Every Christian plays a role in God's agenda; hence, Christians have a role to play in missions. A Christian is part of the restorative work of God, which is a form of mission work. Let this article explain.

Source: The Banner of Sovereign Grace Truth, 2013. 2 pages.

How We Live for Missions

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The title above puts both the reader and the writer in something of a predicament. Live for missions? Am I supposed to encourage people to contribute to missions, to pray for missionaries, or to go on a mission trip? Should I write in such a way that some young people dedicate their lives for lifelong missionary service? If I were to rearrange the letters of the first word of the title from    h-o-w to w-h-o, I might ask, “Who lives for missions?” If that is the case, are we to understand that some of our members will live for missions while others may choose to live for something else?

Are the various topics in this series something like a menu from which we choose which item to put on our plate? When we look at the other topics, it would seem that “living for missions” is an essential part of our Christian life just as “living in purity” or “living for God’s glory” or “living in godly contentment” or “living as wise stewards,” etc. Or is living for missions optional after all?

The question dogs us persistently: is missions supposed to be something we live for? How do we really do that? That would suggest that the center of our lives, the focus of our daily activity, our long-term goals – in short, everything we are and everything we have and everything we do – is related to missions. Can we realistically expect that every person who attends our churches even can live for missions? Does it mean that if missions aren’t a part of what we are and do, we aren’t really alive?

Before someone suggests that it is acceptable for some people to support missions through prayer or giving while others “go,” we need to ask another question: who is a missionary anyway? A century or so ago, it was pretty easy to recognize a missionary: he or she was a white person who left their home country and traveled to another part of the world to bring the good news of Jesus Christ. In warmer countries, the missionary’s trademark was often his “pith helmet.” In all likeli­hood, he would be transported by the “natives” who revered him deeply. He or she would learn their language, adapt to new customs and foods, and try to plant churches. But today, as our world continues to change due to migration, refugees, and shifting populations, our understanding of missions is changing as well. Churches from former mission fields are now sending missionaries to the civilized West. It is not unlikely for a new immigrant Christian to speak of Christ to a North American “neo-pagan” who knows very little about the Bible. One Brazilian Presbyterian denomination has sent more than 50 missionary units to other countries. So who is the missionary now?

Allow me to say that I do believe that mission is part of the DNA of every single Christian – especially if we realize that to be a Christian means to be a follower of Jesus Christ. Like Christ, the Christian’s purpose in life is intertwined with God’s purposes for the world. God’s agenda is our agenda. According to the Apostle Paul, God’s purposes include the restoration of all things – things in heaven and things on earth – in Jesus Christ (Eph. 1:9-10; Col. 1:15-20). Or, if we take the main plot of the Bible, the goal can be understood to culminate with the New Creation. Jesus often spoke about this in terms of the Kingdom of God. In order to achieve His purpose or goal, the triune God Himself is engaged in mis­sion. In fact, He is the Missionary God. It is vital to understand that the scope of God’s mission is the basis for our mission. We are to be engaged in the same restoration project. And, when we listen to Jesus’ last words, the Great Commission, it becomes evident that mission is an essential part of our identity as those baptized into the Name of the triune God. Having just proclaimed His absolute authority over the entire created order as its universal King, Jesus commissions His disciples to go to every ethnic group to carry on His mission. Disciples are to make other disciples by incarnating the Good News from God through the proclaimed word, by deeds of love, by instructing them to obey all things that Christ has taught, and then by baptizing believers and their children into a relationship with the Trinity. When baptism is seen as the entrance to the covenant community that then calls us to a kingdom lifestyle, things change. Baptism takes place in context of making disciples, and it is done as part of its function as a community on mission with God.

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A disciple is someone who accepts a set of beliefs and embraces a holistic, total, and intentional approach to life based on those beliefs. This then becomes the basic identity of every baptized person and becomes the key to live for missions. The encouraging news is that the same Holy Spirit who anointed and equipped Christ to undertake His mission, anoints and equips us. Furthermore, our Lord Jesus has promised to be with us to the end of the world and to the end of time. For some of us, it might mean packing our bags and going elsewhere. For others, it will mean bringing hope and transforma­tion right where we live. At the end of the day, it is simply being faithful to God ... and that is not optional.

Suggested activities:

  • Investigate what God is doing in another country of the world through the mission of the church. Think of how you might encourage those working there.
     
  • Investigate your community or a city nearby. What needs to be restored? What would God’s restoration project look like? Prayerfully consider how you could participate in this work. Share your vision with others in your church.

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