A Theological Basis For The Church’s Mission In Paul

By Robert L. Plummer

While most New Testament scholars in the past century have assumed or argued that Paul expected the churches to engage in active missionary work,[1] this understanding has been increasingly challenged.[2] In response to these challenges, a number of recent articles and monographs have defended the view that Paul both commended and commanded the evangelistic proclamation of the gospel through his churches.[3] While the majority of scholars agree that there is some evidence in Paul’s letters to support an active missionary role for the church (Eph 6:15; Phil 1:14–18; 2:16; 1 Thess 1:8; Titus 2:10), it seems doubtful that Paul would view his (often incidental) comments as a compelling theological basis for the church’s mission. If such were the case, one would expect Paul to provide more frequent and explicit direction. If indeed Paul expects the churches to evangelize actively, what theological basis does he provide for such an expectation?

Gustav Warneck, “the father of modern missiology,” attempted to found Paul’s missionary vision on Jesus’ Great Commission (Matt 28:18–20).[4] Evangelical scholars up to the present time have followed in his footsteps.[5] The assertion that Paul or the Pauline churches were motivated to missionize by the Great Commission, however, lacks convincing evidence in the Pauline epistles.[6] Paul does not often cite the Gospel traditions or appeal to their authority. Indeed, no clear allusion to the Great Commission can be found in Paul’s letters.[7]

Other scholars have proposed that the theological basis of the Pauline churches’ mission is found in the activity of the Holy Spirit to promote evangelism. First popularized by Roland Allen’s Missionary Methods: St. Paul’s or Ours? (1912), this thesis finds support mainly in the book of Acts.[8] There can be little doubt that Luke presents the person of the Holy Spirit as a basis and guiding force for the early church’s mission.[9] Michael Green observes, “Every initiative in evangelism recorded in Acts is the initiative of the Spirit of God.”[10] In Paul’s letters, however, we do not find such a frequent or prominent association of Spirit and mission.

Possibly the most promising theological basis for the mission of the church (in Paul’s letters) can be found in the apostle’s references to the gospel. A few scholars have recently noted the importance of the nature of the gospel in Paul’s thought—suggesting that the dynamic nature of the gospel is key to understanding what motivated the church to engage in mission.[11] In speaking of the apostle’s understanding of “the dynamic nature of the gospel,” I mean that Paul viewed the gospel (or “the word of God”) as an “effective force” which inevitably goes forth and accomplishes God’s will. The same “word” that indwells apostles also indwells ordinary Christians in the church. In each case, the word cannot be contained.[12] If God’s word truly dwells in an individual or community, that individual or community will inevitably be characterized by the further spreading of that word.[13] While the concept of a “dynamic word” lacks parallel in ordinary human activity, it has ample theological precedent in the Old Testament (Isa 55:10–11; Jer 23:29).

We shall now turn to some specific passages in Paul’s letters to demonstrate that Paul did indeed view the gospel as a dynamic, uncontainable force. Based on Paul’s comments, it is reasonable to conclude that the nature of the gospel served as a theological basis for his expectation that the church would engage in missionary activity that paralleled his own apostolic mission. After this study of Paul’s theology of the church’s mission, we shall briefly compare the apostle’s understanding with the broader New Testament witness and show how the proposed thesis helps explain the apparent discontinuity of missionary activity between the Old Testament and New Testament.

I. The Nature of the Gospel

While several scholars have noted the dynamic nature of the gospel in Paul’s thought, no attempt has been made to discuss this nature in detail as it relates to the mission of the church.[14] In the paragraphs below, I will seek to demonstrate that (1) Paul speaks of the gospel as a dynamic power or force; (2) for Paul, this dynamic nature of the gospel is integrally related to his apostolic missionary work; and (3) in Paul’s thought, the dynamic nature of the gospel is also integrally related to the church’s mission.

1. The Gospel as “Power”

Paul most frequently uses the term “gospel” (or synonymous expressions) to describe the content of his message or the act of proclaiming that message[15] Paul can, however, also refer to the gospel as a powerful, effective, and dynamic force. Just as “the word of the Lord” (Hebrew, דבר יהוה) in the Old Testament inevitably accomplishes God’s will,[16] so Paul’s gospel is not simply a definable content about what God has done or promised, but is also the effective decree or power of accomplishing God’s will.

In Rom 1:16 Paul writes, “For I am not ashamed of the gospel; it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.”[17] In this verse, “I am not ashamed of the gospel” is the main statement. Paul then provides a reason for his lack of shame in the following γάρ clause. Paul states that he is not ashamed of the gospel because it is “the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes” (δύναμις γὰρ θεοῦ ἐστιν εἰς σωτηρίαν παντὶ τῳ πιστεύοντι). Θεοῦ should be understood here as a genitive of source or possession—i.e., Paul is speaking of “power” that comes from, belongs to, or is possessed by, God.[18] The εἰς clause (εἰς σωτηρίαν) describes the result of this power. The gospel is divine power that results in, or brings about, the salvation of everyone who believes in it. Here the gospel is described not simply as the content of what Jesus has done to bring about salvation, but it is actually the effective “power” which applies that salvation to believing Jews and Gentiles. This “dynamic” quality of the gospel has been noted by numerous scholars. Robert H. Mounce, for example, comments:

The heart of v. 16 is that the gospel is the saving power of God. Salvation is not only initiated by God but is carried through by his power. To say that the gospel is ‘power’ is to acknowledge the dynamic quality of the message. In the proclamation of the gospel God is actively at work in reaching out to the hearts of people. The gospel is God telling of his love to wayward people. It is not a lifeless message but a vibrant encounter for everyone who responds in faith. Much religious discourse is little more than words and ideas about religious subjects. Not so the gospel. The gospel is God at work. He lives and breathes through the declaration of his redemptive love for people. To really hear the gospel is to experience the presence of God. The late evangelist Dwight L. Moody commented that the gospel is like a lion. All the preacher has to do is to open the door of the cage and get out of the way![19]

Similarly, Joseph A. Fitzmyer writes:

Whenever the gospel is proclaimed, God’s power becomes operative and succeeds in saving. His power thus catches up human beings and through the gospel brings them to salvation… .As used here [in Rom 1:16], the phrase [δύναμις θεους] formulates the dynamic character of God’s gospel; the word may announce the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ, but the emphasis is on that word as a force or power unleashed in human history.[20]

It is important to note, however, that the gospel is an effective power only because of its association with God (δύναμις θεους).[21] The gospel, as God’s power, manifests his saving intervention on behalf of people in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ (Rom 1:17).[22] Cranfield makes a similar observation:

The gospel is [God’s effective power to save] by virtue of its content, its subject, Jesus Christ. It is He Himself who is its effectiveness. His work was God’s decisive act for men’s salvation, and in the gospel, in the message of which He is the content, He presents Himself to men as it were clothed in the efficacy of His saving work.[23]

Another passage which demonstrates that Paul spoke of the gospel as a “power” is 1 Cor 1:17–25. Here, the apostle writes:

For Christ did not send me to baptize but to proclaim the gospel, and not with eloquent wisdom, so that the cross of Christ might not be emptied of its power.

For the message about the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written, “I will destroy the wisdom of the wise, and the discernment of the discerning I will thwart.” Where is the one who is wise? Where is the scribe? Where is the debater of this age? Has not God made foolish the wisdom of the world? For since, in the wisdom of God, the world did not know God through wisdom, God decided, through the foolishness of our proclamation, to save those who believe. For Jews demand signs and Greeks desire wisdom, but we proclaim Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God. For God’s foolishness is wiser than human wisdom, and God’s weakness is stronger than human strength.[24]

The same two elements that were emphasized in our discussion of Rom 1:16 are also present in this passage. First, the gospel, or “the message about the cross” (ὁ λόγος ὁ τοῦ σταυροῦ), is called the power of God (δύναμις θεοῦ, v. 18).[25] Second, the power of the gospel is a derived power. The gospel is “power” because it comes from or belongs to God (θεοῦ, genitive of source or possession), and because it announces effectively God’s act of redemption in Christ’s historical death and resurrection. Paul varies his references to “the gospel” to emphasize this point. In vv. 17–18, he interchanges a verbal cognate of “gospel” (εὐαγγελίζεσθαι) with “the message about the cross” (ὁ λόγος ὁ τοῦ σταυροῦ). In v. 23, Paul does not say that he proclaims “the gospel,” but “Christ crucified” (Χριστὸν ἐσταυρωμένον). The source and content of Paul’s gospel is what makes it “power.”

We should also note a third element about this powerful gospel that is present in this 1 Corinthians text—that is, God’s providential plan of predestining and saving certain persons. It is this electing activity of God that enables Paul to call the gospel “the power of God.” In vv. 23–24, Paul writes, “We proclaim Christ crucified, a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, but to those who are called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.”[26] The gospel (or the proclamation of “Christ crucified”) does not constitute God’s saving power to all people, but only to those who are “called” (τοῖς κλητοῖς).[27] As the effective power of God, the gospel accomplishes God’s goal in saving all whom he calls—eliciting repentance and faith from hearts regenerated by the Holy Spirit (Rom 8:29–30; 10:14–17).[28]

Thomas Schreiner agrees that the theme of election runs throughout this passage. He writes:

The succeeding context of 1 Cor. 1 clarifies that the power of the gospel lies in its effective work in calling believers to salvation (1 Cor. 1:23–24, 26–29). The preaching of theWord does not merely make salvation possible but effects salvation in those who are called. The inseparable connection between the power of God and election is also revealed in 1 Thess. 1:4–5. Paul knows that the Thessalonians are elect (v. 4) “because (ὅτι, hoti) his gospel οὐκ ἐγενήθη εἰς ὑμᾶς ἐν λόγῳ μόνον ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐν δυνάμει … cf. also 1 Cor 2:4–5… .”[29]

We should also note that this element of God’s effectual calling lies in the background of the Romans passage previously discussed (see Rom 1:1–7).

To summarize, from our brief consideration of Rom1:16 and 1 Cor 1:17–25, we can conclude that Paul spoke of the gospel as an effective power. The gospel is “power” because of its source (God), its content (Christ’s salvific death and resurrection), and its role in God’s plan to save all persons whom he has predestined. God’s calling is effectual and is made actual in the preaching and hearing of the gospel. This dynamic nature of the gospel is in continuity with Old Testament references to “the word of the Lord.”

2. The Dynamic Gospel and Paul’s Apostolic Mission.

We will now briefly survey several Pauline texts where the apostle makes a more explicit link between the gospel as “power” and his missionary work. Minimal contextual information on verses will be provided. Our goal is simply to show that Paul spoke of the gospel as a power in relation to his missionary work.

In 1 Cor 14:36, Paul asks the Corinthian believers, “Did the word of God go out [ ἐξῆλθεν] from you? Or are you the only ones it has reached [κατήντησεν]?”[30] With this sarcastic question, Paul intends to remind the Corinthians that they were not the starting point of the gospel, nor its only destination.[31] Because the gospel did not originate with the Corinthians and they were not its only adherents, the disorderly Corinthian worship services should not be viewed as normative, but as aberrant. For the purposes of our study, it is important to note that in his incidental remark of 1 Cor 14:36, Paul portrays the “word of God” (i.e., the gospel) in the active role of “going out” ( ἐξῆλθεν) and “arriving” (κατήντησεν). These verbs are frequently used in Acts to describe persons on a journey.[32] In this rhetorical question to the Corinthian Christian community, Paul almost personifies the gospel as a traveling missionary. Not the activity of gospel heralds, but the activity of the gospel itself is emphasized.

Paul makes a similar reference to the gospel in 1 Thess 1:5, where he writes, “Our gospel came …” (τὸ εὐαγγέλιον ἡμῶν … ἐγενήθη). Though Paul could have written, “we came with the gospel” (cf. 2 Cor 10:14),[33] he chooses to depict the gospel as the agent arriving in Thessalonica to accomplish God’s will of saving persons. Also, it is noteworthy that Paul says the gospel did not come in word only ( ἐν λόγῳ μόνον), but also in power (ἀλλὰ καὶ ἐν δυνάμει) and in the Holy Spirit (καὶ ἐν πνεύματι ἁγίῳ).

Likewise, in 1 Cor 9:12, Paul describes the gospel in its triumphal march across the ancient Roman empire. He does not speak of himself as conveying the gospel to others; his concern is that he not stand in the way of God’s word. In reference to his ministry with Barnabas, Paul writes, “We endure anything rather than put an obstacle in the way of the gospel of Christ” (ἀλλὰ πάντα στέγομεν, ἵνα μή τινα ἐγκοπὴν δῶμεν τῳ εὐαγγελίῳ τοῦ Χριστοῦ). The gospel is depicted as the active agent bringing salvation. Paul’s role is simply to stay out of its way.[34]

In like manner, in 2 Tim 2:8–9, Paul writes, “Remember Jesus Christ, raised from the dead, a descendant of David—that is my gospel, for which I suffer hardship, even to the point of being chained like a criminal. But the word of God is not chained [ὁ λόγος τοῦ θεοῦ οὐ δέδεται].” Here we see the gospel described as both “content” ( Jesus Christ raised from the dead) and “power” (the unchained word). While Paul can be put in prison and his ministry curtailed or stopped, no such thing is true for “the word of God” (i.e., the gospel). God’s word is effective and will continue to bring salvation to all whom he has predestined.

This inevitable growth and certain salvific work of God’s word can be conveyed by an agricultural metaphor, as in Col 1:5–7. There, Paul addresses the Colossian believers as follows: “You have heard of this hope before in the word of the truth, the gospel that has come to you. Just as it is bearing fruit and growing in the whole world, so it has been bearing fruit among yourselves from the day you heard it and truly comprehended the grace of God.” The gospel not only “comes” (παρόντος) to the Colossians, it “grows” (αὐξανόμενον)[35] and “bears fruit” (καρποφορούμενον). These agricultural metaphors speak to the inherent certainty of growth which is present in the gospel because it is God’s effective word.[36] The gospel is not only “bearing fruit” and “growing” among the Colossians, but “in the whole world” ( ἐν παντὶ τῳ κόσμῳ). This growth and fruit-bearing can be nothing other than the gospel’s advance as persons believe in the gospel and then mature in the faith.[37]

In all of the passages discussed above, the gospel is described as the active agent of salvation. Paul, however, can also speak of himself as the agent and the gospel as the “dynamic means” by which his ministry is accomplished. In 1 Cor 4:15, Paul writes, “In Christ Jesus, through the gospel, I gave birth to you” (διὰ τοῦ εὐαγγελίου ἐγὼ ὑμᾶς ἐγέννησα).[38] Here the gospel is the means of bringing about the spiritual birth of Paul’s converts. One gets the sense that Paul’s various metaphorical references to the gospel are attempts to describe the dynamic nature of an entity which, in some sense, remains beyond human definition.

Another term which Paul uses to describe his relationship with the dynamic gospel is the verb πληρόω. There are three passages where Paul employs πληρόω (or πληροφορέω) in connection with the gospel, and we will now briefly discuss the significance of these verses. In Rom 15:18–19, Paul writes:

For I will not venture to speak of anything except what Christ has accomplished through me to win obedience from the Gentiles, by word and deed, by the power of signs and wonders, by the power of the Spirit of God, so that from Jerusalem and as far around as Illyricum I have fulfilled the gospel [NRSV: fully proclaimed the good news] of Christ.[39]

Scholars have debated what Paul means when he says that he has “fulfilled the gospel” (πεπληρωκέναι τὸ εὐαγγέλιον). The two main interpretations of this phrase are (1) Paul is saying that he has essentially completed all the expected evangelism in the named territories; Jesus’ imminent return allows only for a rushed, representative preaching of the gospel.[40] (2) Paul is saying that he has fulfilled his apostolic obligation to pioneer new evangelistic work in the named territories.[41] This second option seems to have the most contextual support, as Paul highlights his apostolic desire to preach in virgin territories (Rom 15:20), while not disallowing the continued spreading of the gospel which he elsewhere approves and enjoins (Phil 1:14; 2:16).

Although most scholars rightly favor this last option, they frequently miss a Pauline emphasis in the text by deviating from the verb/noun distinction in the original Greek construction. In Rom 15:19, Paul uses a verbal form of “fulfill” with the noun “gospel” as the object. Although the noun can have connotations of “preaching” the gospel, this meaning of εὐαγγέλιον is not clear in Rom 15:19 (contra NRSV’s translation). Paul’s use of similar expressions in Col 1:25 (πληρῶσαι τὸν λόγον τοῦ θεοῦ) and 2 Tim 4:17 (τό κήρυγμα πληροφορηθῇ) indicate that a verbal form of πληρόω followed by a nominal form of “gospel” (εὐαγγέλιον, λόγον, κήρυγμα) is a stylized expression for the apostle. This point is significant when we remember that the gospel is the powerful word of God, according to Paul.

What does Paul mean, then, when he speaks of “fulfilling” (πληρόω) the gospel? The Greek verb πληρόω can mean fulfill, make full, complete, or accomplish.[42] In references to prophecy or God’s word, πληρόω denotes the bringing about of what God has ordained to happen.[43] The gospel, as “God’s word,” is fulfilled when it progresses savingly through the lost world (Rom15:19–20). Paul “fulfills” this message when he becomes its servant (διάκονος τοῦ εὐαγγελίου) by conveying it to others.[44] God is the author of the message, and regardless of Paul’s participation, the word of God will “be fulfilled.” Paul, however, delights to be used in this process (Phil 1:12–18). For the purposes of our study, it is significant that in three separate places Paul speak of his ministry as “fulfilling the gospel” (or “word,” or “message”).This construction reminds us that the gospel, for Paul, was God’s dynamic word—a powerful entity in continuity with Old Testament prophetic references to “the word of the Lord.”

3. The Dynamic Gospel and the Church’s Mission

Paul also speaks of the gospel as a dynamic force that is active in the churches. For example, in 1 Thess 2:13–16, Paul writes,

We also constantly give thanks to God for this, that when you received the word of God that you heard from us, you accepted it not as a human word but as what it really is, God’s word, which is at work in you believers. For you, brothers and sisters, became imitators of the churches of God in Christ Jesus that are in Judea, for you suffered the same things from your own compatriots as they did from the Jews, who killed both the Lord Jesus and the prophets, and drove us out; they displease God and oppose everyone by hindering us from speaking to the Gentiles so that they may be saved. Thus they have constantly been filling up the measure of their sins; but God’s wrath has overtaken them at last.[45]

According to 1 and 2 Thessalonians, both Paul and the church in Thessalonica have faced and are facing persecution. Paul and his co-workers face opposition to their gospel proclamation (1 Thess 2:1–2). The Thessalonians encounter hostility for similar reasons, as demonstrated by the text above. In this passage, Paul says that the church in Thessalonica has undergone the same sort of persecution that the churches in Judea endured from “the Jews.” Paul then expands on the belligerence of “the Jews” toward the Judean churches by mentioning several of their hostile acts—killing Jesus, murdering the prophets, driving out Paul and his co-workers, and hindering Paul and his co-workers from proclaiming the gospel to the Gentiles. This list of attacks demonstrates that Jewish anger was consistently directed against adherence to and proclamation of Jesus. As “imitators” (μιμηταί) of the churches in Judea, the church in Thessalonica apparently also faced opposition for their adherence to and/or proclamation of faith in Jesus. Asserting that the suffering itself was the activity being imitated begs the question. As Jo-Ann Brant rightly observes, “The equation of ‘imitation’ with suffering affliction ignores the fact that the Thessalonians were engaged in some activity that incurred the opposition of others.”[46]

For the purposes of our study, it is important to note that the Thessalonians’ imitative missionary behavior of proclaiming and suffering are produced by “God’s word” which is “at work” in the Thessalonian believers (λόγον θεοῦ, ὅς καὶ ἐνεργεῖται ἐν ὑμῖν τοῖς πιστεύουσιν) (1 Thess 2:13). Not Paul’s human instruction but the divine message that he conveyed is the source of life which determines the Thessalonians’ present missionary position.

Similarly in 2 Thess 3:1, Paul writes, “Finally, brothers and sisters, pray for us, so that the word of the Lord may spread rapidly [“run,” τρέχῆ] and be glorified everywhere, just as it is among you [καθὼς καὶ πρὸς ὑμᾶς].” Here again, Paul is not the agent of mission; the word itself is “running.” Not only through Paul’s ministry, but also through the Thessalonians, this word is running its inevitable God-ordained course.

In 1 Thess 1:8, Paul describes “the word of the Lord” as “ringing” or “sounding forth” ( ἐξήχηται) from the Thessalonian congregation. Here again, the gospel seems to take on a life of its own; the church is not described explicitly as announcing or proclaiming the gospel, but is depicted as the launching point for the powerful word’s self-diffusion.[47]

Because there is some debate over what this passage means, it is necessary for us to examine it in more detail. First Thessalonians 1:6–8 reads:

And you became imitators of us and of the Lord, for in spite of persecution you received the word with joy inspired by the Holy Spirit, so that you became an example to all the believers in Macedonia and in Achaia. For the word of the Lord has sounded forth from you not only in Macedonia and Achaia, but in every place your faith in God has gone forth [NRSV: become known], so that we have no need to speak about it.

Some scholars have claimed that “the word of the Lord sounding forth” does not refer to the gospel proclamation of the Thessalonian church. Paul Bowers, for example, argues that 1 Thess 1:9 gives us the non-evangelistic content of the “word of the Lord” (v. 8) which rang forth from the Thessalonians.[48] This “word of the Lord,” says Bowers, was the news of the Thessalonians’ conversion that served to encourage existing Christian congregations.[49] Yet, both the majestic connotations of the verb ἐξηχέω and Paul’s other uses of λόγος in the Thessalonian correspondence favor understanding ἀφ’ ὑμῶν γὰρ ἐξήχηται ὁ λόγος τοῦ κυρίου (1:8) as the Thessalonians’ evangelistic proclamation.[50] Indeed, in 2 Thess 3:1, where Paul requests prayer “that the word of the Lord may spread rapidly and be glorified everywhere (my emphasis),” none doubts that “the word of the Lord” means the Christian gospel.

Further confirmation for reading 1 Thess 1:8 as evangelistic is possibly found in 1:3, where Paul has already described the Thessalonians’ activity with some of his favorite terms for evangelistic work, i.e., κόπος (or κοπιάω) and ἔργον (or cognates).[51] The evangelistic labors of the Thessalonians, which are only alluded to in v. 3, are made more explicit in v. 8 (i.e., the word sounding forth).

If we are correct in reading the text as outlined above, the explanatory γάρ clause in v. 8 (ἀφ’ ὑμῶν γὰρ ἐξήχηται ὁ λόγος τοῦ κυρίου) is best understood as an explanation of how the Thessalonians became a τύπος for other believers (v. 7). The Thessalonian Christians were an example to others by virtue of their being a launching point for the gospel. The replication of the apostolic mission was complete in them.[52] As the “word of the Lord” had progressed effectively through the apostle Paul, now it was advancing through the Thessalonian church (1 Thess 1:8; 2:13–14; 2 Thess 3:1).

Several scholars have noted this evangelistic reference to the dynamic word of the Lord in 1 Thess 1:8. James PatrickWare, for example, comments on the text: “The word is pictured as an active force, radiating out from the Thessalonians by its own power.”[53] Along the same lines, Lambrecht writes, “God’s initiative is irresistible; the Lord’s word is a dynamic, out-reaching and contagious power: ‘It will not return to me empty without accomplishing my purpose and succeeding in the task for which I sent it’ (Is 55:11).”[54]

If, in agreement with Ware and Lambrecht, we have interpreted 1 Thess 1:8 correctly, how then are we to understand vv. 9–10? Unlike Bowers, we cannot understand these verses as giving us the non-evangelistic content of “the word of the Lord.” Let us now look more closely at these debated verses:

For the people of those regions report about us what kind of welcome we had among you, and how you turned to God from idols, to serve a living and true God, and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead—Jesus, who rescues us from the wrath that is coming. (1 Thess 1:9–10)

Bowers is undoubtedly correct to consider this passage as belonging to the same discourse unit as vv. 1–8.[55] Yet, a proper interpretation of vv. 9–10 does not demand that “the word of the Lord sounding forth” in v. 8 be reduced to the report of the Thessalonians’ conversion circulating among believers. Indeed, it seems that in v. 9, Paul touches on a second point, related to his prior discussion in v. 8. As the gospel was progressing effectively through the Thessalonian Christians, large numbers of people had become aware of their conversion. Likely, not only the Thessalonians’ evangelistic proclamation (1:8), but their public break from idolatry (1:9) had resulted in their religious conversion becoming widely noticed. As the news of the Thessalonians’ conversion spread through both non-believers and believers, Christians in Macedonia and Achaia took up the news and reported it to Paul (1:9–10). The fact that other Christian believers had heard of and were talking about the Thessalonians’ dramatic conversion does not deny the Thessalonians’ evangelistic proclamation. Rather, such reports further confirm that the Thessalonians were effectively making known their Christian presence.

Another passage where Paul describes a similar dynamism of the gospel in a congregation is in Col 3:16–17. Here, Paul says that the gospel is an entity which “dwells in” ( ἐνοικέω) the believers. He writes:

Let the word of Christ[56] dwell in [ ἐνοικείτω] you richly; teach and admonish one another in all wisdom; and with gratitude in your hearts sing psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs to God. And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.

The gospel’s “dwelling in” the Colossians will be manifested by their “teaching” (διδάσκοντες) and “admonishing” (νουθετοῦντες) one another in the pattern of the apostle himself.[57] As the gospel “takes up residence” in believers, they will be competent to teach and encourage each other (cf. 2 Tim 1:5).

In 1 Cor 15:1–2, Paul speaks of the gospel as a “sphere” in which believers “stand.” There, he writes:

Now I would remind you, brothers and sisters, of the good news that I proclaimed to you, which you in turn received, in which also you stand [ ἐν ῳ καὶ ἑστήκατε], through which also you are being saved, if you hold firmly to the message that I proclaimed to you—unless you have come to believe in vain.

To speak of the gospel metaphorically as a place in which one “stands” illustrates again that there is more to Paul’s understanding of “the gospel” than content and the act of proclaiming that content. The gospel is a sphere in which the power of salvation is operative. The church is now within that sphere, and because of the gospel’s dynamic quality, the church is “caught up” in the gospel and becomes an agent of its continuing advance.

Paul’s description of his converts as “first fruits” (ἀπαρχή) also demonstrates the dynamic nature of the gospel in relation to the church’s continued missionary advance. According to the Old Testament, “first fruits” were the initial offering of the year’s agricultural produce to God.[58] These “first fruits” represented the whole of the harvest which was yet to come.[59] “First fruits” retains this sense of “an initial part representing the guaranteed whole” in its various New Testament occurrences.[60] In Paul’s thinking, the initial convert[s] whom he calls “first fruits” represent the beginning of God’s harvest, of which the rest is guaranteed by the certain fruit-bearing quality of the word of God. For example, in Rom 16:5, Paul writes, “Greet my beloved Epaenetus, who was the [first fruits] in Asia for Christ.” Also, in 1 Cor 16:15, Paul says, “Now, brothers and sisters, you know that members of the household of Stephanas were the [first fruits] in Achaia, and they have devoted themselves to the service of the saints.” Because of the nature of the gospel that Paul has passed on to his initial converts, he knows that the harvest will continue. The “unchained word” will continue its triumphant and powerful advance—effecting salvation for all whom the Lord has called (Rom 8:29–30; 1 Cor 1:24; 2 Tim 2:9). Although Paul often chooses not to stress the human agents through whom God’s word progresses, it is noteworthy that for Paul such progression inevitably entails the proclamation and hearing of the gospel (Rom 10:14–15).

II. Paul’s Theology of Mission within the Broader New Testament Understanding of the Church’s Mission

If we are correct in describing Paul’s theology of the church’s mission as based primarily on the dynamic nature of the gospel, we must then ask how this emphasis fits within the broader New Testament theology of mission. Acts is one of the main texts upon which missiologists base their missionary reflections, so it is appropriate that we briefly compare Luke’s theology of the church’s mission in Acts with the Pauline theology of the church’s mission outlined above. As we noted at the beginning of this chapter, in Acts, Luke presents the person of the Holy Spirit as the primary basis and guiding force of the early church’s mission. Paul, on the other hand, does not give the Spirit such a prominent place in his missionary reflections. The apostle’s references to the Holy Spirit, however, are easily harmonized with Luke’s missionary presentation. According to Paul, the Spirit reveals the gospel to believers (Gal 3:3; 1 Cor 2:9–13), is received by believing the message (Gal 3:2; 4:6–7; Eph 1:13–14; 2:15–22), “builds up” the church (i.e., both by accession and increasing maturity) through the supernatural gifts he provides (1 Cor 12–14), enables verbal confession of allegiance to Jesus (1 Cor 12:3), and directs believers’ conduct (Rom 8:4). In spite of such references to the Spirit, Paul’s letters lack the explicit connection between Spirit and mission that Luke frequently provides.[61]

While giving prominence to the Spirit’s role in mission, Luke also refers to the “word of God” (i.e., the gospel) as a dynamic, effective power. Commentators on Acts have long noted the important “summary” sections which punctuate the book with the missionary statement, “the word of God grew” (ὁ λόγος τοῦ θεοῦ ηὔξανεν).[62] This understanding of the gospel as a dynamic missionary force parallels Paul’s missionary theology.

Consequently, we can see that Paul and Luke do not so much differ on their missionary theology, as they emphasize different complementary elements of the same vision. Paul emphasizes the effective message communicated by the Holy Spirit. Luke, on the other hand, emphasizes the person of the Holy Spirit who makes the gospel effective in its hearers. Neither Paul nor Luke, however, completely neglects the missionary element that his counterpart emphasizes.[63] Indeed, Paul and Luke are discussing the same reality—simply from two different angles. Ultimately both Luke and Paul are God-centered because, for them, it is either God’s presence or God’s effective word which is the primary basis of the church’s mission. It is not surprising, then, that Paul and Luke are often reticent to speak of human agency in the spread of the gospel and prefer to stress the activity of God.[64]

Another important element that must be set alongside Paul’s theology of the church’s mission is the Great Commission (Matt 28:18–20; Luke 24:46–49; John 20:21; Acts 1:8; cf. Mark 16:15). How does the theological basis of the church’s mission that we outlined in this chapter harmonize with missiologists’ frequent reliance upon the Great Commission? Arguably, the Great Commission is none other than Christ’s verbal command sanctioning in human activity what is present in the self-diffusing word. Thus, scholars who have attempted to found the Pauline churches’ mission upon the Great Commission have not been entirely wrong. A clear command to evangelize is part of the churches’ heritage, and Paul likely was familiar with the Great Commission (at least in the form of oral tradition). If so, we would expect him to have passed on this command to the churches (Acts 20:27). Yet, Paul also knew that divine requirements could never be met by those who walk according to the flesh, but only by those who walk according to the Spirit (Rom 8:4). Believers who have the indwelling Spirit of Christ, then, manifest the life and righteousness which God gives and requires of his children (Rom 8:11, 14–17). Thus, scholars are correct to say that the church inherits the Great Commission from the apostles—as long as they understand that two other sides of this reality (i.e., Spirit and word) must be present to have a complete understanding of the church’s missionary motivation.[65] It would seem, then, that missiologists (who have frequently emphasized Jesus’ explicit command to missionize and the role of the Spirit in promoting mission) should now include a third element in discussing the church’s missionary motivation—the role of the dynamic word of God. This multi-faceted dimension of the church’s missionary motivation is illustrated by the following diagram:

Fig. 1. The church’s missionary motivation as Spirit, Command, and Word-Gospel

III. Discontinuity of Missionary Activity Between the Old Testament and New Testament

The theological study presented above is also an aid in understanding the discontinuity between the elect community’s mission in the Old Testament (i.e., Israel’s mission) and the elect community’s mission in the New Testament (i.e., the church’s mission). Although many popular missiological studies have claimed that the missionary witness of God’s people in both the Old and New Testaments is an active, centrifugal outreach,[66] most scholars are in agreement that the missionary witness of God’s people in the Old Testament is overwhelmingly passive.[67] Also, a fair number of critical scholars agree with the main tenor of my study—i.e., that Paul expected the church to have an active missionary role.[68] If God’s people in the Old Testament are passive witnesses and God’s people in the New Testament are active witnesses, what accounts for this discontinuity?

The nature of God’s word (i.e., the gospel) and the presence of the Holy Spirit are the key to this puzzle. While God’s word and Spirit came to specific members of the elect community in the Old Testament (e.g., 1 Sam 10:10; Hos 1:1; Ezek 2:2), a broader outpouring of the Spirit and word awaited eschatological fulfillment ( Joel 2:28–32). The early church recognized in their experiences the fulfillment of prophetic texts which predicted a general outpouring of the Spirit and the self-diffusing word (Acts 2:16–21; 1 Cor 12:13). No longer did the Spirit and word come only to specific individuals for a limited duration. With the inauguration of the eschaton in Christ’s death and resurrection, the Spirit and word came to stay (Acts 1:8). Because God’s Spirit is a missionary spirit (i.e., revealing himself to humans and enabling their God-glorifying response) and God’s word is dynamic and effective, the abiding presence of Spirit and word with the elect community guarantees its active missionary role.

IV. Conclusion

The main purpose of this article was to demonstrate that Paul speaks of the gospel as a dynamic entity that propelled both him (as an apostle) and the churches (as gospel-created and gospel-empowered entities) into the further spread of God’s word. We have also seen that the Pauline emphasis on “word” harmonizes well with broader New Testament themes of “Spirit” and “command” as a theological basis for the church’s mission. Finally, this study suggested that a proper understanding of the church’s theological basis for mission aids in explaining the discontinuity of missionary activity between the Old and New Testaments.

Notes

1. E.g., see Roland Allen, Missionary Methods, St. Paul’s or Ours?: A Study of the Church in the Four Provinces (London: Robert Scott, 1912), 125–26; Adolf von Harnack, The Mission and Expansion of Christianity in the First Three Centuries (ed. and trans. James Moffatt; 2d ed.; 2 vols.; London: Williams and Norgate/New York: Putnam’s Sons, 1908), 1:73–74; Nils Alstrup Dahl, Das Volk Gottes: Eine Untersuchung zum Kirchenbewusstsein des Urchristentums (Darmstadt:Wissenschaftliche Buchgesellschaft, 1963), 241; Stephen Neill, A History of Christian Missions (2d ed.; Harmondsworth, Middlesex: Penguin, 1986), 22–23; C. E. B. Cranfield, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Epistle to the Romans (ICC; 2 vols.; Edinburgh: T&T Clark, 1979), 2:762–68; J. A. Grassi, A World to Win: The Missionary Methods of Paul the Apostle (Maryknoll, N.Y.: Maryknoll, 1965), 139; D. M. Schlunk, Paulus als Missionar (Gütersloh: Bertelsmann, 1937), 45; F. Hahn, Mission in the New Testament (trans. Frank Clarke; SBT 47; London: SCM, 1965), 16; E. Best, The Letter of Paul to the Romans (Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1967), 168; J. Knox, “Romans 15:14–33 and Paul’s Conception of His Apostolic Mission,” JBL 83 (1964): 1-11; M. Green, Evangelism in the Early Church (London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1970), 260–63;O. Michel, Der Brief an die Römer (MeyerK 4; 13th ed.; Göttingen:Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1966), 366–67; G. Bornkamm, Paul (trans. D. Stalker; Minneapolis: Fortress, 1995), 54; E. Glenn Hinson, The Early Church: Origins to the Dawn of the Middle Ages (Nashville: Abingdon, 1996), 51, 63–64; UlrichWilckens, Der Brief an die Römer (EKKNT 6; 3 vols.; Zurich: Benziger, 1982), 3:119–22; D. Senior and C. Stuhlmueller, The Biblical Foundations for Mission (Maryknoll, N.Y.: Orbis, 1983), 333; J. Ziesler, Paul’s Letter to the Romans (TPI New Testament Commentaries; Philadelphia: Trinity Press International, 1989), 343.
2. Scholars against the traditional view include: Terence L. Donaldson, “The Absence in Paul’s Letters of Any Injunction to Evangelize” (paper presented at the annual meeting of the Society of Biblical Literature, Nashville, Tenn., November 2000), 1–14; Paul Bowers, “Church and Mission in Paul,” JSNT 44 (1991): 89-111; D. Bosch, Transforming Mission: Paradigm Shifts in Theology of Mission (Maryknoll, N.Y.: Orbis, 1991), 138, 168; Hans-Werner Gensichen, Glaube für die Welt: Theologische Aspekte der Mission (Gütersloh: Gerd Mohn, 1971), 168–86; Peter Lippert, Leben als Zeugnis: Die werbende Kraft christlicher Lebensführung nach dem Kirchenverständnis neutestamentlicher Briefe (SBM 4; Stuttgart: Katholisches Bibelwerk, 1968), 127–28, 164–65, 175–76; D. Zeller, “Theologie der Mission bei Paulus,” in Mission im neuen Testament (ed. K. Kertelge; Freiburg: Herder, 1982), 164.
3. Scholars in defense of the traditional view include: Andreas J. Köstenberger and Peter T. O’Brien, Salvation to the Ends of the Earth: A Biblical Theology of Mission (NSBT 11; Downers Grove: InterVarsity, 2001), 191–99; I. Howard Marshall, “WhoWere the Evangelists?” in The Mission of the Early Church to Jews and Gentiles (ed. Jostein Ådna and Hans Kvalbein; Tübingen: Mohr, 2000), 251–63; O’Brien, Gospel and Mission in the Writings of Paul: An Exegetical and Theological Analysis (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1995), 83–131; James Patrick Ware, “ ‘Holding Forth the Word of Life’: Paul and the Mission of the Church in the Letter to the Philippians in the Context of Second Temple Judaism” (Ph.D. diss., Yale University, 1996); idem, “The Thessalonians as a Missionary Congregation: 1 Thessalonians 1, 5–8, ” ZNW 83 (1992): 126-31; Robert L. Plummer, “The Imitation of Paul and the Church’s Missionary Role in 1 Corinthians,” JETS 44 (2001): 219-35; idem, “The Church’s Missionary Nature: The Apostle Paul and His Churches” (Ph.D. diss., The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, 2001).
4. Gustav Warneck, Evangelische Missionslehre: Ein missionstheoretischer Versuch (3 vols.; 2d ed.; Gotha: Friedrich Andreas Perthes, 1892–1903), 1:91, 183–85.Warneck attacks Ernst Troeltsch (1865–1923) and other liberal scholars who attempt to found the church’s mission on moral and humanitarian concerns (G. Warneck, Missionsmotiv und Missionsaufgabe nach der modernen religionsgeschichtlichen Schule [Berlin: Martin Warneck, 1907]).William Carey, “the father of modern missions,” also tried to base the church’s missionary obligation on the Great Commission. The first chapter of his famous Enquiry is titled “An Enquiry whether the Commission given by our Lord to his Disciples be not still binding on us” (William Carey, An Enquiry into the Obligations of Christians to Use Means for the Conversion of the Heathens [Leicester: Ann Ireland, 1792; facsimile copy, London: Carey Kingsgate, 1961], 7–13).
5. Harry R. Boer documents the dominance of the Great Commission in modern missionary thought in chapter one, “The Role of the Great Commission in Modern Missions,” of his book (H. R. Boer, Pentecost and Missions [Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1961], 15–27). Also see Michael Green, Evangelism in the Early Church (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1970), 239–40, 275. Laypeople and popular Christian authors are especially prone to assume that Paul and his churches were familiar with and motivated by Jesus’ Great Commission.
6. See Boer, “The Great Commission and Missions in the New Testament,” in Pentecost and Missions, 28–47.
7. A.W. Argyle, however, claims that he can demonstrate Paul’s familiarity with the oral tradition of Jesus’ missionary instructions to the seventy (Argyle, “St. Paul and the Mission of the Seventy,” JTS NS 1 [1950]: 63).
8. Roland Allen, Missionary Methods, St. Paul’s or Ours?: A Study of the Church in the Four Provinces (London: Robert Scott, 1912), 198–202; see also H. R. Boer, Pentecost and Missions; Dean S. Gilliland, Pauline Theology and Mission Practice (Grand Rapids: Baker, 1983), 187–88; Don N. Howell, Jr., “Confidence in the Spirit as the Governing Ethos of the Pauline Mission,” TJ 17 (1996): 203-21.
9. E.g., see Acts 1:8; 4:29–31; 6:10; 8:29, 39–40; 10:19–20, 44–47; 11:12; 13:2–4; 16:6–7; 20:22–23.
10. Green, Evangelism in the Early Church, 149.
11. Köstenberger and O’Brien, Salvation to the Ends of the Earth, 192–93; O’Brien, Gospel and Mission, 96–97, 113–14, 127–28, 138; idem, “Thanksgiving and the Gospel in Paul,” NTS 21 (1974–75): 153-55; J. Ware, “The Thessalonians as a Missionary Congregation: 1 Thessalonians 1, 5–8, ” ZNW 83 (1992): 128; J. Lambrecht, “A Call to Witness by All: Evangelisation in 1Thessalonians,” in Teologie in Konteks (ed. J. H. Roberts et al.; Johannesburg: Orion, 1991), 324–25; cf. John Howard Schütz, Paul and the Anatomy of Apostolic Authority (SNTSMS 26; Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1975), 51–53; Morna D. Hooker, “A Partner in the Gospel: Paul’s Understanding of His Ministry,” in Theology and Ethics in Paul and His Interpreters: Essays in Honor of Victor Paul Furnish (ed. Eugene H. Lovering, Jr. and Jerry L. Sumney; Nashville: Abingdon, 1996), 88–89; Judith M. Gundry Volf, Paul and Perseverance: Staying in and Falling Away (Tübingen: Mohr/Louisville: Westminster, 1990), 247–54; Einar Molland, Das Paulinische Euangelion: Das Wort und die Sache (Oslo: Jacob Dybwad, 1934), 53–54.
12. Lambrecht, in reference to 1 Thess 1:6–8, writes, “The gospel is nothing but power and Spirit and full conviction. The apostles and those who receive the word are so empowered that they become as it were automatically witnesses and examples in their turn” (“A Call to Witness by All,” 324).
13. So O’Brien, Gospel and Mission, 96–97, 113–14, 127–28, 138; idem, “Thanksgiving and the Gospel in Paul,” 153–55.
14. O’Brien has provided possibly the most extensive reflections on this subject to date (Gospel and Mission, 96–97, 113–14, 127–28, 138).
15. Εὐαγγέλιον (or synonyms) refers primarily to the content of the message proclaimed in the following representative verses: Rom 10:8; 16:25; 2 Cor 2:17; 4:2, 3, 4; 9:13; 11:4; Gal 1:6; 2:2; Eph 1:13. Εὐαγγέλιον refers primarily to the act of proclaiming the message in the following representative verses: Rom 1:1, 9; 1 Cor 9:23; 2 Cor 2:12; 10:14; Gal 2:7; Phil 1:5; 2:22; 4:15. O’Brien remarks, “It is a well-known fact that εὐαγγέλιον within the Pauline corpus is often used as a nomen actionis” (“Thanksgiving and the Gospel in Paul,” 153). Ulrich Becker writes, “Euangelion, as used by Paul, does not mean only the content of what is preached, but also the act, process and execution of the proclamation” (U. Becker, “Gospel … ,” “εὐαγγέλιον,” in NIDNTT 2:111). Danker agrees (BDAG, 402). Also see Joseph A. Fitzmyer, “The Gospel in theTheology of Paul,” Int 33 (1979): 341. For the conceptual background of Paul’s use of εὐαγγέλιον and εὐαγγελίζω, see Peter Stuhlmacher, Das paulinische Evangelium: I. Vorgeschichte (FRLANT 95; Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1968).
16. E.g., see Gen 15:1, 4; Exod 9:20–21; Num 3:16, 51; 11:23; 15:31; 24:13; 36:5; Deut 5:5; 9:5; 18:22; 34:5; Josh 8:27; Isa 55:10–11; Jer 20:7–9; 23:29. Cranfield writes, “Paul’s thought of the message as being effective power (cf. 1 Cor 1.18) is to be understood in the light of such OT passages concerning the divine word as Gen 1.3, 6, etc.; Ps 147.15; Isa 40.8b; 55.10f; Jer 23.29 (cf. also Wisd 18.14-16)” (Cranfield, Epistle to the Romans, 1:87–88). McKenzie writes, “The word of Yahweh may be called sacramental in the sense that it effects what it signifies. When Yahweh posits the word thing, nothing can prevent its emergence” ( John L.McKenzie, “The Word of God in the Old Testament,” TS 21 [1960]: 196). Also see Oskar Grether, Name und Wort Gottes im Alten Testament (BZAW 64; Giessen: Töpelmann, 1934), esp. 59–185; Becker, “Gospel … ,” “εὐαγγέλιον,” in NIDNTT2:108–9; Frank Ritchel Ames, “דבר,” in NIDOTT 1:913–14; W. H. Schmidt, “דבר,” in TDOT 3:111–25; Anthony C. Thiselton, “The Supposed Power of Words in the Biblical Writings,” JTS 25 (1974): 283-99; Kevin Vanhoozer, “God’s Mighty Speech-Acts: The Doctrine of Scripture Today,” in A Pathway into the Holy Scripture (ed. Philip E. Satterthwaite and David F. Wright: Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1994), 143–81. Elsewhere in Romans, Paul again speaks of the effective word of the Lord—this time in relation to the promise made to Abraham. In Rom 9:6, Paul writes, “It is not as though the word of God had failed. For not all Israelites truly belong to Israel.” Paul is concerned to show that when God speaks, what he says happens. This is true of both promises made to the patriarchs and the promise of salvation in the gospel for all whom God has chosen.
17. My translation and emphasis.
18. See Daniel B. Wallace, Greek Grammar Beyond the Basics: An Exegetical Syntax of the New Testament (Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 1996), 81–82, 109–10.
19. Robert H. Mounce, Romans (NAC 27; Nashville: Broadman, 1995), 70. Schreiner comments, “The δύναμις θεοῦ (dynamis theou, power of God) in the gospel signifies the effective and transforming power that accompanies the preaching of the gospel” (Thomas R. Schreiner, Romans [BECNT; Grand Rapids: Baker, 1998], 60). See also JamesD.G. Dunn, Romans 1–8 (WBC 38A; Dallas:Word, 1988), 39.
20. Joseph A. Fitzmyer, Romans (AB 33; New York: Doubleday, 1993), 256. Elsewhere, Fitzmyer writes, “Paul views the gospel not merely as an abstract message of salvation nor as a series of propositions about Christ (e.g., “Jesus is Lord”) which human beings are expected to apprehend and give assent to, but rather as a salvific force unleashed by God himself in human history through the person, ministry, passion, death, and resurrection of Jesus, bringing with it effects that human beings can appropriate by faith in him” (“The Gospel in the Theology of Paul,” 343). Ulrich Becker writes, “In the very act of proclamation [the gospel’s] content becomes reality, and brings about the salvation which it contains” (Becker, “Gospel … ,” “εὐαγγέλιον,” in NIDNTT 2:111).
21. In concluding his study of “the word of God” in the Old Testament, McKenzie writes, “The developments and refinements of the Israelite idea of word show a certain consistency of pattern. The basis of this consistency lies in the conception of the spoken word as a distinct reality charged with power. It has power because it emerges from a source of power which, in releasing it, must in a way release itself “ (McKenzie, “Word of God in the Old Testament,” 205).
22. On understanding δικαιοσύνη θεοῦ as God’s saving power, see Mark A. Seifrid, Christ, Our Righteousness: Paul’s Theology of Justification (NSBT 9; Downers Grove: InterVarsity, 2000), 35–48; Otfried Hofius, “Wort Gottes und Glaube bei Paulus,” in Paulus und das antike Judentum (ed. Martin Hengel and Ulrich Heckel; WUNT 58; Tübingen: Mohr, 1991), esp. 390; Schreiner, Romans, 63–76; Ernst Käsemann, “ ‘The Righteousness of God’ in Paul,” in New Testament Questions of Today (trans. W. J. Montague; Philadelphia: Fortress, 1969), 168–82; Peter Stuhlmacher, Gerechtigkeit Gottes bei Paulus (FRLANT 87; Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1965), 78–84, 222–27; Dunn, Romans 1–8, 40–42.
23. Cranfield, Romans, 1:89.
24. Scripture quotations are from the NRSV unless otherwise noted. My emphasis.
25. Leon Morris comments, “[The gospel] is not simply good advice, telling uswhatwe should do. Nor is it information about God’s power. It is God’s power” (Leon Morris, The First Epistle of Paul to the Corinthians: An Introduction and Commentary [rev. ed.; TNTC 7; Leicester: InterVarsity/Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1985], 44). Gerhard Friedrich writes, “The Gospel does not merely bear witness to salvation history; it is itself salvation history” (G. Friedrich, “εὐαγελίζομαι … ,” in TDNT 2:731).
26. My emphasis.
27. L. Coenen writes, “Paul understands calling as the process by which God calls those, whom he has already elected and appointed, out of their bondage to this world, so that he may justify and sanctify them (Rom. 8:29f.), and bring them into his service. This means that the call is part of God’s work of reconciliation and peace (1 Cor. 7:15)” (L. Coenen, “Call,” “καλέω,” in NIDNTT 1:275). K. L. Schmidt writes, “If God or Christ calls a man, this calling or naming is a verbum efficax” (K. L. Schmidt, “καλέω … ,” in TDNT 3:489). Note meaning number 4 of καλέω in BDAG, “choose for receipt of a special benefit or experience” (BDAG, 503). Cf. Jost Eckert, “καλέω … ,” in EDNT 2:242–43.
28. G. Strecker writes, “Εὐαγγέλιον is a spirit-empowered word which also produces pneumatic deeds; for it manifests the election of the person [1 Thess 1:4], which was made at the beginning, as a call to salvation [1 Thess 2:12]” (Georg Strecker, “εὐαγγέλιον,” in EDNT 2:72).
29. Schreiner, Romans, 60.
30. My translation. Obviously, the gospel did not “go out” (i.e., originate) from Corinth, for Paul was the one who founded the congregation there (1 Cor 2:1–5; 3:5–10; Acts 18:1–18). Likewise, the Corinthians should not think they are the only ones whom the gospel has reached.
31. Archibald Robertson and Alfred Plummer, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the First Epistle of St Paul to the Corinthians (2d ed., ICC; Edinburgh: T&T Clark, 1914), 326; cf. Richard B. Hays, First Corinthians (Interpretation; Louisville: Westminster John Knox, 1997), 244.
32. See the uses of ἐξέρχομαι in Acts 1:21; 7:3, 4, 7; 10:23; 11:25; also see the uses of καταντάω in Acts 16:1; 18:19, 24; 20:15; 21:7; 25:13.
33. O’Brien notes this point. He adds, “Gospel is … regarded as a living force, almost personalized” (“Thanksgiving and the Gospel in Paul,” 153).
34. Hooker is wrong, however, to see the gospel as personified in 1 Cor 9:23 (“A Partner in the Gospel,” 88–89). Other scholars who claim that Paul presents himself as a co-laborer of the personified gospel in 1 Cor 9:23 include the following: O’Brien, Gospel and Mission, 96–97; Gundry Volf, Paul and Perseverance, 247–54; Molland, Das Paulinische Euangelion, 53–54.
35. Cf. 1 Cor 3:7; Acts 6:7; 12:24; 19:20.
36. Cf. 1 Cor 9:11–12; Rom 1:16; 1 Cor 1:17–25.
37. Concerning the “fruit-bearing” and “growth” of the Colossian Christian community (Col 1:10), O’Brien writes, “ ‘Fruit-bearing’ is to be understood as a crop of good deeds (cf. Phil 1:11), while the growth of the gospel points to the increasing number of converts” (Gospel and Mission, 113). Eduard Lohse, Colossians and Philemon (ed. Helmut Koester; trans. William R. Poehlmann and Robert J. Karris; Hermeneia; Philadelphia: Fortress, 1971), 19–20; Martin Dibelius, An die Kolosser, Epheser, an Philemon (ed. D. Heinrich Greeven; 3d rev. ed.; HNT 12; Tübingen: Mohr, 1953), 6.
38. My translation.
39. My translation. Ian Yorkston intends to deal with this passage at length in his forthcoming dissertation. He has not, however, made his approach or conclusions known to me (Ian Yorkston, “Romans 15:14–21 and Paul’s Understanding of His Mission” [Ph.D. diss., University of Durham, forthcoming]).
40.  E.g., Ernest Renan, Saint Paul (Paris: Michel Lévy Frres, 1869), 492–93;WilliamWrede, Paul (trans. Edward Lummis; London: Green, 1907; repr., Lexington, Ky.: ATLA Committee on Reprinting, 1962), 47–48; C. K. Barrett, “New Testament Eschatology,” SJT 6 (1953): 228; Paul Althaus, Der Brief an die Römer (10th ed.; NTD 6; Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1966), 147; Johannes Munck, Paul and the Salvation of Mankind (trans. Frank Clarke; London: SCM, 1959), 48, 51–55, 276–78.
41. E.g., Adolf von Harnack, The Mission and Expansion of Christianity in the First Three Centuries (ed. and trans. James Moffatt; 2d ed.; London: Williams and Norgate/New York: G. P. Putnam’s Sons, 1908), 1:73–74; Günther Bornkamm, Paul (trans. D.M.G. Stalker; Minneapolis: Fortress, 1995), 54; Dahl, Das Volk Gottes, 241; Schreiner, Romans, 768–70; Cranfield, Romans, 2:762, 766.
42. See BDAG, 827–29. The semantic range of πληρόω is illustrated by the following sections in Louw and Nida: §13.106; §30.29; §33.144; §35.33; §59.33; §59.37; §68.26. I disagree with Louw and Nida’s classification in §33.199.
43. See Matt 1:22; 2:15, 17, 23; 4:14; 8:17; 12:17; 13:35; Mark 14:49; Luke 1:20; 4:21; Acts 1:16; 3:18; Jas 2:23. Also see Reinier Schippers, “Fullness,” “πληρόω,” in NIDNTT 1:736–38. Concerning the fulfillment of “the word of Yahweh” in the Old Testament, McKenzie writes, “Frequently the word of Yahweh is said ‘to be fulfilled’ (as in 1 K 2:27, the word which predicted the downfall of the priestly house of Eli) or ‘to be established’ (as in Jer 29:10, the promise of restoration from exile). In these phrases is described the coming into existence of the thing signified by the word, the ‘fullness’ of the reality of word-thing” (McKenzie, “Word of God in the Old Testament,” 196).
44. See Eph 3:6–7; Col 1:23.
45. My emphasis.
46. Jo-Ann A. Brant, “The Place of mimēsis in Paul’s Thought,” SR 22 (1993): 292.
47. Scholars who agree that 1 Thess 1:6–8 describes the evangelistic activity of the Thessalonians include Ware, “Thessalonians,” 126–31; Schütz, Paul and the Anatomy of Apostolic Authority, 227–28; David M. Stanley, “ ‘Become Imitators of Me’: The Pauline Conception of Apostolic Tradition,” Bib 40 (1959): 866-67; Douwe van Swigchem, Het missionair karakter van de Christelijke gemeente volgens de brieven van Paulus en Petrus (Kampen: Kok, 1955), 131–32; J. Lambrecht, “A Call to Witness by All,” 324–25; Andrew D. Clarke, “ ‘Be Imitators of Me’: Paul’s Model of Leadership,” TynBul 49 (1998): 336-38; I. Howard Marshall, “Who Were the Evangelists?” in The Mission of the Early Church to Jews and Gentiles, ed. Jostein Ådna and Hans Kvalbein (Tübingen: Mohr-Siebeck, 2000), 259.
48. W. Paul Bowers, “Church and Mission in Paul,” JSNT 44 (1991): 98.
49. Ibid.
50. See BDAG, 349–50; 1 Thess 1:6; 2:13; 2 Thess 3:1. SeeWare, “Thessalonians,” 127 n. 8; see also Bartholomäus Henneken, Verkündigung und Prophetie im Ersten Thessalonicherbrief: Ein Beitrag zur Theologie des Wortes Gottes (SBS 29; Stuttgart: Katholisches Bibelwerk, 1969), 62–64. Henneken writes in reference to verse 8, “Es ist hier an eine aktive Verkündigung durch die Thessalonicher zu denken” (63).
51. See Ware, “Thessalonians,” 127–28 n. 9. Cf. 1 Thess 3:2, 5; Rom 16:3, 21; 1 Cor 3:8–9, 13–15; 9:1; 15:10; 16:10; 2 Cor 10:15; Gal 4:11; Phil 1:22; 2:16; 2:30.
52. As the apostolic example fades into the background, the example of the churches themselves and their leaders comes to the foreground (e.g., 1 Cor 1:2; 11:16; 14:33; 2 Cor 8–9; Phil 3:17; 1 Thess 1:6; 2:14–16; 2 Thess 3:7–9; 1 Pet 5:3). This process did not take long, as Paul and the other apostles rarely lingered with their new churches (see Acts).
53. Ware, “Thessalonians,” 128.
54. Lambrecht, “A Call to Witness by All,” 325.
55. The entirety of chapter 1 (vv. 1–10) serves as a coherent unit—the Pauline introduction and thanksgiving. Chapter 1, verse 10 is followed by a clear shift to the body of the letter in chapter 2, verse 1 (Αὐτοὶ γὰρ οἴδατε ἀδελφοί, τὴν εἴσοδον ἡμῶν τὴν πρὸς ὑμᾶς ὅτι οὐ κενὴ γέγονεν).
56. Ο λόγος τοῦ Χριστοῦ is generally understood as a reference to the gospel (T. K. Abbott, A Critical and Exegetical Commentary on the Epistles to the Ephesians and to the Colossians [ICC; Edinburgh: T&T Clark, 1897], 290).
57. Διδάσκοντες and νουθετοῦντες should be understood as instrumental participles.
58. E.g., Exod 23:16, 19; 34:22, 26; Lev 2:12, 14; 23:10, 17, 20; Num 18:13; 28:26; Deut 18:4; 26:10–11. See Richard O. Rigsby, “First Fruits,” in ABD 2:796–97.
59. See Hans-Georg Link and Colin Brown, “Sacrifice, First Fruits … ,” “ἀπαρχή,” in NIDNTT 3:415–17.
60. See Rom 8:22–23; 11:16; 1 Cor 15:20, 23; Rev 14:4. Cf. BDAG, 98.
61. E.g., Acts 1:8; 4:29–31; 6:10; 8:29, 39–40; 10:19–20, 44–47; 11:12; 13:2–4; 16:6–7; 20:22–23.
62. See Acts 6:7; 12:24; 19:20; cf. Acts 2:41; 4:4, 29, 31; 6:2, 4; 8:4, 14, 25; 10:36, 37, 44; 11:1, 19; 13:5, 7, 44, 46, 48, 49; 14:3, 25; 15:7, 35, 36; 16:6, 32; 17:11, 13; 18:11; 19:10; 20:32. Also see Jerome Kodell, “ ‘The Word of God Grew’: The Ecclesial Tendency of Λόγος in Acts 1, 7; 12, 24; 19, 20, ” Bib 55 (1974): 505-19; Brian S. Rosner, “The Progress of the Word,” in Witness to the Gospel: The Theology of Acts (ed. I. Howard Marshall and David Peterson; Grand Rapids: Eerdmans 1998), 215–33; Ernst Haenchen, Die Apostelgeschichte (15th ed.; Meyer; Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1968), 217, 330, 502.
63. The dynamic power of the word is possibly only slightly less prominent than the Spirit in Luke’s missionary thought. For example, see the verses cited in the previous footnote. Michael Green comments, “The man who, more than anyone in the early Church, has given us his assessment of the factors in evangelism is St. Luke. And for him the two main ones are the very factors which men do not provide, namely the Spirit of God and the Word of God” (Evangelism in the Early Church, 148).
64. E.g., Rom 9:24, 1 Cor 1:27–30; 3:5–9; 2 Cor 1:21–22; 1 Thess 5:23–25; Acts 6:7; 12:24; 19:20.
65. George W. Peters remarks, “[The church] inherits the Great Commission from the apostles of Christ and becomes responsible for its realization. Too long has pietistic individualism dominated the mind and scene of Protestantism in relation to the Great Commission while the church was left asleep” (George W. Peters, A Biblical Theology of Missions [Chicago: Moody, 1972], 220–21).
66. E.g., Walter C. Kaiser, Jr., Mission in the Old Testament: Israel as a Light to the Nations (Grand Rapids: Baker, 2000), 9.
67. Jeremias writes, “[According to the Old Testament] the Gentiles will not be evangelized where they dwell, but will be summoned to the holy Mount by the divine epiphany” ( J. Jeremias, Jesus’ Promise to the Nations [trans. S. H. Hooke; SBT 24; London: SCM, 1958], 60); also see Köstenberger and O’Brien, Salvation to the Ends of the Earth, 34–36; J. Blauw, The Missionary Nature of the Church: A Survey of the Biblical Theology of Mission (London: Lutterworth, 1962), 34–35, 40–41; Eckhard J. Schnabel, “Israel, the People of God, and the Nations” (paper presented in the Biblical Theology Group at the annual meeting of the Evangelical Theological Society, Nashville, Tenn., November 2000), 2; cf. Scot McKnight, A Light among the Gentiles: Jewish Missionary Activity in the Second Temple Period (Minneapolis: Fortress, 1991), 11–29, 115–17.
68. See note 1.