Discipling Nations: The Power of Truth to Transform Cultures [Paperback]

Darrow L. Milller (Author), Stan Guthrie (Author)

Book Description

The power of the gospel to transform individual lives has been clearly evident throughout New Testament history. But what of the darkness and poverty that enslave entire cultures, even nations? Have Christians underestimated the power of God's truth to transform entire societies?

In Discipling Nations, Darrow Miller builds a powerful and convincing thesis that God's truth not only breaks the spiritual bonds of sin and death but can free whole societies from deception and poverty.

Discipling Nations will challenge, reenergize, and reequip Christians everywhere who labor to see "His kingdom come, His will be done."

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Darrow L. Miller is the Vice President of the Samaritan Strategy at FHI (Food for the Hungry International), a Christian relief and development organization working to feed both the physical and spiritual hungers of people in more than 25 developing countries on four continents. For nearly 20 years, Darrow has been a popular speaker at conferences and seminars on topics that include the Christian movement worldwide, hunger, servanthood, developmetn and its biblical mandates, volunteerism in missions, Christianity and culture, Christian apologetics, and social issues.

Product Details

• Paperback: 320 pages
• Publisher: Y W A M Pub; 2nd edition (June 1, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1576582485
• ISBN-13: 978-1576582480
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (9 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #101,537 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

For over 25 years, Darrow L. Miller has been a popular speaker at conferences and seminars on topics that focus on the relationship between worldview and development, and culture and poverty. He has written numerous articles, Bible studies and books around these themes, including his latest, "LifeWork: A Biblical Theology for What You Do Every Day" (YWAM, Aug 2009), dealing with the theme of biblical worldview and vocation. Darrow has a master's degree in higher and adult education, has pursued graduate studies in philosophy, theology, Christian apologetics, biblical studies, and missions in the United States, Israel, and Switzerland. Darrow and his wife Marilyn studied and worked with Francis and Edith Schaeffer at L'Abri Fellowship in Switzerland from 1969-71. Darrow has been a pastor of a student ministry, a senior pastor in an urban church, and for over 25 years served as a leader of Food for the Hungry International in the area of field staff training and development. While with FHI, Darrow helped co-found the Disciple Nations Alliance, now a movement of like-minded organizations and people in over 40 countries using these ideas in "equipping the church to transform the world." Darrow and his wife live in northern Arizona, have 4 children, and 9 grandchildren with 2 more expected in early January 2010.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

15 of 15 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Recovering of the Depth and Breadth of the Church's Mission, June 25, 1998

By 

[e-mail] (Phoenix, Arizona) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Discipling Nations: The Power of Truth to Transform Cultures (Paperback)

Jesus commanded his followers to "make disciples of all the nations." This includes sharing the Good News of peace with God through Christ with individuals; it also includes planting churches... but discipling a nation is SO MUCH MORE. This concept of "discipling the nations" will take us beyond evangelizing our neighbors and reaching 'unreached people groups' to "obeying all that [Christ] has commanded." God is not satisfied with part of our lives. Mr. Miller's call to live CORAM DEO - live all of our lives before the face of God - both challenges me and fills me with hope. I didn't realize how much my worldview has come from my culture. His case for a Biblical worldview is compelling, especially when compared to the evidence and the competition (Edward Wilson's 'Consilience' fails by comparison).

More radical than liberalism and with a richer history than conservatism, I expect Mr Miller's ideas to provoke a strong response from both social action Christians and Church planting missionaries. I realize Mr. Miller's work with Food for the Hungry targets the poorest of the poor - but this concept of "discipling nations" has radical implications for every congregation and mission agency in the world. He leads us to recover the depth and breadth of the Church's Mission. I hope his book stirs the Missions community as much as 'people groups' did at Lauzanne in the early 70's. DISCIPLING NATIONS certainly has the potential.

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Applicable well beyond relief & development!, October 13, 1998

By 

[e-mail] (Chicago, IL) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Discipling Nations: The Power of Truth to Transform Cultures (Paperback)

In Discipling Nations, Darrow Miller walks us through the ever-unfolding nature of the relationship between God and man-the Scriptures-revealing a very clear, evidential and logical Development Ethic that can only be understood, and therefore, realized, in the context of the Biblical worldview. Unveiling the other prevailing world views, Miller exposes the inevitable implications and consequences they have on human development and boldly builds a case for intolerance of these lies-lies that impoverish individual souls and entire nations.

Having implications not only upon Relief & Development, Discipling Nations is a must-read for every Christian! Pastors, Counselors, Educators, Scientists, Mathematicians, Physicists, Astronomers and Technologists, as well as Christian Fundamentalists and Apologist, can all derive benefit from the continuity and comprehensiveness of this book. I think they will find many ground-breaking, certainly thought-provoking, and, hopefully, transformational, Truths and ideas, that, to this point, and for many reasons, have not yet had the impact that God intended on their lives and/or their vocations. Such has been the case for me. For others, especially those already engaged in Relief & Development work, it will be controversial-challenging their worldviews and calling for the transformation of their own minds before even considering developing others.

This is my second time through this material, yet I feel I've only scratched the surface of processing through Miller's ideas. As a talk radio show host recently commented to Darrow during an interview, "this book could just as easily have been five-it's just packed with value and insight!"

My sentiments, exactly!

12 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Esoteric yet immently practical!, July 14, 2004

By 

Gary Osborn (Columbus, OH USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Discipling Nations: The Power of Truth to Transform Cultures (Paperback)

Darrow Miller combines the ethos of practical Relief & Development work with the esoteric philosophy of Worldview. The end result is a through understanding of the philosophy, while providing a framework that allows one to apply these principles to your own everyday life and teach them to others. This "transformation by knowing the truth" is truly an idea that has consequences.

This book is a must read for anyone remotely interested in Missions, Community Development, Evangelism, or Apolgetics. Miller's message is transcultural, with equal application in a first world or a third world nation.