On Being Mission Minded

Louisville was terrific. The SBTS campus is beautiful, the professors are incredibly nice, the classes are challenging without being out of reach, and the students are focused and generous. I really feel this is God's place for Samantha and I to prepare for ministry. Now we'll just have to see whether I can get in there!

In the meantime, I've been thinking a lot lately about what it is to be mission-minded. I'm starting to work my way through Acts as I finish up 1 Peter, and I'm impressed in both by how important the call to spread the good news is. Quite simply, God has called us to reach out to the surrounding culture. Why don't we respond more obediently?

I imagine that a big part of it is fear of hardship or uncertainty. I struggle in trying to connect with non-Christians, because I feel like I speak a different language. I also tend to get too uptight about the lifestyles of people who don't know any better.

If I want to be a true minister, though, I ought to be a leader in formulating ways of stretching out to draw people toward Christ. Our call is to preach the good news to all people, baptising them and teaching them to obey God... and then doing it again. I find that I tend to lose site of this concept and instead focus my time on teaching people who are already Christians. That's a good thing, which I intend to continue, but I also should be recognizing that the call to minister to the unsaved is a continual call, not one that ended when we established a financially stable church community.

My hope is that studying Acts will teach me things about how the early church built itself without losing site of its mission. I want to be a servant of Christ committed to obedience in all areas, not just areas of training and discipleship. If my desire is to truly see the kingdom of God established by the growth of His authority in the hearts of people, I should be more committed to bringing those who have not heard to a knowledge of Him.