APOSTOLIC FUNCTION AND MISSION

Abstract

I view my address today for this inauguration of the J. Philip Hogan Chair of World Missions as an opportunity to initiate a public dialogue about missiology. Thinking about missions is a communal activity and one that requires continual reflection. While it is based on unchanging principles in Scripture, the world setting in which we operate is constantly changing, and this demands that we regularly think together about who we are and where we are going. The thoughts that I will share today represent the public and more carefully formulated version of meditations, conversations, readings, and writings that I have been doing over the past 20 years as a missionary in Thailand. The Hogan chair represents a wonderful connection between Assemblies of God World Missions and the Assemblies of God Theological Seminary where in a proactive and catalytic fashion the process of engaging with subjects of missiological importance can be undertaken. The material that I lay out for public scrutiny and dialogue today grows out of my personal journey, but it represents more than simply personal reflections. It is my humble and serious attempt after 20 years in missions, study, and writing to assess current affairs in missions in our Assemblies of God context and to suggest lines for moving forward from this point in the future. I look forward to the days ahead where I can interact with others on the ideas that are presented here today.