Notes: The mission of the church

The Mission of the Church is not social justice

When we say social justice here, we’re talking about the issues of human rights, discrimination, the inclusion of minority groups, and on and on. Yes, these are important things. But social justice is not the mission of the church.

Someone might point to Luke 4:17-19 and say that Jesus was sent to free the oppressed, so the church must do the same. I agree, and so should you. But let’s see what the passage really says.

Luke 4:17–19 NASB95

17 And the book of the prophet Isaiah was handed to Him. And He opened the book and found the place where it was written, 18 “The Spirit of the Lord is upon Me, Because He anointed Me to preach the gospel to the poor. He has sent Me to proclaim release to the captives, And recovery of sight to the blind, To set free those who are oppressed, 19 To proclaim the favorable year of the Lord.”

So Jesus’ mission is to preach the gospel to the poor, to proclaim release to the captives, to bring sight to the blind, to free the oppressed, and to proclaim the year of the Lord.

But is that what Jesus did? The Romans were ruling over Jerusalem at the time, and the Jews were being oppressed. Did Jesus overturn their rule? Did He fight for equal rights and equal privileges?

Who are the poor, the oppressed, and the blind? Who are the ones in captivity?

Every single person who believes the lies of the devil.

Luke 14:21 NASB95

21 “And the slave came back and reported this to his master. Then the head of the household became angry and said to his slave, ‘Go out at once into the streets and lanes of the city and bring in here the poor and crippled and blind and lame.’

These descriptions are metaphors describing our souls without Christ. And how are we freed? How are our eyes opened? Only through the Word of God. That was Jesus’ mission, and that is ours.

The Mission of the Church is not social bonding

The church is much more than a social gathering. We are not here to make friends, or to find a community to belong to. These are good things, and they are part of the church experience. But our one purpose is to worship God. And in order to worship God, we must encounter Him through His Word.

Luke 14:26 NASB95

26 “If anyone comes to Me, and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple.

Again, loving one another is part of what it means to be a disciple of Christ.

John 13:35 NASB95

35 “By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”

When David became king, he became king in two stages. First, he declared himself king in Hebron. At that point, Saul had died in a battle against the Philistines, and so began a war between the house of Saul and the house of David.

Without its leader, the house of Saul grew weak. And house David grew strong (2 Sam. 3:1). Eventually, David becomes king over all Israel, and all authority is given to him. And those who allied with Saul’s house faced the consequences.

David then seeks to build a house for the Lord. And in response, the Lord makes a covenant with David, and He promises that the son of David will reign for eternity.

Fast-forward a thousand years. Joseph and Mary are betrothed, both from the tribe of Judah, both from the line of David. And Mary conceives by the Holy Spirit and gives birth to Jesus, the eternal King of house David. And to this day, Jesus wages an ongoing spiritual war against the forces of Satan.

You might be thinking, “What does this have to do with me? Why should I care?”

We should care because there is no neutral position in the spiritual war. We are either for Jesus or against Him (Matt. 12:30). There is no middle ground.

And on the final day, when Jesus reigns victorious, there will be consequences.

Whose authority do you believe in?

The United States recently elected a new president into authority. Their new president gave orders, and now there are many big changes happening there.

When someone new comes into power, things change.

Have things changed? Or is our worship only lip service?

Our King has given us a mission, to make disciples. And I don’t know about you, but if I’m honest with myself, I’ve not really paid much attention to the mission of the church. I’ve been in Zion Church for about 18 years, and I’ve got no fruits of evangelism to show for it.

But the mission still stands. And Jesus is patiently waiting for our obedience. What’s the mission?

Matthew 28:19–20 NASB95

19 “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

Our mission is to make disciples. How? Two steps. By baptizing people, and by teaching them to observe all that He has commanded. The mission of the church is to make disciples by baptizing, and by teaching the Word of God.

Authority illustration: Recently I had to download an app on my work computer. But my computer wouldn’t let me install it unless I demonstrated my identity as the owner. My authority. I had to authorize my computer to install the program.

The Mission of the Church is to make disciples of Christ through baptism

What does it mean to make disciples?

The word “disciple” is mathyteuo/μαθητεύω, which refers to a pupil or a student. And in the Bible, this word has an emphasis on imitation or likeness between the student and teacher (Luke 6:40).

For example, Paul exhorts the Corinthian church to imitate him as he imitates Christ.

1 Corinthians 11:1 NASB95

1 Be imitators of me, just as I also am of Christ.

Galatians 4:19 NASB95

19 My children, with whom I am again in labor until Christ is formed in you—

And if you look at the fruit of the Spirit in Gal. 5:22-23, it’s a description of Christ. Love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, and so on.

And Jesus states that first step to making disciples is to baptize them. It is a faith response to the authority of Christ.

Why? It’s a sign of repentance.

Acts 2:38 NASB95

38 Peter said to them, “Repent, and each of you be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins; and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.

When we are baptized, we are confessing that we once lived according to the lies of the devil. But now, we trust in the authority of Jesus and His Word.

Mark 16:16 NASB95

16 “He who has believed and has been baptized shall be saved; but he who has disbelieved shall be condemned.

So if baptism is a sign of repentance, then it’s the first step of faith.

The Mission of the Church is to make disciples of Christ through teaching the Word of God (discipleship)

Those who refuse to believe Jesus is king believe that death is still the victor.

Prof. Scott Galloway: My primary motivation is atheism. In the end, we’re all going to be dust. So why not make the most and go for it?

First, Jesus has authority over nature.

The Bible says in Matt. 10:29 that even the birds do not fall without God’s willing it. When the winds howled and the waves tossed, it only took Jesus 2 Greek words, and the sea became like a sea of glass. The rocks and the trees obey His voice like soldiers to their commanding officer.

Second, Jesus has authority over health.

He casts away sickness with a word, and no sickness stays without His permission. Can this be true? Is God really sovereign over my illness? A god who can’t cure the sick is not the God of the Bible. A god who doesn’t know you’re sick is not the God of the Bible. So why isn’t God healing me? The Apostle Paul asked the same thing regarding his thorn in the flesh. Three times he asked for healing. Three times, God didn’t heal him. But God spoke to him and said “My grace is sufficient for you, for power is perfected in weakness.” (2 Cor. 12:9). There’s a shop in Novena that sells thick medical textbooks. Everything in those pages that happens in our body happens because it has been authorized by Jesus.