Introduction
In our fourth category – the ‘two Adams’ – we saw that our redemption turns on becoming united by faith to Christ who is the last Adam. This is not only the ground of our justification but also our sanctification. The public implications of this connection became apparent as we reviewed the continuity of salvation history. Positioned within Christ we already share the restoration of Adam’s royal rule, and furthermore, understanding Christ as the Davidic king helps us to see what it means for us to do good for the benefit of all creation.
But what about evangelism? Isn’t there a different sense in which our union with Christ plays out? If we are to follow the example of his coming into the world, then aren’t we called to focus our attention only on sinful humanity, being ‘fishers of men’? Christ hasn’t yet returned in judgment, so shouldn’t we urgently share the gospel?
On the face of it, we seem to have two conflicting implications of our union with Christ, providing two competing visions of the ‘mission of the church’. One suggests that we now rule in a recapitulation of Adam’s first exaltation over the earth, and the other suggests that we serve in an echo of Jesus’ humble descent to it. One is a broader concern with creation as a whole, and the other is a focussed concern with fallen humanity. So which is it? What is Christ’s body doing on the earth, when Christ himself is in heaven? That’s what we will look at this time.
Main resource: The Mission of the Universal Church
Category 6: The Mission of the Universal Church
From Christ to the world, and back to Christ again
For a shorter version of the same core argument, see The Church Age: An Urgent Gospel Mission
Excerpt from The Mission of the Universal Church
How might we reconcile these two aspects of the church’s mandated activity in the world - our renewed human responsibility toward creation generally following Adam’s original role, and our new gospel and more specific responsibility toward fallen humanity in imitation of Jesus’ first coming? Are they not so distinct as to be as diametrically contrasted like heaven and earth? After all, Adam was created from the dust of the earth and his royal stewardship corresponded with his bodily exaltation from it. Conversely, the Son’s mission began in heaven and the mode of his appeal to sinners corresponded with the humble descent of his incarnation.
On the contrary, the fact that the church’s sending - in union with Christ - de facto combines both of these beginnings is a sign of the progress of salvation history on its way to the union of heaven and earth (Rev. 21:1-8). By the resurrection of our head, the last Adam, God’s people have been lifted from the earth’s dust to God’s throne, and our original position is restored and exceeded. But, though born in this glory, the church is sent back down the mountain of his ascension, sent away from Christ, as if from the age to come backward into this present evil age, echoing his humility.
Conversation Starter Questions
Why might we overlook the urgency of evangelism?
How might your academic work aid your witness?
Further Reading: Luther on Why the Gospel Needs to be Shared Verbally
One of the topics touched on above is why the gospel needs to be shared verbally. If you would like to study that topic in more depth, Martin Luther's work on the concept of the word of God is very rewarding.
1. Wolff, Jens. “The Word of God in Martin Luther’s Theology.” Oxford Research Encyclopedia of Religion. March 29, 2017. Oxford University Press. Date of access 18 Feb. 2021. For a freely accessible version, see the author’s page on academia.edu.
2. Ngien, Dennis. “Theology of Preaching in Martin Luther.” Themelios 28:2 (2003).