missions in the church today

A common problem in churches today in America is the lack of passion and desire to do local missions, much less to do something global. A lot of pastors and churches believe that the soul of the church and its’ health is the main focus and should take far more attention and concern than missions, or any other “project.” I am not saying they don’t “care” but they just have higher priorities. The church would love to have pastors and missionaries popping up and going out, but the problem is that average church is losing members and therefore the greater concern is numbers, and doctrine to a biblical illiterate world.

A pastor told me once that the great commission is not a bullet point on a church mission statement, or on the “to-do” list but rather THE calling and THE mission of the church that was a commandment by Jesus Christ himself. God’s heart is to see everyone come to know Him and have an opportunity to reach him. Anyone can put together a moving sermon about missions and reading stories of starving orphans who need our help, but the problem has become that the church has become “numb” to these things. The stories aren’t real to us anymore, and we feel less and less obligated to go and do something. A lot people in the body of Christ have the mentality that if you just show them where to give the money to then God will get off our backs. The reality is that God’s not on your back about it, it’s the very word of God who commands us over and over to “go…and make disciples of all nations.” Where to give money to isn’t the issue. Christians have money, churches have money, and yet our buildings and programs are getting bigger and more cultural. A beautiful stain glass shouldn’t be the drawing factor for the lost; it should be light that shines out from each of us Christians. Jesus calls himself the light of the world, and before he leaves calls his followers the very same. Paul talks about shining as bright as the stars to the world. How will the world see our light if we stay inside our four walls?

The reality is that there are fewer and fewer missionaries going out. The even greater reality is that the missions that are out there in the world today feel alone, are being persecuted, being killed, and feeling hopeless in a huge world that has found the big target on their back called “Christian.” The proper tools are available to avoid a lot of situations and prevent problems that keep occurring in the world of missions. The few missionaries we are sending out now from the Body of Christ come from Christian colleges and universities. As educated as they might be, a lot fail to get extra resources from mission’s boards, and other organizations that could seriously impact their ministry field. Doctrine is a great thing to know, but culture is even better. Scripture memorization is key, but without a language to relate you are useless practically. God wants to use each of use in some form of missions but walking in without proper tools can be a major problem. God has provided us with the proper tools and resources to be well equipped and to truly impact the world for Christ. As much as we consider faith a huge step in the process of going into the world of missions, God does not call us to be ignorant or stupid. There are great training programs and safety/ survival kits out there exactly designed for missionaries. These are available so that we can be even more effective and so that God will use our tools to not only equip us, but also protect us.

Feeling overwhelmed is another common factor when asking the church why not go? God calls us to go into the entire world, to love our neighbors as ourselves, to take care of the orphans and widows. These are all things that can be done in a local city. There are a lot of starving, helpless, homeless, God-less people in our very own backyards. Some churches believe that before you even send out people to farther parts of the world you need to reach your own cities and country first. Others believe that we are called to the ends of the earth proclaiming the gospel of Christ and that going to a local city is for someone else, or that they have already heard about Jesus. My belief is both. I believe very strongly in global missions and going to impact the unknown world for Christ, but I also firmly believe in serving the local surroundings God has put you in. Feeding the homeless, helping the sick, and taking care of others is all something that each city in America needs. I believe that missions should start local and serve the community. After the community is being reached more go out into the nation and the country that you are a part of. Finally go into the world and help the global world find Christ. Jesus always talked about going into Jerusalem first. Our home must be our first concern and if we do not have a heart for those people then how will we ever have a heart for anyone else. Our love and resources shouldn’t be limited to those in Africa, Asia, South America, and so on. It should start here. I believe you need all three to fully be effective in missions.

This mentally is a change from what is really going on. On paper it sounds nice, but what are we really going to do about the world out there that is in need of Jesus Christ. Jesus always met people’s needs first. When he feed the five thousand he feed them, then when they wanted more he told them that he is the “bread of life.” As much as the souls of people are important, we need to reach their physical needs first and then God will open the doors for the Word of God to come in and change hearts and lives. Jesus laid out the perfect idea of missions and prepared the way for us to go, but I’m afraid that sitting in church pews isn’t getting the job done in anyone’s eyes.