Page 17 - Contact Summer 2017
P. 17
WHAT IS
M ISSION?
You might think that the answer to that The response was significant and the team
question is pretty obvious – sharing the gospel! went back to America to report with great joy
It’s true that sharing the gospel is at the very to their congregation that ‘hundreds’ had given
core of mission and without that central their lives to the Lord. However, as the
emphasis we would lose what is distinctly missionary who lived and worked in the village
‘Christian’ about the mission of the church. told me, the people only raised their hands
However, what people often mean by ‘sharing because they saw that as the polite thing to do.
the gospel’ is something akin to ‘gaining They had no idea why they were raising their
converts’. But is that the mission that Christ hands and he was left with an even more
gave to his church? Let’s take a look at what difficult job of clearing up the mess that was
Jesus actually says in the great commission in left behind. Disciple-making is a much longer
Matthew 28:19-20: term investment in a person’s life than we
might think. That’s why Jesus goes on to fill out
‘Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, the task of disciple-making as ‘teaching them
baptizing them in the name of the Father and to observe all that I commanded you.’ Jesus
of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching commanded us to do a variety of things with
them to observe all that I have commanded the obvious outcome that our mission will be
you. And behold, I am with you always, to the multi-dimensional. Of course, sharing the
end of the age.’ (ESV) gospel must remain central, but mission will
look a lot different from what we might expect.
I have emphasized a few words that are
important for us to notice. Although the work That is why in High Kirk we support; the
of mission is the work of the church, especially discipling of young people in Northern Ireland
the local church, it can’t all take place within the and Europe, the construction of homes and
church building. That’s why Jesus tells us to ‘go’. sharing the love of Christ in India, the
As He says in Acts 1:8 we are called to be His publication of literature and the teaching of
witnesses at home and even to the ends of the pastors in Africa, the demonstration of love
earth. He doesn’t tell us to go and make to seafarers from across the world, and the
converts but disciples. The difference is pastoral support and propagation of the gospel
significant. among professional golfers. We also support
ongoing work in Romania, Malawi, Cambodia,
I remember when I was in Peru, one of the Moldova, Jordan, and other parts of the Arab
missionaries that I had the privilege of working world. That’s not even to mention the multiple
with told me that a rather large church in projects here at home. We have been
California (which will remain nameless) didn’t intentional about partnering with agencies that
seem to understand the difference between work for justice, support persecuted Christians,
‘making disciples’ and ‘making converts’. He lift up the poor and bring the gospel to the
said that they sent him a short-term team who hardest to reach areas on the planet. Yet none
decided to come to the village where he was of this would be possible without the generous
working and show the Jesus film in Spanish. support of the people in our congregation.
After showing the film one of the team spoke You might not understand all the details of
for a short time and asked for a show of hands what these groups we support do on a daily
from those who wanted to ‘invite Jesus into basis but be assured that they are all invested
their hearts’. in the task of making disciples and making the
name of Jesus known in the world. Let me
encourage you to get involved and make the
great commission the priority of this church.
Keith McIlroy
