Understanding Insider Movements

[DESCRIPTION] For the first time in history, large numbers of people from the world’s major non-Christian religions are following Jesus as Lord. Surprisingly for many Western Christians, they are choosing to do so within the religious communities of their birth and outside of institutional Christianity.  How does this work, and how should we respond to these movements?

This long-awaited anthology brings together some of the best writings on the topic of insider movements. Diverse voices explore this phenomenon from the perspectives of Scripture, history, theology, missiology, and the experience and identity of insider believers. Those who are unfamiliar with the subject will find this book a crucial guide to a complex conversation. Students and instructors of mission will find it useful as a reader and reference volume. Field workers and agencies will discover in these chapters welcome starting points for dialogue and clearer communication.

The first book to provide a comprehensive survey of the topic of insider movements, Understanding Insider Movements, is an indispensable companion for those who want to glimpse the creative, unexpected, boundary-crossing ways God is at work among the peoples of the world in their diverse religious communities. [/DESCRIPTION] [SUBTITLE]Disciples of Jesus Within Diverse Religious Communities[/SUBTITLE][CREDIT] by: Harley Talman (Editor), John Jay Travis (Editor) [/CREDIT] [PAGES] 718 [/PAGES] [BINDING] Paperback [/BINDING] [PUBLISHER] William Carey Library [/PUBLISHER] [PUBLISHYEAR] 2015 [/PUBLISHYEAR][ENDORSEMENT2]

Enlightening... This crucial work encourages us to critically embrace what God is doing beyond our historic boundaries.

Craig S. Keener[/ENDORSEMENT2] [ENDORSEMENT3]

A treasure chest of biblical and theological reflection and critique, along with diverse lived experiences. ...To be warmly welcomed and commended.

Christopher J.H. Wright[/ENDORSEMENT3] [ENDORSEMENT4]

I heartily recommend this book to all who wish to catch the fresh wind of the Spirit that is now at work among their own peoples.

Melba Padilla Maggay[/ENDORSEMENT4]

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Contributors

Abbreviations

Foreword

Acknowledgments

Read This First!

Part 1- Setting the Stage

Chapter 1- Insider Movements: Coming to Terms with Terms

Chapter 2- Historical Development of the Insider Paradigm

Chapter 3- Muslim Followers of Jesus?

Chapter 4- When God's Kingdom Grows Like Yeast: Frequently Asked Questions about Jesus Movements within Muslim Communities

Chapter 5- Myths and Misunderstands about Insider Movements

Chapter 6- Seeing Inside Insider Missiology: Exploring Our Theological Lenses and Presuppositions

Part 2- Examples, Testimonies, and Analysis

Section 1- Examples and Testimonies

Chapter 7- Jesus Movements: Discovering Biblical Faith in the Most Unexpected Places

Chapter 8- When "Christian" Does Not Translate

Chapter 9- Living and Discipling in the Hindu World

Chapter 10- "Why I Am Not a Christian": A Personal Statement

Chapter 11- The New Buddhists: How Buddhists Can Follow Christ

Chapter 12- Comments on the Insider Movement

Chapter 13- My Enemy...My Brother: A Palestinian Christian Meets His Muslim Brothers

Chapter 14- And the Spirit Fell upon Them: Testimonies of the Holy Spirit's Activity in One Insider Movement

Section 2- Case Study Analysis

Chapter 15- Jesus Movement: A Case Study from Eastern Africa

Chapter 16- Insider Movements among Muslims: A Focus on Asia

Chapter 17- Pandita Ramabai and the Meanings of Conversion

Chapter 18- Christ Followers in India Flourishing- but Outside the Church: A Review of Herbert E. Hoefer's Churchless Christianity

Chapter 19- Ecclesial Indentities of Socioreligious "Insiders": A Case Study of Fellowship among Hindu and Sikh Communities

Part 3- Biblical and Theological Perspectives

Chapter 20- The Kingdom of God: A Biblical Paradigm for Mission

Chapter 21- The Old Testament and Insider Movements

Chapter 22- Conversion in the New Testament

Chapter 23- Jesus Living and Discipling among the Lost

Chapter 24- Jesus in Samaria: A Paradigm for Church Planting among Muslims

Chapter 25- The Key to Insider Movements: The "Devoted" of Acts

Chapter 26- The Incarnational Model of Jesus, Paul, and the Jerusalem Council

Chapter 27- Acts 15: An Inside Look

Chapter 28- The Integrity of the Gospel and Insider Movements

Chapter 29- The Supremacy of Scripture: The Transcultural and Timeless Authority for Local Theology in Global Conversation

Chapter 30- Church in Context

Chapter 31- All Things Are Yours

Part 4- Contextualization, Religion, and Syncretism

Section 1- Contexualization

Chapter 32- Liberating Christ from Christians, Christianity, and the Church

Chapter 33- The Gospel as Prisoner and Liberator of Culture

Chapter 34- A Necessarily Wary Enterprise?: North American Evangelicals and Contextualization

Chapter 35- A Third Reformation? Movements of the Holy Spirit beyond Christendom

Chapter 36- The Incarnation, Communication, and Insider Movements

Section 2- Religion and Syncretism

Chapter 37- Reflections on Religion

Chapter 38- (De) Franchising Missions

Chapter 39- Considering Religion(s): What Does the Word Really Mean?

Chapter 40- Religious Syncretism as a Syncretistic Concept: The Inadequacy of the "World Religions" Paradigm in Cross-cultural Encounter

Chapter 41- Contextualization, Syncretism, and the Demonic in Indigenous Movements

Chapter 42- Avoiding Syncretism: The Testimony of a Jesus-following Buddhist

Part 5- Approaches in Witness

Chapter 43- Shall We Try Unbeaten Paths in Working for Moslems?

Chapter 44- An Approach to Witness

Chapter 45- Contextualization among Muslims: Reusing Common Pillars

Chapter 46- Christian Attitudes toward Islam and Muslims: A Kerymatic Approach

Chapter 47- Roles of "Alongsiders" in Insider Movements: Contemporary Examples and Biblical Reflections

Chapter 48- Become Like, Remain Like (Take Two)

Chapter 49- Evangelizing Whole Families

Chapter 50- Planting Churches: Learning the Hard Way

Part 5 Study Questions

Part 6- Concerns and Misunderstandings

Chapter 51- The C1-C6 Spectrum after Fifteen Years: Misunderstandings, Limitations, and Recommendations

Chapter 52- Responding to Christian Concerns

Interview with Brother Yusuf

Chapter 53- Muslim Followers of Jesus and the Muslim Confession of Faith

Chapter 54- "Is Allah God?": Five Reasons I Am Convinced

Chapter 55- In the World but Not of It: Insider Movements and Freedom from the Demonic

Chapter 56- Possible Pitfalls fo Jesus Movements: Lessons from History

Chapter 57- Where We Agree...And Don't?

Part 7- Identity

Chapter 58- Insider Movements: Honoring God-given Identity and Community

Chapter 59- Dual Identity and the Church in the Book of Acts

Chapter 60- Consuming Peanuts in the USA and India: Reflecting on the Controversy over Insider Movements

Chapter 61- Heart Allegiance and Negotiated Identity

Chapter 62- Searching for Models of Individual Identity

Chapter 63- Societal Factors Impacting Socioreligious Identities of Muslims Who Follow Jesus

Chatper 64- God's Creativity in Drawing Muslims to Jesus

A Look into the Future

Appendix 1- The Samaritan Religion

Appendix 2- World Evangelical Alliance (WEA) Evangelical Relationships Commitment

Appendix 3- Review of A Theological Analysis of the Insider Movement Paradigm from Four Perspectives by Doug Coleman

Glossary

Bibliography

Index

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