What Kind of a Missionary Are You?
You notice I didn't ask "Are you a missionary?", that goes without saying. As a follower of Christ we have the Great Commission which says:
"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, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.” Matt. 28:19,20
And we have the Acts 1:8 version of it which goes:
" But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”
Our Biblical prototype for the type of missionary we are is seen in this passage in Mark 5:1-20:
They went across the lake to the region of the Gerasenes. 2 When Jesus got out of the boat, a man with an impure spirit came from the tombs to meet him. 3 This man lived in the tombs, and no one could bind him anymore, not even with a chain. 4 For he had often been chained hand and foot, but he tore the chains apart and broke the irons on his feet. No one was strong enough to subdue him. 5 Night and day among the tombs and in the hills he would cry out and cut himself with stones.
6 When he saw Jesus from a distance, he ran and fell on his knees in front of him. 7 He shouted at the top of his voice, “What do you want with me, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? In God’s name don’t torture me!” 8 For Jesus had said to him, “Come out of this man, you impure spirit!”
9 Then Jesus asked him, “What is your name?”
“My name is Legion,” he replied, “for we are many.” 10 And he begged Jesus again and again not to send them out of the area.
11 A large herd of pigs was feeding on the nearby hillside. 12 The demons begged Jesus, “Send us among the pigs; allow us to go into them.” 13 He gave them permission, and the impure spirits came out and went into the pigs. The herd, about two thousand in number, rushed down the steep bank into the lake and were drowned.
14 Those tending the pigs ran off and reported this in the town and countryside, and the people went out to see what had happened. 15 When they came to Jesus, they saw the man who had been possessed by the legion of demons, sitting there, dressed and in his right mind; and they were afraid. 16 Those who had seen it told the people what had happened to the demon-possessed man—and told about the pigs as well. 17 Then the people began to plead with Jesus to leave their region.
18 As Jesus was getting into the boat, the man who had been demon-possessed begged to go with him. 19 Jesus did not let him, but said, “Go home to your own people and tell them how much the Lord has done for you, and how he has had mercy on you.” 20 So the man went away and began to tell in the Decapolis how much Jesus had done for him. And all the people were amazed.
I believe this is the only passage where someone asked to follow Jesus and he was turned down! I also believe that this man is the first recorded missionary in the Bible - and where was he sent? He was sent to his own people who knew him, knew what he was, knew his transformation, spoke the same language, and related to the culture.
All of us are this type of missionary - we have been saved and transformed and we wish we could go to be with Jesus in Heaven but He says to us "No, be my witnesses here." Now that is not to negate the fact that some go to foreign unfamiliar lands if God calls them, but most of us stay.
We see what type of a missionary we are once we are born again, but the question I was asking is "What kind of a missionary are you?" What I am getting at is are you a good one or a bad one or somewhere in between? Let me get at it this way - I'm sure you all have at some point in your life received a letter from a missionary you are supporting telling of how God is working in their called location or mission field. Pretend that you are a missionary from First Bapist of Paris, France. The congregation has sent you to Duluth, Minnesota (or substitute your home town) to a relatively unreached area to spread the gospel of Jesus Christ and are investing in you $50,000 a year. Now it is time to write them a yearly support letter to convince them to keep supporting you. What would you write? What on Earth are you doing for/in the Lord? What difference are you making or have you made in the past year and what are your plans for next year?
You see, most of us don't go through life intentionally like this or ask the question, "Why am I doing the things I am doing?" We take our kids to school, band or dance rehearsals, sporting events practices and games, go to work or serve at the school, go shopping, go to the gym, etc. all the while without asking, "How am I or how could I be using these things to advance the kingdom or as a missionary?" Instead of saying, "I spend 5 hours of the week taking my daughter to dance practice" our missionary support letter could say, "I am networking with a group of 10 parents of children who dance and I get to spend 5 hours a week with them, none of whom know Jesus, and am getting to know them and their needs. I am daily praying for them and one of them is having some medical problems and I have been able to take her to the doctor several times. We are getting close and she has let me pray for her and she has even agreed to go to a luncheon at our church.Please pray with me for her salvation." You see, suddenly a mundane event like standing for 2 hours watching your kid at soccer practice becomes a mission field. It all comes from living life intentionally with a missionary mindset and might I also add two other things.
A missionary mindset is not only intentional but urgent. Why does the Bible speak of us being in the "Last Days" even though it was written 2000 years ago? Because God wants us not to get lazy or procrastinate because we don't know how long people have nor do we know how long the Lord will tarry. I remember a short term mission trip to Mexico and there were throngs of patients pushing in line to see me. The career missionary , not urgent because she would be there her whole life, yelled at them all and lined them up and said "If the doctor doesn't see you this time, the next time doctors come they will see you." She made sure we took an hour lunch break and quit right at 4. This drove me crazy because I was only there for 10 days and I wanted to see everyone I could because I wasn't there to rest, I could do that at home. 2 Tim. 2:4 says
"No one serving as a soldier gets entangled in civilian affairs..."
which to me means that you are here as a short timer, live urgently. In the example we are using, you have 1 year to make a difference or they will be calling you back to France and send someone else, so each day we need to try to make a difference.
Lastly, a missionary mindset is that of an alien. 2 Cor. 5 speaks of us as ambassadors which means once we are saved, we are citizens of a foreign country, Heaven, and representing it here on Earth. Most of us in our example are so concerned about trying to make everyone in our town, USA think that we fit in rather than standing out, being different and representing our real home. It would be crazy for a missionary to start building a home and setting down permanent roots when he knows that his term is 5 years. He would use whatever budget he has, not to make himself comfortable but rather to spread the gospel. This is the meaning behind that bizarre parable in Luke 16 of the unjust steward where Jesus uses a scoundrel to portray a principle that money is not an end in itself but rather a tool to be used.
So in conclusion, what kind of a missionary are you? What kind of letter would you write? Would the church back home support you for another year after reading your letter? What would you tell them are your plans for next year? If you are like most of us, it would be a pretty weak letter but tomorrow is the first day of the rest of your life - start now. I challenge you to get out a piece of paper and write a support letter. Be intentional. Be urgent. Be an alien!
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