Missions

Today is Missions Sunday and that’s the subject for today’s lesson.

We will eventually ask for 1 or two people to share the question on the board. Think about this question as we go through the discussion.

Lets start with a question to the class

Q: With Missions in mind, What is the difference between Missions and Evangelism?

Evangelism - To preach the gospel

Missions - Efforts to cross cultural and language lines to places where the gospel has not reached.

Lets see where things first started.

Genesis 1:28 (ESV)

And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it

God’s command to Adam and Eve, He gave similar one to Noah after the flood.

Let continue, after Noah we get to the passage describing Babel.

Genesis 11:1–4 ESV

Now the whole earth had one language and the same words. And as people migrated from the east, they found a plain in the land of Shinar and settled there. And they said to one another, “Come, let us make bricks, and burn them thoroughly.” And they had brick for stone, and bitumen for mortar. Then they said, “Come, let us build ourselves a city and a tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be dispersed over the face of the whole earth.”

Do we see a problem between Genesis 1 and 11?

People did not want to be dispersed, against God’s will

Genesis 11:6–9 ESV

And the Lord said, “Behold, they are one people, and they have all one language, and this is only the beginning of what they will do. And nothing that they propose to do will now be impossible for them. Come, let us go down and there confuse their language, so that they may not understand one another’s speech.” So the Lord dispersed them from there over the face of all the earth, and they left off building the city. Therefore its name was called Babel, because there the Lord confused the language of all the earth. And from there the Lord dispersed them over the face of all the earth.

At one point everyone spoke the same language. Because of this people stayed in the same location, which is contrary to what God commanded man to do.

I have a feeling that if man dispersed over the land like God commanded that we may all be speaking the same language today.

Would it not be cool to be able to travel the world and not worry about being able to communicate with someone?

But this introduced a problem.

Q: How many people that now spread out from Babel do you think knew the one true God?

Probably few if any.

Multiple languages and cultures were formed.

Divisions among people groups was formed because of mans disobedience

Since then its been difficult to communicate with others from different languages.

Lets go to the question on the board

Q: Who of you here have ever been on Mission trips before?

Can you share your experience?

What kind of impact do you think your mission had on the people you visited?

The reason many of us go on Missions is because of verse like this.

Matthew 28:18–20 ESV

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.”

While God’s heart was there for other nation in the OT, it becomes a more central part in the NT.

Why? Because of Jesus.

As we saw the sin of man severed ties not only among God and Man but also among one another.

Jesus came and he is reuniting us with God first but also with fellow man, across all divides.

Back to the passage. the first verse

Matthew 28:18 ESV

And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.

Q: Why Jesus say this before he tells the disciples to go make disciples?

Has anyone ever been given an assignment by someone really high up at a company that you work for? Maybe the owner or CEO?

I work at American as an Analyst, they have different levels for employees.

The lowest rank employees are at level 1. I am at a level 4

Our Vice President of American is at level 11, she tells me that I should get some teams to complete a project.

I sometimes have to tell people 3 or 4 levels above me that they need to do some work.

Do you think that I am scared to tell tell them what to do when I know that I have the Vice President on my side?

No. There are still times when those people dont want to listen to me. What do I do?

I let the VP know and she steps in and guess what happens? They start to listen very quickly.

I can be confident that I can instruct people anywhere to get the work done, even if the are many levels above me.

Jesus is saying

“I am in charge and I am sending you now go”

People may or may not want to listen but they will answer to him.

You are being sent by the highest power imaginable to complete your work.

Acts 1:8 ESV

But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

Not only are you sent by Jesus but he also equips you to be able to do the work he is sending you to do, through the Holy Spirit.

Lets looks really quick at the disciples.

Right after Jesus was crucified but before he appeared to them

John 20:19–22 ESV

On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.” When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.” And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit.

So what happend?

They were locking themselves inside somewhere out of fear.

Jesus then appeared and gifted them the Holy Spirit.

How did the disciples respond after this?

Peter went to Antioch and ended up in Rome

Andrew went to Greece

Thomas went to India

Matthew went to Africa

Philip in Asia

James in Persia

Simon to Egypt

Paul went everywhere.

What did they do?

They did the opposite of what the people in Babel did.

Did the disciples want to make a name for themselves like the people of Babel?

After they experienced the resurrected Jesus no, they wanted to make Jesus name famous.

Did the discplies want to stick together among those they knew, where its safe?

After they experienced the resurrected Jesus no, they knew that the One who has all power is sending them. They can be bold

They went from sticking together locked in a room by themselves, in safety with the people that they know to completely splitting apart.

The question is, have you experienced the resurrected Jesus? If so you do not have to be afraid!

I am thankful that the disciples did not keep to their own language and stay in Israel only.

I am thankful that they spread throughout Asia, Africa, Europe,

I am thankful that at one point in time someone in history reached out to what is now the Romanian people and preached the gospel

Those people in took the gospel and in spread throughout Romania and eventually my grandparents heard about Jesus and I then heard about Jesus and I can now also preach Jesus.

I am thankful that the historical Jesus wasn't kept only to the Jews.

We in turn should be that same stepping stone for those in other cultures, languages etc. that do not know Christ so that one day they can too be thankful for the work that you and I did by the power of the Holy Spirit to bring people to a saving faith.

I will leave you with this verse from the book of Revelation. This is where the Apostle John has a vision of what heaven will be like.

Revelation 7:9–10 ESV

After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!”

Notice that people from ever tribe, and language are here. This means this vision is a guarantee

If you have questions about how to get involved in Missions, the Church will guide you in how you can help.