As I was preparing to preach a message on the topic of church planting in missions a thought came to mind. I thought for moment – this is irrelevant to what is really going on in the lives of the people with whom I will speak. I did not think it was irrelevant in respect to them not being born again Christians who desire to serve God. I just began to think about the issues they are dealing with and realized they will not be motivated to listen because this subject is light years away from their concerns. Some are dealing with marital issues, others with strong bitterness, and others will be mentally balancing their checkbooks as I speak.
It did not take me very long to snap out of this errant and harmful train of thought. Missions is pursuing a world where our God receive maximum glory. In our Spirit enabled pursuit of serving to see God’s name glorified around the world we will find our maximum amount of joy. Our joy and our mission do not run into each other, they do not run on paralleled tracks, they are placed on top of each other.
In my preparation I decided to address 5 issues that cause people to think of missions as irrelevant.
1. Missions is not a progressive step in the Christian life.
Many times people think that missions is an aspect of life they would love to have time to think about. They think once they get everything else taken care of they will look at where they can fit into missions. The is faulty thinking on the highest level. Your purpose in life does not start with you. We are created for a purpose – and the Creator not the creation decided what that would be.The missions command was given to the carnal church Corinth and new believers when they joined the church at Pentecost. No believer is excluded from this work.
Goofy Illustration: If life was a game of golf most people would involve missions as an aspect of the game such as putting. It is something they do not even have the luxury of thinking about until they learn to drive the ball. However, your view of missions is not putting but it is the way you handle the golf club. It will effect every aspect of your life.
2. Our Father knows best and He is working all things for our good – so pay attention this is part of that!
At even giving time in a congregation there are people that are going through so much that even the speaker knew about it he would probably stop and talk to them directly. We live in a fallen world with hurting people who hurt people. I wish it was not so and I am working with a wonderful team of people to invite people into a new Kingdom. What has happened in your life and they way you have responded to them has made you into the person you are today. How you will respond to what is going on in your life today is greatly to have great consequences on your future. Listen God wants to speak to you and help you see that your true purpose in life is to bring him glory.
3. Giving to missions will not solve your financial issues. However, it will help you get a proper perspective on your money and this will allow you get things back in order.
I have been here more times than I would like to mention. I have been running numbers through my head instead of letting the Word of God be meditated upon. In a proper understanding of missions you will get a better understanding of who you are and the real value of your possessions. It will allow to you focus on what is truly important. Living a life with clear Godly priorities allows you to know what is in your control and what truly is not. Many Muslims live a life of full devotion to a god that gives no guarantee of paradise when they die. No matter what they do they know he is god and he will decide what he wills with them. As Christians we treat our God as a genie in the bottle. If we let you out you must give us three wishes. Our first wish is as a third grader we ask for unlimited wishes. He is God stop negotiating with Him.
4. You cannot be useful to the cause of missions without an airplane ride.
I am “here and now“ you are talking about “there and then”! This is a common misconception of missions. Let us not argue over foreign missions and home missions. However, let us look at the work involved in missions and realize you can disciple people wherever you are. Listen for a moment – we are not only going to talk about the where of missions but we will talk about the what and who. You have a place right now to serve. Do it.
5. Your kids need to understand the mission of the church. They will not be as likely to become bored with church if they understand her purpose.
It is estimated that 8 out of 10 teenagers who attend church in the their high school years will leave when they are out of high school. Why? For the same reason they want to take down their Care Bears wallpaper when they get older. It does not make up who they are it is just part of their decoration in life. They have never had a good look into the eyes of the mission that God has given us. Their view of Christianity is so shallow they know they cannot dive into it for fear of breaking their necks. So please listen as we give you a good understanding of a word you have become bored of “The Great Commission” and realize how it can radically change the dynamics in your family!
