God's Mission

Where did this missional church vision come from? Our leaders gathered and began asking questions like, What do we know about God's character? What is God passionate about? What do we believe God would have us be passionate about? Great questions, but they illustrate a conviction. Mission doesn't originate from human sources and is not a human endeavor. Mission is rooted in the nature and heart of God.

Mission doesn't start with the Great Commission ("Go into all the world and make disciples") by trying to guilt people into sharing their faith. Those passages are at the end of the Gospels, not the beginning. They are the mountain peak, not the base camp. We begin with what God has done. Passages like John 3:16 reveal the nature of God. "God loved so much ... that he gave." Everything else is response. We love because He loved. We sacrifice because He sacrificed. We reach because He reached. Mission is God's nature being reflected in this world in the lives of His people. Mission is God's heart touching this world through us. Without that understanding, mission is empty and becomes only a human endeavor.

Remember, God has always taken the initiative. Romans 5:6-8 says: "When we were unable to help ourselves, at the moment of our need, Christ died for us, although we were living against God. Very few people will die to save the life of someone else. Although perhaps for a good person someone might possibly die. But God shows his great love for us in this way: Christ died for us while we were still sinners." Therefore, we join Him in laying down our lives for others: the helpless and the needy; those who don't love us or God; those who, on their best days, don't deserve the gifts they receive. Why? Out of gratitude, because that is precisely what God has done for us.

Some Observations:

If mission stems from the very character of God, then . . .

• It cannot be neglected by His people.
• God is empowering and equipping us for the task.
• It is for God's glory and not ours.
• It cannot fail.

God's mission in this world cannot fail. I might. My methods might. But God's mission never will. God's mission will go on... will you join Him?