Monday, September 27, 2021 Some material taken from You Were Made For Mission
That I may finish my course and the ministry which I received from the Lord Jesus, to testify solemnly of the gospel of the grace of God. Acts 20:24 NASB
The Purpose You Are Searching For
Have you ever struggled with what your purpose is in life? This may be the question we struggle with the most in life – and usually more than once. Our purposes shift with the seasons of our lives. When we have a young family, our purpose is leading that family, meeting their needs, protecting them, teaching them, etc… While we fulill other purposes at the same time, that is our primary purpose in that particular season.
No matter what season we are in, there is one purpose for our lives that never shifts or changes. I heard someone say at a Bible study I was attending recently that if we are still here on earth, there is only one reason – to lead others to Christ. Even in the different seasons of our lives, our purposes all circle back to our primary purpose: leading others to Jesus – our children and other family members, our co-workers, our friends, our neighbors – it is all meant to be about Him and His gospel. He should be magnified in every area, in every aspect of our lives, and in every season.
God is at work in the world, and He wants us to join Him. This is our mission, and it is different from ministry. Ministry is our service to believers in the Body of Christ, while our mission is service and witness to unbelievers in the world. God created us for both – all of us. Our life mission is both shared and specific. One part of it is a responsibility we share with every other Christian, and the other is an assignment that is unique and specific to each one of us.
Our Mission is Directly Connected to Our Purpose
The English word "mission" comes from the Latin word for "sending." Being a Christian includes being sent into the world as a representative of Jesus Christ. Jesus said, "As the Father has sent me, I am sending you." John 20:21 This does not mean that everyone is meant to go overseas as a missionary. It means that we are all to have a missionary mindset where we are – in whatever season – in whatever setting. That means in our families and in our neighborhoods and at work we are magnifying Christ in our lives and sharing the love of God and His Gospel, with EVERYONE around us. Remember – the people we really don’t want to be around might need the gospel the most, and no one is in your life by accident. This is the hardest part of our purpose to accept.
This world only seems to be getting worse. It seems like more and more are blinded to the good news and drawn to Satan. Our time feels like it is running out so we should all be more dilligent about our mission in Chirst.
Jesus gave us this mission five times, in five different ways, and in five different books in the Bible. It is important. It is time we took it seriously. This is something God has entursted us with, not to be for our own glory, but for His alone. …but just as we have been approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel, so we speak, not to please man, but to please God who tests our hearts.
1 Thessalonians 2:4
God wants to redeem human beings from Satan and reconcile them to himself – the very way He redeemed us. He saves us and then sends us out so we can help those who are still lost and need to be reconciled. We who are saved know this great grace and mercy we have been given. We know the freedom from the bondage of sin and the relief of our debt being paid. We know the assurance of eternal life. These are the things – our testimony, and the story of salvation – that we need to be sharing with others.
Jesus said, All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age. Matthew 28:19-20
