Sample Summary Paper

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Book Title, Author
Class, Date, Lesson #

1. “Mission cannot be just a hobby horse of a few interested people, it’s the theme of the Bible and a part of every believer’s responsibility.” (Endorsements)
   
   ​​Making it a hobby horse is the reason there is so little interest in and awareness of missions in general. It’s compartmentalized instead of centralized. When it’s off to the side it leads to unawareness and a lack of involvement. Missions is the mission of the church. Thinking of the church as a mission agency helps develop the right mindset. That’s not to say mission agencies are not valid and essential. They are. It’s just to say the church that does not centralize missions is missing it’s primary calling.
   
   
2. “God was not interested in me Christianizing my life; He was interested in me crucifying my life.” (Chapter 1)
   
   God did not sacrifice his Son just so I could add church, bible study and service to my resume. He called his Son to die on a cross so I might die to this life and live all out for him and his mission. Jesus did not accomplish atonement for me so I could go on living a Christian (nicer) version of my former self. His gift of eternal life warrants a complete change in priorities. What is supremely important to God is now supremely important to me. God’s greatest desire (making Himself known to the nations) is now my greatest desire. Nothing about my priorities as a Christian should be even remotely connected to who I was before Christ.
   
   
3. “From Genesis to Revelation God has one plan—reaching all nations—and one method— using people.” (Chapter 1)
   
   The best way to for us to understand the gospel was to see God in human form. That is why God the Father, sent God the Son. The same is true today. The best way for people who don’t know about the gospel, to understand the gospel, is person to person, redeemed to unredeemed. If people are to be reached, then people, like me, will have to go and reach them. It’s that simple.
   
   
4. “The plot (of missions) runs from Genesis 12 to Jude.” (Chapter 2)
   
   ​The Bible is first and foremost a book about salvation. But it is also a book about mission. God invites those who have understood and embraced the message of salvation, into the mission of making salvation known. Missions is a dominant theme of the Bible. One could even say, it’s the backstory of all of Scripture. At the risk of being redundant, the mission of the church, is missions.