I went to a seminar a few years ago led by Mike Frost where he outlined four functions of church:
- Discipleship: learning and growing in following Jesus
- Worship: praise and prayer to God, participating in the sacraments
- Fellowship: building relationships within the church
- Mission: going out to share the gospel in words and actions
The controlling function
The seminar focussed on the idea that one of these will always be ‘the controlling function’ around which everything else has to work . Frost argued that it is generally worship, via a Sunday morning service, which acts in this way.
When worship is in the lead role, each of the other three functions are organised around it.
Discipleship is chiefly done via a sermon at the Sunday gathering. Fellowship is done after the service over coffee. And mission primarily becomes the activity which seeks to draw people to the Sunday worship service.
Disillusion
Many Christians have become deeply disillusioned with this approach to church.
Whether they are part of traditional churches or newer, charismatic congregations, the focus on Sunday worship easily becomes dissatisfying. It’s because it heightens the sense that church is a ‘Sunday show’, focussed too much on either the performance of the preacher, worship leader, or the necessity of receiving a sacrament.
In these ways churches easily become reduced to a consumer experience. And instead of focussing outwards on sharing the message with non-members, the priority becomes keeping its current members happy.
When this happens, churches adopt a ‘club’ mentality where the focus is looking after its members. And many church leaders can feel trapped in a role that is essentially being a ‘chaplain to the club’ rather than leading outward-looking mission.
Mission as the controlling function
In contrast, Frost promoted the idea that mission should be the controlling function:
This is not because mission is more important than the others, but because each of the other three functions are best served when the overall focus of church is missional and outward facing. Mission does not relegate the importance of the other functions but enhances them.
Experience
This utterly rings true to my experience. It has been when I have engaged in outward mission, whether through outreach, longer-term community projects or through missional decisions about where I live or work, that I have grown most in my discipleship.
Also, my fellowship and connectedness with other Christians has developed most through doing outward focussed work together: it has not grown simply through sitting in church together.
And it is living out my faith missionally, taking risks in the real world, which has most enriched my worship of God. The best way to deepen prayer and praise is through action which fosters dependence on God.
The meaning of Church
In the brilliant book Christianity Rediscovered, the missionary Vincent Donovan wrote:
‘Mission is the meaning of the church. The church can exist only insofar as it is in mission, insofar as it participates in the act of Christ, which is mission. The church becomes the mission, the living outreach of God into the world…the idea of church without mission is an absurdity.’
His thinking is very similar to Lesslie Newbigin‘s view that mission is not a department of the church but its very nature; its very reason for being:
‘A church that is not ‘the church in mission’ is no church at all.’
We need to be reminded continually of this – because as a church we are seriously addicted to our buildings and our meetings. We need to get the flock out: engaging, serving and sharing faith with those beyond our walls.
Let’s remember, as Chris Wright put it:
‘God does not have a mission for his Church; He has a Church for His mission.’
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This is very significant from you Jon and I am very delighted
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Thanks Ian. What seems ‘significant’ to your reading of it?
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Good thoughts…
Have you seen this article:
Click to access Why-The-Missional-Movement-Will-Fail-Breen.pdf
I wonder what your thoughts are to this?
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Thanks Nick – it was good to re-read this – and actually in an earlier version of this article I linked to this piece by Mike Breen. Tragically, it seems from the little I know, that Breen’s own ministry and mission has been de-railed by a lack of discipline (discipleship) Mike Breen (pastor) – Wikipedia – so I think this makes his words doubly relevant.
Fundamentally I agree with this. Its why I think that mission should never become an idol which disregards the other key elements of a life of faith. Personal discipleship has to be core for mission to be effective – and I like the car analogy of discipleship being the engine. A football team will not succeed unless individual players train hard – but this training is for a purpose – to win matches. And I see discipleship as the core training for mission – and mission being the purpose of discipleship.
Its interesting to read Breen’s comment that whilst mission is ‘hip’, discipleship never is. But I think John Mark Comer’s recent work HAS made discipleship ‘hip’ – especially as he is such a hipster! Our church is doing his ‘Practicing the Way’ course at the moment and its brilliant and his book was the best one I read last year: The best book I read in 2024 – Grace + Truth
thanks for reading and commenting.
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I appreciate the perspective that you have given. There is much food for thought here. I would like to hear your thoughts on the church when the other 2 priorities take the lead.
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thanks Jerry. Well if fellowship takes too much priority then the church becomes an inward social club where people love hanging out with each other but don’t want things to change too much or struggle to welcome new people. In one church I knew they said, without any hint of wanting to change, “New people don’t like it here because we’re not very friendly’!
Discipleship is hugely important – like fellowship – but if its detached from a missional purpose then church can become like a seminary or college – full of learning and intellectual focus – but for what purpose? Jesus told his disciples to follow him and learn on the road. They learnt and were discipled through mission and doing the stuff. So again, mission provides the focus which enhances all 3 of the other elements rather than dismissing or marginalising them.
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I was confused by this and started to wonder whether these four ways of looking at church really form a biblical framework. E.g. Our part in God’s Mission is mainly witness is it not? Are we not His testimony to His kingdom? And Worship is many whole lives lived for Christ and not the congregational cult in whichever form. Discipleship and Fellowship are given by the Holy Spirit more than something we organise. We were going to sell our building in the 1980’s but God warned us in a surprising way not to do it. Since then it has consistently been a central part of our testimony and our best evangelist.
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Hi Semper – thanks for reading and sharing honestly the sense of confusion the article provoked – I appreciate it.
Your thoughts are deep – and discussing 4 words that divide up something as complex as ‘what it means to be church’ always has an element of semantics about it. I agree ‘witnessing’ is our key job – and this is mission – as Jesus put it in Matt 28:
“All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
I think everyone would agree this is a call to a mission – which involves discipleship and engaging people in sacraments (baptism) – and all forged in sharing the message of the Triune God. And he told not isolated individuals but a community that he had forged in fellowship with each other and through the Holy Spirit.
I love hearing that your building is a blessing – again I am not anti-meetings or anti-buildings – but as long as both are mission-shaped and do not take over their original purpose.
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Excellent post—an an even better title 🙂
I especially liked this quote: ‘God does not have a mission for his Church; He has a Church for His mission.’ Food for thought indeed.
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