Prioritizing the Church in Missions

Encourage Long-Term Faithfulness in Missions with a Biblically Informed Strategy That Recenters the Church

The church is the origin, means, and end of missions. Scripture calls on missionaries to start and strengthen churches where new believers―and more missionaries―can grow. But today, many Christians downplay the role of the church in favor of pragmatism and parachurch ministries, weakening the missions cause.

In this brief guide, pastors John Folmar and Scott Logsdon share their decades of experience working as pastors in Muslim countries. Showing how healthy churches are essential for fulfilling the Great Commission, they teach biblical ecclesiology and missiology with wisdom and real-world advice from the field. They also caution readers against movement-driven missions, theological minimalism, and other techniques that replace the church’s God-given roles of equipping, training, and sending missionaries. Offering an effective, biblical strategy for global evangelism, Prioritizing the Church in Missions helps pastors and churches not only make Christ known throughout the world but ensure that God’s word is preserved long after missionaries leave. 

• Accessible Guide on Ecclesiology and Missiology: Explores the biblical role of the church in equipping, training, and sending qualified missionaries as well as the dangers of unhealthy missions practices
• Practical: Equips churches for effective evangelism, expositional preaching, prayer, and partnering together in the Great Commission
• Helps Churches Build a Biblically Informed Missionary Strategy: Ideal for missions-minded pastors, staff, students, and lay believers
• Part of the 9Marks Church-Centered Missions Series

John Folmar (MDiv, Southern Baptist Theological Seminary) has been senior pastor of the Evangelical Christian Church of Dubai, United Arab Emirates, for twenty years. He is the husband of Keri and father of three adult children.

Scott Logsdon (PhD, Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary) is pastor of an English-speaking church in Central Asia, where he resides with his wife. He has more than twenty years of experience in cross-cultural church planting.

Jonathan Leeman (PhD, University of Wales) is the president of 9Marks and cohost of the Pastors Talk podcast. He is the author or editor of over a dozen books and teaches at several seminaries. Jonathan lives with his wife and four daughters in suburban Washington, DC, and serves as an elder at Cheverly Baptist Church.

Brooks Buser (BS, San Diego Christian College) worked as a CFO of a Dutch multinational before he and Nina moved to Papua New Guinea to see a church planted among the Yembiyembi people. Over the thirteen years there, they developed an alphabet for the Yembiyembi language, taught them how to read and write in their own language, translated the Scriptures, and established a New Testament church. Brooks has an honorary PhD in linguistics and Bible translation from San Diego Christian College. He presently serves as the president of Radius International and Missionary.com.