Missions

In discussing outreach it is easy to skip over missions as obvious. But it is easy sometimes to take the familiar for granted. We can feel it has always been there and will always be there and we do not need to put any special effort into it. For evangelical Christians, missions can be one of those things. We have heard the commandments to take the gospel to all nations (Matthew 28:18-20; Acts 1:8; Luke 24:46,47). We have attended missionary conferences, heard missionary speakers, and listened to missionary appeals until maybe we are a bit tired of it. Maybe we give a little when we are in the mood or when we hear a particularly good appeal, or somewhat regularly just to salve our conscience, but we do not take the whole thing too seriously. I can sympathize with this feeling because I am in danger of doing the same thing myself. I do not know of a simple cure for this mindset, but I would like to offer some considerations to put this in perspective.   

We are to be imitators of Christ in how we approach life (Philippians 2:5-11; Ephesians 5:1,2; Romans 8:29,30). If Christ was willing to make so great a sacrifice that we can come to God (Romans 5:6-8; 1 Peter 2:24,25; Colossians 2:13-15), should we not be willing to put in a special effort that others may hear (Colossians 1:28,29; 2 Timothy 2:10; 2 Corinthians 5:14,15)? Further, if it is Christ’s purpose that those who have not heard should hear, should we not desire to be part of that (Romans 9:25;26; Ephesians 2:15-19; 2 Corinthians 5:20)? Also, there were those who put in a special effort that we might have the Gospel. So given the need, we should be concerned to help bring the Gospel to others.

I am not trying to lay a guilt trip on anyone. (Guilt trips are not helpful: the scenery is awful, the food is bad, and the main thing it motivates us to do is not to go there again.) But I am calling each of us to consider, have I taken missions for granted? Have I left it on the back burner when it should be a more important part of my life? I am not about to dictate what you should do for missions or to claim that I know what you do is not enough. But I would urge you to turn to God and ask Him the question whether you are really doing what you should be doing. Are there things you could and should give up and use the money, time, and effort to help reach people for Christ? When I point this out, I realize there are three fingers pointing back at me. But I cannot ignore the fact that there is a Scriptural demand here that needs to be met. And if we do not do it, who will?

My Part in Evangelism

A person’s coming to Christ is the result of a work of God in their heart (John 16:8-11; 6:44; Romans 10:17). I am not here speaking of the issue of Calvinism vs. Arminianism. But whatever side you take on that issue, it is clear that a work of God is involved. Therefore, whether you think that, in the final analysis, the issue is God choosing us or us choosing God, there is one thing it does not ultimately depend on. The ability of the evangelist. In fact, Paul states that he avoids basing his approach on his ability, so that his converts’ faith may rest on the God’s power rather then Paul’s technique (1 Corinthians 2:1-5). Now do not get me wrong; I am not advocating sloppiness and laziness. I am convinced that God wants us to do our best in this area (1 Peter 2:15). But what I am trying to avoid is the idea that if I do not have some special method or some special ability, I cannot share Christ.

My main claim to expertise in evangelism is that I have done almost everything there is to do wrong, wrong, and I can tell you how to avoid my mistakes. I have come on too strong and been too mealy-mouthed. It have lost my temper with the one I was witnessing to and the partner I was witnessing with. I have chickened out in saying things when I should have said something and said things when it would have been better if I would have kept my mouth shut. If I believed that everything depended on my technique, I would have given up on talking to people about Christ years ago. Now I am not suggesting you follow my example in doing all these things wrong. But I am suggesting that you not be scared off from sharing with people because you have not got it all down. Rather, the best way to learn to do it is to do it. 

The bottom line is God is at work in the world, building His church (Matthew 16:18; 1 Corinthians 3:5-7). He has work for each of us to do as part of this (Ephesians 2:10) and promises His power working in us to carry this out (2 Corinthians 3:5,6; Colossians 1:29). But if we concentrate on our abilities or our past track record, we can become paralyzed and reluctant to do those things God has commanded us to. We also need to recognize that if we press on to share the truth of God with people, we will meet opposition, because the gospel is a stumbling block and there will be those who refuse to accept it (1 Corinthians 1:18-23). But God calls us to continue doing what He has called us to do, as He is the one who is ultimately in control of the situation (Psalms 127:1,2).

Being Light in the Darkness

Christ is the light of the world (John 1:4,5; 8:12; Isaiah 9:2). And He has called us to be lights reflecting Him (Matthew 5:14-16; Ephesians 5:8; Philippians 2:15). But what does that mean? Light is the revelation of God’s truth (2 Corinthians 4:4-6; Luke 2:32; Acts 13:47). This light not only enlightens, but it opens the eyes of the blind and sets the prisoners free and gives life (Isaiah 42:6,7; John 9:5-7; Isaiah 58:8-10). It also reveals evil and guides us into righteousness (John 3:19-21; Ephesians 5:11-13; 1 John 1:5-10). This is rooted in the fact that Jesus paid the price for our forgiveness (Ephesians 1:7; Colossians 2:13,14; 1 Peter 2:24,25).

One of the implications of this is that being light reaches beyond personal uprightness, though that is certainly part of it. It goes beyond that to reaching out to those who are in need and who need to hear God’s truth. We have the example of Jesus reaching  out to those who were in need of God’s truth (Matthew 9:10-13; Luke 19:1-10; 1 Corinthians 9:19-23). He reached out to women of questionable character, tax gatherers, and other undesirables (John 4:7-26; Luke 7:36-50; Matthew 9:9). Now there is a real danger of being conformed to the world (Romans 12:2; 1 John 2:15-17; James 4:4). But we cannot use that as an excuse to stay in our comfortable Christian ghetto and not reach out to people. There must be a careful balance here of being in fellowship with those who can encourage and support us (Hebrews 10:24,25; 12:12,13; Colossians 2:19) and being witnesses to those who need to know God’s truth (Acts 1:8; 1 Peter 3:15; Matthew 28:18-20). But we must not completely neglect either.

Now one of the problems I think people have here is that they have a stereotype of what they have to be in order to witness for Christ. I am convinced that as there are different gifts in the body (1 Corinthians 12:12-26; Romans 12:3-8; Ephesians 4:11-16), so there are different ways to use them to reach people for Christ. Some may reach people by exhorting them to turn to Christ. Others may do so by serving them. But everything has its place. In this context letting your light shine does not seem to be principally reaching some level of spiritual perfection (though we do not want our life to undercut our witness). But it is reaching out into the darkness to help those who are trapped there. Now to do this we need God’s power  working in us (Colossians 1:28,29; 2 Corinthians 3:18; Ephesians 2:10). But we do need to ask, “What can I do to reach out to those who need to know Christ?” And we need to find what God wants us to do.