CHRISTIAN CHURCH HISTORY: A FOCUS ON HISTORIOGRAPHY OFMISSION IN EASTERN NIGERIA CONFERENCE OF SEVENTH-DAY-ADVENTISTS IN THE 21ST CENTURY

Eko, E. Enebieni, Ekpenyong, O. Ekponyong, and Ucheawaji, G. Josiah
Keywords: Church, Mission, Propagation, Gospel, Commission.
Clifford University International Journal of Development Studies (CLUIJODS) 2022 2(1), 174 - 189. Published: December 22

Abstract

The Christian Church was founded for mission—reaching out with the Gospel of Jesus Christ to a lost world. The research espouses Christian Church historiography as the mission history—which is the event of salvation in a lost world. The study aims at encouraging the writing of Christian Church history with the eye of Mission in the 21st century and beyond, without neglecting the rich historical records of the beginning of Christianity and its vicissitudes over the ages. In addition it aims at encouraging every denomination to write their church history in line with the Model, the book of Acts of the Apostles. The study is a qualitative research and has adopted a historical-biblical survey with missiological and pedagogical objectives. The research found out that the book of Acts of the Apostles as a historical document, could be modelled in Christian historiography. The study recommends that in addition to other subjects included in Christian historiography, and in view of the essence of Christianity, Mission should be made the mainstay of Christian Church history.