By Manik Corea, C4SO’s Global Consultant
In Part 1 and Part 2 of this blog series, I talked about God’s heart for the lost—meaning those outside of His kingdom.
As God’s people, we are called to share this concern. We saw that the first two steps we need to take in this are 1) to have eyes to see lost people around us and 2) to begin to pray daily for workers for the “harvest”—i.e., the urgent work of bringing people home to God in Christ.
This foundation should naturally lead us on to the third and final step to reaching the lost—that is to “send and go.” Today I will share the biblical and missiological basis for doing this.
Do Something.
There is an anecdotal story attributed to President Abraham Lincoln, who asked an under-performing staff member the following question:
“Five birds were standing on a branch. Two of them decided to fly away. How many were left on the branch?”
“That’s easy, Mr President—three.”
“Five,” replied Lincoln. “Deciding is not the same as doing.”
We may be moved by the needs around us, or by many who need God’s salvation and intervention in our world today. We may even decide to do something about it. But until we actually heed and obey God’s instructions to us and join His mission in the world, we will not make much difference. Obedience implies responsible action. It does something!
We Are a Sent People.
The Gospel of the Kingdom is, simply put, God’s invitation and claim on all peoples and nations under the rule and reign of His Son Jesus Christ, our Lord. And He has incorporated us, His redeemed people to be witnesses and ambassadors of that same Gospel.[1]
Indeed, we who weekly confess to believe and belong to the “one, holy, catholic and apostolic church” are, by definition and the expressed will of God, part of God’s great search-and-rescue work to redeem a people for Himself and to make His glory known and seen in all the earth.[2]
I once read of a church in Canada that had a banner hung over the main exit of their building that read “You are now entering your mission field.”
While not all of us are called to pack and move to another continent, we are all called daily to be somewhere as his representative people. Indeed, some of us are sent into places that certified missionaries will never get to—neighborhoods, schools, supermarkets, playgrounds and restaurants, the everyday places and spaces filled with people and communities that God longs to touch by His grace and truth. This may also include your noisy (or nosy) next-door neighbor and that work colleague you wish would be transferred out!
We get to go on holidays to far-flung places and to interact with the locals who may have never heard the Gospel. Some of us have jobs that may require us to be on business trips to factories, carpeted offices, late-night cafes and bars in distant cities, meeting people who live lives of quiet or frantic desperation. Princes or paupers of every color and creed—all in need of a perfect Savior who left His glory in heaven to save us from our sins by His merit.
One Mission or One Task Among Many?
It is critical that we understand that the mission of God’s people is an outflow of the very character and purpose of God that encompasses all places on planet earth. John Stott observed: “Mission arises from the heart of God himself, and it is communicated from his heart to ours. Mission is the global outreach of the global people of a global God.”[3]
Consider how, since the day God went searching for fallen man and woman in the garden, He has not stopped working to redeem His creation. Ultimately, in history, God came to us and for us in the form of His Son, the greatest missionary of all time, seeking to save that which was lost (Luke 19:10).
But from one place in time, God’s salvation now extends out to all places for all time (Matthew 28:18-20, Acts 1:8). We see in the Scriptures that the Father sent the Son into the world. After Jesus’ redemption, both the Father and the Son sent the Holy Spirit upon His people at Pentecost. Finally, it is we the Church, i.e., God’s people, whom the Spirit empowers and sends out into all the world to proclaim and present the Lord Jesus to all people—till He comes again.
Now, there is a very real tendency in popular ecclesial practice to separate out the mission work of the Church from the inner life of the local congregation. That is, to see missions as simply one of a number of necessary ministries of the local church. We make it only the responsibility and concern of a chosen few, whether a career missionary, the missions committee or a delegated church staff.[4]
Yet, all of God’s Church is called into all of God’s mission. Bishop Leslie Newbigin underscored the centrality of this: “The calling of men and women to be converted, to follow Jesus, and to be part of his community is and must always be at the center of mission.”[5] It is the ONE mission of the Church which cannot be delegated out to a few.
Mission in this light is not just one of a plethora of activities and foci of the local church. It is our most fundamental and prioritizing task in the world today—to make disciples of all nations. This mission-into-the-world focus is affirmed as a goal for all C4SO churches: “Our mission as a diocese is to establish outposts of Jesus’ person, word and power in the midst of a struggling humanity.”[6]
Called Together
What does this all mean for you and me? What is our role as individuals and congregations? The good news is that we are called into this together in God’s strength. God has filled His Church with gifts and callings that will go a long way in helping each of us find our place in God’s great mission. In my next blog, I will tell you about a number of missional initiatives in our diocese and province to help us “send and go.”
But let me end today with this challenge:
No one person can reach all the lost people he or she meets. No local church or diocese, no matter how big, strong or dynamic, can bring transformation to every aspect of a community, let alone their nation or the world. God works in many ways, through many peoples and initiatives. We need each other.
But whilst you may not be called to proclaim the Gospel to great crowds, you can show and tell it to at least one life around you. You can notice the lost, you can pray for laborers for God’s harvest, and you can be used of God to make at least one other disciple for Jesus this year. Our churches can make a difference in the corner of the globe we inhabit, and in support of global mission elsewhere.
What’s stopping us?
If you or your congregation need help to get involved in global mission or to build a disciple-making culture into your life and ministry as part of joining God’s mission, I would be happy to share, train and walk you through some helpful resources. Contact me at manikagcorea@yahoo.co.uk.
Footnotes
[1] On Gospel of the Kingdom of God, see Mark 1:14-15; Matthew 4:17 & 23, 24:14; Luke 4:43, 8:1, 9:10; John 18:36 cf Luke 17:20-21; Romans 1:16; Colossians 1:13; Acts 20:35; 28:30-31. On our part as witnesses and ambassadors of the Gospel, see John 20:21; Acts 1:8; Mark 16:15; 1 Peter 2:9-10; 2 Corinthians 5:20.
[2] Titus 2:14; Galatians 4:5; Ephesians 2:19-20; Numbers 14:21; Habakkuk 2:14.
[3] John Stott, The Contemporary Christian: An Urgent Plea for Double Listening (Inter-Varsity Press, 1992), page 335.
[4] I am not under-playing or criticizing the need either for the specialised and dedicated ministries and calling of a few to mission far beyond the local church or overseas, or those called to administer, support and give oversight to such in the local congregation. My point is that it is easy to delegate our collective responsibility to missions to someone else, as though it were not the concern of the whole church and each member.
[5] Leslie Newbigin, The Open Secret, (Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing, 1995), page 123.
[6] https://c4so.wpenginepowered.com/
The Rev. Manik Corea is Strategy Coordinator for Asia/Pacific at the New Anglican Missionary Society (NAMS). He is passionate about seeing and reaching the lost of all nations and peoples, and intends to bring this passion and experience into his role as Global Consultant for the Diocese of C4SO. You can contact him at manikcorea@namsnetwork.org.