Book excerpt: What is the church's mission in the world? What message does it proclaim, and who is to proclaim it? The mission, says Darrell Guder in this book, is to complete the work of salvation that God began in the incarnation of his son Jesus Christ. The message is the gospel -- the good news of the incarnate Christ. And the messengers are the Body of Christ -- the church -- who have been called to be his witnesses. Only as we understand Christ's incarnation and the church's role in proclaiming its meaning, according to Guder, can we understand our calling to be witnesses of God's salvation.