Over the last 12 months members from our church family have been on mission in Mexico (Juarez and Acuna), Nicaragua, China and Helena, Montana. Over the next few months we will see another group head to Juarez, another to International Falls Minnesota and yet another group to Bartlesville, Oklahoma. By the time all is said in done with 2018, FBC Moberly will have invested a sizable amount of money, time, resources and energy taking the Gospel of Jesus Christ to someone else’s backyard. We truly are a church #OnMission.
As a church grows in her missional outreach, the inevitable question always comes: “Why do we need to invest so much money, time, resources and energy on mission “over there” when there is a great need “right here”? The question is good one, and is often asked out of a desire to reach those in our own backyard with the Gospel. It’s usually asked with sincerity and always deserves to be answered with thoughtfulness and clarity. Here are a few reasons why we invest so much on missions and why we must stay the course and increase our Gospel influence through missions around the world and around the block in 2019.
We Go On Mission Because Jesus Told Us To
Let’s start with the basics. We want to accomplish God’s will, both as a church and as individuals. The first step to accomplishing God’s will is to know that His will is found in His Word. The Bible tells us both directly and indirectly that we should “Go” on mission. We see this implicitly in the story of Jesus sending out the 72 missionaries, two by two (Luke 10:1-23). We see this in the Great Commission, as Jesus calls his church to be his witnesses in Jerusalem, Judea, Samaria and the Ends of the World (Acts 1:8). We see this patterned in the life of the Apostle Paul all throughout the book of Acts. The first reason we “go” on mission trips, is because it is God’s will for His people.
We Go On Mission Because It Makes Us More Like Jesus
When we go on mission we are imitating the very life of our Lord, Jesus Christ. Jesus was the ultimate and original missionary. There was the pre-trip planning meeting, when the Father, Son and Holy Spirit planned to send the Son (2 Timothy 1:9). There was the departure from home (Galatians 4:4-5). There was the reception of the people on the mission field (Luke 2). Jesus selflessly served others, ministering for the sake of the people on the mission field and the glory of God alone (John 17). Jesus shared the way of salvation with those He came into contact with (John 1:14-15). There was rejection, persecution and ultimately martyrdom (John 18-19). There was the accomplishment of the mission when Jesus rose from the grave and kicked death, Satan and Hell in the teeth (Luke 24:1-12). There was the good-bye on the mission field (Matthew 28:19-20) and then the ultimate return home (Acts 1:9). Even to this very day, there is still direct communication with those missionaries he left behind (Matthew 28:20b). All of that looks strangely like a mission trip (even in some cases the rejection, persecution and martyrdom). We go on mission because it makes us more like Jesus.
We Go On Mission Because It Brings Glory To God
When the church serves others selflessly, shares the Gospel shamelessly, and works together strategically, it brings the utmost glory to God. Mission trips allow us to get our focus of ourselves and onto the physical and spiritual needs of others. Mission trips bring us back to our original purpose: Bringing glory to God. Mission trips remind us to share the hope of Jesus with the lost. Mission trips help us remember that this place is not our home. Mission trips remind us of whose we are–children of the Most High God, princes and princess of the Almighty King! We go on mission because it brings glory to God.
We GO On Mission Because It Reminds Us To LIVE On Mission
This is perhaps the most paradoxical reason that we go on mission. When we GO on mission trips, we come back “ON MISSION”. When we invest in the lives of people “over there” it creates a thirst in us to invest in the lives of people “right here.” I’ve seen this countless times in my many mission trips. When we engage with short term missions we see our church family begin to dream about what we can do back home to open avenues where we can share Jesus with others. We also see God using short term missions to call people into a life of surrendered service to him on the mission field both at home and around the world. In short, “going” on mission trips reminds us that we are called to do more than “go”, we are called to live on mission.
Ultimately, the first reason is good enough for us. We go on mission because Jesus told us to. But maybe Jesus told us to go on mission because it makes us more like Him, brings glory to God and causes us to reframe missions from a trip we take to a life we make.
It takes an entire church family to be a church #OnMission. It takes those who give, those who send, those who pray and those who go. You are a part of something great happening right in our very midst! In 2018 we find ourselves doing things we’ve never done before or haven’t done for many, many years. We’re advancing the Kingdom, preaching the Gospel and serving others around our country, around our world and in our very own backyard. God is moving among us! Look around and see the glory of the Lord as together, we share the hope of Christ with those here, there and everywhere. Together, we are #OnMission!