Category: Helpful Resources

Matthew 9:38, John 4:35

• Untold millions remain untold
• Why should anyone hear twice when so many have never heard?

• Spiritual Condition of the world today
  • Only 33% of the world claims to be Christian
  • That includes Catholics, Eastern Orthodox, Anglican, Mormons, Jehovah’s Witnesses and other cults
  • If the ratio of Christian workers to total population that exists in North Africa were applied to the U.S. and Canada, those two countries would have about 120 full-time Christian workers living in them. Also, there would be only 7 small churches in the entirety of those two countries.
  • 865 million unreached Muslims
  • 550 million unreached Hindus
  • 275 million unreached Buddhists
• Fully 90% of the world is un-evangelized
• No need to ask me where in the world missionaries are needed
• No need to ask where the final frontier is

1. Watered down church and Christianity
   • Many believers simply haven’t understood it is our duty as the church to carry the gospel to the world Matthew 28:19-20
   • Church is not asking God to send out laborers Matthew 9:38
   • Not experiencing God work in our lives where we currently are Colossians 1:29
   • Not maturing as a believer Colossians 1:28
   • Church and God have become about you and your needs and comforts and not about Him being your Lord and Master
   • Christianity is your will not His will, Him blessing you and not you blessing Him

2. Fears
   • Maybe God will not meet our needs or protect us I Peter 5:7
   • Fear of the unknown I John 4:8
   • We are not to fear what man can do to us Hebrews 13:6
   • Fear is a trap for you Proverbs 29:25
   • He will never leave you or forsake you Hebrews 13:5

3. Wrong goals
   • The love of money chokes out God’s work in our hearts I Timothy 6:10
   • A desire for things is destroying many believers I Timothy 6:9
   • We as believers are to flee these desires and seek godly goals  I Timothy 6:11-12
   • You have to hate one and love the other and you may have fallen into the trap of hating God and His will Matthew 6:24
   • Family unity and peace Matthew 10:37
   • Personal goals and ambitions Matthew 10:38-39

4. Lack of love for God
   • The greatest commandment is to love God and then to love people Matthew 22:36-40
   • God’s love should be shed abroad in our hearts Romans 5:5
   • The fact that Jesus loved us so much that He died for us compels us to live for Him instead of ourselves II Corinthians 5:15
   • It is the love of Christ for us that compels us to go to others II Corinthians 5:14

5. Help me by giving me the excuses you are using!
   • If you are not called to go then you are called to stay
   • You should be as involved in getting the gospel to the world as the missionaries
   • How are you serving God where you are?
   • Are you just warming a seat or are you making a difference?
   • Is your income so that you can live it up or did God give it to you because you are responsible enough to use what you have for His purposes I Timothy 6:17-18

Prevailing Attitude in Church “A”:

11. Our blessings outweigh our responsibilities.
12. Missions is that annual weekend event for taking Faith Promise pledges.
13. Only those who are super spiritual or those who are “called” get involved in missions.
14. Other than during the Faith Promise weekend, missions is rarely mentioned.
15. Adults decide on their own if God is “calling” them into missions.
16. It’s O.K. if you insist on going on a short-term missions trip for a week or two.
17. The average attendee in this church can only name 2-3 Scripture verses that deal with missions.
18. In a financial pinch, the first thing that reduces is missions giving.
19. Most members don’t know who their adopted missionaries are or where they are serving.
20. Meetings focusing on missions aren’t held very often and are poorly attended.
21. World Missions gets the minimum funding suggested. (10% or less of the church’s income)
22. Missions is a “necessary evil” that occasionally intrudes on the real ministry of the church.

Prevailing Attitude of Church “B”:

1. Our blessings bring equal responsibilities.
2. World evangelization permeates church life throughout the year.
3. Every member expects to have some role in the global harvest.
4. God’s heart for the nations is heard in almost every service.
5. Church leadership continually challenges couples and singles to consider going overseas.
6. Going on short-term or missions trips is the expected norm.
7. The average lay member of this congregation can name several verses, knowing God’s heart for all nations is the theme of the Bible.
8. Missions needs are met even before the electric bill is paid.
9. Most know who the church’s adopted missionaries are, where they serve, and what their needs are.
10. Mission information and prayer times are mainstream.
11. The church has a goal of giving no less than 25% of its income to world missions.
12. World evangelization is seen as half the reason the church exists.

“The mission of the Church is missions.”– Unknown

If I were an artist I would paint a picture in two parts.  On the right I would have a large round table with three place settings–one for the father and one each for a son and a daughter.  On this table I would place all kinds of good things to eat–meat, fish, fowl, cabbage, beans, broccoli, carrots, and cauliflower.  I would have various kinds of potato–fried, baked, and mashed.  For dessert I would have a choice of pastry, pie or ice cream or an assortment of fruit–peaches, pears, oranges, and bananas.  For a beverage the two children would have Coke, Sprite, Orange Crush, or Mountain Dew; the father would have tea, coffee or cocoa.

On the other side of my picture I would have another table, with nine place settings, one for the mother and one for each of the eight children.  At each place setting I would have a glass of water, a bowl of soup, and a crust of bread.

And I would call my work of art, “The American Family at Dinner.”  You would come along and inspect my picture and read the caption and shake your head saying, “No! No! That’s a lie.  From Maine to California there isn’t a single family in which that kind of wealth and that kind of poverty can be found.  We have rich families and they share their riches.  We have poor families and they share their poverty; but no matter where you look you won’t find a single family that combines that kind of wealth and that kind of poverty.  That picture is a lie.”

And you would be right!  The picture is a lie.  But suppose I were to change the title and call my work of art, “The Human Family at Dinner.”  I should be precisely on the mark.  That is how the human family lives–part in poverty that beggars description and part in wealth that borders on the obscene.

How do we prepare for God to call us? We must thus prepare our hearts for the call of God. For this we make several suggestions:

From the book A Biblical Theology of Missions by Peters — page 278-279

1. Make sure your body has become a living and sanctified sacrifice unto the Lord (Ro 12:1–2).
2. Make sure there is no conscious sin dulling your spiritual ear and spiritual sight (Eph 1:18; Col 1:9).
3. Make sure there are no preconceived personal plans and preferences (Ps. 25:9).
4. Make sure you obey God daily and gladly in the little things of everyday life. Practice obedience to God and man (Lk 19:17; 1 Sa 15:22).
5. Make sure you are willing to go and to be used anywhere (Jn 7:17).
6. Form the habit of daily prayer, Bible study, and private meditations before the Lord (Josh 1:8; Ps 77:12; 119:15, 25, 45).
7. Form the habit of waiting patiently upon the Lord and expect Him to direct every step of your everyday life and doing (Pr 3:6; Ps 23:3).
8. Study carefully the Word of God relative to the purposes of God for the Christian life and the Christian church. Get saturated with the Word of God (Ps.119:11, 104–5).
9. Study carefully the great spiritual needs of our day and prepare to meet them. Get a world vision and a world burden (Jn 4:35).
10. Spend much time in intercessory prayer for the cause and ministry of Christ at home and abroad (Mt 9:37–38).
11. Pray regularly and earnestly that God will make His will and call definite to you (Ps 25:4; 27:11; 143:8).
12. Rest assuredly in the promises of God and expect Him to meet you according to your need. He will make His will and calling sure (Ps 37:5, 7a; 32:8). The clarity, depth and definiteness of the call of God will depend to a great extent upon the quality of the heart, the intensity of our fellowship with the Lord, and the degree of our willingness to obey the Master in His command and commission.

There is no more direct call than a command, and we have a command.

There is no more precise command than a written command and we have a written command.

There is no more authoritative command than that of a king, and we have a command from a King.

There is no more powerful king than Jesus the King of Kings. How then can we say we have not been called?