We Evangelicals and Our Mission
Classical orthodoxy, the Reformational understanding of the gospel, and the Great Awakening beliefs and behaviors including missions/ missiology reflect what the evangelical movement and its mission should be if it is to have a future. Evangelicals must work and pray together in resubmission of their ways of thinking and working to the Word and the ministry of the Holy Spirit. They must recover the faith of the Fathers and the mission of the Revivalists. Nothing less will rescue American missions from a marginal role. Nothing less will reinvigorate historic doctrine and get missions back on the track to world evangelization.
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David J. Hesselgrave
David J. Hesselgrave (1924-2018) was Professor of Mission, Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, Deerfield, Illinois and cofounder (with Donald A. McGavran) of the Evangelical Missiological Society. An ordained minister and in the Evangelical Free Church of America, he served as a missionary in Japan for twelve years. Most recent among his books are We Evangelicals and Our Mission: How We Got to Where We Are and How to Get to Where We Should Be Going and Paradigms in Conflict: 15 Key Questions in Christian Missions Today, Second Edition (Kregel, 2018); more of his publications can be found here.
Grandfather & Granddaughter:
My Involvement in This Project
Throughout my life and especially in the years coinciding with my grandfather’s final days before he went to be with the Lord in 2018, he and I sat together for theological talks. We would discuss topics like faith statements, missions, and the future of evangelicalism. Well, I would primarily listen or ask questions. I was invariably enthralled, wanting more. One day, I showed my grandfather a draft table of contents for a book I imagined writing with him; it consisted of treasured topics I would hear in my family over the course of our years together, but not necessarily in my church or even seminary.
With the proximity I possessed to my grandfather, I wanted to pass the wisdom I had received from him to others. Though he was my dear grandfather with whom I spent much time—like during summers in the North Woods of Wisconsin, family celebrations, RV vacations, and much more—still, I presented my idea with some fitting trepidation. After all, the disparity between his experience, education, ministry, and time in study as compared with mine could not (and cannot) be overstated. Yet, he responded positively to the idea, which offers a view into his heart. He was forward-thinking with concern for coming generations.
Though I would have aimed to see a final book about his wisdom, peppered with reflections from his missionary ministry in Japan and his teaching and leading at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, he directed the project differently. Instead of writing about his experiences per se, he demonstrated to me (and to readers) through this project how he had formed his thought. What he gave with his final days and last energies in this life was most valuable: direction on how to possess biblical thought as supported by the Great Tradition of Christian thinking. (If the word “tradition” sounds a little off to you, as it did to me, fear not. That concern is addressed in the book too.)
I contributed an essay at the conclusion of the book to reflect upon my grandfather’s message, especially focusing on the concepts that made greatest impression upon me and unveiled mistakes in my thinking. This project was not only for my peers, I discovered! Should my grandfather’s book be read and considered, I believe it has potential to do for other Millennials, students, and churchmen and -women what it has done for me: reveal a path—plotted from broad consensus to broad consensus—of how the deposit of faith passed to this day through Church history, clarifying for me how to related with God, serve according to His mission for the Church, and honor His authoritative Scriptures.
The formative themes found in this book poured from the mind and heart of one with a lifetime of service and scholarship. He spent his final days with utmost concern for what guidance would be received from former times about the interpretation of Scripture on core and vital matters. Because of this project, never have I possessed more hope about what is possible for the Church because I have learned what the Church, in submission to the Scriptures and through movements of the Holy Spirit, has been and done in the past.
Do you want to learn more?
On Dr. J. D. Payne’s podcast, Strike the Match, he and I discuss the origins of this project and some of what I learned through working with my grandfather.
Also, you can read a review of We Evangelicals at 9Marks.
Endorsements
“David Hesselgrave shaped evangelical missiology in the late twentieth and early twenty-first centuries. During the last months of his life, he penned We Evangelicals and Our Mission, a postscript that traces the history of evangelical missions in order to identify a modern crisis of doctrine and duty. The ‘Dean of Evangelical Missiology’ delivers one final lecture instructing evangelicals how to resolve this impending crisis by reviving historic doctrine and reengaging world evangelization.”
—Matt Queen, Associate Professor and L. R. Scarborough Chair of Evangelism, Associate Dean of the Roy J. Fish School of Evangelism and Missions, Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary
“David Hesselgrave, the dean of modern missiology, has produced a thoughtful, penetrating, and comprehensive examination of the foundations of the mission enterprise. We Evangelicals and Our Mission reviews the history of evangelicalism, defining and offering a solution to the problems of modern missions. . . . Every evangelical will benefit from reading this ground-breaking work that will stand the test of time.”
—Robin Dale Hadaway, Senior Professor of Missions, Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary
“Evangelical Christianity faces a crisis of identity. The greatest tragedy of this crisis is the way it erodes our missionary vision and zeal. We need to listen to the words of one of the greatest missiological thinkers of our time, David Hesselgrave. This book serves as a warning and provides correction for the church as we seek to maintain our focus on God’s mission. This book will be an important contribution to evangelical missiological literature and serves as Dr. Hesselgrave’s clarion call for us to stand strong and press forward for the glory of the God.”
—Scott Hildreth, Assistant Professor of Missiology, George Liele Director of the Center for Great Commission Studies, Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary
“Readers will find in We Evangelicals and Our Mission an abundance of wisdom, careful and thoughtful reflection, biblical conviction tethered to the best of the Christian tradition, and a heart for faithful witness and mission. . . . Evangelical theology, world evangelization efforts, and church ministry will be strengthened by the much-needed and timely appeal to reconnect missions and ministry to historic orthodoxy articulated so clearly in this volume. Highly recommended!”
—David S. Dockery, President of International Alliance for Christian Education, and Distinguished Professor of Theology, Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary
“David Hesselgrave died in 2018, but he still speaks wisdom to us today. I’ve always admired how Hesselgrave integrates theology and missiology. This book does the same, but the author adds church history to the mix, to the benefit of his readers. This book reminds me of 2 Timothy, Paul’s last letter to his protégé. Hesselgrave warns his readers of theological dangers to missions and champions prioritism. I enthusiastically recommend this book.”
—John Mark Terry, Emeritus Professor of Missions, Mid-America Baptist Theological Seminary
“The familiar tones of scholar, missionary, and prophet are on full display in this latest Hesselgrave volume. In many ways it continues his thoughts and exhortations from earlier works. Readers will be struck by Hesselgrave’s clear definition of evangelicalism and his compelling vision to reintegrate evangelicalism by unabashedly retethering it to the Bible, the great tradition, and an evangelistic thrust within our Great Commission efforts. This book is invaluable for the church and the academy.”
—Greg Mathias, Associate Director of Center for Great Commission Studies, Assistant Professor of Global Studies, Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary
“At a time when everything is considered missions, even if the gospel is never shared, this book serves to remind and refocus the reader on the Great Commission task. Hesselgrave and Davis have done a noble work describing the relationship between present activity and history and belief. If you want a summary of where evangelicals have been, and potentially where we are going, read this book!”
—J. D. Payne, Professor of Christian Ministry, Samford University