Salt and Light European Leaders Conference

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Salt and Light European Leaders Conference

• GODS HEART FOR CHURCH BASED MISSION
• David Devenish

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Introduction

• WHY MISSION?
• Is it because of the millions going to hell
  without Christ?
• Is it because we are privileged and others
  underprivileged?
• Is it just a simple matter of
• obedience to the Great
• Commission?

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Why Mission?

• Missions is not the ultimate goal of the
  church. Worship is. Missions exists because
  worship doesntThe goal of missions is the
  gladness of the peoples in the greatness of God
  Let the peoples praise Thee, O God let all the
  peoples praise Thee! Let the nations be glad and
  sing for joy
• (Psalm 673-4).
• John Piper

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Why Mission?

• The highest of all missionary motives is
  neither obedience to the Great Commission
  (important as that is), nor love for sinners who
  are alienated and perishing (strong as that
  incentive is, especially when we contemplate the
  wrath of God), but rather zeal burning
  passionate zeal for the glory of Jesus Christ.
• John Stott

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Mission is an apostolic responsibility

• Apostolic Revelation of the Plan of God - Eph
  19, 34
• Everything to come under Christ
• Mission to the unreached
• Planting churches
• Those churches to
• extend the Kingdom

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Mission is an apostolic responsibility

• Hence Pauls vision in writing Romans-
• To bring about the obedience of faith for the
  sake of his name among all the nations Romans
  15 ESV

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Mission is an apostolic responsibility

• For I will not venture to speak of anything
  except what Christ has accomplished through me to
  bring the Gentiles to obedience by word and
  deed. Romans 1518 ESV

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Mission is an apostolic responsibility

• To all nations...to bring about the obedience of
  faith
• Romans 1626 ESV
• The King is now ruling

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Mission is an apostolic responsibility

• Now this King is claiming the whole world. How?
• By grace and apostleship
• The great commission

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Mission is an apostolic responsibility

• The apostolic call Romans 15
• For His names sake
• Grace
• Apostleship
• Among all the nations
• Obedience of faith

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Mission is an apostolic responsibility

• Purpose to motivate and equip you as leaders to
  motivate and equip your churches to become
  genuine missional communities in your own city,
  your own nation, the nations and amongst the
  totally unreached

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Mission is a church responsibility

• 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
• Acts 1 8

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Mission is a church responsibility

• Background Trends
• Traditional
• Separation of evangelism and mission from the
  local church
• Separation of kingdom work from local church
• Separation of kingdom
• mission from church
• planting

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Mission is a church responsibility

• Background Trends
• Charismatic Renewal
• All of the above
• Early emphasis on community only relational, not
  missional
• Keys to revival

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Church - Gods mission agency

• John 17 13-19, 20 19-23
• Fullest recorded prayer of Jesus, just before the
  cross
• The first meeting of the church after the
  resurrection
• A clue to the essence of
• what the church is to be

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Church - Gods mission agency

• One statement It demonstrates the essence, the
  DNA of the church
• As you (Father) sent me into the world, I have
  sent them into
• the world
• As the Father sent me, I
• am sending you

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Church - Gods mission agency

• The church is a community sent into the world
• Both mission and community have their origins in
  the Trinity - John 1723

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Church - Gods mission agency

• May they also be in us community that
  the world may know, mission
• May they be brought to complete unity
  community, that the world may know mission
• Love one another (John 1334) community, v 35
  
• That the world may know mission

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Church - Gods mission agency

• Mission is meaningless without the church
  community

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Gods desire for His glory to fill the earth

• Adam and Eve (Genesis 128)
• Noah (Genesis 91)
• The nations of Genesis 10 (The 70)
• The Tower of Babel

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Gods desire for His glory to fill the earth

• The promises to Abraham (Gen 123) all clans
• The term used here could be translated clan
  a collective unit that is bigger than a fathers
  household but smaller than a tribe. Dewi
  Hughes

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Gods desire for His glory to fill the earth

• The formation of a nation as a family to bless
  the others
• The call upon Israel
• The promises of the prophets e.g. Isaiah 49,
  Isaiah 60
• The promise for His glory to fill
• the earth (Numbers 1421,
• Isaiah 119, Habakkuk 214)

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Gods fulfilment of His purposes through Christ

• To become what Israel should have been
• Chose 12, the new Israel
• Sent out 70 the nations of the world

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Gods fulfilment of His purposes through Christ

• All drawn to Him John 12 32
• Restatement of the command
• Matthew 2818-20
• Sign of Pentecost curse on language and not
  understanding is lifted
• - Acts 2

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The necessity to go to the totally unreached

• It has always been my ambition to preach the
  gospel where Christ was not known, so that I
  would not be building on someone elses
  foundation - Romans 1520

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The necessity to go to the totally unreached

• An unreached people group should be defined as
  a people group within which there is no
  indigenous community of believing Christians able
  to evangelise this people group without outside
  (cross-cultural) assistance.

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The necessity to go to the totally unreached

• Unreachedness is thus not defined on the basis
  of whether there are any Christians or not, or
  whether there are any missionaries working among
  them or not. It is defined on the basis of
  whether or not in that culture there is a viable,
  culturally relevant, witnessing church movement.
  
• Ralph Winter

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The necessity to go to the totally unreached

• The eschatological imperative (Matthew 2414,
  Revelation 79)
• The final purpose fulfilled (Revelation 213)
  the dwelling place of God is with men

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Practical

• No home/ field distinctions
• A missional church trains and releases its
  members into mission with a world transforming
  vision-
• All involved where they are
• Some called to specific kingdom ministries at
  home
• Some go elsewhere with the
• gospel

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Practical

• A particular emphasis in that context on the
  unreached e.g. 10-40 window
• Mission to other nations/people groups needs to
  be on a church planting basis

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Practical

• Integrated mission
• - Reaching other cultures (mission)
• - Planting churches in those cultures (church
  planting)
• - Helping those churches to reach the poor and
  needy (social
• action) This is the best way of having a long
  term uplift to the poor

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Practical

• Everything we enjoy needs to be in churches in
  new people groups e.g.
• Grace emphasis
• Baptism in the Holy Spirit and spiritual gifts
• Receiving apostolic and prophetic ministry

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Practical

• Worshipping in Spirit and truth
• A community of friendship and relationship
• Dont compromise on these things because we are
  on
• the field

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Practical

• Working with mission agencies?
• Be clear on foundations

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Practical

• Training Track
• Pastoral responsibilities
• Apostolic responsibilities
• Preach for missional
• churches