Tuesday, July 18, 2006
Mission---Geographical? Yes or No?
I was reading some blogging on missional stuff and someone was discussing my book and made the comment to the effect that I believe that if it’s not overseas then it’s not missional. In their mind I had equated missional with geographical thereby making those who go overseas more spiritual.
Missional is first relational. Missions is activity, projects, and work. Missional is the life of the follower of Christ. It flows out of who God is. Missional is obedience to the moment when God speaks. Missional is discipleship. This is the great gap between the mystics and the missionaries. The two must be merged to be missional and when that happens you wind up with pilgrims.
Missional is incarnational. This means living out the life of Christ as best you can in your neighborhood, your work, your family, wherever you live and wherever Christ has placed you. Incarnational living always goes beyond your ability, be it local or global. It stretches you--or as I say--causes you to span your ability. This requires grace and the Holy Spirit--it’s beyond our ability.
Missional is living out the Sermon on the Mount--connecting this life, here and now, with the Kingdom of God, here and now, but, also, later and there. There is no missional without the Kingdom of God. It is the ethos, the ethic, the standard, the way God works. It is the "Christian Manifesto."
Missional living takes in the whole counsel of God. This means theology and ministry. It is, as I refer to, seeing things as the whole. God’s totality will never be seen by us or mastered by us. Yet, when He tells us to do something, He does it not just because He needs something done (He can do things with or without us) but He has us do it because it is lining us up with His character and putting us in line with His will so we get to be a part of His divine plan.
If God gave the Great Commission to the whole church, then the whole church, of necessity, must be global--not just local. No doubt, finances, opportunity, etc., all play into what level someone can be involved. The point is we should be involved in it as much as we can because, just like giving, witnessing, praying, the goal for most of us is to grow in those areas.
The reality is, when we connect with the whole counsel and will of God, something happens to us. We discover dimensions of who God is we had not seen until we experienced Him. This is true of salvation, the filling of the Spirit, and personal obedience to the will of God.
Missional is far more than geographical--it’s our relationship with God that causes us to love Him. But, when that relationship is connected, it never stops at our front door, it goes and knocks on someone else’s front door. Someone once knocked on my door and I’m sure glad they did--that I have no responsibility to knock--now that’s a perversion!
Rev 3:20 Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me. NIV
Missional is first relational. Missions is activity, projects, and work. Missional is the life of the follower of Christ. It flows out of who God is. Missional is obedience to the moment when God speaks. Missional is discipleship. This is the great gap between the mystics and the missionaries. The two must be merged to be missional and when that happens you wind up with pilgrims.
Missional is incarnational. This means living out the life of Christ as best you can in your neighborhood, your work, your family, wherever you live and wherever Christ has placed you. Incarnational living always goes beyond your ability, be it local or global. It stretches you--or as I say--causes you to span your ability. This requires grace and the Holy Spirit--it’s beyond our ability.
Missional is living out the Sermon on the Mount--connecting this life, here and now, with the Kingdom of God, here and now, but, also, later and there. There is no missional without the Kingdom of God. It is the ethos, the ethic, the standard, the way God works. It is the "Christian Manifesto."
Missional living takes in the whole counsel of God. This means theology and ministry. It is, as I refer to, seeing things as the whole. God’s totality will never be seen by us or mastered by us. Yet, when He tells us to do something, He does it not just because He needs something done (He can do things with or without us) but He has us do it because it is lining us up with His character and putting us in line with His will so we get to be a part of His divine plan.
If God gave the Great Commission to the whole church, then the whole church, of necessity, must be global--not just local. No doubt, finances, opportunity, etc., all play into what level someone can be involved. The point is we should be involved in it as much as we can because, just like giving, witnessing, praying, the goal for most of us is to grow in those areas.
The reality is, when we connect with the whole counsel and will of God, something happens to us. We discover dimensions of who God is we had not seen until we experienced Him. This is true of salvation, the filling of the Spirit, and personal obedience to the will of God.
Missional is far more than geographical--it’s our relationship with God that causes us to love Him. But, when that relationship is connected, it never stops at our front door, it goes and knocks on someone else’s front door. Someone once knocked on my door and I’m sure glad they did--that I have no responsibility to knock--now that’s a perversion!
Rev 3:20 Here I am! I stand at the door and knock. If anyone hears my voice and opens the door, I will come in and eat with him, and he with me. NIV
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