I am excited to be with you again today, as we close out this series about our “Focus” on Jesus. We have hit on many different aspects of focus.
But for this final message of the series, we will end this series talking about one of the most important facets of our faith and focus and that is our MISSION!
Believe it or not, pastors and ministers are not the only ones called to reach others with the message of Christ. God desires ALL of us to have a role. Today, I want us to regain a passion for reaching those that are lost, so that Christ can call them found!
Our discussion on our mission must start with God’s mission. So, let us look at what IS God’s mission? There are many different mentions of God’s mission within the Bible. One of the clearest references is in a book called Habakkuk. Here is what the Lord says about His mission in Habakkuk 2…
“For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD as the waters cover the sea.” Habakkuk 2:14
We clearly see in this verse what God’s mission is … the entire earth, all of creation will know about God’s glory!
And how do we know what God’s glory is like? That is easy … we KNOW God’s glory by KNOWING God through His Son, Jesus Christ.
So now that we know what our mission is, let’s talk about how God intends to accomplish it.
In Matthew 28, the final chapter of the book, the last few instructions that Jesus gives to His disciples tell us exactly how to partner with God in His mission for this world.
Starting in verse 19, here is what He says…
“Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them … and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you … I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Mathew 28:19-20
Now, within this statement, Jesus tells us three different things to GUIDE us as we focus on our CALL to reach others. The first thing He teaches us is Where to Go.
There seems to be this popular misconception in the Christian world that the only mission field is overseas in third-world countries.
Verse 19 of our Gospel lesson is a verse people often point to in support of this idea. However, what if we were to look elsewhere such as in Acts 1…
“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you. And you will be my witnesses, telling people about me everywhere – in Jerusalem, throughout Judea, in Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” Acts 1:8
You see, in this verse, Jesus shows us an important principle of STARTING FROM WITHIN, starting WHERE YOU ARE, and working your way out.
We start where we ARE … right here, right now. In essence, we have to be people who understand the importance of God’s mission right here in our own community.
In my many years in ministry, I have witnessed many instances where the holy Spirit has brought people to faith through the witness of those who worship regularly at Crown of life.
Often, we never know if we have influenced another person or not. I remember several years ago, I received a phone call late one evening from an engineer, who had worked for me when I was an engineering manager at the INL. He now lives in Virginia. He simply wanted to thank me.
It seems while he worked for me, he went through a bitter divorce. He said I brought him into the privacy of my office, and after much conversation, comforted him with the knowledge that Jesus Christ forgives our sins, if we but repent and believe. And He has a plan for our future.
He said he was now a passionate believer, living in Virginia with his new family. And he just wanted me to know he was really okay.
This was one of many instances where I was able to see God’s mission advanced in our own community. If it could happen tor me, it can happen to you as well.
For some of us, the main thing in the way of that happening is our availability and obedience to step out. Throughout this series, we’ve talked seriously about the choice we have to step out in faith, to focus on Christ, or go it alone.
If we live in Christ, for some of us, that might look like sharing the good news of Jesus Christ with one of our co-workers or neighbors.
For others, it might look like having that Jesus conversation with a relative or family member that has been turned off to the Gospel for a long while.
Whatever that step looks like for you, Jesus makes it clear. The mission field for us is not JUST overseas, it is right here in our backyard, our living room, our place of work, our school.
God’s desire is to use you and me as instruments to accomplish His purpose.
The second part of Jesus’ statement in Matthew 28 is moving from WHERE TO GO to WHAT WE ARE TO SAY…
What to Say
The call to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ involves not only the act of going to these people, but also teaching and baptizing them.
Baptism is something that we practice in our local churches for infants, or after someone comes to faith in Christ later in life.
But regardless of age, Jesus invites us to baptize people into the family of faith by use of the names Father, Son and Holy Spirit. In this way, Jesus is showing us the importance of the Trinity (three persons but one God).
This is a tough concept for people to understand because we have no similar concept in our world. It is hard for us to get our minds around the concept of 3 persons … yet ONE God.
As a visual, I use the egg analogy in confirmation class. An egg is made up of 3 things … a shell, the while, and the yoke. If you remove any one of those 3 things, it is no longer an egg. This is not a perfect analogy, but I hope it helps you visualize what I am talking about.
As people we cannot understand how the Trinity really happens, but we accept it by faith because the Bible says that is the truth through roughly two-thousand references.
So, we accept it by faith. Remember that faith is defined as believing in something you cannot see. Hence, we believe the Trinity as truth simply because the Bible says that concept is true.
It is also recorded in the Bible that Jesus spent much of His earthly ministry teaching the disciples and nearby crowds. For instance, in the Sermon on the Mount in Matthew 5-7, Jesus teaches new commands to the people.
Many of these commands were in reference to Old Testament Law that moat of His listeners would have been very familiar with as Jews.
However, Jesus did not intend for these teachings to stay within us. Instead, His desire is for us to read them, receive them, and SHARE them.
In my experience, people are a lot more receptive to anything you tell them, if they first know you love them. It is called having a relationship before we minister to others. Much of what Jesus models in His ministry is this very thing.
For example, let’s look at John 13, where Jesus gives a “new commandment”…
“A new command I give you: Love one another. As I have loved you, so you must love one another.” John 13:34
Are you modeling this in your daily life? It is easy for someone in our family or a close friend to know we love them. But what about those who are further from us in proximity?
What about those who we do not interact with much day to day?
Jesus desires that before we teach, before we baptize, we show the love of Christ to those around us. THAT is how God’s mission will be accomplished through us, His people.
But in the church, there is one more part of Jesus’ statement in Matthew 28:19-20 that can’t be missed when we talk about focusing on our mission, and that is the promise of Jesus to Be With Us Always.
From the very beginning of time, God’s intention was to be as close to His people as possible. In Genesis 3, sin acted as a separating factor.
However, here in these closing verses of Matthew, Jesus makes the promise that He will always be with us through the power of the Holy Spirit.
No matter where we go, no matter what we do, no matter what God calls us to do, He is with us.
I specifically remember an incident in Omaha Nebraska, when I was flying as part of a battle staff on an airplane called “Looking Glass”. During the cold war, we had an airplane, called Looking Glass, airborne 24/7 – a Looking Glass plane could not land until the next plane was airborne. And each plane had a general officer on-board.
One stormy night in January, we were landing in a snowstorm. Long story short, we slid off the runway, and in those moments we all thought we were going to die.
But I felt a strong feeling of peace as if Jesus was right there beside me to experience whatever was going to happen to me. He was going to see me through it, or he was going to escort me into eternity with Him in heaven.
Obviously, it was an incredible night for many reasons.
Similar to that situation in my own life, the disciples, who were Jesus’ audience in Matthew 28:20, had many opportunities to witness the power of the Holy Spirit in their own lives!
They knew that Jesus was with them through this power. But I wonder how many times they still doubted when in difficult situations.
I wonder if you have been in similar situations, just like Peter last week when he walked on the water toward Jesus, where you know there is a higher power sustaining you, but you get distracted. We must always remember that God’s mission includes you and me.
Throughout this series, I hope and pray you have been able to see the importance of your FOCUS. Here is a fact, when we lose focus on the things that matter, we will slowly but surely start to walk away from Christ.
Like Peter, we will sink into the sea. But Christ desires we stay in a constant growing relationship with Him.
What is currently in the way of you growing in Christ? What is making you lose focus? Whom is God calling you to focus on TODAY as part of His mission?
I believe if we learn to focus on Christ, our Rock and Redeemer, we will see transformation and renewal in our lives that will flow out to those around us. That is my prayer for every one of us every day. Amen