Several months ago we began a study of the book,The Planting And Development Of Missionary Churches, by Dr. John L. Nevius. Dissatisfied with the mission methods of his day (late 1800s) Nevius proposed a new method which has come to be known as the “Nevius method or plan.” The old plan depended largely on paid native preachers and evangelists and sought to foster and stimulate the growth and development of the native mission by pouring money into the work.
Los Angeles – With all the news about the survival of Christianity in Communist China, it is important to realize that there are two kinds of churches in China today, not just one, a noted China watcher said here. The Rev. Silas Hong, executive director of United Evangelism to the Chinese, based here, warned those trying to make contact with Christians in China that there is an official, government- sanctioned church in China which may not represent the Gospel for the purest of motives.
As we continue our study of the missionary preaching of the Apostles we wish to concentrate on the preaching of the Apostle Peter to Cornelius and his household. The familiar narrative is found in the tenth chapter of the Book of Acts. Cornelius, a devout man who “prayed to God alway,” was an officer in the Roman army who resided in Caesarea.
In the previous issue we discussed a bit of the history, the setting, and the audience to whom the Apostle Paul preached on Mars’ Hill in Athens (cf. Acts 17:16-34). In this issue it is our intention to examine the content and the fruit of the Apostle’s preaching (cf. verses 22-34).
The Word of God lays down the principle that the ministers of the Gospel must be supported by the churches which they serve. This principle was established already in the Old Testament era. When God gave to Israel the land of Canaan as a type of the heavenly Canaan each tribe and each family of each tribe was given an inheritance or allotted portion of the land. This portion was typical of each family’s eternal inheritance in glory.
With this article we shall conclude our study of the views of Dr. John L. Nevius. The “Nevius Method or Plan” to which the growth of the Presbyterian Mission in Korea has been attributed may be summed as follows: 1) Missionary personal evangelism through wide itineration. This means missionaries should not remain in one group or congregation. They should preach the gospel from place to place and in as many places as possible. They should not become, in effect, pastors of the mission churches.
(The Euthanasia of a Mission, The Views of Henry Venn)
The Views of Henry Venn
Preaching may be defined as “the authoritative proclamation of the gospel by the church in the service of the Word of God through Christ” (Herman Hoeksema, Reformed Dogmatics, p. 637). Missions may be defined as that work of God in Christ by which, through the official ministry of the Word by the church, He gathers His elect in the new dispensation out of all nations of the world, both Jew and Gentile, with a view to the realization of the manifestation of His glory in the New Heavens and Earth.
The Views of Rufus Anderson The Rev. Rufus Anderson (1796-1880), an ordained Congregational minister, was secretary of the American Board of Commissioners for Foreign Missions from 1832 to 1866. Prior to this he served for fourteen years as assistant secretary to this board, and after his term in office he continued as an advisor to the board almost until his death. He was both a contemporary and friend of Henry Venn. His views and especially his “three self” formula influenced American missions until the end of World War II. (Cf. Rufus Anderson, R.
