Missio Colonia | Kevin and Kathi in Cologne, Germany

Kevin: The other day I was reading 2 Corinthians 6 where Paul is writing about the ministry of reconciliation. I was struck by how applicable this is to evangelism in a European context. I've told many of you the story of C.S. Lewis who remarked about Europe being post-Christian. He said that "the post-Christian has about as much to do with a pagan as a divorcee has to do with a virgin." With this vivid metaphor or Europe in my mind, a ministry of reconciliation took on much greater meaning and depth.

In our American Evangelical context, evangelism is frequently viewed in terms of right and wrong. We're right and the liberals are wrong, right? We pour great effort into rational apologetics and defending the faith from the culture, and rightly so. Indeed if Kathi and I didn't have a firm conviction in the truth of the Gospel, our ministry in Europe would be hollow. But, many times our rational apologetic looses the deep compassion inherent in the Gospel.

Paul speaks unabashedly about how God is reconciling those who had turned away. What better description can you find of the people of Europe? Our call then is to be ministers of the reconciliation, pleading with the divorcee to be reconciled to her husband. This type of ministry is not based on convincing everyone they are wrong, but on a humble plea to a wayward wife. Ministry modeled after the Prodigal Son is what we hope comes out of our time in Germany.