In The Great Story and the Great Commission, Christopher Wright explains that how we read the Bible has a profound impact on how we understand what mission is. According to Wright, “”People read (and preach) the Bible in tiny bits and pieces, for its promises or rules or doctrines, and fail to take it . . . as the true story of the universe, past, present, and future, within the plan and purposes of God–a story in which we are called to participate as coworkers with God.””

Wright encourages us to explore the Bible’s grand narrative and to bring the whole counsel of God in Scripture to our understanding of who we are and what we must do as God’s people. He helps us understand mission in its broadest sense, including our creational responsibilities, by exploring the question, “”How does our purposeful activity as God’s people in God’s world reflect the breadth of God’s own intentions for his whole creation and all nations?”” Wright’s goal is to get readers excited about the dramatic vista of the whole Bible and to help them understand the breadth and depth of missional engagement that they are called to live as actors in that drama.

This book will appeal to professors and students of the Bible and mission as well as pastors, lay theologians, and other Christian readers.

Critic Reviews

“The Great Story and the Great Commission calls us to reimagine the Bible as God’s grand narrative expressing God’s purpose and our participation in God’s mission. From his extensive biblical scholarship and experience with the global church, Wright brings the Bible’s story to life. In this beautifully written and accessible book, Wright encourages each believer to embrace the mission of God and so discover God’s whole mission for the whole church.”
—Lynn H. Cohick, Northern Seminary

“Wright continues to produce important books for the church. This is another one. Here Chris brings together, in a succinct, clear, and popular way, a number of important themes that have characterized his writing. This includes a summary of a missional hermeneutic, the importance of narrative to the Christian faith and mission, the Gospels’ mission mandate and holistic mission, and more. This book would make a great textbook for a variety of theology classes. I will begin to use it and would highly recommend it to others.”
—Michael W. Goheen, Covenant Seminary and Missional Training Center

“Wright reframes the concept of mission–as ‘a mode of existence for the church’–in a way that works deep changes in our understanding of the whole Christian canon. Through careful argumentation and rereading of Scripture, he exposes the arrogance and moral obliviousness that are all too common among Christians. Written in a clear, conversational style, yet full of memorable phrases and insights, this is a book that should be widely used in the church.”
—Ellen F. Davis, Duke Divinity School

“The Lausanne Movement has been calling ‘the whole church to bring the whole gospel to the whole world’ since its founding in 1974. Wright, in the lineage of his mentor and the Lausanne Covenant’s chief architect, John Stott, explains that framework with beautiful biblical breadth and depth in this volume. It helps us understand that God’s mission is much greater than we conceive, and it challenges all of us to contribute more personally and holistically to parts of that mission. May we, as God’s global people, actively read and respond to this critical teaching.”
—Michael Oh, Lausanne Movement