The Missions Show

Between 1-2 million people have been taking to the streets in Hong Kong—even singing Christian hymns—in peaceful protest over a new extradition law representing China’s continued aim to tighten its fist and squelch political and religious liberties in the semi-autonomous region. What can believers learn from this complex situation?

In this special episode, Alex Kocman and Scott Dunford—a former missionary in Asia—discuss the situation on the ground, the history, and implications for believers seeking to boldly engage the surrounding culture both on the mission field and at home.

Remember to share, rate, leave a review, and subscribe. Together we can bridge the gap between the worlds of theology and missions.

Want to ask a question for a future episode? Email [email protected].

This show is powered by ABWE International and the Global Gospel Fund.

If missionaries are to carry the gospel across cultural and national lines, it’s critical that they have a thoroughly biblical theology of race and ethnicity. And while much of modern progressive, secular culture repudiates anything remotely “racist,” Dr. Charles Ware explains why that wasn’t always the case. Secularism and Darwinism lie near the root of much contemporary racist ideology in the West, and only the biblical worldview offers a sound diagnosis of the sin of partiality and its gospel cure.

This week, Scott Dunford and Alex Kocman unpack this deep and profound topic with Dr. Ware, president emeritus of Crossroads Bible College and coauthor of One Race, One Blood with Ken Ham, president of Answers in Genesis. Charles also serves on the board of ABWE and with other organizations including ABHE (Association for Biblical Higher Education), Anchorsaway, and the Biblical Counseling Coalition. He is a sought-after speaker on racial reconciliation, counseling, and other topics relating to biblical worldview.

You don’t want to miss this hard-hitting episode on the plague of racism and the answers only Christ can provide.

Remember to share, rate, leave a review, and subscribe. Together we can bridge the gap between the worlds of theology and missions.

Want to ask a question for a future episode? Email [email protected].

This show is powered by ABWE International and the Global Gospel Fund.

Do we really grasp the urgency of taking the gospel to those who have never heard? And if the task of making disciples among the unreached is so urgent, why shouldn’t we employ every pragmatic means at our disposal to finish the task? Brooks Buser weighs in this week and discusses pioneer missions, disciple-making movements, church planting movements, and other important missiological issues from a mobilizer’s perspective.

Brooks and Nina Buser planted a church among the Yembiyembi people in Papua New Guinea. In 2016, they returned to San Diego. Both Brooks and Nina participate in the teaching at Radius International as well as leading and traveling to spread the word about the necessity of training.

Remember to share, rate, leave a review, and subscribe. Together we can bridge the gap between the worlds of theology and missions.

Want to ask a question for a future episode? Email [email protected].

This show is powered by ABWE International and the Global Gospel Fund.

Increasingly, Millennials and young people are redefining “long-term” missions. At the same time, fewer are willing to raise missionary support. Is recruiting marketplace missionaries—many of whom are short-term tentmakers—a sustainable solution? And if so, how do we get the word out to professionals that the Great Commission isn’t just for full-time religious workers?

This week we go back and forth with Mark Silvers, Director of Mobilization for Crossworld, on the pros and cons of using marketplace missionaries alongside long-term church planters. Mark Silvers served with Crossworld in the Philippines for 10 years and joined the home office staff in 2009. Mark’s driving passion is the goal of reaching the 2.9 billion people in the world today with no access to the gospel.

Remember to share, rate, leave a review, and subscribe. Together we can bridge the gap between the worlds of theology and missions.

Want to ask a question for a future episode? Email [email protected].

This show is powered by ABWE International and the Global Gospel Fund.

For New Testament students, fewer topics are more frequently studied and debated than the relationship between faith and works in the book of James and the letters of Paul. The question “how are we justified?” isn’t just a question asked in churches and seminaries—it’s also a vital question that relates to how we do missions. Could it be that Paul and James emphasize different truths, not because of doctrinal differences, but because they’re thinking like missionaries and contextualizing for their audience?

In this interview, Chris Bruno (Ph.D., Wheaton) returns to discuss his latest book, Paul Vs. James: What We've Been Missing in the Faith and Works Debate (Moody, 2019). Chris serves as assistant professor of New Testament and Greek at Bethlehem College and Seminary in Minneapolis. He previously taught Bible and theology at Cedarville University and Northland International University and served as a pastor at Harbor Church in Honolulu, Hawaii. Chris and his wife, Katie, have four sons. Follow Chris on Twitter and listen to our previous episode with him on biblical theology.

Remember to share, rate, leave a review, and subscribe. Together we can bridge the gap between the worlds of theology and missions.

Want to ask a question for a future episode? Email [email protected].

This show is powered by ABWE International and the Global Gospel Fund.

What is the mission of the people of God in the world? Christians often get this basic question wrong. Are the people of God primarily called to social work, church planting, evangelistic campaigns, or all three somehow? This week, Scott Dunford explains why Romans 15 establishes a paradigm for the whole body of Christ to follow.

This episode features a message that was originally preached at Community Evangelical Free Church in Harrisburg, Pa.

Remember to share, rate, leave a review, and subscribe. Together we can bridge the gap between the worlds of theology and missions.

Want to ask a question for a future episode? Email [email protected].

This show is powered by ABWE International and the Global Gospel Fund.

When we consider unreached and unengaged people groups, we typically think of them as knowing nothing at all of God. But a biblical theology of natural revelation and common grace drives us to a deeper understanding of the fact that all human beings are surrounded by the visible glory of God—and it’s precisely this fact that makes them accountable before their Creator.

In this conversation, Scott Dunford and Alex Kocman explore the ways in which a healthier understanding of general revelation and natural theology can add depth to our cross-cultural evangelism. We also tackle presuppositional apologetics, the priority of special revelation, and end with some encouragements for us all to slow down more and respond to God’s majesty with adoration.

Remember to share, rate, leave a review, and subscribe. Together we can bridge the gap between the worlds of theology and missions.

Want to ask a question for a future episode? Email [email protected].

This show is powered by ABWE International and the Global Gospel Fund.

When we think “missions,” we tend to think jungles, tribes, animism, strange languages, and thatched roofs. That impression isn’t always accurate. But for veteran missionary and legendary mobilizer Brad Buser, that’s exactly what he experienced. In this episode, we pick Brad’s brain about the importance of tribal missions and long-term, patient language acquisition and contextualization. We also dive into the topic of faithful methods of disciple-making and how the desire to do things quickly can sometimes come at the expense of long-term impact.

Brad lives in San Diego, California where he is Director of Radius International, a training program in Tijuana, Mexico. He started church planting in Papua New Guinea from 1979-1999, living among the animistic Iteri people, serving under New Tribes (now Ethnos 360). You can read Brad’s dramatic story and his articles for Radius.

Remember to share, rate, leave a review, and subscribe. Together we can bridge the gap between the worlds of theology and missions.

Want to ask a question for a future episode? Email [email protected].

This show is powered by ABWE International and the Global Gospel Fund.

In our impatient, have-it-now society, it’s difficult to think long-term about serving in one field of ministry for decades—much less healthy church planting and multiplication over the long haul. In this episode, ABWE veteran Bob Trout shares the blessings of and keys to longevity and endurance in a field where he saw over 40 Colombian churches planted or grown in the course of his career.

Bob and Lynne Trout served for many years in Colombia as church planters and then Regional Director for Spanish Speaking South America. He currently directs ABWE's Member Care department.

You can learn more about how ABWE shepherds and cares for its missionaries through our Member Care portal.

Remember to share, rate, leave a review, and subscribe. Together we can bridge the gap between the worlds of theology and missions.

Want to ask a question for a future episode? Email [email protected].

This show is powered by ABWE International and the Global Gospel Fund.

Too often in pursuit of full-time ministry abroad or at home, ministry applicants simply email a church or missions agency their resume and leave the rest of the hiring process to chance. Whether you’re fresh out of seminary or transitioning to ministry after a full career in the outside workforce, such a haphazard approach is bound to fail. Maybe we need to learn more about how to conduct ourselves professional during the the onboarding processes into pastoral or cross-cultural ministry.

Benjamin Vrbicek returns to the show to discuss his newest book, Don’t Just Send a Resume: How to Find the Right Job in a Local Church. He believes that the typical pastor or missionary, while fully equipped to do his job, is not equipped to transition effectively when God calls him to move to another ministry context. The book also features short contributions by 12 published authors and ministry leaders including David Mathis, Jared C. Wilson, and others. In the interview, Scott and Alex catch up with Benjamin on a personal level and explore the similarities and dissimilarities between hiring in the ministry world and the secular world, and wrap up with some wisdom on transitioning well.

Benjamin is a teaching pastor at Community Evangelical Free Church in Harrisburg, Pennsylvania. He and his wife, Brooke, have six children. He earned an M.Div. from Covenant Theological Seminary. Benjamin blogs regularly at Fan and Flame and is also the author of Struggle Against Porn, about which he was interviewed on the podcast in January 2019. You can follow him on Twitter.

Remember to share, rate, leave a review, and subscribe. Together we can bridge the gap between the worlds of theology and missions.

Want to ask a question for a future episode? Email [email protected].

This show is powered by ABWE International and the Global Gospel Fund.