You may be wondering what Panta ta ethne means and why my blog is called Panta ta ethne. One of the reasons I chose this names is that it sounds neat. If I were inclined to get a tattoo, I would get Panta ta ethne written on my… Well more importantly than being ink worthy or sounding smart is the meaning wrapped up in the phrase Panta ta ethne.
Panta ta Ethne, is the transliteration of the Greek phrase, all nations, used in Matthew 28:19, “Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit,” NIV (emphasis mine).
Matthew 28:19, is the first verse of what is called the Great Commission. From the day that this charge was given by Jesus until today these verses have inspired missionaries to GO to all nations with the Gospel. Most translations render Panta ta ethne, as ‘all nations.’ Therefore, its been assumed that doing missions requires the missionary to go to others nations other than the one they consider home. This assumption isn’t entirely accurate. If the western church desires to remain relevant, we will have to learn how to be missionaries to our own nation. I will explain why this is essential later.
According to experts, a.k.a. not me, a better translation of Panta ta ethne is “all the people groups” and not all the nations. (For a more academic explanation of “Panta ta ethne see link at the end of this blog entry.) The problem with using the word ‘nations’ is that we traditionally think of a nation state for example Sierra Leone or The United States, when we should be thinking about smaller people groups.
For example, Sierra Leone a small nation of 6 million people yet it is comprised of multiple people groups the Krio, Loko, Limba, Fulla, Mandingo and Mende etc. Each people group has its own language and traditions. To effectively reach the nation of Sierra Leone with the Gospel, the Panta ta ethne that make up the nation must be reached.
For example, Sierra Leone a small nation of 6 million people yet it is comprised of multiple people groups the Krio, Loko, Limba, Fulla, Mandingo and Mende etc. Each people group has its own language and traditions. To effectively reach the nation of Sierra Leone with the Gospel, the Panta ta ethne that make up the nation must be reached.
Our own nation is a nation of immigrants. Regardless of your political feelings on the topic it is our reality. Cities like Los Angeles have become home to more than 200 nations and an increasing numbers of sub-cultures. Beaverton, Or. is no exception, and is currently the most ethnically diverse city in Oregon. Before you contact your realtor, consider this. Is it possible that God has brought the nations in to our backyard? Yes! Some may even say its because we have failed to GO and so God has brought them to us. I also think there are places like Iraq, where its very difficult for us to GO and so God, in his Love and Grace, has brought hard to reach people groups to us. Either way we've been commissioned.
America used to be known as a ‘melting pot’ a nation made up of peoples from many nations forming a new, shared identity. This has been one of the foundational ideas of our nation, it’s even on our money ‘e pluribus unum’ another ink worthy phrase meaning ‘Out of many, One”
Interestingly, we have entered an era sociologists call the Post-Modern Era. Which is a fancy term that up until two months ago I didn’t really understand. In The Forgotten Ways by Alan Hirsch, the Post-Modern Era is simply defined as, "the re-tribalization of America." As a nation we used to define and organize ourselves in large groups such as Americans or Republicans and Democrats or as Catholic and Protestant. In the current Post Modern context people are forming their identities around smaller and more specific ethnic or sub-cultural groups. For example we used to group ethnic groups by region like Asian but now we make the distinction between Chinese, Japanese, Korean, Vietnamese, Thai and Indonesian etc. This also extends to sub-cultures within our nation like Oregonians, Ducks and Beavers, green, independents, gay and lesbian, vegans and cyclists.
Portland is a perfect example of this. "Keep Portland Weird" is our motto. The city is comprised of smaller communities for example: The Pearl, N.W. 23rd, Belmont, Hawthorne, N. Mississippi and Sellwood, to name a few. Each of these areas has it’s own hip sub-culture that centers around a main st. that plays host to restaurants, boutiques, and coffee shops that represent the culture in that area. Another example would be to look at the ethnic make up of areas within Portland, like North Portland vs. S.W. Portland or the East Side compared to the West Side of the river. If you're from the Portland Metro area I’m sure you could label the ethnic groups that dominate these areas of the Rose City.
The fact is a ‘one style fits all’ approach to doing church is no longer working. If business people can figure out how to market their products to the subcultures within our cities, the church can too. It’s called contextualization, making the church relevant to the group it wants to reach. It’s the primary task of missionaries and church planters the world around. We know the Gospel is relevant to every tongue, tribe and nations but the church isn't.
The fact is a ‘one style fits all’ approach to doing church is no longer working. If business people can figure out how to market their products to the subcultures within our cities, the church can too. It’s called contextualization, making the church relevant to the group it wants to reach. It’s the primary task of missionaries and church planters the world around. We know the Gospel is relevant to every tongue, tribe and nations but the church isn't.
I said I would explain why our definition of missions and the role of the church must be redefined if it’s to remain relevant in the Post-Modern Era. The idea that missions traditionally takes place in foreign nations isn’t an accurate model. Now that the nations have to come to us, we need to quickly figure out how to reach them.
However, we have a problem. The current way we do church is no longer the most effective. The current church model is a ‘come and see’ approach. And at it’s peak this model created some big churches that were successful for a season. But, now with the ‘tribalization’ of our culture this model is outdated.
From what I am able gather from scripture, the primary task of the church is to GO make disciples within all the ethnic groups and subcultures that we can identify. This won’t happen if we continue to operate in what Hirsch calls a ‘come and see’ manner and by planting ‘one-size-fits-all’ churches.
From the very beginning of time God shows himself to be a missionary God. Leaving the splendor of Heaven and submitting himself to the limits of a human body to live among us. How else, could we wrap our human brains around the idea of an invisible God who loves us and created us. Even the geniuses of our day and age can’t seem to grasp that. And so God came to us in a context we could understand. The church must do the same.
We, the church, have been given the mandate to go and make disciples or all people groups. We need to “go and be” the church according to Jesus and repeated by Hirsch. We are encouraged though out scripture to care for the widow, orphan, foreigner and the poor. This requires time, thought, willingness, courage, contextualization and patience. It’s messy and can’t be detailed out in advance or exported as a cookie cutter program. Ultimately it requires a new model of doing church.
Why? Because the current model demands we spend the majority of our time and energy on maintenance and management of programs, resources and buildings. The very demands of the current church model force us to neglect our primary task, that of making disciples of all people groups, Panta ta ethne.
Why? Because the current model demands we spend the majority of our time and energy on maintenance and management of programs, resources and buildings. The very demands of the current church model force us to neglect our primary task, that of making disciples of all people groups, Panta ta ethne.
We need to provoke one another to good works. We carry the message of Jesus everywhere we go. Through our lives the message of Jesus is being translated to the communities and cultures within our spheres of influence. It’s neither the pastor’s job nor the missionaries’ task. It requires all hands on deck. It’s a natural process that requires God’s supernatural power. We can do it and we must. It’s risky but necessary. It’s an adventure that will keep you from becoming irrelevant or even worse, bored. Join me in making disciples of Panta ta ethne.
If you aren’t yet convinced or would simply like to learn more about becoming missional and the meaning of Panta ta ethne, please take the time to venture down the following trails, its well worth the journey.
Alan Hirsch
Biblical Exposition on Panta ta Ethne
