The Priesthood of All Believers in the Work of John Livingston Nevius

Abstract

The landscape of missions has shifted dramatically in recent years. Due to greater restrictions on access to unreached countries and peoples, the majority of missionaries have had to change both their location and ministry focus. Even in the West, questions remain as to how to engage in faithful witness in light of an increasingly post-Christian culture. The purpose of this study is to show the dire need for the priesthood of all believers in mission, both overseas and at home. As leaders seek answers for the future of missions, we may be helped by looking to our past. One such individual who embraced the priesthood of all believers in mission was John Livingston Nevius, an American Presbyterian missionary to China in the late nineteenth century. Nevius is famous for his “Missionary Methods,” which helped spark the Korean revivals in the early twentieth century. He was well-known for valuing the input and leadership of indigenous believers and sought to mobilize them for evangelism and missions through their secular vocations. Nevius provides us with an example of how we can implement the priesthood of all believers for missions today through every believer taking up his or her call to humble witness. He especially serves as a model for missionaries and church leaders to mobilize lay believers for missions through their secular vocations and workplaces.