How To Utilize Christ’s Principles for Missions
Quote: The greatest sin that most Christians make is the sin of omission. Here are some time tested guidelines for helping us avoiding the sin of omitting the great commission in our service to the Lord Jesus.
Illustration:It is easy to determine when something is aflame. It ignites other material. Any fire that does not spread will eventually go out. A church without evangelism is a contradiction in terms, just as a fire that does not burn is a contradiction.
Christian Theology in Plain Language, p. 162.
1. The Holy Spirit helps us simultaneously apply the following wise strategies to spiritual warfare while reminding us that the battle belongs to the Lord and He will give the victory:
A. Harvest Instead of Maintenance Oriented - The Holy Spirit helps us orient our ministries toward becoming harvesters of lost souls instead of maintenance ministers who merely seek to preserve the sheep that are already a part of God’s flock. Jesus said, “Pray to the Lord of the harvest to send workers into His harvest fields.” (Matt. 9:36-38)
Illustration:"It is the impassioned pleading of a quiet little Scottish lady that linked my life with the Soudan," wrote Rowland Bingham (a founder of S.I.M.). "In the quietness of her parlor she told how God had called a daughter to China, and her eldest boy (Walter Gowans) to the Soudan. "She spread out before me the vast extent of those thousands of miles and filled in the teeming masses of people. Ere I closed the interview she had place upon me the burden of the Soudan."
A year and a half later Bingham returned to Canada, alone. Walter and Thomas Kent lay buried in Nigeria’s interior. "I visited Mrs. Gowans to take her the few personal belongings of her son," he recalled. "She met me with extended hand. We stood there in silence.
"Then she said these words: ’Well, Mr. Bingham, I would rather have had Walter go out to the Soudan and die there, all alone, that have him home today, disobeying his Lord.’"
Our success in this venture means nothing less than the opening of the country for the gospel; our failure, at most, nothing more than the death of two or three deluded fanatics. Still, even death is not failure. His purposes are accomplished. He uses deaths as well as lives in the furtherance of His cause.
Source Unknown.
B. Offensive Rather Than Defensive Oriented - The Holy Spirit gives us power to go throughout the 228 nations of the world and the 18,800 ethnic groups on the planet to offensively take the gospel to people who are yet to receive Christ as their Savior.
Illustration:When Hudson Taylor was director of the China Inland Mission, he often interviewed candidates for the mission field. On one occasion, he met with a group of applicants to determine their motivations for service. "And why do you wish to go as a foreign missionary?" he asked one. "I want to go because Christ has commanded us to go into all the world and preach the gospel to every creature," was the reply. Another said, "I want to go because millions are perishing without Christ." Others gave different answers. Then Hudson Taylor said, "All of these motives, however good, will fail you in times of testings, trials, tribulations, and possible death.
Application: There is but one motive that will sustain you in trial and testing; namely, the love of Christ."
Source Unknown.
C. Qualitative and Quantitative Growth Oriented - The Holy Spirit gives both qualitative (Fruits of the Spirit) and quantitative (numbers, geographical expansion & ethnographic expansion) as we sow the seed.
D. Initiating Love Instead of Reacting to Problems - The Holy Spirit helps us introduce love to those who need it most instead of waiting for people to come to us who are looking for love, truth and solutions to their problems.
E. Leading By Example Instead of By Default - The Holy Spirit chooses leaders who have consistently shown faithfulness, obedience and a great measure of evangelistic faith, not just anyone who is available.
F. Dauntless in the Face of Opposition - The Holy Spirit gives us unyielding courage to take the gospel to the lost regardless of the social, political, emotional, physical, financial, environment or spiritual obstacles.
G. Empowered By God Not By Men’s Motives - The Holy Spirit fills us with the empowering love of God that constrains us to seek the lost. The Spirit does not bless people who are out to impress others with their public pleasing presentations.
H. Building Bridges Rather Than Defensive Walls - The Holy Spirit enables us to build communication, service and relational bridges to those who are in need of salvation in Christ. The Spirit does not bless Christians who are so afraid of the world that they spend their resources in erecting barriers against others.
Illustration:A missionary in Africa was once asked if he really liked what he was doing. His response was shocking. "Do I like this work?" he said. "No. My wife and I do not like dirt. We have reasonably refined sensibilities. We do not like crawling into vile huts through goat refuse...But is a man to do nothing for Christ he does not like? God pity him, if not. Liking or disliking has nothing to do with it. We have orders to ’Go," and we go. Love constrains us."
Source Unknown.
I. Objective Rather Than Subjective-Emotionally Driven- The Holy Spirit helps Christians think objectively about the best goals, strategies and methods that will win the most people to faith in Jesus Christ. The Spirit does not bless Christians who are subjectively allowing their fears, prejudices and anger to hinder them from reaching out to those in need of forgiveness and eternal life through Jesus Christ.
J. Use of Connections Instead of Objections - The Holy Spirit powerfully uses family, friends and colleagues who enjoy a trusting rapport with those who are still lost in their sins. The Spirit would prefer working through channels of familiar connections than having to establish brand new lines of communications to those who still need Christ as their Savior.
K. Cooperation Instead of By Individual Effort - The Holy Spirit tends to use the body of Christ far more effectively than if single individuals try to do the work of evangelism by themselves.
L. Concentration Instead of Driblet Evangelism - The Holy Spirit is able to accomplish far more by concentrated efforts of evangelism than by demonstrating His force in little driblets.
M. Obedience Oriented Rather Than Emotion Driven - The Holy Spirit uses people who are obedient to do evangelism consistently rather than those who only do it when they feel like it.
Illustration:The average Christian in America gives less than $.20 a week to foreign missions.
Larry Lutz, Partners International, 1987.
N. Professional Rather Than Haphazardly Executed - The Holy Spirit especially uses professional people who have special training in evangelism, church planting and the expanding of Christ’s kingdom and righteousness. The Spirit can use lay people, but prefers full time ministers as leaders for God’s evangelistic efforts. The Spirit used Paul and Jesus as they were fully committed to seek and to save those which were lost.
O. Multipliers Rather Than Adders to the Flock - The Holy Spirit prefers to multiply evangelists through disciple making ministries instead of relying on one evangelist to go everywhere adding converts one person at a time.
P. Mobilizers Rather Than Old Testament Temple Oriented - The Holy Spirit urges Christ’s church to go into all the people groups of the world and preach the gospel. The Spirit has a hard time blessing congregations and leaders who just expect all the lost to come to their place of worship before they hear the gospel. Afterwards, the Spirit helps us make disciples by baptizing, teaching them to obey Christ’s commandments and practicing the presence of Christ in all of relationships and ministries. (Matt 28:18-20)
Illustration:
Americans give $700 million per year to mission agencies. However, they pay as much for pet food every 52 days. A person must overeat by at least $1.50 worth of food per month to maintain one excess pound of flesh. Yet $1.50 per month is more than what 90 percent of all Christians in America give to missions.
If the average missions supporter is only five pounds overweight, it means he spends (to his own hurt) at least five times as much as he gives for missions. If he were to choose simple food (as well as not overeat), he could give ten times as much as he does to missions and not modify his standard of living in any other way!
Ralph Winter of the William Carey Library, 1705 North Sterra Bonita Avenue, Pasadena, CA 91104, in Leadership, IV,4,p. 64.
Q. Prayerful Instead of Activity Oriented - The Spirit uses the prayers of evangelistic leaders to help soften the hearts of the lost before they hear the gospel. If we are not prayerful, God may think we are trying to win the lost through our own energies, skills and wisdom.
Concluding Illustration:A one-legged school teacher from Scotland came to J. Hudson Taylor to offer himself for service in China. "With only one leg, why do you think of going as a missionary?" Asked Taylor.
"I do not see those with two legs going," replied George Scott. He was accepted.
Pillar of Fire, January First, 1983.
