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Reimagining Mission

book trip (1)
29 February 2024

This week I have been reading and immersing myself in the book of Exodus with various
commentaries and books like, ‘Is God a Vindictive Bully’ by Paul Copan. Spoiler alert: He’s NOT!
I have also been reading along with various Lenten devotionals as we prepare ourselves for Easter
and remember the amazing sacrifice and victory of Jesus.
This morning, I read an article by Dr Jay Matenga called Reimagining Mobilisation: A Call to
Realignment. (Link Here).
He states, “our vision of God’s mission is far too narrow and stops short of the fulness of God’s
purposes for the world……. we are all called into a new covenantal community in Christ to co-create
New Creation, and in the process, we are being transformed by the renewing of our mind as we live
lives of mutual submission to one another in obedience to the leading of the Spirit of God.”
How to give a summary of all three?
The book of Exodus sees Israel brought out from slavery to be the people through which God reveals
His true nature to all, through their faithful representation of Him. Time and again when these
people proved only too human, God kept His covenant with them, ultimately clothing Himself in
humanity to show us what it truly looked like to embody love. Jesus came, taught, ate, cried, prayed,
healed and defied our expectations, to ultimately die. And rise again!
Our mission then is the same as God gave to Israel, to continue to reveal God’s true nature wherever
we are, Papanui or Phnom Penh. Telling the Good News is just the start, in committing to one
another in Christ, finding those places where we submit ourselves to being transformed by the Spirit
we seek to be part of the transformation Jesus is bringing about in the world. Jesus invites us to
become the Good News. Not because of who we are, but because of what He has done.
What have you been reading this week?

Colleen

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Christchurch, New Zealand

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