This rich study offers the best explanation available of the Christian mission to people of every ethnic group. In plumbing the depths of Matthew's Gospel and other ancient documents, James LaGrand provides a full biblical description of the messianic mission to all people everywhere. He also demonstrates the contemporary relevance of the discussion, showing, for example, why certain modern developments--from Church Growth principles to political apartheid--contradict the Christian gospel. Now available in a paperback edition with a new preface by Richard Bauckham, LaGrand's work offers a valuable perspective on the church's mission. "LaGrand's book is enormously gratifying for many reasons besides its exhaustive comprehensiveness. The author's style is delightfully readable, his concepts crisp and clear. He carries his message forward with consistent coherence and a truly estimable facility with the ancient biblical languages and the contemporary languages of Western scholarship." - Journal of Empirical Theology