Scriptures:

Old Testament - Ezekiel 34:15-16
Gospel - Matthew 28:18-20
Epistle - Hebrews 2:10-13

The missionary is famous in thoughts of Christianity.  We all know of the dedicated souls who go to exotic and potentially dangerous lands, bringing the word of God to those who would otherwise never hear it.  We also think of the mission to the homeless or the inner city, where we show God's love to those who might not go to the traditional place of worship, the church; whether it's because of lack of opportunity, or unwillingness to go to worship, the people in need of food, donated clothing, or shelter for the night will often get religion in small doses that they might not otherwise receive.  Other areas that come to mind are the prisons, nursing homes, orphanages, and many places that require great sacrifice to work in.  In short, we think of missionary work as helping the needy, or those less fortunate than ourselves; however, few of us think of our own need for a missionary.

Last month, when Sasha Makovin gave his pottery presentation here, the newsletter article telling about the program talked of the need for missionary work within the church.  Some might be offended if they were told they needed a mission.  The truth is, we all need one, whether we're saved or not.  In the Great Commission, Christ told us to take His message to all the nations, and this is an obvious scripture to use as the basis for a mission trip to a foreign land.  However, making disciples of all the nations means everybody, and the best place to start is often right where we are, in the church.

We've heard the phrase “preaching to the converted,” and this often means trying to convince someone who is already on your side:  an unnecessary effort.; but let's take this statement literally.  After we are converted, do we stop hearing sermons?  The exact opposite is more accurate.  Before I came to Christ, I hardly ever heard preaching, other than snippets of sermons I got when I was changing tv channels on Sunday mornings.  I went to few church services, and I can't tell you what the preacher was talking about in any of them.  One reason is that most of those church services were from my early childhood, and I can't remember them, nor did I understand the sermon in the first place.   As for the couple of services I attended as a teenager, I don't remember them because I paid little attention.  It's likely that most of the ones interested in the message were the converted.  Since I started going t o church regularly, I haven't stopped being preached to, and I'll be hearing sermons for the rest of my life; my becoming one of the converted was only the start of my being preached to.

The ancient Jews did not spend much effort on gaining converts; this is true of Judaism today.  About the only way to become a Jew is to be born into the religion.  The main focus is on maintaining the nation of Israel, as the Old Testament reading illustrates.  In Ezekiel, the passage uses a metaphor of God as the shepherd and Israel the flock that we find in many other passages of the Bible.  In making Israel a flock of sheep, the passage emphasizes the need to attend to those who are already in the congregation.  In Christianity, this need still exists.  One of the benefits of a congregation is being in a community of people who care about each other, and are available to help.   In this sense, routine church activities, such as worship services, Sunday school classes, and Bible studies are missionary endeavors, though many might not think of them in this way.  As Christians, though, our responsibility extends beyond the congregation.

In Hebrews, Paul emphasizes the Great Commission by saying that Jesus calls all of us brothers and sisters, and we all have one Father in Heaven.  Through Christ, more than just one nation, more than one ethnic group, more than one congregation have access to God; all who accept Jesus have that access.  We must remember, however, that the moment of salvation is only the beginning of being ministered to.  Whether we are newly converted or grown up in the church, laity or clergy, our spiritual journey has no end, and each of us has room to grow.

Amen.

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Copyright © 1997 by Dave Vaughn.  All rights reserved.