a contextual missiology of the spirit - eTheses Repository ...

has the potential to deal with a variety of contextual issues in mission. Although
strategies have changed in the light of the socio-religious and political situations,
the role of the Spirit is not affected. For example, some people approach those of
other faiths through the means of power encounters, where the emphasis is on the
power of the Holy Spirit on overcoming other spiritual powers. Others see Spirit
experiences and guidance in the life of other people, and wait for the Spirit to deal
with them and lead them to further revelation. In each approach the Spirit has the
central place. Similarly, in the case of evangelism, some people directly involved
in evangelism say that they have been empowered by the Holy Spirit to witness
for Christ. Others engaged in prayer evangelism and other Spirit experiences like
healing and exorcism say that the Sprit has empowered them to serve people by
delivering them from both physical and spiritual frailty. In brief, a
pneumatological basis of contextual missiology serves multiple purposes, as it
takes into consideration several aspects of mission, including evangelism, social
action, and engaging with people of other faiths.
6.2.2. A Textual Reflection
Many missiologists like Bosch argue that a viable theology of mission should not
only be concerned with context but also with the Bible. As M.R. Spindler
observes, ‘Bosch appears to steer between the simplified biblical founding of
mission offered by many fundamentalists and a modernist approach that grounds
mission on purely practical motives without any reference to the Bible.’ 107 Taking
a lead from Bosch, Spindler argues that ‘a biblical grounding of mission is not just
107
M.R. Spindler, ‘The Biblical Grounding and Orientation of Mission,’ in Missiology: An
Ecumenical Introduction, 143.
292