What is the first picture that comes to mind when you hear the word “missions”?  If you’re like me, I think about someone over in a third world country, with little food or clothing, preaching the gospel of Christ where it has not been heard.  That is true, that is one type of missions, but it certainly is not an exhaustive definition of what missions is meant to be Biblically.

In Acts 1:8 Jesus gives what is known as the great commission – “you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”   That is, the gospel of Jesus was to go out, beginning in the local area, then the surrounding, and lastly to all the ends of the earth.  This charge was not given to a specific group of believers, but this ministry was given to every believer.  Therefore, each one of us is a missionary, and is responsible for entering into God’s plan to spread the gospel.

2 Corinthians 5:17-20 – “Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation. The old has passed away; behold, the new has come. All this is from God, who through Christ reconciled us to himself and gave us the ministry of reconciliation; that is, in Christ God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and entrusting to us the message of reconciliation.  Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, God making his appeal through us. We implore you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God.”

If you are a missionary, an ambassador for Christ, a good question to ask is, “what is my mission”?  Let me encourage you, that you do not need to look far to find it.  Often times, people are encouraged to go on “mission trips” to foreign countries.  Now, I do not want to discourage that practice altogether; it certainly has merit to encourage one’s faith by seeing Christ at work around the world, but we should understand that it is not really a “mission trip”.  That is not missions.

If you want to see a Biblical representation of Biblical missions, look at the apostle Paul.  Paul was called to be a missionary “to the ends of the earth”, which carried him far away from his native Israel.  That said, Paul’s mission efforts always resulted in the establishment/strengthening of a church as well as his physically being there for an extended period of time, often years.  Look at how Paul spoke to the church at Thessolonica:  1 Thessalonians 2:8-9 – “So, being affectionately desirous of you, we were ready to share with you not only the gospel of God but also our own selves, because you had become very dear to us.  For you remember, brothers, our labor and toil: we worked night and day, that we might not be a burden to any of you, while we proclaimed to you the gospel of God.”  Paul didn’t just go to Thessolonica, preach the gospel and leave; Paul formed relationships, such that you couldn’t separate his ministry of the gospel from all other parts of his life. Look again at Paul’s exhortation above to a local church at Corinth.  He was not calling the members of that church to join Him by leaving Corinth to join him, but rather, exhorting them to know that wherever God has them – they should know that they are part of God’s mission of reconciliation through the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Let me put this in a 21st century context.  If you are a business person, that is your mission field.  Do everything in your power at work, to exalt the name of Jesus Christ – preaching the gospel to all who would listen.  If you are a teacher, that is your mission field.  Do everything in your power at work, to exalt the name of Jesus Christ – preaching the gospel to all who would listen.  If you are a construction worker, that is your mission field.  Do everything in your power at work, to exalt the name of Jesus Christ – preaching the gospel to all who would listen.  This holds true for every job you could think of.  God has people around you already, where you have an enduring relationship with them, who need the gospel of Christ.  God has a plan for you at work, your neighbors around your home, your family – that is your mission field.  I would be remiss if I did not also note here that if you are not called to spend your life preaching “to the ends of the Earth” you ought to be stewarding your resources to support those who do.  In every part of your life, God has people He wants to redeem, to reconcile to Himself through Christ in you.

So the question now is not “what is my mission” but how is your mission field being transformed by you?  How is the gospel transforming your life and the lives of those around you?  How often do you pray for those around you?  How are you intentionally sharing your life with others for the gospel?  God has uniquely placed you where you are for a mission that only you could accomplish; don’t minimize your mission.  Each of us has the same amount of minutes each day to spend in a ministry of reconciliation to God through Jesus Christ.

Matthew 9:36-37 – “When he saw the crowds, he had compassion for them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.  Then he said to his disciples, “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few; thereforepray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers into his harvest.”

Grace and Peace,
Adam