The intentional, Kingdom-centered process of shifting the frames through which we see God, ourselves, and the world — and so unlock new possibilities for faith and action.
Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is — his good, pleasing and perfect will.
Reframation invites us to courageously re-examine the lenses through which we perceive God, humanity, and the church, and to align our frames with the dynamic, movemental nature of Jesus's Kingdom.
We live in a time of profound change, a moment when many of the old maps no longer lead to the promised land. So often, we find ourselves trying to solve new problems with old assumptions, feeling stuck within frameworks that simply cannot bear the weight of God's present-day call. Reframation is my invitation to you, and to us all, to courageously re-examine the very lenses through which we perceive reality, particularly our understanding of God, humanity, and the church. It's about moving beyond merely tinkering with existing models and daring to ask if our fundamental paradigms are truly aligned with the dynamic, organic, and always-moving nature of Jesus's Kingdom.
This is not an academic exercise, but a deeply spiritual and intensely practical one. The Gospel, in its raw, untamed form, always seeks to break free from our domesticated categories. Yet, many of our inherited traditions, while precious, can inadvertently create "frames" that limit our vision, binding us to approaches that no longer serve the expansive mission of Jesus in our world. Reframation calls us to a deeper fidelity to Christ, inviting us to see with the eyes of Jesus Himself, to embrace a perspective that is fundamentally missional — meaning that God's very nature is to be sent into the world, and we are swept up into that divine sending. Without this critical shift, we risk endlessly repeating past patterns, unable to discern the fresh stirrings of the Spirit or fully engage the significant spiritual challenges of our age.
By intentionally engaging in reframation, we begin to rediscover the latent, radical potential within the people of God. We move beyond a mechanistic view of the church, where we are mere cogs in a system, and awaken to a more organic, dynamic vision of the body of Christ as a living, breathing movement. This shift in perception empowers us to see new opportunities for God's activity in our neighborhoods, our cities, and our world — opportunities that were always there, but obscured by our default frames. It reignites our missional imagination, allowing us to participate fully in the grand, unfolding story of God's redemptive purposes and to truly become a people of movement, driven by the Spirit.
This journey into Reframation offers a vital pathway for us to align our hearts, minds, and practices more deeply with the Lordship of Jesus and the relentless advance of His Kingdom.
The usual question:
How can we make our current church structure more effective or grow larger?
The better question:
What if our current frames are actually limiting our capacity to see, understand, and participate in what Jesus is truly doing, and how might we reframe our entire understanding of 'church' and 'success' to align with the dynamic, movemental nature of His Kingdom?
The Reframation framework centers on understanding and applying the missional meta-frame, a comprehensive interpretive lens rooted in Jesus's Kingdom, which comprises five key conceptual elements. We often operate within invisible frames — interpretive lenses that shape how we perceive reality, ourselves, God, and the world around us. These frames, whether conscious or not, powerfully determine our thoughts, feelings, and actions. The Reframation framework invites us to not just adjust our approaches, but to bravely examine and, where necessary, profoundly shift these foundational frames. This is a journey into a deeper understanding of how our perspectives limit or liberate our capacity to participate in God's ongoing mission. It's an integrated system of seeing anew, empowering us to move from inherited patterns to a more dynamic, Christ-centered engagement with the world, always seeking to align ourselves with the relentless advance of Jesus's Kingdom.
Every human being, every culture, and every organization operates through a distinct set of "frames." These are the mental models, assumptions, values, and experiences that act as our primary filters, determining what we see, what we prioritize, and how we make sense of our world. Just as a picture frame directs our attention to the image within, our personal and collective frames define the boundaries of our perception and understanding. For us as Christians, these frames heavily influence our theology, our ecclesiology (our understanding of the church), and our missiology (our understanding of mission). Understanding the pervasive power of these interpretive lenses is the essential first step in the journey of reframation, recognizing that they can either open us to God's activity or inadvertently blind us to it.
While frames are essential for making sense of life, many of our inherited or culturally acquired frames — even within the church — have become inadequate for the challenges of our present moment. The cultural landscape has shifted dramatically, moving from a Christendom era to a post-Christendom context, where many of our traditional assumptions about evangelism, church growth, and community engagement no longer resonate. We often find ourselves trying to pour new wine into old wineskins, constrained by frames that are simply too small, too rigid, or too outdated to capture the expansive, dynamic, and organic nature of God's Kingdom. This element calls us to a prophetic awareness: to honestly discern where our default frames are actually hindering, rather than helping, our participation in God's unfolding mission, leading to stagnation rather than movement.
At the heart of Reframation is the invitation to adopt the missional meta-frame of Jesus. This is the ultimate interpretive lens, a complete framework for understanding God, humanity, and the world, centered entirely on the person, work, and ongoing mission of Jesus Christ. This meta-frame views God as a missionary God (Missio Dei), whose very nature is to send and to save, and who invites us to participate in His redemptive purposes. It sees the world not as an enemy to be conquered, but as a beloved creation to be redeemed; it sees humanity as made in God's image, desperately in need of the Gospel; and it sees the church as the primary vehicle for God's redemptive presence in the world. Embracing this meta-frame means seeing everything through the eyes of Jesus, aligning our perspectives with His Kingdom vision, and allowing His Lordship to redefine our priorities and practices.
Reframation is not a one-time event but a dynamic, ongoing process of intentional shift. It involves identifying our existing frames, discerning their fruitfulness or lack thereof, and then courageously choosing to replace or adjust them in light of the missional meta-frame of Jesus. This process often involves moments of "liminality" — those in-between spaces where old certainties dissolve and new possibilities begin to emerge. It requires a deep spiritual work of repentance, not just for moral failings, but for our limited ways of seeing and understanding God. It calls for humility, a willingness to learn, and a radical openness to the Holy Spirit's guidance, as the Spirit is the ultimate "re-framer" who continually reveals God's truth and leads us into fresh understanding and renewed purpose.
The ultimate outcome of engaging in the Reframation pathway is the unlocking of our missional imagination and the empowerment for fresh Kingdom action. When our frames align with God's, we begin to see opportunities for the Gospel where we once saw only obstacles. Our creativity is unleashed, our apathy is replaced by passion, and our sense of purpose is renewed. This new vision fuels a vibrant, dynamic participation in God's mission, enabling us to innovate, adapt, and move with the Spirit in ways that honor Jesus's Lordship and effectively extend His Kingdom. It means transcending the limitations of past models and embracing the organic, movemental nature of God's people, truly becoming agents of transformation in our local contexts and beyond.
These five elements, though distinct, are deeply interconnected and mutually reinforcing. They form a coherent framework, a comprehensive guide for how we might re-envision our faith, our church, and our engagement with the world in a way that is utterly Christ-centered and profoundly missional. By understanding the nature of our frames, acknowledging their limits, embracing Jesus's meta-frame, engaging the process of reframing, and living into the new possibilities, we participate in a continuous movement of vision and action, forever shaped by the Lordship of Jesus and the relentless advance of His Kingdom.
"Do not conform to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God's will is — his good, pleasing and perfect will." This passage stands as a bedrock for Reframation, calling us to a deliberate, internal transformation of our minds rather than a passive conformity to cultural norms. It establishes that a renewed mind, a shifted frame of reference, is essential for discerning God's will and participating in His purposes, moving us beyond stale patterns toward fresh Kingdom action.
"No one sews a patch of unshrunk cloth on an old garment, for the patch will pull away from the garment, making the tear worse. Neither do people pour new wine into old wineskins. If they do, the skins will burst, the wine will run out and the wineskins will be ruined. No, they pour new wine into new wineskins, and both are preserved." Jesus's teaching on new wine and old wineskins is a powerful metaphor for Reframation. It teaches us that the radical, life-giving truth of the Gospel — the "new wine" of the Kingdom — cannot be contained or expressed effectively within outdated or rigid structures and paradigms (the "old wineskins" or frames). This mandate compels us to innovate and adapt our forms and frames to fully embrace God's fresh movements.
"Jesus replied, 'Very truly I tell you, no one can see the kingdom of God unless they are born again.'" Here, Jesus underscores that entrance into and even the very perception of God's Kingdom requires a radical, spiritual transformation. To "see" the Kingdom is to operate from a fundamentally different frame of reality — a divine perspective that transcends our natural human understanding. Reframation, then, is a journey into this Spirit-empowered ability to perceive God's reign as it is, not merely as we've always framed it.
"Forget the former things; do not dwell on the past. See, I am doing a new thing! Now it springs up; do you not perceive it? I am making a way in the wilderness and streams in the wasteland." This prophetic word is a profound call to Reframation, urging God's people to release their attachment to past experiences and expectations, and instead to open their eyes to the new work God is actively bringing forth. It challenges our inherent tendency to hold onto comfortable, familiar frames, inviting us to keenly discern and courageously participate in the fresh, often unexpected, ways God is moving in our world.
"You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self, which is being corrupted by its deceitful desires; to be made new in the attitude of your minds; and to put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness." This passage emphasizes the deeply personal dimension of Reframation, calling us to a fundamental renewal not just of our outward actions, but of the "attitude of our minds." It speaks to a profound shift in our inner frames of identity, purpose, and values, aligning us with the very character of God. This transformation of mind is essential for truly walking in the new life of Christ and engaging His mission with authenticity.
These passages together paint a vivid picture of a God who is always dynamic, always bringing forth new life, and always calling us to continually re-evaluate our frames so that we might more fully perceive and participate in His relentless Kingdom work.
The early Jesus movement demonstrates how a radical reframing of identity and mission, guided by the Holy Spirit, unlocked explosive growth and transformed a small Jewish sect into a global, multi-ethnic movement that continues to reshape history.
The Setting. Imagine the first followers of Jesus — a small, dedicated group of Jewish men and women, deeply rooted in centuries of rich tradition. Their understanding of God, Messiah, salvation, and the covenant people was meticulously framed by the Torah, the Temple, and their unique ethnic identity. They knew Jesus as the Jewish Messiah, and their initial impulse, quite naturally, was to see His Kingdom primarily through these familiar and cherished lenses. While Pentecost unleashed the Spirit's power, these deep-seated cultural and theological frames still held sway, subtly defining the boundaries of their understanding of who could truly belong and what God's mission truly entailed.
What Happened. The Spirit, however, was restless and expansive, always pressing the church beyond its comfort zones and inherited assumptions. The turning point, a profound moment of reframation, is vividly captured in the Book of Acts, particularly in the story of Peter and Cornelius (Acts 10) and the subsequent Jerusalem Council (Acts 15). Peter, a devout Jew, received a bewildering vision of "unclean" animals, accompanied by a divine command to "kill and eat." His default frame of Jewish dietary laws screamed, "By no means, Lord!" Yet, the Spirit was using this vision to challenge his deepest convictions about what was clean or unclean, not just in food, but in people.
Soon after, Peter was called to the home of Cornelius, a Roman centurion — a Gentile, and therefore, by Jewish frames, ritually "unclean." What happened next shattered Peter's world: as he preached the Gospel, the Holy Spirit fell upon Cornelius and his household, just as He had at Pentecost. They spoke in tongues and glorified God before any of the traditional Jewish rites, such as circumcision, were performed. This undeniable divine intervention forced Peter to declare, "I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism but accepts from every nation the one who fears him and does what is right" (Acts 10:34–35).
This wasn't just a personal revelation; it sparked a crisis of frames across the entire early church, culminating in the Jerusalem Council. Leaders debated: Did Gentiles need to become Jews — observing circumcision, dietary laws, and the full Torah — to truly follow Jesus? After much discussion, anchored by Peter's witness, Paul and Barnabas's accounts of God's work among the Gentiles, and James's interpretation of Scripture, the council made a radical decision. They reframed their understanding of God's people and the terms of inclusion. The Gospel was for all, unburdened by the cultural and legal requirements of Judaism.
Why It Worked. This profound shift in the early church powerfully illustrates the core principles of Reframation. The Nature of Frames: the initial church operated within strong Jewish frames concerning ethnicity, law, and inclusion. The Insufficiency of Default Frames: these deeply held frames, while historically significant, proved insufficient to contain the "new wine" of the Gospel, which was inherently universal and movemental. The Missional Meta-Frame of Jesus: the Spirit was actively guiding them into Jesus's true meta-frame — a Kingdom for all nations, echoing the promise to Abraham. The Dynamic Process of Reframing: Peter's vision, his encounter with Cornelius, and the intense deliberation at the Jerusalem Council were all part of a dynamic, Spirit-led process of identifying old frames, confronting their limitations, and courageously adopting new, more expansive ones. Unlocking Missional Imagination and Action: once the barrier of Jewish particularism was removed, the missional imagination of the church exploded — Paul's subsequent missionary journeys, the rapid expansion of the Gospel across the Roman Empire, and the formation of multi-ethnic communities became possible because the church was no longer bound by old assumptions.
A Continuing Call. This foundational story of the early church reminds us that courageous reframing is not merely an interesting theological concept, but a divine imperative for the ongoing advance of Jesus's Kingdom in every generation.
As we consider the profound call of Reframation, it's essential to move beyond intellectual understanding to genuine self-examination and communal discernment. These questions are an invitation to pause, to listen to the Spirit, and to honestly assess how our current frames might be shaping our capacity to live into the fullness of Jesus's Kingdom.
What are the unspoken assumptions, cultural narratives, or inherited traditions that most powerfully shape how you, or your community, perceive "church" and "mission" today? Take time to consider the invisible lenses through which you view God's activity in the world.
In what specific areas do your current frames feel insufficient or even limiting for engaging the missional challenges of our post-Christendom world? Where do you sense a disconnect between our inherited ways of seeing and the dynamic reality of Jesus's Kingdom?
When you truly sit with the missional meta-frame of Jesus — seeing God as the Sent One, moving towards a lost world — what aspects of your current understanding are most profoundly challenged or illuminated? How does His perspective invite a deeper, more expansive way of seeing?
Where might the Holy Spirit be pouring out "new wine" in your context today — fresh stirrings, unexpected movements, or emerging needs — that our "old wineskins" (our existing frames) are struggling to contain or even recognize? What might God be doing that we are currently missing?
What personal comforts, long-held beliefs, or familiar practices might need to be released or radically re-envisioned in order to embrace a reframed understanding of faith and mission? What might be the cost of truly letting go of old frames?
For those in leadership or within a faith community, what would it mean for your entire group to collectively engage in a process of reframation? What courageous conversations and actions would be required to shift your corporate frames toward a more dynamic, missional posture?
If your personal and communal frames were fully aligned with the missional meta-frame of Jesus, what new possibilities, initiatives, or expressions of faith might emerge that are currently unimaginable? How would this renewed vision fuel fresh action and creativity?
Considering the relentless advance of Jesus's Kingdom, what is the urgency you feel to engage in Reframation now, both for yourself and for the church? What is at stake if we choose to remain within our default frames?
To truly engage with Reframation, we must first understand the language that helps us articulate this critical process. Here are some key terms that define this pathway, grounding our conversations in a shared understanding of God's dynamic movement in the world.
A "frame" refers to the interpretive lens or mental model through which we perceive and make sense of reality. These are the often-unseen assumptions, beliefs, and experiences that filter our understanding of God, ourselves, and the world around us. Our frames powerfully shape what we see, what we prioritize, and how we act.
Reframation is the intentional, Kingdom-centered process of shifting our foundational interpretive frameworks — our frames — to align them with the radical, expansive lens of Jesus's mission. It's about consciously moving beyond our default or inherited perspectives to embrace a more dynamic, Christ-centered way of seeing, which in turn unlocks new possibilities for faith and action.
A "meta-frame" is an overarching system of frames, a larger interpretive framework that houses and influences all our smaller, individual frames. It represents a deeper, more foundational set of assumptions and values that shapes our entire worldview and how we understand reality at its most basic level.
This is the ultimate interpretive lens, a comprehensive framework for understanding God, humanity, and the world that is centered entirely on the person, work, and ongoing mission of Jesus Christ. It sees all of reality through the eyes of Jesus, aligning our perspectives with His Kingdom vision and enabling us to participate in God's redemptive purposes for the world.
Drawn from Jesus's parable (Matthew 9:16–17), this metaphor speaks to the incompatibility of the dynamic, fresh truth of the Gospel ("new wine") with outdated or rigid structures and assumptions ("old wineskins" or frames). It highlights the need for continuous reframing, as the life-giving power of God's Spirit and Kingdom cannot be contained within static forms.
This term describes our contemporary cultural context, where Christianity no longer holds the dominant social, cultural, or political influence it once did in many Western societies. This shift necessitates a profound reframing of how the church understands its identity, mission, and engagement with the world, moving from an assumed position of privilege to a more humble and prophetic posture.
This core theological concept asserts that mission originates with God Himself; God is a missionary God whose very nature is to send and to save. The Missio Dei is the ultimate driving force behind all Christian mission, reminding us that we are not merely doing God's mission, but are invited to participate in His ongoing redemptive activity in the world, which naturally calls for aligning our frames with His.
This refers to the Spirit-empowered capacity to creatively discern and actively participate in God's redemptive work in our local contexts and beyond. When our frames are reframed to align with Jesus's missional meta-frame, our imagination is unlocked, allowing us to see new opportunities for the Gospel and innovate fresh expressions of faith that effectively extend His Kingdom.
The Reframation pathway is drawn from the published works of Alan Hirsch, organized as a single, faithfully edited whole. The PDF guide attributes each section to one or more of the following works.
The primary source — coined the term and developed the core framework of frames, meta-frames, and the missional re-perception of God, humanity, and church.
Source for the new-wine / old-wineskins teaching applied to ecclesial form and the apostolic dimension of reframing.
Source for the Christocentric meta-frame and the re-centering of perception on the person and mission of Jesus.
Source for post-Christendom analysis and the prophetic call to perceive the new thing God is doing in the wilderness.
Source for the inner renewal of mind and identity — putting off the old self and putting on the new (Ephesians 4).
Source for the Missio Dei foundation and the missional DNA that reframation makes visible and active.
Source for the discipleship dimension — Reframation as the ongoing renewal of mind at the heart of following Jesus.
Begin by intentionally identifying the unspoken assumptions, cultural narratives, or inherited traditions that most powerfully shape your understanding of "church," "mission," "discipleship," or even "success." This is an introspective and communal exercise to surface the default frames you operate within, recognizing that these deeply ingrained lenses often function unconsciously, yet powerfully. What are the 'unwritten rules' of your faith experience?
Once you've identified your frames, critically evaluate them against the vibrant reality of your current cultural context and the expansive vision of God's global Kingdom. Ask yourselves, "Where are our current frames proving insufficient, or even counterproductive, to God's missional purposes today?" This involves an honest, prayerful assessment of what's not working, what's missing, or where traditional approaches are failing to connect with real people and real needs.
Deliberately and deeply immerse yourself in the biblical narrative, particularly the life, ministry, and teachings of Jesus, to internalize His radical perspective on God, humanity, and mission. This is theological work, rooted in Scripture, contemplation, and prayer, allowing Jesus's Kingdom vision and His own interpretive lens to become your primary meta-frame. What did Jesus actually prioritize, and how did He see the world?
Reframation often requires courageously stepping into the "in-between" space of liminality — where old frames are questioned and dissolved, but new ones have not yet fully formed. This practice calls for patience, spiritual surrender, and a willingness to sit in the discomfort of uncertainty, trusting the Holy Spirit to guide the emergence of fresh understanding, rather than rushing back to old certainties.
As you begin to glimpse new frames through Jesus's meta-frame, start to playfully and courageously experiment with new ways of thinking, organizing, and acting. This involves innovating and adapting practices that better fit the "new wine" of God's Spirit, rather than trying to force fresh life into old, rigid structures. It's about being builders of the new, not merely repairers of the old.
Develop a spiritual sensitivity to discern what God is already doing in your neighborhood, city, and world, rather than simply what you think should be done. This involves active listening to marginalized voices, paying attention to cultural shifts, and seeking the Spirit's guidance to identify fresh opportunities for Kingdom engagement that your old frames might have previously overlooked. God is always at work; our task is to join Him.
Your First Step: Set aside dedicated time this week to prayerfully identify one core assumption (a "frame") that currently shapes your understanding of "church" or "mission." Ask the Spirit to illuminate how this frame might be serving, or limiting, your participation in God's Kingdom.
Reframation and mDNA
Reframation is the essential work of aligning our interpretive lenses to truly see and activate the innate missional DNA (mDNA) that God has woven into the very fabric of His church. Without reframing, our inherent missional nature can remain dormant, obscured by outdated perceptions.
Reframation and Metanoia
At its heart, Reframation is a profound and ongoing act of metanoia — a radical change of mind and heart. It calls us to repent of our limited, inherited ways of seeing and thinking, turning instead to embrace God's expansive Kingdom perspective, which then naturally leads to a transformation of our actions and direction.
Reframation and Discipleship
True discipleship is a lifelong journey of conforming to the image of Jesus, which inherently demands continuous Reframation. As we follow Christ, we are called to constantly re-evaluate our perspectives, values, and priorities, allowing His Lordship to challenge and reshape our internal frames according to His will and Way.
Reframation and Movement Intelligence
Reframation is foundational for cultivating Movement Intelligence. By consciously shifting our frames, we develop the spiritual and cognitive capacity to perceive God's dynamic activity in the world with fresh eyes, enabling us to adapt, innovate, and participate effectively in the Spirit's ongoing movements.
All these pathways ultimately converge at the feet of Jesus, our Lord, the one who embodies all truth and calls us to a renewed mind and a vibrant, missional life.
Formation courses for this pathway are coming soon. In the meantime, explore Alan's published courses.
Browse CoursesThe foundational text on mDNA and Apostolic Genius.
Essays and reflections on missional DNA, apostolic genius, and movement.
Conversations on formation, mission, and the Christ-shaped life.
Talks and teaching on mDNA, APEST, and apostolic movement.
We learn this to follow Jesus more deeply and join his mission more faithfully.
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