Rise Up | Everyone on Mission for the Glory of God
It seems that, over time, we have grown into the idea that the body of Christ is composed of day to day Christians and then this greater class of Christians: missionaries. The missionary is viewed as the higher tier Christianity, almost celebrity types that stand above the other Christians. While those who willingly give up everything, move across the planet, and give up their life for the sake of the Gospel should be honored, we should not view them as an unattainable goal. Furthermore, we cannot view the idea of the mission of God as only pertaining to overseas missions. Again, none of this comes to understate the importance of overseas missions or those who give everything for the Gospel, but as we rise up to pursue the mission of God in our lives. The full pursuit of God moves in us and expresses through us with the urgency that we cannot contain the power of the Gospel.
In truth, every Christian is called to actively participate in the mission of Jesus Christ on earth. There is no such thing as a Christian that is not also a mission. Jesus’ final words to the disciples went to every person who believed; “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:18-20, ESV) Everyone is called to live according to the mission of Jesus Christ in the world in some context and all Christians are missionaries to some extent. Will we defer responsibility to share the Gospel with those around us or stir in compassion for the sake of the lost.
Deferring Responsibility of The Gospel
Those who have come to be with Christ join in the mission of living beyond ourselves. Yet, too many people choose to defer the responsibility of being active participants in the mission of Christ in the world. We settle for simply going to church on Sunday morning, maybe going to a small group, but beyond that, the responsibility of living Gospel-centric missional lives. As we get older in our faith, we run the risk of becoming complacent in our faith and forgetting that the mission of God to save mankind for His glory spans generations and God uses mankind as the instrument for reaching people who need the Gospel. “And Jesus went throughout all the cities and villages, teaching in their synagogues and proclaiming the gospel of the kingdom and healing every disease and every affliction. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; therefore pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.” Matthew 9:35-38, ESV. As Jesus saw the people harassed and in need of a shepherd, He looked towards His disciples. Stirring their passion and compassion, Jesus commanded them to pray that God would send workers into the harvest to care for those right in front of them.
We have the same responsibility of the disciples. Look around. See the need of the world in our immediate context, in our nation, and in the global context, and pray that God would stir His affections in us. The world is ripe for the harvest but needs those of the faith who are willing to take their next step in their relationship with Jesus Christ. The temple provided a glimpse into the presence of God as people moved from the outer courts into the inner courts. If you have never come into the presence of God then standing in the outer court is a grand step of faith to approach God and proclaim His Lordship over all things. But, for those who have been walking with the Lord for a while, then moving to the inner courts is our next step. Now, the presence of God extends from the Holy of Holies and moves out to the entire world who desperately cries out in pain for the relief that only the Gospel can bring. Hearts, transformed and redeemed by Christ, cry out in prayer to the Lord for those in need.
Here I Am, Send Me
As we pray for God to reach the unreached and minister to the hurt and broken, God will use us as the instruments of the Gospel to the world. We pray, as one with the Son, to the Heavenly Father, empowered by the Holy Spirit to send me to proclaim the Gospel to the lost and broken. The fullness of the Trinity stirs in us to guide us to the mission of God in the world to when we can no longer bear to stand by and allow those hurt and broken to continue. “And I heard the voice of the Lord saying, “Whom shall I send, and who will go for us?” Then I said, “Here I am! Send me.” And he said, “Go, and say to this people: “‘Keep on hearing, but do not understand; keep on seeing, but do not perceive.’ Make the heart of this people dull, and their ears heavy, and blind their eyes; lest they see with their eyes, and hear with their ears, and understand with their hearts, and turn and be healed.” (Isaiah 6:8-10, ESV) The proclamation of those radically changed by the Gospel is to stand up and say we will go. This moves us from the inner courts to the Holy of Holies as we represent God to the world rather than merely allowing ourselves to be passive observers as those without the Gospel die without knowing the hope of Jesus Christ. Simply put, we see the saving power of Christ in the world and cannot bear to go another day without letting the world know the Gospel that Jesus Christ reigns for all eternity and wants to know us supremely.
You are ministers of the word of God to the world, called to do more than simply observe. When we pray fervently for the hearts of men to turn to the Lord, the Spirit rises within us to be active participants in our faith instead of passive observers. The world desperately needs to hear the Gospel. People die every day without hearing the Gospel in desperate need of a Savior. As the Holy Spirit redeems and reworks us from the inside out, seeing the pains of people, we have the honor of being used by God for His glory. Everyone is a missionary. Everyone is a minister. The question is only where and how they are called to serve. Some will uproot their family to move across the globe and implant themselves in new culture entirely. But just as important, we all are called to represent and evangelism our culture hurting for the Gospel. No matter where we find ourselves, every Christian who submits to the Lordship of Jesus Christ and allows the Holy Spirit to work through them will find themselves working as a missionary with a heart that breaks for the broken and lost. Christianity is incompatible with a consumerist mindset. We are all called to rise up to the mission and vision that God sets before us by bowing before the Lord and proclaiming “Here I am. Send me.”
