中持續宣教的上帝。」[2]
   2. 本質
      1. 更好的理解是宣教是三一上帝的本質(essence)。宣教的使命內存於三一上帝的內在生命。若是我們相信和跟從祂，我們必是宣教人了。
      2. 三一上帝完美的生命絕不是「內向的」，而是「外向的」。祂不會為了保護自己的聖潔拒絕與人分享祂的生命。反而，三一上帝的內在完美生命，因著愛，向不完美的人和世界傾倒而出（pouring out）。[3]
          
3. 宣教的子民
   1. 要正確理解上帝、教會和宣教的關係，必須清楚明白主客之分：上帝是主；教會是客。
   2. 在這宣教的事工，教會是被邀請的一群。教會被邀請跟從宣教的上帝，在基督裡與祂結連，進入和分享祂的生命，透過聖靈的同在和能力，教會在地上活出她的宣教本質。教會是三一宣教的群體（a trinitarian community）。
       
4. 聖經中的宣教例子
   1. 舊約
      1. 在墮落後（創3-11），上帝差遣亞伯拉罕祝福萬國（創12:2-3）。
      2. 上帝先差遣約瑟到埃及保存餘種（remnant）（創45:4-8）。
      3. 上帝差遣摩西的埃及拯救以色列人（出3:10），因為「神聽見他們的哀聲，就記念他與亞伯拉罕、以撒、雅各所立的約。神看顧以色列人，也知道他們的苦情」（出2:24-25）。
      4. 上帝差遣不同的僕人和先知叫以色列人迴轉（耶7:25-26）。
      5. 透過先知，上帝說出祂的話語，成就祂所喜悅的事（賽55:10-11）。
   2. 新約
      1. 四福音書
         1. 上帝差遣基督；基督差遣教會(約20:21)
            1. 成就祂的旨意，作成祂的工 （約4:34）
            2. 差遣基督的目的(路5:32；19：10；可10:45)
         2. 上帝和基督差遣聖靈（約14:26；15:26）
             
      2. 路加著作：使命傳承的故事[4]
         1. 路加福音：基督在地上的使命
         2. 使徒行傳：聖靈藉着教會在地上的使命
             
      3. 保羅書信
         1. 羅8:3
         2. 加4:4-6

 

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[1]萊特（Christopher J. H. Wright）著，李望遠譯：《宣教中的上帝：顛覆世界的宣教釋經學》（台北：校園，2011），頁55。

[2] https://shop.campus.org.tw/ReadingBanquet/11.5-6/a1353.htm

[3] See John Webster, “God’s Perfect Life,” in God’s Life in Trinity, edited by Miroslav Volf and Michael Welker (Minneapolis: Fortress, 2006), pp. 143-152.

[4]參曾思翰著，吳瑩宜譯：《使命傳承的故事: 路加—使徒行傳人物研究》（香港：基道出版社，2011）。

Their Ministry

“And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the pastors and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of ministry, for building up the body of Christ” (Eph. 4:11-12 ESV).

The primary function of these various offices is to equip the people of God to do the work in ministry in order to (purpose clause) build up the body of Christ or so that (result clause) the body of Christ may be built up (cf. NIV; I prefer the result clause). In both cases, the focus of the text is to build up the body of Christ through equipping the people of God in ministry. And God gives different gifts to different individuals to do the task of equipping others.

There is only one definite article before “pastors and teachers.” So, the functions of pastors and teachers are closely associated. In this context, it seems that pastors and teachers are placed in the same category in terms of equipping the people of God in ministry. God gives different gifts to the church to edify the church “until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ” (Eph. 4:13, ESV). One of these gifts that is given to the church is “teaching pastors.” As Paul said to a young pastor, Timothy, to devote himself “to the public reading of Scripture, to exhortation, to teaching” until he came (1 Tim. 4:13).[1]

The primary function of teaching pastors is to equip the body of Christ so that she may be built up. The ultimate goal of pastoral function is to glorify the Giver who bestows such a gift upon pastors. In other words, the fundamental reasons why pastors exist in the first place are two: 1) They exist for the service of others horizontally; 2) They are called to glorify the Caller vertically. They are here not for themselves. They are in the church not to be supported, but to support others; not to be served, but to serve others; not to be fed, but to feed others; and not to be ministered to, but to minister to others.

In The Mission of God’s People: A Biblical Theology of the Church’s Mission (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2010), Christopher J. H. Wright writes:

Believe it or not, God did not invent the church to support the clergy. Rather, God gave pastors and teachers to the church in order to equip the saints. People don’t go to church on Sundays to support their pastors in their ministry. The pastor goes to church on Sunday to support the people in their ministry. And their ministry, the ministry that really counts as mission, is outside the walls of the church, in the world, being salt and light in the marketplace. (p. 272)

Pastoral ministry ought to be understood in light of their ministry. The phrase “to equip the saints for the work of ministry” can only be fulfilled in their ministry.

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[1] “The purpose of all spiritual gifts is the edifying of the whole body, and never the selfish enjoyment a person may have in exercising gift: Whoever leads the worship of God’s people, therefore, must not function according to his personal preferences but by what he knows will benefit all the members of the body.” Derek Prime and Alistair Begg, On Being a Pastor: Understanding Our Calling and Work (Chicago: Moody, 2004), p. 226.