I am very delighted to feature here at Behind Crossroads an email contribution from Randall Gibbons, a like-minded blogger, who runs a non-profit organization called Partnership Russia, Inc. that is involved in outreach activities in Russia. You can find out more information about his ministry at http://www.partnershiprussia.com/ or his blog at http://rcgibbons.com/partnershiprussia/internationalchristianblog/. Be blessed!
Who Will Go?
Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen.
Matthew 28:19-20 (King James Version)
————————–Who will go, and where should we go?
The scripture above is referred to as “The Great Commission”, and it was given to the disciples by Jesus on His first appearance to them after rising from the grave. Jesus was giving them the command to go and spread His message of salvation to all the nations of the world. Jesus also reassured them that He would be with them in spirit and with the rest of the world, through all generations, until the end of the world.
This “Great Commission” is accepted as the commission for all generations of Christians that were to come after the disciples, even until this present day. Just as the disciples did, we are go and spread the Salvation message of God to the entire world. If we are a born-again Christian, then this commission is given directly to us via God’s Word, the Bible.
So what does it mean to go? Plain and simple, it means go and tell the message, anywhere and everywhere. Go to your neighbor, to your family, to your in-laws, to your co-workers, to your friends, and even to strangers that you happen to come into contact with. Tell each one of them the saving message of God’s grace. You see, God has given each of us an area of responsibility, you might say, by placing us in the position we are in. We all have people around us who could be influenced by something you might say to them. We meet people all the time during our daily routines, and these are the people that God has placed in our area of responsibility.
Missions is a word that Christians are familiar with, that is often associated with “The Great Commission”. Missions are activities that are outreach programs, sponsored by various organizations, to help spread the message of God. Usually the missions activities that we are familiar with are the ones that our local church sponsors. Many times, however, these are limited to foreign missions activities via missionaries. As a result, when we think of missions, the first thing that comes to our minds is foreign missionaries, but what we must understand is that this is just a very small piece of the plan.
The act of telling someone about Jesus, and/or His Plan of Salvation, is a mission activity. I was once speaking in a small church on this subject, and I asked the congregation what they thought “missions” were, and as expected, almost all of them that answered spoke about foreign missions. They were surprised when I told them that the mission field was right outside of the churches front door. The same applies to us, except for us, since we are probably not in a church building right now, we are sitting in the mission field.
Yes, some of us actually are called by God specifically to go to a foreign mission field, and if we are called, then it is our responsibility to do so, and we will be held accountable for what we do or do not do. Most of us though, are already in the place where God wants us to do His work. God wants us to start with our families, then expand to our friends, then to our acquaintances, then to everyone else that we come into contact with. Our area of responsibility is the world that we exist in every day of our lives, and you know what? You are going to be held accountable for this mission field too!
You are the missionary in your mission field. You are the one who has been given “The Great Commission” to go and teach everyone in your area of responsibility.
So the answer to the opening question is this!
Who will go, and where should they go?
You should go, and you are already where God has placed you, so all you have to do is start telling everyone the good news. If you think you might be called to go to another place or another country, then by all means, pray about it and seek advice from your Pastor and other Godly people in your life, but regardless, you still have a responsibility to those your come into contact with.
Pray and ask God to give you direction and to open doors and opportunities for you to speak to someone about Him. He will bring them into your path. Ask God for the words to say if you are not sure. Just open your mouth and let God speak through you. That’s all there is to it!
Randall Gibbons
http://rcgibbons.com/partnershiprussia/internationalchristianblog/
Photo credit: themuscuttbarrel.wordpress.com/2009/07/01/
Comments