Frontier Mission in a Time of Geopolitical Conflicts

Abstract

We are in a time of geo-political conflicts and uncertainties. The global pandemic seems to be finally over, but the increasing tension between Taiwan and China, the Ukraine-Russia war, and the geopolitical conflicts in the Middle East have cast more shadows upon the world. Today the world is facing the challenges of plague, wars, natural disasters, and its consequences. “There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under the heavens…A time to plant and a time to uproot… a time for war and a time for peace.” (Ecclesiastes 3:1,2, 8, NIV) This paper aims give a brief survey on how the geopolitics impacts frontier mission, as well as to answer two key questions as churches and organizations seek to fulfill the calling of reaching to the end of the earth: First, when conflicts or wars take place on the mission field, should the field workers stay or leave on the field? Second, is it worth it to send field workers to a conflicted zone where the stakes are high? This paper is based on biblical study, reflection on current events, church history and personal experiences of serving in a war-torn country amidst geopolitical proxy war in the Middle East for years.