| This ministry Focus Paper is a study of the immigrant Chinese people and churches in Argentina that began since November 1991. It seeks to develop a possible mission strategy to help promote the churches for the following two purposes: (1){A0}Build the churches for quality growth---To prepare God's people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up, becoming mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ (Eph. 4:12--13). (2){A0}Promote the quantity growth of the churches through evangelism and mission. Through the endeavors of evangelism, we seek to assimilate newcomers into the life of churches in order to carry out the Lord's Great Commission for cross-cultural mission.; This paper is divided into four parts. The first part is to study the reasons why the Chinese from Taiwan and China emigrated overseas. Then, how do the present realities contribute to the struggle of living in this country, and why Argentina is not the best choice context of living for many Chinese immigrants.; The second section deals with the biblical and theological foundation of the nature of Church. What should the Church be in the eyes of God, and what are its mission mandates? The author believes this study will determine and shape his ministry philosophy.; In the third part, he explores the history of the Chinese churches in Argentina since their founding, then presents case studies to discover why the churches failed to grow in the past. Having done the diagnosis, the positive endeavor is to discover the bright side of these churches and identify their hopes for the future.; The author believes his ministry is not an impractical bubble dream for a bright future. Consequently, in the final section he tries to describe what, why and how he works in the following three areas at present: lay theological education, evangelistic training ministry, and leader's discipleship. |
