GO

And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:18-20)

I’ve been a full time “missionary’ or even technically a “minister” (whatever that means) for a couple of years now, and I always have a lump in my throat when answering a specific question I get asked frequently: “How many people are coming to Christ as a result of our ministry?”

I’m not writing the following entry to be defensive against this question, but I think a lot of the Church has the idea that a missionary, literally a “sent one” is synonymous with “evangelist”. I always get that lump in my throat not because I’m nervous of how to answer–I am evangelistic by nature, no matter the setting you drop me in. But when I read the Great Commission verses, I see words like “go” and “make disciples”. I don’t actually see “go lead people to Jesus” specifically or “go get people to make a decision for Christ”, or “make converts of the nations”.

In the Body of Christ, we have such an emphasis—a healthy one at that–on the idea that wherever one goes, they are bringing the kingdom of God with them. This is true and I’d never do anything to pour water on the flames of that notion. However, just because I’m able to give advice and be pastoral to people, doesn’t make me a pastor. I can teach also, but that doesn’t necessarily make me a teacher. I can evangelize, and so can–and so SHOULD all believers!–but that doesn’t make me the specific gift of an evangelist (Ephesians 4:11). I can prophesy, but that doesn’t make me a prophet. Likewise, many in the body of Christ are mission-minded or they’re at least bringing the kingdom of God to their sphere of influence at jobs, schools, or in their circles of friends. But does that mean every single person who is a disciple of Christ is a “missionary?”

No. Well, yes. Sometimes. But my ‘yes’ is qualified: we are all supposed to be . But that doesn’t mean just because you’re breathing air in the same vicinity as an unbeliever, that you are making any impact whatsoever on them.

I don’t pretend to have the specific answers about all these things, but I also want to challenge you that the Great Commission talks of GOING, not staying. The emphasis is on making disciples in ALL nations, not specifically just our own culture. And in order to make disciples, they need to actually be saved, or following Christ, first, right? If you’re like me until about six months ago when my podcast co-host Dan challenged me on something–you’d be forced to realize much of our idea of discipleship is flawed. For example, you probably answered my question with the answer “yes, disciples are supposed to be saved before you can disciple them.” But when did Jesus pick His disciples? Before or after they made a commitment to lay their lives down and follow Him?

Interesting indeed.

So in a sense, my mission to make disciples of Christ, in all nations, is successful according to God’s standards I would assume. However, many people, individuals or corporate fellowships have absolutely no missions focus whatsoever. This is unfortunate, but I’m not on here to beat any sheep. Some churches are successful at reaching their neighbors or communities and impacting them in some way, but more than 95% of church growth in North America–I heard this statistic about 7 years ago–is actually transfer growth where people change churches and start going to another one better suited to them. Only a small fraction of church growth in North America is actually from leading first time converts to the Lord.

So why do we brag so much of how little we’re doing as if it’s more than it really is? I constantly listen to people refer to themselves as evangelists or missionaries to their school campuses and workplaces. Again, there’s nothing wrong with that per se–IF you really are being a shining light in a dark place. I’d never do anything to pour water on this flame because I think this is healthy and a great attitude–and I’d rather fan that into flame in people and equip them and help, and encourage this in every way I am capable. But I am concerned that we (myself included) often say things like that to make people think we’re doing more than we really are. Or to convince ourselves we are really doing more than we are.
One time I posted the following quote by Tony Campolo that kind of addressed that:

“Too often, I hear Christians in mainline denominations saying things like, “I don’t have to talk about my faith. I live it! My witness is the life I live before others, and I believe I so live out what it means to be a Christian that words are not really necessary.”
What arrogance! Do any of us live out our faith so compellingly that anyone merely observing us will be swept into giving himself or herself over to God? Of course not!”
-Tony Campolo

What I am not saying is that you are a failure if you’re not overseas, or standing in a pulpit–by no means am I saying that. In fact, the entire Body of Christ is called to the Great Commission, but probably 95% will never do “ministry” in the traditional form of ‘pastor’ or clergy or whatever our old wine skins look like.

But no matter your giftings and what you’re qualified to do, Jesus DID say go…

“But Steve, Jesus was speaking to His disciples”.

I hate listening to that argument in most of the ways I hear it used, because many Christians borrow and live out other things Jesus said “only to His disciples”, but then other commands are disregarded on the same basis. Jesus also said to them, He would be with them to the end of the age, but the disciples all died off in the decades to come, and this ‘age’ is not over. I’m kinda getting on a soap box a bit, because I know much of my audience has never left their country, whether you’re Dutch or Canadian or Peruvian and reading this.

I worked at a camp once and heard a co-worker refer to her summer that year as “the next several years of her missions service to God rolled into one summer.” She was making that remark in reference to how challenging this summer was working with under-privileged youth. But isn’t it odd how WE tell God what we will give Him and how much of ourselves and our lives we are willing to give? Similarly, I remember a friend of mine after getting engaged, telling me the same sort of thing; explaining to me how maybe her and her husband will spend one year on the mission field ‘at the longest’, before doing other things with their lives–because somehow God would be happy they are doing “more than many”. It’s better to do this sort of stuff while young, yes! But when I challenged her on the idea God was in charge of what HE wanted to do with her life, and not her, she got very offended with me and thought I was being pushy and judgmental. This was years ago, before I ever knew I’d be a missionary.

I hate to break it to anyone reading, but if you are a follower of Christ, your life is not your own. Period. That is also our message, contrary to the “God has a wonderful plan for your life” heresy many teach to tickle hears. If we are disciples of Christ, then that means HE OWNS US. He is the one who determines what He wants with your life, and I think as soon as about 80% of the Body of Christ in North America finally yields WHOLLY to Him, we’ll probably see a rise in foreign missions in particular, and probably see things like the entire world have the Bible translated in their own languages in just a few decades or faster. Dare I say the biggest thing slowing us down is much of the Western Church not being as concerned about it, while the Gospel explodes in other areas of the world where people aren’t as distracted by materialism and comforts.

“But Steve, not everyone is called to foreign missions.”

You’re right, not everybody is. But I don’t believe the number of people called to stay is anywhere near as large as I’m seeing all around me. Something like 90% of all the Christian resources in the world, such as Bibles, Bible colleges, Christian books, television, etc.. is in the West, but Church attendance in that part of the world is declining. Does it not concern us then that over a billion people in the world have never even heard the name of Christ at all, let alone gotten saved, lazy and complacent? With that in mind, I have a hard time understanding why all sorts of people don’t feel called to GO.

But there IS a generation rising who are radical and hungry and want to go…without necessarily knowing where they should invest their time and resources. I say just go for it! Eternity is forever, and this lifetime is too short to build our own little empires and ways of life. I’ll settle down in heaven when this lifetime is over with, since after all, this life is but a dressing room for eternity.