Quotes from Ed Stetzer on Missional Living and the flaws of the 'attractional model' of church

Here are some of the most interesting quotes from Ed Stetzer's post on missional. The bold titles are mine not from his original post.


What does 'missional' mean?

For some people, the adjective "missional" describes their deep hunger for God to do something new for lost people outside the safe confines of the local church's walls. Others see it as a call to adopt a missionary posture in their own community and culture. There are others who use the term to describe a shift in church programming from a "come and see" professional presentation to a "go and tell" community based and relational approach. 

Missional is a way of being that leads to a way of acting. The missional church is made up of Christians who are called through God's gracious redemption to live for Him and His great mission throughout the world and who are sent out to be co-laborers with God to accomplish His mission in the world. This is the mission that God sent His Son on, and it is the mission that He sends His people on. So, missional Christ-followers and missional churches are joining Jesus on mission. They care about the things that Jesus directed us to care about: serving the hurting and loving others (the Great Commandment), and seeking to proclaim the gospel to the lost (the Great Commission).

The Great Commission If missional churches are joining Jesus on His mission, it includes much more than God's heart for the lost people groups among the nations and your lost neighbor, but being missional should never be pursued in way that excludes, lessens the emphasis upon, or fails to see that what is ultimate is God's heart for the lost. In the name of "missional," we must not lose a focus on just how great the Great Commission really is. Part of being a missional church is to be passionate about what matters to God. So, missional churches should care deeply for the ta ethne' (tribes and tongues) of their community and world. Not only does this mission matter to God. It is the mission that we were created for. God created the world with people who bear His image, and commissions them to fill the whole earth with worshippers of Him. Therefore, it is no surprise that the status quo of the bigger, busier church leaves many (rightfully) dissatisfied. We want to be part of something bigger than ourselves--and rightfully so, for we were created for that. And, I believe a global evangelistic engagement in our communities and into the whole world is a significant part of the answer.

God is a seeking not attractional God 
The missional idea begins with God as a missionary God, for He is "The Hound of Heaven" (which is the title of Francis Thompson's now famous poem). From when God searched for Adam (Gen. 3:9) to when Jesus knocked on the Laodicean church door (Rev. 2:20), our triune God has never waited in anticipation for mankind's attraction to Him. Rather, He seeks people. Eugene Peterson simplifies the concept explained in Romans:

There's nobody living right, not even one, nobody who knows the score, nobody alert for God. They've all taken the wrong turn; they've all wandered down blind alleys. No one's living right; I can't find a single one (Romans 10:10-12 MSG).

Too many churches and Christians ignore the biblical theology of a sent church and God as a missionary. The institutional church is not the dispenser of salvation. It is the message bearer of that salvation. 

Flaws of the 'invest & invite' model
[...] We embrace an "invest and invite" mentality that requires people to show up on Sunday morning in order to receive the message of new life. The churches that are exclusively working in a solely attractional model may have a passion to see people experience transformation, but it seems to me that they are missing the inherent flaws in the attractional mindset.

One obvious flaw is that most people who are far from understanding the gospel typically do not attend church. Thus, using a church service to reach them is less effective than living on mission as a Christian for their temporal and eternal good.