Answering the Call

Why I Go on Mission Trips: A Biblical Warrant, Part II

Have you ever wondered: “What’s the point?” Or thought: “I’m not called to do that…”

In my last post, How One Man Blessed Us All, we saw how Abraham was to be a blessing to all the peoples of the earth.  He blessed all the nations by being the forefather of Jesus Christ.  And from Jesus, God’s story moved beyond just the nation of Israel (the descendants of Abraham) out to the whole world.  God’s message of wholeness and restoration offered through Jesus Christ is how he intended to bless all the peoples and bring them back to himself…

The apostle Paul says in the letter to the Galatians:

“If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham’s seed, and heirs according to the promise.” -Galatians 3:29

So when someone believes in Christ and accepts him, then that person is brought into the blessing, brought into God’s family, and inherits the promise God gave to Abraham.

Ultimately, it is through Jesus Christ that God intended to bless all peoples. God sent Jesus to break down the wall that divides race, gender, status, economics, and even family and personal relationships.  Christ came to bring humanity back to God; he came to open and show the way.  And through him, through his life, his death, his resurrection, God intends to give life and to bless the nations.

I’ve heard people ask: “What if someone in Africa never hears about Jesus?” The answer is the same as to the question, “What’s the point?”:

¹⁴ And how can they believe in the one [Jesus] of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? ¹⁵ And how can anyone preach unless they are sent? As it is written: “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!” -Romans 10:14-15

Well, missions is a response to Christ’s call in a believer’s life.  Christ first calls a person to himself, to be his follower, and then Christ sends that new believer out into the world through the power of his spirit.  Christians are called to go out and share the gospel (gospel means good news) of Christ.  People will hear because believers go. The nations are blessed, because Christ’s followers go out in faith and witness to who he is and what he has done in their life.

“I’m not called to do that…” Well, the truth is really that we are all called to share our faith.  We’re not supposed to wait until we feel called, but we must recognize we already have been called when we first believed, and then we are to find opportunities to live out our faith, whether at home or abroad.

The blessing on the nations and that God promises is wholeness, restoration with God, right relationships, a renewal of all things.  This is the work Christians everywhere are to be engaged in.

The purpose of missions is for more and more people to hear the good news of Jesus Christ, to respond, and to likewise move outward.  This is what missions is.

Christ’s last words to his disciples, recorded in the book of Matthew, are a call to missions. They are often called “The Great Commission,” where Christ sends his followers out into the world.  He says:

¹⁸ “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ¹⁹Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” -Matthew 28:18-20

The mandate for missions is broad, and it spreads the pages of the Bible.  God wants for all to come to know him.  God first came a long, long time ago to Abraham, giving him a promise, one that saw its fulfillment in Christ.  But then Christ passed on the mission mandate to his disciples and followers, and through them the word of God’s gospel is to go out to the nations, so that they too can know about the riches of the promises that God has given. This is why there are missions.  God gives us a mandate and a mission to share his good news, just as someone first shared it with you.

Have you answered the call in your own life, either to Christ or to witness about him?  If so, did you share with someone at home or on a mission?

Read previous posts in this series: Traveling Out of My Comfort Zone and How One Man Blessed Us All