Doctrine Matters

What is more important, your Statement of Faith or your mission statement?

Photo by Aaron Burden on Unsplash

Every year during the Christmas season, our brothers and sisters remind us that, “Jesus is the reason for the season.” He most certainly is. Who Jesus is, what he did for us on the cross, how we understand his message, the exclusive claims he made, and so many other issues are matters of doctrine. Not only is Jesus the reason for the season, but he is also the reason for our doctrine. How much do we believe this doctrine in our ministries? This is a topic worthy of deep consideration by all ministry leaders.

At a board meeting last year, I asked my board members to stand and read together the Missio Nexus Statement of Faith. In my memory, this board had never done this, so it was a break from the status quo. How would I describe this little exercise? Cleansing. Not because we had deep disagreements or theological issues (though it did generate some needed conversation on these commitments) but because ministry cannot be separated from doctrine.

As we did this together, I reflected on the way that organizational mission and vision statements have overtaken the Statement of Faith in most ministries. If one were to time travel back to 1975, almost no ministries had a mission (or vision) statement. They had Statements of Faith. What happened that made us think that doctrine should not be highlighted while we promoted mission/vision statements? Further compounding this for me is the truth that it is not just ministry organizations that have mission and vision statements. Churches also often display these statements more prominently on their websites than their Statement of Faith.

The Missio Nexus Statement of Faith is not generic. By that I mean it is not simply a copy of Lausanne’s or WEA’s (which many ministries have adopted as their own). It was developed by combining the Statements of Faith from two historic missions associations that merged to form Missio Nexus. At the same time, it is not radical or out of the Evangelical mainstream. There are things I would like to see “beefed up.” There is room for improvement. Yet, I found the act of reading this together a powerful reminder that doctrine matters.

I was recently at a small meeting with nine agency leaders. I asked them, “How many of you read your Statement of Faith together with your board?” None of them did so. I then asked, “How many of you read your mission statement together?” Almost all of them.

I am not an enemy of mission/vision statements. Quite the contrary. They play an important role in providing focus and evaluation to ministry organizations. At the same time, we can forget that ministries are inherently spiritual. They arise from theology, not from organizational effectiveness or efficiency. They should be driven foremost by their theological foundations and secondarily by their institutional needs. Organizational focus is important, but if the theological roots are lost, who cares what the ministry might accomplish?

A Statement of Faith does two opposing things simultaneously. A Statement of Faith makes unity possible. When we agree on a set of theological principles, we can work together with common conviction. We can build a community around this shared understanding. At the same time, a Statement of Faith is a statement of division. It tells us who is “in” and who is “out.” A Statement of Faith delineates agreement and disagreement with far-reaching consequences.

It is the divisive aspect of doctrine which has fallen on hard times. As we read the words of Jesus in his final days, we see his call for unity. This is no doubt one of the primary messages of Jesus to his disciples, the insiders. Jesus knew that his Kingdom would also mean that some would be “out.” It is a mistake to conclude that Jesus’ call for unity takes precedence over theological orthodoxy. Yet, I sense that in Evangelicalism today, we are replacing the Statement of Faith with mission/vision statements in part because we are reductionist in our theology for the sake of unity.

The other pressure we might feel in today’s environment is the desire for cultural relevancy. Here again, a crafty mission/vision is more appealing than a potentially divisive and old-school Statement of Faith. The spirit of our age has much to do with the ignoring of our Statements of Faith. Is pluralism creating in us a fear of doctrinal issues?

As I have discussed this with other Evangelical leaders, I note that in almost every response they seek to distance themselves from fundamentalism. They say things like, “Yes, we are sticking to our theology, but we are not fundamentalists.” I understand the fear. Fundamentalism wrought great damage over the past century. I don’t think, though, that we throw fundamental doctrines out the window because we fear being called bad names.

I lead a broad network of ministries. There are differences between the members doctrinally. There are Arminians and Calvinists, those committed to Reformation ideals and those who are a part of the Holiness movement. Complimentarians and egalitarians. Yet, there is deep agreement on the need for cross-cultural mission in the form of evangelism, discipleship, and church planting. How does this work for us in this broad coalition? Each member can and should hold fast to the unique nature of their calling, including where doctrine is concerned. The extent of differences will influence the degree of collaboration.

Let me suggest that no amount of bending to this spirit of the age will produce Gospel outcomes. One antidote to this erosion of doctrine’s role in ministry is a regular reminder. I suggest that ministries return to highlighting and disseminating, internally and externally, a Statement of Faith. If the Statement of Faith is not sufficient, consider a review. Be careful not to simply react to the culture when doing this. Make sure that everybody understands the Statement of Faith and embraces it. Do not rely on a digital, annual signoff. We have all become accustomed to simply clicking that checkbox and we rarely scroll through these long agreements and contracts and read them.

You might lose a few donors, staff members, and other constituents if you do this.

Congratulations, and you are welcome.