Type of Doctrine: Typically Tertiary
"And Jesus came and said to them, 'All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.'"
-Matthew 28:18-20 ESV
Why Does It Matter?
Many churches have adopted mission statements and vision statements. Have churches always had these? Furthermore, are churches biblically required to have these statements? Are they helpful? This article will explore these questions.
Presently, in America, most organizations have mission and vision statements. This is also true for churches. Many times it is assumed that churches must have them; it isn't typically an issue that is thought about biblically, historically, or critically. However, I would classify this as either a secondary or tertiary issue. In most churches, it would probably be considered a tertiary issue.
What Is It?
Most do not consider mission and vision statements as the same; instead, most define mission and vision statements distinctly. Typically, mission statements address the question, what? That is, what does the organization do? On the other hand, vision statements typically address the question, where? That is, where is the organization headed in the next five, ten, or twenty years?
The History of Mission/Vision Statements
When did these statements become widely used? While the word "mission" was used in religious contexts by the Jesuits (i.e., as in missionary) and also in military contexts earlier, mission statements did not develop until the 1960s. In the 1970s, mainly through the influence of Peter Drucker, businesses began to adopt mission statements. Eventually, in the 1980s, mission statements became widely used among businesses. In subsequent decades, some researchers questioned their use. They studied the effectiveness of mission statements and found that it didn't impact the business’s financial performance. Nevertheless, others still considered them helpful. (See this article in Performance Magazine by Aurel Brudan titled, "Mission Statements as Strategic Management Tools--A Brief History.")
Lynne Golodner comments on the history of mission statements in her article in Forbes Magazine titled, "The Meaning Behind Mission,"
In the 1950s and 1960s, companies by and large were not guided by mission statements. In 1974, management consultant and author Peter Drucker advised executives “to define the purpose and mission of their businesses as a kind of strategic imperative.” Mission statements became a more common corporate occurrence in the 1980s, inspired by a desire to define their reason for being.Thus, mission statements have only been used by organizations for about sixty years.
Churches followed this development, which took place among businesses. They adopted mission and vision statements in the 1980s and 1990s.
Did Jesus Give the Church a Mission Statement?
Many point out that Jesus gives a statement that sounds like a mission statement in Matthew 28:16-20,
16 Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. 17 And when they saw him they worshiped him, but some doubted. 18 And Jesus came and said to them, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age."This commission that Jesus gives is an excellent summary of the church, which makes sense--he is the Savior King and creator of the church. In it, Jesus covers the evangelistic mission of the church, baptism in the names of the Trinity, teaching Scripture, and obeying it. However, rather than boil it down to a succinct statement, Jesus says to teach them all that he commanded. He has in mind all of the words he spoke, and by extension, all of the divine words of Scripture.
It would be a bit anachronistic to assume that Jesus meant this statement to be an organizational mission statement. That is, we are probably reading that idea back into Scripture since organizational mission statements did not develop until the 1960s.
Even if it is not likely that this statement from Jesus is an organizational mission statement for the church, it is an incredibly clarifying verse. It is a helpful statement from our King to keep us focused on sharing the gospel, baptizing, and teaching Scripture.
Complicating Factors
As Scripture unfolds, there are more verses later in the New Testament that fill in details about what a church should do. For a few examples, these topics are missing from this statement,
The Gospel (1 Cor. 15; I suppose it is assumed, but it is not mentioned explicitly.)
The Lord's Supper (1 Cor. 11)
Spiritual gifts (1 Cor. 12-14)
Singing (Eph. 5:19)
Regular worship services (Heb. 10:25)
Furthermore, churches across the world have not had mission and vision statements for almost two thousand years. We don't see any record of Peter and the apostles gathering to figure out their mission statement and vision statement. The same is true in church history. To my knowledge, there is no record of the early church, the medieval church, the church during the Reformation, or the post-Reformation church using mission and vision statements. Even in the contemporary era of the church, the usage seems to be mainly in the West in the past sixty years.
Various Benefits of Mission/Vision Statements
One benefit of using these statements is contextualization. Our culture understands organizations based on their mission and vision statements. The church is fluid and can adapt to different cultures in various ways in order to reach them. Perhaps, this is one way the church can adapt to the culture in order to reach it and help it understand the gospel.
Another benefit is how these statements can help an organization focus. They may help leaders, staff, volunteers, and members focus on what is most important.
Moreover, they can be helpful when someone is choosing a church to attend. Often there are significant theological and practical values that show up in a mission statement.
Finally, in another sense, mission statements are similar to theology. Theologians attempt to describe complex biblical truths succinctly. In this sense, mission statements are similar to summarizing the doctrine of the church (i.e., ecclesiology).
Therefore, churches are not required to have mission/vision statements. Churches have not always had them; they are a fairly recent practice that churches have adopted. However, they can be helpful.
The following chart shows the two main views on churches using mission and vision statements.
Two Views on Mission/Vision Statements
Should We Use Mission/Vision Statements? | Why? |
Yes | They help focus the organization on the mission. They also help with planning, strategy, and contextualization. (Some may argue that mission statements are in the Bible such as: Luke 4:18-19, Mark 12:30-31, Matthew 28:19-20, Acts 1:8, John 3:16, Romans 15:18-21. However, there is not consensus on which verses are the actual mission statements. A quick search online shows that many point to different verses concerning Jesus's and Paul's personal mission statements. While most point to Matthew 28:19-20 for a church mission statement, some would point to other verses.) |
No | There is no biblical command to have church, family, or personal mission statements. Churches have not had them for thousands of years. This practice has been adopted from secular businesses. |
Application
Whether a church chooses to craft their own mission and vision statements or not, let's not miss the important statements Jesus our Savior King has already crafted. Particularly, these statements:
[Mark 12:28-31 ESV] 28 And one of the scribes came up and heard them disputing with one another, and seeing that he answered them well, asked him, "Which commandment is the most important of all?" 29 Jesus answered, "The most important is, 'Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one. 30 And you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength.' 31 The second is this: 'You shall love your neighbor as yourself.' There is no other commandment greater than these."
[Matthew 28:18-20 ESV] 18 And Jesus came and said to them, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age."
Where Can I Learn More?
Bibliography:
Click here for Aurel Brudan's article titled, "Mission statements as strategic management tools – A brief history."
Click here for Lynne Golodner's article titled, "The Meaning Behind Mission."
Click here for Thom Rainer's article titled, "What Is the Difference between a Church Vision Statement and Mission Statement?"
For an excellent book on the mission of the church, check out Kevin DeYoung and Greg Gilbert, What Is the Mission of the Church?: Making Sense of Social Justice, Shalom, and the Great Commission (Wheaton, IL: Crossway, 2011).