This is the second of five blogs to open a discussion on the theology of mission and innovation. Last time, we examined innovation as love towards God (worship). Today, we will explore how innovation relates to loving our neighbor.
This is, in my opinion, a natural overlap. We don’t have to look far in Scripture to see it clearly expressed. Looking at Matthew 22, Jesus describes how we ought to love our neighbor.
“‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second is like it: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself” (Matthew 22:37-40).
To fully understand this, though, we have to understand who our neighbors are, as well as how we love ourselves. Regarding neighbors, the first example that comes to mind is that of the Good Samaritan, where the man serves a complete stranger who is in need. We are called to love anyone and everyone, going above and beyond, even inconveniencing ourselves, because that is how Christ modeled and taught. This flows nicely into how we love ourselves. It’s not an inconvenience to do something for our own sake. Despite our many shortcomings, we give ourselves plenty of grace and acceptance. We go out of our way to ensure our comfort and ask others to accommodate our preferences. It is pretty easy to exhibit Christlike love to ourselves.
As we consider Jesus’ example, He is the incarnation of God. He provides a visceral experience of what it’s like to be a person of the Kingdom of God who loves their neighbor. With every encounter, He modeled grace-filled love, deep personal and contextual understanding of those He engaged with, and unyielding faithfulness to the truths and values of God over the preferences and habits of mankind. These three aspects of Christ are well represented in the field of missional innovation.
To love and serve people well requires a deep empathy and understanding of their circumstances, values, and needs.
To love and serve people well requires a deep empathy and understanding of their circumstances, values, and needs. As we don’t have the same divine knowledge and wisdom Christ had, we must research and be intentional to learn well so we can equip and prepare ourselves to give contextual responses. Paul models this in his ministry as he describes it in his letter to the Corinthian church:
“Though I am free and belong to no one, I have made myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible. To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law. To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God’s law but am under Christ’s law), so as to win those not having the law. To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all people so that by all possible means I might save some. I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings” (1 Corinthians 9:19-23).
Missional innovation seeks to deal with reality rather than assumptions and customs. There is a relentless sense of pursuing the truth in innovation so we can better love and serve. Results must be understood, cause and effects revealed, and our gut instincts tested. Missional innovation, at its core, is closely aligned with Jesus’ command to love our neighbors, because innovation is not a goal in itself but a means to an end. The end is to serve our neighbor better. In ministry, serving them well is loving them.
Note: Liam Savage is the Director of Innovation at OneHope and the author of Green Sky Innovation.
Try This
- Seek the Lord and take time to consider how you can use missional innovation to love your neighbor.