WHY MISSIONS?

WHY MISSIONS?

ISAIAH 6:1-8; LUKE 16:19-31

·         THE RESPONSIBILTY TO INVADE: I have recently had the privilege of attending a conference called, “Kingdom Invasion” in Singapore. The conference’s central theme was about influencing our nations with the Gospel and the teachings of Jesus Christ. A resource person by name Lance Walnau shared about the Seven Cultural Mountains that shape our society: Arts and entertainment, Business, Education, Family, Government, Media and Religion. He stated that, as Christians, we haven’t conquered these mountains as we ought to in order to expand our influence in the shaping of our society for the Kingdom of God. Every follower of Jesus has the responsibility to invade these mountains with the governance of God (not political but soteriological and ethical). This is our mission in life.

·         ETYMOLOGY OF MISSIONS: This term has derived from the Latin word missio, meaning, “to be sent”. It is equivalent to the Greek term apostoles.

·         God reached Adam in the Garden of Eden and promised the sending of His Son to redeem the humanity (Gen 3:15). He sent prophets to turn people’s hearts to himself and later sent His own Son to save the mankind from eternal condemnation. Jesus sent the apostles and now, the body of Christ is sending her members.

·         Why should we do missions anyway?

1. BECAUSE IT IS THE HEARTBEAT OF GOD

·         ISAIAH’S VISION: Isaiah participated in the heavenly worship which led him into better revelation of God, self-realization and a time of personal cleansing. All this has finally culminated in his commissioning to preach God’s Word. We will feel God’s pain when we truly experience Him in our worship (Isaiah 6:1-8).

·         Bob Pierce, the founder of World Vision: “Let my heart be broken by the things that break the heart of God.”

·         Our worship is incomplete until it is driven by the passion to lead others into it. You cannot experience God’s glory and not respond to God’s commissioning.

·         WORSHIP IS THE GOAL OF MISSIONS: John Piper: “Missions is not the ultimate goal of the church. Worship is. Missions exists because worship doesn't.”

·         THE GREAT COMMISION: Jesus commanded his disciples to go, preach and teach the nations what he taught them (Mat 28:19).

2. BECAUSE OF THE CRY OF THE CONDEMNED

·         THE PARABLE OF LAZARUS AND THE RICH MAN: The rich man cries out about his own torment and pleas for missions to his father’s house (Luk 16:27).

·         There is a continuous and unstoppable cry from the hell which every Christian needs to hear and respond to.

·          The dead will not come back to preach. It is our responsibility to rescue the perishing before we rest in the grave.

·         “You have one business on earth – to save souls.” ― John Wesley

·         Hell is a real place for the unforgiven where gnashing of teeth is (Rev 20:15; Mat 13:50). The sinners are lost without God forever (2 Thes 1:10).

3. BECAUSE OF THE URGENCY TO RESCUE

·         Now is the time. The harvest is ready now (Joh 4:35).

·         ILL: A small boy was once distributing gospel tracts in a street. He knocked on a door and no one opened it. He pushed the tract into the house through a little space under the door and walked away. A man was inside the house trying to kill himself due to depression and when he read the tract, he gave his life to Jesus and testified in the church the next Sunday. If the boy was late for a minute, one soul could have been lost.

·         “The gospel is only good news if it gets there in time.” ― Carl F.H. Henry

·         PERSONAL RESPONSIBILITY. 

·         If you see the trouble and do not warn people about it, you are responsible for their lives. Apostle Paul was willing to go to any extent for the salvation of his people (Eze 33:6; 1 Cor 9:16; Rom 9:3).

CONCLUSION:

·         Missions works this way: Someone has to Send/give, someone has to go and preach, people hear it and believe the message, they pray and Jesus saves them (Rom 10:13-15).

·         PRAY: “The history of missions is the history of answered prayer.”― Samuel Zwemer.

·         GO:

o   “Some wish to live within the sound of church and chapel bell. I want to run a rescue shop within a yard of hell!”― C.T. Studd.

·         SEND/GIVE:

o   Jesus’ mission was funded by people (Luke 8:1-3)

o   Paul received help for his missions (Phil 4:10-20) and recommended church to support the servants of God (Rom 16:1-2).

o   John encourages the church to support the Gospel workers (3 John 5-8).

o   “The church that does not evangelize will fossilize.”― Oswald J. Smith

Note: This sermon outline is shared online for fellow-pastors to share the Word of God with their congregations and encourage them in their faith life. Preached at Quirk Memorial Baptist Church, Visakhapatnam by Pastor Prem Kumar Havaji. Prem.havaji@gmail.com.