Latest / Reformed Thinking / Brothers, Give Them God’s Passion for Missions | John Piper

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Brothers, Give Them God’s Passion for Missions | John Piper · Reformed Thinking

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Welcome along to Reformed Thinking's the Deep Dive.
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This is where we try to cut through some of the noise and
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get straight to the vital information.
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And today we're focusing on something pretty central, the
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purpose behind Christian global outreach.
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Why is it such a big deal? We're drawing our insights from
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a a specific set of materials. Today.
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There are some study guides and also excerpts from John Piper's
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book Brothers. We Are Not Professionals.
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Specifically, we're looking in the section called Brothers Give
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Them God's Passion for Missions. That's right.
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And this material, it really gives a sharp focus on why
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Christian missions isn't just, you know, one activity among
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many. It frames it as absolutely
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central to God's plan as it unfolds in history.
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So we're going to try and dissect the core arguments
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presented here, the things that really push believers towards a
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particular stance on global evangelization.
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Yeah, our mission, if you like, for this deep dive is to pull
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out those foundational principles.
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What shapes this global outlook? We want to give you a clear
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sense of the driving forces behind it and also the well, the
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quite radical call it presents. OK, let's get into it.
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Let's unpack this. I the non negotiable call, go
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send or disobey. So when we start talking about
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Christian global outreach, you really have to begin with what
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most people call the Great Commission.
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It's that foundational directive, isn't it?
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Straight from Jesus in Matthew 28.19.
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Go there for and make disciples of all nations.
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And the way it's presented in these sources, it's not like a
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gentle suggestion or, you know, an optional extra if you feel
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like it. It comes across as a binding
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command essential for everyone who follows him.
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Yeah, absolutely. It carries this weight of divine
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authority. It's meant for everybody.
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Not just the Super spiritual or the specially called view,
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right, It's. Presented as marching orders for
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the entire church and the sources, they really boil it
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down. They say there are basically
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only three possibilities when it comes to this command, and they
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don't leave a lot of wiggle room.
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OK, what are the three? Well, first, you can actively
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go. You can participate directly in
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missionary work. And that often means, you know,
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physically moving, crossing cultures, crossing geographic
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lines to share the gospel where it hasn't really taken root.
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So learning languages and gaming with different worldviews, that
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whole thing. Exactly.
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It speaks to that kind of pioneer spirit, taking the
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message to the frontiers, OK. That's option 1.
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Go. Option 2, if going isn't your
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specific situation or calling, is to send, and this is
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presented as much more than just, you know, dropping a few
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coins in the offering plate occasionally.
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Right, it's active support. Very active, consistent
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financial support, yes, but also really fervent, specific prayer,
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praying for their safety, their effectiveness, their spiritual
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health. It could also mean logistical
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help, emotional support, administration, viewing yourself
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as a genuine partner in the mission like.
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You're part of the team enabling those on the front lines.
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Precisely because those who go, they simply can't sustain the
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work without that backing, both prayerful and financial.
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There are two sides of the same coin, really.
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Both needed. Go or send.
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So what's the third possibility? Well, this is where the sources
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are very direct. The third possibility is being
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disobedient. Wow.
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Yeah. There's no neutral ground
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offered, no middle path for a believer regarding the Great
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Commission, the material states it quite bluntly.
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Ignoring the cause is not a Christian option.
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So indifference isn't just passive, it's presented as
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actual non compliance. That's the force of it, yes.
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It's not just overlooking something.
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It's failing to comply with a clear command, a clear purpose
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God has set out. It implies that active
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engagement, aligning yourself with this global aim, is
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expected of every follower of Christ.
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And this connects to a bigger picture, doesn't it?
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I'm thinking of that verse in Matthew 24.14.
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Ah yes, good connection. This gospel of the Kingdom shall
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be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all the
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nations, and then the end will come.
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That highlights this ultimate purpose, doesn't it?
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The completion point. It really does.
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It sets the whole task within a grand timeline tied to the
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culmination of history, the return of Christ.
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And that phrase, Gospel of the Kingdom, it's about God
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reigning, right? Jesus winning over sin and
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death. Exactly.
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That's the good news. God reigns, King Jesus has
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triumphed. His rule is breaking into the
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world. So preaching that isn't just
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about saving individuals, although it absolutely includes
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that. It's also also a kind of cosmic
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declaration. It prepares the way for the
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final act. It places our efforts, our
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missions work within God's huge plan for everything.
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That's the idea. It's responding to a divine
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directive that has massive significance, even
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eschatological significance. It underscores that following
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Christ means having an active stance towards his global
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purposes. Being indifferent then suggests
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you're not really aligned with what God Himself says is His
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ultimate objective, His glory, known among all nations.
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So our participation, whether going or sending, puts us right
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into that big story God is writing.
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Yes, exactly. It's a divine story, a divine
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plan, and we're invited, even commanded, to take Part 2 God's
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all consuming passion, His own fame.
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OK, so the call is clear. Go send or you're essentially
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disobeying. That's a strong start.
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But then the question comes why? What's the deep motivation
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behind this huge global effort? And this is where the material
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gets well, I found it really interesting.
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It points to the primary motivation for missions being
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God's own passion for his own renown.
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Yes, this is absolutely central and Piper's thinking.
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And in these sources, and maybe surprising for some, it explains
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that God's highest priority, his ultimate goal, is that his name,
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his character, his worth would be known and praised and
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crucially, enjoyed by people from every single group on
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Earth. Enjoyed.
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That's an interesting word there.
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It is. It's not just about
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acknowledging his existence, but finding deep satisfaction and
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delight in him. And think about that gospel of
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the Kingdom again. Yes, it's good news for us,
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salvation, rescue, fantastic news.
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But foundationally it's about God's reign.
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It's about the victory of King Jesus over all his enemies, sin,
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death, evil. So the aim of preaching this
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isn't just rescue, but that the nations would truly know King
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Jesus, admire him, cherish him, love him, trust him, follow him.
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Making him shine brightly in their hearts and minds.
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Yes, that's why it's ultimately good news, because our God
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reigns, and His reign is the source of all true blessing and
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joy. So when God seeks his own glory,
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it's not presented as selfish. No, quite the opposite.
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If God is the ultimate reality, the source of all good, all
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beauty, all truth, then Him seeking His own glory is
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presented as the most loving act possible because it directs us,
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His creatures, to the only source of lasting satisfaction
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and joy, Himself. And this isn't just an idea from
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these specific sources, is it? It's woven through Scripture.
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Oh absolutely. The material points this out
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clearly. It's consistently there.
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Think about Romans 9.20 teen, where God says he raised up
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Pharaoh for this very purpose, that my name might be proclaimed
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in all the earth, right? Pharaoh's resistance ultimately
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served to display God's power name.
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Exactly. Or Isaiah 12.4, which is
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presented almost like a mission's command, Make known
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his deeds among the peoples. Proclaim that his name is
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exalted. So God is passionately focused
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on his own reputation, His worth, being recognized.
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Yes, that's the argument. It's his fundamental purpose.
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Everything he does in history, creation, redemption, judgement,
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serves to reveal who he is and call creation to acknowledge His
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supreme value. So then Paul's statement in
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Romans 15.9 that the nation's might glorify God for his mercy,
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that captures this big goal. Beautifully, it's not just
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individuals getting saved, as wonderful as that is.
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It's whole people's distinct cultures turning their worship,
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their admiration towards God because of His mercy shown in
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Christ. It paints this picture of a
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huge, diverse chorus of praise rising from everywhere.
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So thinking about this personally, for you listening.
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If you genuinely love God's renown.
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If you want his name magnified above all else, then how does
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that connect to your view of world missions?
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It feels like a pretty direct link.
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It's almost inescapable, isn't it?
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If you share God's zeal for his own global recognition, then
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indifference to world missions just doesn't compute.
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It becomes impossible. Your heart resonates with God's
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heart. His ultimate objective becomes
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your objective. So missions isn't just a side
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project or even just humanitarian work.
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No, it's seen as a direct expression of a heart that is
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first and foremost committed to God's passion, His own glory.
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If you're passionate about God being valued supremely, you have
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to be passionate about world missions because that's the
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primary way his name gets magnified globally.
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So our satisfaction in God actually fuels the mission.
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That's it. It becomes the very fuel for His
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global purpose. 3 The unstoppable purpose, God's
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sovereignty and missions. OK, building on that idea, God's
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driving passion is his own fame. The sources then move to talk
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about the the certainty of it all.
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They state quite strongly that God's purpose, to be known and
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praised and enjoyed among all the nations, cannot fail.
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Yeah, this isn't presented as just wishful thinking or a goal
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we're striving for against the odds.
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It's framed as a settled fact. Yes, it's described as an
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absolutely certain promise. It will happen.
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That verse we mentioned, Matthew 24.14, is brought up again here
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as proof. An absolute promise that will be
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fulfilled. This gospel shall be preached,
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and then the end will come. And the basis for this
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certainty? Is grounded squarely in the
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sovereignty of Jesus Christ. Remember Matthew 28.18 right
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before the Great Commission? All authority in heaven and on
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earth has been given to me. Exactly.
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Go there, for the command flows directly from his absolute
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authority. It means every bit of power,
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every realm is under his control.
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Nothing. No one can ultimately stop his
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plan. He said he would build his
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church and the gates of hell wouldn't prevail against it,
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right? That's not just a hope for the
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future. It's a declaration of an
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ongoing, active, triumphant work that is guaranteed to succeed.
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God's plans will stand. He will accomplish His purpose.
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OK, but that raises a really common question, doesn't it?
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Maybe even a bit of a puzzle for people.
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If God's purpose can't fail, if it's absolutely certain to
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happen anyway because he's sovereign, then why does our
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part matter so much? Why the big emphasis on go or
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send? That's a fair question, a really
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vital one actually, and the sources tackle it head on.
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How did they resolve that tension?
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Well, they explain it this way, if individuals or even whole
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churches choose to be disobedient, if they remain
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indifferent to this global mission, it's not God's 'cause
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that ultimately loses out. His purpose will be fulfilled
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somehow. So who loses then?
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We lose. That's the stark message.
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We lose. The implication is pretty
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cerbering. God will simply Passover us and
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do his great work while we shrivel up in our little land of
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comfort. Treble up.
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That's strong language. It is.
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It speaks of missing out on vitality, on purpose, on reward.
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The material calls it an incalculable loss for those who
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stay indifferent, those who get caught up only in their own
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private concerns, their comforts, their local bubbles,
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and ignore the global task. So the issue isn't whether God's
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mission succeeds. That's guaranteed.
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The issue is whether we get had to be part of it.
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Exactly. Will we join in His victorious
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work? Will we share in the incredible
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privilege of expanding His Kingdom?
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Or will we miss out? Our lack of participation
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doesn't derail God's plan, but it harms us.
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It shrinks our spiritual lives, diminishes our fruitfulness,
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cuts us off from the grandest movement in history.
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So God's triumph is never in doubt.
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The real question is about our participation, our alignment
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with His will as it unfolds. Are we spectators or
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participants? That's the challenge it lays
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down. Yes, 4 Clarifying the target
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Unreached people groups, not just people.
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As we keep digging into these arguments, the brings up a
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really key clarification, one that honestly reshapes how you
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think about the task itself. It hammers home this point.
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The focus of missions is on unreached peoples, not just
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reaching individual people. Yes, this distinction is
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incredibly significant. It's been a major insight in
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modern thinking about missions missiology.
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So what's the difference? Why does it matter?
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We'll think back to those key verses, Matthew 24.14 and 28.19,
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talking about all nations. The Greek word there is ethne,
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and the sources drawing on thinkers like Ralph Winter
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really clarify this. Ethne doesn't primarily mean
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political countries like we think of them, you know, France,
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Brazil, Japan. OK, So what does it mean then?
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It refers more to ethnic groupings, distinct communities
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of people who share a common culture, maybe a common
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language, a shared history, a worldview.
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These shared characteristics create natural barriers.
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It makes it hard for the gospel message to just spread easily or
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organically from one group to another.
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So the message doesn't just jump across those cultural or
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linguistic divides on its own. Not usually, no.
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It requires intentional cross cultural effort.
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Can you give some examples to make that clear?
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Sure, Think about the Old Testament.
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It constantly lists groups like the Amorites, Hittites,
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Parazites, Canaanites, Hivites, Jebusites.
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These were distinct peoples, not just political state.
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Right, different cultural identities.
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Exactly. And today you could think of
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groups like, say, the Ojibwe people in North America, or
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maybe the Berber communities in North Africa, or the Fulani
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across the Sahel region. Each has its own language,
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traditions, identity, and the Gospel often struggles to cross
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into those groups without someone specifically bridging
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that gap. So preaching in English in
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London won't automatically reach an unreached tribal group in the
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Amazon. Precisely, it needs a
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deliberate, focused effort to cross that cultural and
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linguistic frontier. And this understanding who makes
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other scriptures pop too, doesn't it?
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Like Revelation 5.9. Yes, that verse speaks of God
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redeeming people from every tribe and tongue and people and
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nation. Ethne again reinforces the focus
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on these distinct groups. And, the material argues, this
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focus on people groups actually makes the task, well,
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finishable. That's a key point.
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While the world's population keeps growing, which can feel
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overwhelming, the number of distinct people groups, while
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large, is finite. It's identifiable.
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It gives a definable goal. We can actually envision a day
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when every single Ethne has a witnessing church within it.
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So it shifts the goal from just keep up with population growth
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to reach every distinct group. Exactly.
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It moves from an endless task to a strategically achievable 1.
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And that changes how churches pray and mobilize, presumably.
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It absolutely refines the strategy.
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The focus shifts towards identifying those groups that
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currently have no Indigenous evangelizing movement.
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What does that mean exactly? Indigenous evangelizing
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movement. It means a church planted within
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that culture, led by local believers from that group, that
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is self-sustaining and capable of sharing the gospel and making
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disciples within its own people group without needing constant
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outside help or leadership. OK, so the goal is planting
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churches that can then carry the torch themselves.
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That's the aim. This clarification allows for
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more targeted efforts, directing people and resources to the
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areas of greatest strategic need where the gospel simply hasn't
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taken root yet among a particular people group.
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It makes a huge, potentially overwhelming task feel more
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focused, more tangible. Yes, it provides strategic
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clarity, the two types of missionaries versus Timothy.
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OK, so we've clarified the target unreached people groups,
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the Ethne. Now the material brings in
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another important distinction, this time about the people doing
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the work. It identifies two different
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types of missionaries, drawing parallels with figures from the
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New Testament, Timothy type and Paul type.
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That's right. Understanding these two roles
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helps clarify the different kinds of work needed in global
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outreach. So let's start with the Timothy
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type. What characterizes that kind of
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missionary work? Well, think about Timothy
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himself. He left home, joined Paul's
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team, definitely crossed cultures, but ultimately he
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ended up overseeing an already existing, though perhaps
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younger, church in Nephesis. So a Timothy type missionary,
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according to these sources, primarily works in a place where
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a church is already planted, where there are local believers,
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some form of existing outreach. So their role is more about
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nurturing, strengthening, building up what's already
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there. Exactly, disciple in believers,
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training local leaders, helping the church mature, maybe
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providing specialized skills or teaching.
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They are crucial for the long term health and depth of the
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church in a region. Making sure the roots go down
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deep. OK, vital work.
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Absolutely vital. So how does the Paul type
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missionary differ? The Paul type is characterized
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by that driving ambition Paul himself expressed in Romans
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15.20 to preach the gospel, not where Christ has already been
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named. So intentionally going where the
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message hasn't reached. Yes, targeting areas or people
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groups where there is no Indigenous church, no existing
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witness. This is what's often called
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frontier missions or pioneer missions.
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Paul didn't tend to stay long once the church was established
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and had local leadership. His focus was breaking new
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ground, planting the flag, establishing that initial gospel
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presence among the unreached. Pushing the boundaries outward.
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Right, Less about cultivating existing fields, more about
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plowing new ones. Now the material mentions
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something it calls a stunning revelation back in 1983 related
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to this. What was that?
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Ah yes, research around that time suggested a significant
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imbalance. It indicated that maybe only
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about 10% of missionaries set from North America were
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functioning as Paul type frontier missionaries.
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Only 10%, so the other 90% were? Primarily Timothy type, working
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in places where churches or Christian communities already
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existed, strengthening those works.
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And why was that stunning or significant?
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Because at the same time, there were still hundreds, maybe
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thousands of distinct people groups around the world with no
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indigenous church, no local believers is effectively sharing
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the gospel within their own culture.
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So a huge number of groups had no access, while most missionary
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effort was focused where access already existed.
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That was the imbalance highlighted.
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It meant that while much essential work was happening in
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established areas, the truly unreached frontier, where the
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gospel hadn't penetrated at all, was receiving comparatively
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little focused attention. Which would obviously slow down
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the completion of the task reaching all ethne.
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Precisely. And the scarcity of Paul type
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missionaries, those willing to do the hard work of pioneer
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planting, has had real consequences.
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That's why the sources argue strongly for pastors, for church
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leaders to have a specific calling to pray, to preach, to
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teach, to write in ways that mobilize more Paul type
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missionaries. Not to stop supporting the
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Timothy types though. Oh, absolutely not.
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Their work is essential. It's about addressing the
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critical gap, the urgent need on the unreached frontier.
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It's about intentionally raising up and sending out more people
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who are willing to go to those places where Christ isn't named
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to start those Indigenous movements.
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So mobilizing means casting that challenging people, helping them
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prepare for that specific kind of frontier work.
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Yes, it's about strategic deployment for the sake of
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reaching every people group driven by that passion for grand
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global fame. 6 The Interconnection, domestic
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ministries and Frontier missions.
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OK, that distinction between Paul type and Timothy type is
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helpful. Now, another potential tension
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the material addresses between local church work, domestic
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ministry and this frontier missions Focus.
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Sometimes people see them as competing right?
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Like should we focus our energy here at home or send people far
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away? That's a very common way of
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thinking, yes, a perceived competition for resources, for
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attention, for people. But the sources here present a
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very different picture. They argue these two things are
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actually deeply connected, designed to work together.
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How so? How do they connect domestic
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ministry and frontier missions? Well, first, let's be clear on
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domestic ministries. That's basically everything the
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church does to live out Christ's love and truth in its own local
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culture, right where it is. So local evangelism,
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discipleship, caring for the poor, seeking justice, providing
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help, community building all that vital work at home, being
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salt and light locally. OK.
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Standard essential church life. Right now, here's the
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connection. Frontier Missions is described
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as the establishment of those very domestic ministries in
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places they don't yet exist. OK, so the goal isn't just to
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preach and leave. No, the goal of the Paul type
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pioneer is to plant an indigenous church among an
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unreached people group and once that local church takes root, it
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then begins to carry out all those necessary soul saving,
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life changing, suffering, alleviating need, meeting
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culture, transforming domestic ministries within its own
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culture. So Frontier Missions is
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essentially about exporting the potential for domestic ministry.
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You could put it that way. It's the transportation and
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adaptation of domestic ministries to people groups
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where they don't exist because Christ is not known.
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It's planting the seed, the church, which then grows to
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produce all the fruit of domestic ministry in that new
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soil. That reframes it quite a bit.
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It's not choosing between them, but seeing one is planting the
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other. This leads to another stunning
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discovery mentioned in the material.
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Yes, the logical conclusion they draw is that people with the
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greatest passion for domestic ministry, for meeting needs,
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sharing Christ, seeing transformation at home, should
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actually have the greatest burden for frontier missions.
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What's the logic there? Because the same compassion that
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moves you to address brokenness and lostness in your own
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neighborhood should logically extend even more strongly to
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places where that brokenness is compounded by a total absence of
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Christ's influence. Where there's no church, no
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gospel witness, no Christian community addressing those needs
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at all, the needs are often greater and the spiritual
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darkness deeper. So if you care about people
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here, you should care even more in a sense about people where
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there's no access to the hope you have.
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That's the argument. It challenges a narrow focus and
22:00
calls for a global compassion that mirrors God's own heart for
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all peoples. And this whole dynamic is
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getting even more complex now, isn't it?
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Yeah, with globalization and migration.
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Absolutely. The sources talk about these
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merging realities, the phrase used as unreached people's move
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to Minneapolis or London or Sydney or anywhere, really.
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The frontiers are coming to us in a way.
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In many ways, yes, this blurs the old lines.
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It means frontier missions doesn't always mean moving
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thousands of miles away, but it always means crossing a
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significant cultural barrier. You might be reaching an
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unreached Muslim people group, say, living just down the
22:37
street. Still frontier work, even if
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it's geographically close. Yes, because you're crossing
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into a distinct ethne where there's no existing indigenous
22:44
church, bringing the gospel across that cultural divide for
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the first time. So the core challenge remains
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the same, reaching distinct people groups, but the geography
22:53
might be changing. That's right, the field might be
22:55
closer than we think, but the task of cross cultural witness
22:59
remains just as crucial. 7 The cost and the means suffering in
23:06
missions. It's easy to talk about mission
23:08
strategy and people groups and forget the the sheer difficulty
23:12
involved. It's not just a logistical
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challenge. The sources seem very keen to
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challenge any kind of casual or, you know, romanticized view of
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this work. They bring up suffering.
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Yes, very directly, and it's presented not just as an
23:24
unfortunate possibility, but as something more fundamental.
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How so? The material states that
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suffering is actually ordained as the price and the means of
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finishing the Great Commission. Ordained as in part of God's
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plan for it. That's the implication.
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It points to Jesus own words in Matthew 24.9.
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Then they will deliver you up to tribulation and put you to
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death, and you will be hated by all nations for my namesake.
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He told them up front it would be costly.
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He did so Hardship, opposition, persecution, even martyrdom.
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These aren't viewed as signs that something went wrong.
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They are presented as the expected divinely appointed
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price of taking the gospel to resistant places.
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Wow, that's a sobering thought. It's the price, but also the
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means. How is suffering a means?
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This is explained through verses like Colossians 1.24.
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Paul talks about rejoicing in his sufferings for the church,
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filling up what is lacking in Christ's afflictions.
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That verse can be confusing. It doesn't mean Jesus's
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sacrifice wasn't enough. No, absolutely not.
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The sources clarify this. It's not about adding to the
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atonement achieved on the cross. That's complete.
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Rather, it's about the ongoing presentation of Christ's love to
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the world through the suffering of his people.
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OK, impact that a bit. How does our suffering present
24:38
Christ's love? When missionaries or any
24:40
believers willingly endure hardship, rejection, loss, even
24:44
death for the sake of sharing the gospel with a particular
24:47
people group, that suffering becomes a powerful, visible
24:50
demonstration of the kind of love Christ himself showed.
24:53
It's an extension and presentation of Christ's
24:55
suffering to those he died for. It makes a message tangible,
24:58
shows the value placed on it. Exactly.
25:00
It authenticates the message. It speaks volumes, often more
25:04
than words, about the worth of Christ and the depth of God's
25:06
love, especially to people who are skeptical or resistant.
25:10
It's described as an ordained means of penetrating hearts and
25:13
cultures. It embodies the self giving love
25:16
being proclaimed. Yes, and this perspective is
25:19
reinforced by figures like Justif Sen, that Romanian pastor
25:22
who suffered greatly under communism.
25:24
He taught that suffering and martyrdom aren't accidents or
25:27
failures. They have to be seen as part of
25:29
God's plan. They are his instruments by
25:32
which he achieves his purposes in history.
25:34
He saw God actively using suffering to advance his
25:36
Kingdom. He did.
25:38
Based on hard experience, suffering can purify the church,
25:41
test faith, disarm opposition, and ultimately bring glory to
25:44
God in ways ease never could. So the call for pastors and
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churches, then, is not to downplay this, not to sell
25:51
missions as an adventure, necessarily.
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Quite the opposites. The call is to be honest, to
25:56
communicate clearly that following Christ into missions
25:59
often means being called to suffer and perhaps to die for
26:02
Christ. It means shifting from a
26:04
comfortable peacetime mentality to what the sources call a
26:07
wartime lifestyle. A wartime lifestyle?
26:10
What does that entail? It means prioritizing the urgent
26:13
realities of God's global mission over personal comfort,
26:16
security and ease. It means being willing, like
26:20
Jesus, to go outside the camp, bearing reproach, counting the
26:23
cost. It's a radical call to reorient
26:26
our whole lives around God's purposes, even when it hurts.
26:29
That's the challenge presented, yes. 8 The fuel and the goal.
26:33
Worship and satisfaction in God. We've covered a lot of ground.
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The command, God's passion, his sovereignty, the target groups,
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the types of workers, the connection to local ministry,
26:42
the cost of suffering. It leads to a final, crucial
26:45
question. What actually fuels all this?
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What sustains someone in such a radical, costly endeavor?
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And the answer the material gives seems to circle back to
26:54
the very beginning, doesn't it? To God himself.
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Yes, it all comes down to this deep, joyful satisfaction in God
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Himself. This is presented as the
27:04
ultimate. Why?
27:05
The source and the goal. How is that connection made?
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Satisfaction in God fueling missions.
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Well, one key statement is God is most glorified in us when we
27:14
are so satisfied in Him that we accept suffering and death for
27:18
his sake. OK, stop there.
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Our satisfaction in Him glorifies Him.
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Yes, and then it continues in order to extend our joy to the
27:25
unreached peoples of the earth. See the link?
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Our deep joy and satisfaction in God isn't just for us.
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It becomes the very thing that propels us outward.
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Because we want others to experience that same joy.
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Exactly when God Himself is our supreme treasure, our deepest
27:40
delight, then even suffering and death lose their ultimate sting.
27:43
They become acceptable costs in the greater cause of sharing
27:46
that treasure with those who haven't found Him yet.
27:48
So our satisfaction in God makes us willing to pay the price.
27:51
It frees us to pay the price. It shows that what we're
27:54
offering God himself is worth more than anything we might
27:57
lose. This leads to the idea that
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worshipping God, being satisfied in God and cherishing God and
28:04
admiring God is the fuel and the goal of missions.
28:08
Fuel and goal. OK, break that down.
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It's the fuel because finding our contentment and all that God
28:14
is for us in Christ gives us an internal energy, a motivation
28:18
that transcends earthly things. It makes us willing to forsake
28:21
comfort and security for His name.
28:23
It gives us something bigger to live for.
28:25
Right, and it's the goal, because the whole point of
28:27
missions is to bring others into that same experience to help
28:30
them find their ultimate satisfaction and joy in knowing
28:33
and worshipping God. So missions starts with worship
28:36
and aims at producing more worshipper.
28:38
Precisely. It flows from a heart captivated
28:41
by God's worth, and it seeks to extend that captivation to
28:43
others. And we see examples of this kind
28:45
of joyful endurance in Scripture.
28:47
Don't, no. Definitely think of Paul again.
28:49
2nd Corinthians 4.17 calling affliction slight momentary
28:54
compared to the eternal weight of glory.
28:56
How can you say that? Only if the glory, the
28:59
satisfaction in God outweighs the suffering so completely.
29:03
Exactly, or Philippians 3.8. I count all things to be lost in
29:07
view of the surpassing value of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord.
29:11
Everything else is rubbish compared to knowing him.
29:13
That's the heart Cray. These aren't just theological
29:16
statements. They're testimonies from people
29:17
who found God so supremely satisfying that hardship became
29:21
a platform to display his worth. That kind of joyful suffering
29:25
becomes, as the sources suggest, the clearest, most powerful
29:29
evidence that God is worthy to a watching, unbelieving world.
29:32
It invites them to find that same treasure.
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So this deep contentment in God, even through suffering, isn't
29:38
just the fuel, it's also the ultimate proof of God's value.
29:42
It's the engine driving the whole thing.
29:44
That's the core argument. It's what makes the entire
29:46
endeavor make sense and gives it unstoppable power.
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OK, let's try and bring this deep dive to a close.
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We've covered a lot tracing the argument for Christian global
29:55
outreach as presented in these materials.
29:58
It starts with the divine command, go or send.
30:00
No neutrality is driven fundamentally by God's own
30:03
passion for his glory, his renown among all distinct people
30:07
groups, the Ethne. This task is certain to succeed
30:10
because of God's sovereignty. But our participation determines
30:13
whether we share in that work or lose out.
30:15
It involves specific kinds of workers, like pioneers reaching
30:18
the unreached, aiming to plan indigenous churches that carry
30:21
on domestic ministry. We've seen it often involves
30:24
suffering, which is presented not just as a risk, but as an
30:27
ordained price and means, and the whole thing is ultimately
30:30
fueled by and aimed at a deep, overflowing satisfaction and joy
30:35
in God Himself. That sums it up well, and
30:38
perhaps a final thought to leave with you.
30:39
The listener comes from Hebrews 13 verses 12 to 14.
30:42
It says therefore Jesus also suffered outside the gate in
30:45
order to sanctify the people through his own blood.
30:48
So let us go to him outside the camp and bear the reproach he
30:50
endured. For here we have no lasting
30:52
city, but we seek a city that is to come.
30:54
Here we have no lasting city, but we seek a city that is to
30:58
come. Yeah, thinking about that
31:00
comprehensive view of global outreach we've discussed, driven
31:04
by God's glory and all peoples involving cost, fueled by joy in
31:08
Him, what does that verse mean for us?
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If this world isn't our final home, if we're seeking the city
31:14
to come, how should that shape how we view our lives, our
31:17
resources, our comforts, our priorities right now in light of
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God's global cause? Something to reflect on what is
31:23
living as someone seeking a future city look like today,
31:26
especially regarding God's passion for the nation's?
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A challenging thought to end on. Thanks for joining us on the
31:31
Deep Dive.