A Critical Review Of Missions By Gailyn Van Rheenon

Gailyn Van Rheenen thoroughly presents a Biblical basis for the theology of missions. Rheenen studied at Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, and at the time of publication he was working as a professor at Abilene Christian University. In this particular book, he explains what is needed to be done in order for missions to be effective. The world is changing and Christian faith must be theologically anchored in order for missions to be effective. Rheenen clarifies what is to be expected when entering a new culture and how to effectively communicate the message. An important step to take before going onto the mission field is to develop a philosophy of missions, as well as selecting a place that needs the word of God.

This book is full of valuable insights and his analysis of missions is based on a strong scriptural foundation. He provided many scriptures and biblical references when stating the theological foundations of missions. Another positive aspect of this book is that it is clear and easy to read. It gave many strategies for presenting the word and getting ready to enter the mission field. It gave much information about the different cultures you may enter and the different types people you may encounter. It also gave ideas about how to communicate the message in an effective way, as well as how to select an area that is in need of the gospel and how to go about presenting it to that particular group of people.

While there are so many strong points in this book, there are also a few weaknesses. At some points, the book could have been more concise. I thought it went into too much detail in some aspects. I thought some of the information was not necessarily important. Other information could have been substituted in its place. It also got very repetitious at times, and lost my interest in some areas.

I thought this book was very beneficial in order to learn more about the mission field. It provided many theological concepts of missions,