Date of Award

2-2011

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Ministry (DMin)

Department

Seminary

Abstract

Africa Gospel Church has a serious problem of an unhealthy relationship with the World Gospel Mission. Since its inception, the mission has struggled to let go off the church. The church on the other hand, has been happy to see this relationship go on in the same dependent way without much concern. The Africa Gospel Church is over seventy years now and is at a place in its life where it needs to chart its own course.

This study evaluates the relationship between the mission agency and the Africa Gospel Church in Kenya. It investigates the historical challenges that might have contributed to the lack of progress in developing a church with an established indigenous leadership.

The study shows that the vision of the founding father was that in Africa would be established an African church led, supported and financed by Africans. But subsequent missionaries who followed him somehow lost that vision. Instead of training and turning the work over to national leaders, the missionaries continued recruiting more missionaries and in the process relegating the nationals to the sidelines as spectators. In time., the nationals grew up believing that work and financial support of the church belonged to missionaries.

To resolve the issue of unhealthy dependence, the study recommends that the mission be persuaded to step aside for a while to allow the national leaders to organize themselves and make decisions on how the church will move into the 21st century as a self-supporting, self-governing and self-propagating church.

Download

Share

COinS