The Great Omission

What is missions?

Missions can be defined as the carrying of the gospel to the ends of the earth, teaching, obeying, and modeling the entirety of the commands and example of Christ (Matt. 28:19-20), in the strength and way of Christ, leading to a rich welcome (2 Pet. 1:11) into the kingdom of Christ. It is a God-glorifying, prayer-covered, Christ-focused, Spirit-fueled, faith-perfecting act of obedience by which we venture into the highways and hedges that God’s house might be full (Lk. 14:23).

Missions is also a lifestyle, not an identity. Rather than going “on mission” to find an identity, we live on mission out of our identity in Christ. Missions may challenge and sharpen us, but it cannot create what is not there. In the words of one pastor, “Missions will not fix what you are; missions will amplify and showcase what you are.” Christ-less missionary endeavors are a poor substitute for the soul-filling Person of the Lord we serve. Missions is a noble calling, but we do not live for missions. We live for Christ and build on Him (1 Cor. 3:11).

But what does that mean, and who is the Christ-filled missionary? Below are twelve (I know, bear with me) points on who the Christian missionary is.

1. The missionary is a compassionate Christian.

Before Matthew 28 is Matthew 9:36: “When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd.”

Jesus sees that the crowds are vulnerable and weak. Some translations use “weary and scattered.” Jesus has been healing, forgiving, and teaching and has even been questioned and maligned by the Pharisees yet continues to have compassion. Criticism doesn’t deter Him or rob Him of this deep feeling for the people. Interestingly, the Greek word used here for Jesus’ compassion is found neither in classical Greek nor in the Septuagint (the Greek translation of the Old Testament). It was coined for this purpose, to attempt to describe and convey the depths of the compassion of Christ, that we might be devastated for His precious lost.

The motive of the biblical missionary remains the glory of God. At the same time, he is an agent of the compassion of Christ, seeing the crowds, the sheep, and the unharvested plenty no longer in a worldly manner but in the manner of His Shepherd.

2. The missionary is a praying Christian.

Next, Jesus says to His disciples, “The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field” (Matt. 9:37-38). Jesus could have used this opportunity to expound on the need to go. Instead, He tells the disciples, “Ask.” Ask the Lord to send out workers.

Pray. Intercede. Ask, and be prepared to answer like Abraham (Gen. 22:1), Jacob (Gen. 31:11), Moses (Ex. 3:4), Samuel (1 Sam. 3:4), Isaiah (Is. 6:8), and Christ Himself (Ps. 40:7): “Here I am!”

3. The missionary is a skilled Christian.

Workers must go into the harvest field of God, but are we skilled for the task? Do we practice with the sickle, rightly dividing the Word of God (2 Tim. 2:15), and know when to use it? Or is God’s harvest field but a playground where we indulge our comforts, sing our songs, tolerate nothing that would prick our consciences, and play religion? To be effective as God’s laborers, we must be skilled in God’s tools and be found practicing often in the workshop of our Master.

4. The missionary is a sent Christian.

Ask the Lord to send. In the Greek the understanding is that God would “push” or “drive” workers into His harvest field as a demon is thrust out of a possessed man. Jesus was sent by the Father (Lk. 4:18; Jn. 7:29, 17:3). He also sends out His disciples (Jn. 17:18). In His parable of the seed, a man scatters seed and does not know how or when the seed sprouts. Yet when the grain is ripe, he “puts the sickle to it,” or “sends in” the sickle, because the harvest has come (Mk. 4:29). God sends Paul to the Gentiles (Ac. 26:17), and Christians are sent to preach that others may hear, believe, and call on the One whom they have heard (Rom. 10:14-15).

Ultimately, we are sent because Jesus was sent that we might live through Him (1 Jn. 4:9-10). We follow in His steps. God never intended for even the most spiritual Christian to minister solo. Clearly, the church must be a sending people.

5. The missionary is a simple Christian.

As the gospel is simple, so must the Christian be. When Jesus sends out the disciples, He tells them, “Do not get any gold or silver or copper to take with you in your belts—no bag for the journey or extra shirt or sandals or a staff...” (Matt. 10:9-10). In other words, no worldly distractions that might limit, hinder, or burden them.

As Christians, we are to be a people of simplicity. To quote Thomas Kelly, God “never guides us into an intolerable scramble of panting feverishness.” Simplicity allows for solitude and rest in our hurried world. It gives us a pure lens and a clean vision. It promotes a re-ordering of our priorities and restores us with the patience to love as Jesus loves (Jn. 13:35). We see Paul’s concern for the Corinthians when he says, “But I am afraid that just as Eve was deceived by the serpent’s cunning, your minds may somehow be led astray from your sincere [or simple] and pure devotion to Christ” (2 Cor. 11:3). Simplicity is not simply about making us feel better or more rested. It is an offensive action in resisting the crusade against our minds.

Charles Swindoll gives us this encouragement from Intimacy with the Almighty: “Those who desire to simplify their lives quickly discover that it is a solo voyage against the wind.” Maybe we like busyness because it makes us feel important. Maybe quietness feels unproductive, a threat to the bustling activity we use to drug ourselves and distract us from confronting our darkest place (Ps. 139:23-24, Lam. 3:40). Whatever the case, noise and hectic schedules, Swindoll adds, close our ears to God’s “still, small voice” and make us “numb to His touch.” Simplicity, in conjunction with the other disciplines, not only sets us apart from the pagans who “run after” what we can trust God to provide (Matt. 6:32). It sensitizes us to His guiding whisper and allows for richer fellowship.

6. The missionary is a shrewd Christian.

Still in Matthew 10, Jesus declares, “I am sending you out like sheep among wolves. Therefore be as shrewd as snakes and as innocent as doves” (v. 16). We are to be “innocent” (unmixed, unsophisticated, simple, or sincere) yet shrewd. Choosing to not entangle ourselves in worldly concerns cultivates and preserves our ability to distinguish good from evil (Heb. 5:14). Note, Jesus does not say to be cynical. We are not haughty or contemptuous. We do not judge with our own judgment (Jn. 7:24). We are wise—yet innocent.

Additionally, in this context, “shrewd” indicates not craftiness but wisdom and alertness. As one commentator notes, “serpents are attacked by everyone, and must use creativity and wisdom to survive.” This same word is used to describe the man who puts Jesus’ words into practice in Matthew 7 and the five wise virgins in Matthew 25. Serpents understand existing threats and that the time is short. If the missionary would engage the world, he must know the schemes of the world without being of it or falling for it. He must be perceptive and wise without adding offense to the gospel. He must be a shrewd Christian.

7. The missionary is an obedient Christian.

Matthew 28:19-20 outlines what has been widely termed the Great Commission: “Then Jesus came to them and said, ‘All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.’” As a side note, Webster’s 1828 definition of “commission” includes a thing “committed, entrusted or delivered.” We are not creating ex nihilo. We are messengers of a thing entrusted.

In context, the eleven disciples had gone to Galilee where Jesus had told them to go (v. 16). We then read that they worshiped Him, “but some doubted” (v. 17). They all obeyed Him. They all worshiped. But some doubted.

Doubt can be resolved by obedience, acting not according to emotion but according to the truth. Abraham’s faith was made complete by his obedience (Jas. 2:22), and Hebrews 12:1 calls Christ the “perfecter” of our faith. The question is whether we have any faith, even faith as small as a mustard seed (Matt. 17:20), to move us to the obedience that will unveil our eyes. Jesus asked Peter three times, “Simon son of John, do you love me?” (Jn. 21:15, 16, 17). Each time Peter answered in the affirmative, and Jesus called for an action. As Elisabeth Elliot observes, He was not asking about Peter’s feelings; “He was asking for action.” A faith without works is foreign to Scripture (Jas. 2:20). We must pray, then obey.

8. The missionary is an active Christian.

It may be worth noting that “go” here in Matthew has a few connotations. One of these is to pursue the journey on which one has entered or to continue on that journey. In other words, “going” not only points to a traveler or one making a journey. It also seems to insinuate that missions is something we do as we go. As we live. As we work. Time must be redeemed, for the days are evil (Eph. 5:16). The mind and life of the missionary is active, always aware and alert for opportunities to invest in making disciples.

9. The missionary is an abiding Christian.

Missions is a lifestyle lived and accomplished in the strength and presence of Christ. Matthew ends with the reassuring word that our Jesus will be with His disciples always, to the very end of the age (Matt. 28:20). He encourages Paul in Acts 18:9-10, “Do not be afraid; keep on speaking, do not be silent. For I am with you, and no one is going to attack and harm you, because I have many people in this city.” His compassion compels us. His example inspires us. His Word equips us, and His strength sustains us. Attempting Christ’s work apart from Christ is a recipe for wasted time and a weak harvest (Jn. 15:5). Missions begins with and is for God (Ps. 67:1-2). Hence, the Christian on mission must be an abiding Christian.

10. The missionary is a gathering Christian.

Biblically, we are either gatherers or scatterers (Matt. 12:30). In Luke 19:10 when Jesus declared that the Son of Man “came to seek and to save the lost,” the verb “seek” has the connotation of gathering. Accordingly, in the words of one writer, “Whoever is not concerned by prayer or preaching, or other means to gather souls to his word and ordinances, and to his church, and to himself, is deemed by him a scatterer of them.” Are we hospitable? Are we sensitive to needs? Do we pray? Do we sacrifice? Do we make Christ attractive? The biblical Christian missionary must be a gathering Christian.

11. The missionary is an ambassador of a better country.

The Christian missionary lives in a peculiar way (1 Pet. 2:9) because this world is not his home (Heb. 13:14). Living in Canada, I recall being constantly reminded that where I was living was not the United States. The songs and anthems were different. The literature was different. The food was different. The law was different. The currency was different. What we celebrated was different.

Is this not a picture of the contrast we see on earth compared to our beloved homeland? Who else sings psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs to the Lord like we do (Col. 3:16)? Who else eats and drinks to commemorate the sacrifice of our Redeemer like we do (1 Cor. 11:24-25)? We are accountable to a higher law, and we relate and celebrate differently. We are pilgrims in a land not our own. We are, in other words, missionaries.

12. The missionary is every Christian.

Whether we are called to go across the world or across the street, we all cross cultures and come into contact with “unreached peoples.” We are all sent—and we all must go. As a friend of mine once noted, we are giving, going, praying, or disobeying. Charles Spurgeon remarks that “every Christian is either a missionary or an imposter. Recollect that [you] either try to spread abroad the kingdom of Christ, or else you do not love Him at all. It cannot be that there is a high appreciation of Jesus and a totally silent tongue about Him.” It may be that we do not lack information or boldness; perhaps we are crippled by the sin of lovelessness. If we feel no need to preach or share the redemption of our Beloved, if we feel bound by silent tongues, perhaps our greatest need is not courage but love for others and for Christ.

Conclusion

O church, let us beware of whether we are partaking in the Great Omission and what greater love may be distracting and captivating what ought to be the narrowly directed affections of our hearts. Missions is not about whether we feel called. We are called and must be “one idea men.” Besides, if Christ is our greatest love, then what shall we withhold? David insisted before Araunah that he would not give unto the Lord that which cost him nothing (2 Sam. 24:24). What shall we give? Time? Money? Resources? Expertise? Attention? To him who has been given much, much more will be required (Lk. 12:48). God has cultivated, planted, and watered. Only the need for laborers remains, and there is no occasion to wait. Harvesting is generally seasonal, but God’s harvest field is perpetually ripe for gathering.

Abide in the strength of Christ. Cultivate an attitude of willingness and surrender. God will never lead you where He will not keep you, and laborers are needed for the sections of the field that are far from the Master’s barn. Pray, and be revived. Obey, and be perfected. Abide, and be renewed. Gather, and be amazed.