God the Great Missionary's Mission

Christianity's personal Great Commission
2 Corinthians 5:17-21 ¹⁷Therefore if any man be in Christ, he is a new creature: old things are passed away; behold, all things are become new.  ¹⁸And all things are of God, who hath reconciled us to himself by Jesus Christ, and hath given to us the ministry of reconciliation;  ¹⁹To wit, that God was in Christ, reconciling the world unto himself, not imputing their trespasses unto them; and hath committed unto us the word of reconciliation.  ²⁰Now then we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God did beseech you by us: we pray you in Christ's stead, be ye reconciled to God.  ²¹For he hath made him to be sin for us, who knew no sin; that we might be made the righteousness of God in him.

In this past several series of blogs we have been sketching out the Eternal Career of God the Great Missionary.  Today we will be concluding our brief look at God the Great Missionary by noting  how God aims to use Christians in His activity as the Great Missionary.

The Triune God - The Author of Reconciliation
Note the three phrases I underscored in the above text.  2 Corinthians 5:17-21 stands out as the believer's personal great commission.  If we identify the Great Commission's pedigree beginning at Genesis 12:1-3 and being reitterated by Jesus to the Apostles in Matthew 28:18-20, then we can say that it is being personalized here in 2 Corinthians 5:17-21.  The theme of course is reconciliation.  God's act of reconciliation was His idea from Eternity.  There is no contradiction between God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. 

It wasn't that God the Son was alone in His compassion towards unsaved human beings, with God the Father being unwilling and angry and the Holy Spirit having to decide between the two.  Rather all three Persons of the Trinity, sharing in the same undivided divine Life as God, chose to act.  The Father planned reconciliation, the Son purchased reconciliation and the Holy Spirit applies reconciliation by gifting folks with faith and repentance to believe on their Reconciler.

God's use of believer's in His mission
 From the three underlined phrases above, I want you to note the three aspects of how God the Great Missionary desires to use all true Christians in His great missionary cause:

1. The Mission's purpose is supplied by Him 5:17-18
-God is desiring to take those whom He has set His affections upon and make them new creatures.  If any man be in Christ refers to the reception of such truth by faith.  The purpose of all this, the gifting of faith and the actual reconciliation of believers to their Savior is all from God. 

2. The Mission is personal  5:19
-God has given us this ministry of reconciliation.  This reveals just how personally involved God desires every Christian to be in this endeavor to reach the world for Jesus Christ. 

3. The Mission is powerful  5:20-21
-The most remarkable thing about this text is that it is God who is making the appeal through us.  Missions truly alligns Christianity with the heart of God. 
-To realize that the salvation of sinners is not up to us, but up to God, and that He so chooses to work through those willing to allign with Him is both a humbling and encouraging truth.
-To realize that God not only indwells Christians at salvation, but desires to work through believers reveals His intent from all eternity, to have a redeemed group of human beings through which He can display the riches of His glory.  May everyone who names Christ in their hearts and on their lips manifest His name in their lives.  Let us all be His mouth and hands and feet in reaching this world for Jesus Christ.

The Great Missionary's Plan to Reach the Nations

Genesis 12:1-3 ¹Now the LORD had said unto Abram, Get thee out of thy country, and from thy kindred, and from thy father's house, unto a land that I will shew thee:  ²And I will make of thee a great nation, and I will bless thee, and make thy name great; and thou shalt be a blessing:  ³And I will bless them that bless thee, and curse him that curseth thee: and in thee shall all families of the earth be blessed.

This text is where we find the first mention of a specific strategy for God's mission to the world.  Certainly we can note  the following features of this incredible text:
1. He called a particular man - Abraham
2. He had a particular place for this man to go - Canaan
3. He desired to make a particular nation from this man - Israel
4. He desired to use this nation for a particular purpose - Be a blessing
5. He had a particular goal in mind - His glory
God's glory is defined in terms of the word "blessing".  It is when God gives Himself to be enjoyed and treasured by a people who are affected to trust in Him.  In a span of just three verses God was to lay out His entire missionary strategy in the Old Testament.  Through Abraham's Son Isaac and grandson Jacob would come the nation of Israel.  God's program for the nations was to be funnelled through tiny Israel.  The Bible says that in ancient times God had orchestrated the number of the nations on earth in accordance to the number of the children of Israel (Deuteronomy 32:8).  Ultimately God the great missionary desired to use redeemed human beings as His voice and hands.  Although Israel would ultimately fail in its mission set by God, God's will to reach out to the nations would not fail.  Furthermore, Romans 11 tells us that God still has a plan for restoring Israel in the future. 

How do we know that God still wants to use redeemed human beings as his hands and voice in reaching the nations?  Matthew 28:18-20 represents Jesus' great commission to His church: ¹⁸And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth.  ¹⁹Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:  ²⁰Teaching 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.

Note the similarities to the pattern we found in Genesis 12:1-3:
1. He called a particular people - The Apostles
2. He has a particular place for them to go - The world
3. He desired to make a particular people from their preaching - Disciples
4. He desired to use disciples, the church, for a purpose - be a blessing
5. He has a particular goal in mind - His glory
He desires to use Christians as His voice and hands to reach out to a world needing to hear the good news of Jesus Christ. 

The Bible's Greatest Missionary

IDENTIFYING THE BIBLE'S GREATEST MISSIONARY

What is a missionary?  A missionary is one who is sent to communicate a particular message to a particular people on behalf of the God of the Bible.  The word “mission” itself comes from a Latin word “missio”, which in its most ancient meaning referred to artillery that was “shot out” to a given target. 

Next question: Who is the greatest missionary recorded in the Bible?  Some may say the Apostle Paul, who wrote two thirds of the New Testament and was declared to the “Apostle” or “Missionary“ to the Gentiles (that is, the non-Jewish Nations).  Others may name a prophet like Moses, who was “sent” to the Jewish people in Bondage in Egypt.  Though these are good suggestions, they are not even close.  The greatest missionary in the Bible is none other than God Himself. 

GOD'S FIRST MISSION

In fact the first mention of missions in the Bible is found in Genesis 3:8-21.  The circumstances follow the great rebellion of Adam and Eve against God’s command to them to “not eat from the tree of knowledge of good and Evil”.  This command is the foundation behind what Bible teachers call “The Covenant of works”.  It was an arrangement given by God to man whereby Divine blessing and eternal benefits would be granted conditioned upon man’s obedience.  If Adam and Eve would had fulfilled the Covenant of works, they could had eaten from the tree of life, and entered into eternal communion with God.  Instead they chose to heed the voice of the serpent, and the Covenant of works was broken.

What was needed was another covenant, another arrangement.  God would have to be the one to do the work.  Man would never and could never attain right relationship with God through obedience.  It was going to have to be a covenant of grace, whereby God would extend Himself to man, with man receiving such grace by faith alone.  It is in this context we find God, the great missionary pursuing man.  Below is a brief outline of what God did, and is still doing today in His great missionary activity in this world.  Genesis 3:8-21 provides the seeds for understanding the missionary activity of God throughout the rest of scripture. 

SO HOW IS GOD THE GREAT MISSIONARY?

1. God seeks after the sinner Genesis 3:8-14

-Notice how the man and the woman hide from God.  God is the one calling after them.  God is the One who comes down to them.  They are lost, needing to be found.

-Notice how man blames God.  Man has no interest in reconciling with God.  He is content to remain where He is.  God is the one needing to affect the reconciliation

2. God states salvation to the sinner  Genesis 3:15

-This verse is the first verse we see referring to God’s promises of a Redeemer.  “The Seed” is a term that when traced throughout the scriptures, through 334 prophecies and promises, leads to Jesus Christ.

-This verse also contains what would remain the course of history, the great conflict between the people of God saved by Grace alone through faith alone and those who persist in their rebellion and unbelief.

-The salvation that begun in a garden would find its resolution in another Garden, the Garden of Gethsemene.  In the first Garden Old Adam failed and refused to allign with God's will.  At Gethsemene the Second Adam, Jesus Christ, alligned his human will with the Father's Divine will and agreed to pay for our salvation.

3. God sends Grace to open the sinner’s eyes Genesis 3:20

-Adam calls his wife “Eve”, the mother of living, in response to the promise given through her in Genesis 3:15.  This is what I term his confession of faith

-The Bible is pretty clear that faith is a gift given by God, whereby we are set free to freely trust in Christ and confess with our mouth Jesus is Lord (Ephesians 2:8-9; Romans 10:9)

4. God supplies a Substitute to die in the sinner’s place  Genesis 3:21

-God provided coats of skins from two animals He killed in place of Adam and Eve.  This sets the pattern of the innocent dying for the guilty and the blood being the payment in appeasing the wrath of Holy God.

-God’s clothing of Adam and Eve meant He reckoned to them the fitness to be in His presence due to the innocent life of those slain in their place.  This is what we called “imputed righteousness”.  This is the cornerstone of salvation.  God’s declaration of this truth over us the moment we believe is what is termed “Justification by Faith”.


Thank you Lord for being the Great Missionary!

Noah, The Ark, and the Flood: Why its Important

The Biblical account of Noah, the Ark and the flood in Genesis 6-9 has important implications for the Christian life.  Below are some key reasons as to why we need to consider it more closely.

1. Jesus uses the Flood to explain the end times

Luke 17:26-27 ²⁶And as it was in the days of Noe, so shall it be also in the days of the Son of man.  ²⁷They did eat, they drank, they married wives, they were given in marriage, until the day that Noah entered into the ark, and the flood came, and destroyed them all.  Without a doubt Jesus was drawing parallels between the culture of Noah and the days preceeding His second coming. 

2. Peter uses the Flood to explain Earth’s Past and Future

The Apostle Peter in 2 Peter 3 warns his readers about how there will be scoffers in the last days who will ridicule, among other things, the reality of the historic worldwide flood recorded in Genesis.  He writes in 2 Peter 3:3-7 ³Knowing this first, that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts,  ⁴And saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation.  ⁵For this they willingly are ignorant of, that by the word of God the heavens were of old, and the earth standing out of the water and in the water:  ⁶Whereby the world that then was, being overflowed with water, perished:  ⁷But the heavens and the earth, which are now, by the same word are kept in store, reserved unto fire against the day of judgment and perdition of ungodly men. 

The world-wide flood for instance can explain why geological features of the earth took moments, not millions of years, to form.   In fact the world-wide flood event has been used by specialists called "Creation-Scientists" to explain everything from the existence of comets, to the craters on the moon, to the tilt of the earth to the possible explanation for the dissapearance of dinosaurs.  The evidence for a world-wide flood (see last blog) can be a useful in counter-acting the humanistic world-view of evolution.  Websites such as "answersingenesis.org" are great tools that utilize the flood in describing the history and destiny of our world in light of the scriptures. 

3. It shows that God never forgets His people

Genesis 8:1 tells us that God remembered Noah.  This idea of God remembering His people is quite pervasive throughout the Old Testament.   When God is "remembering”, He is bearing forth upon Himself and in Himself the name of His people.  When one does a word study for this word "remember", it speaks of a continual granting of kindness, graciousness and compassion in extenuating circumstances.  The idea of God remembering somebody occurs in key theological and historical events throughout the Old Testament:

Gen 19:29 – God “remembers” Abraham      Gen 30:22 – remembers Rachael

Exod 2;24 – remembers the Israelites             1 Samuel 1:19 – remembers Hannah

Job 14:13 – The cry to remember Job              Psalm 132 – the cry to remember David

Undoubtedly this idea carries its way into the New Testament, where Christ’s resurrection is the prime example of “remembering”, since God did not forsake his body to see decay (compare Peter’s comments in Acts 2:27 on Psalm 16:6-8)  Indeed Christ's promise to never leave nor forsake His people is embedded in His committment and love for them. (please compare Matthew 28:20 and Hebrews 13:5)

Noah, The Ark, and the Flood - Historical and Scientific Evidence

When we read the biblical record, no other section in the entire Bible covers as much time and as many events as Genesis 1-5.  As we come into Genesis 6-9, we arrive in the section that deals with the world-wide flood that God brought upon this world in the days of Noah. Remarkably, the three chapters will cover a period of time encompassing a period of time less than 18 months (377 days for chapters 6-9). 

One of the main purposes for Moses writing Genesis was to equip the Israelite nation with a biblical worldview of the God of Abraham, Isaac and Jacob.  They had to be deprogrammed from the Egyptian worldview to which they had been exposed to for 430 years, and prepare for the Canaanite worldview they would be facing in the Conquest of Joshua.  

In today's blog, we want to explore some commonly asked questions about the flood, the ark and the reliability of the Genesis record.  Hopefully the reader will see that the Bible is not only accurate and reliable in matters of faith and practice, but also in terms of its testimony about history, science and life.  

1. Was The Ark large enough to hold all of earth's species?

According to the Biblical record, when we take modern day measurements into consideration, the Ark was a vessel 450 ft long, 75 feet wide and 45 feet high.  It had an opening up top, near its roof measuring 18 inches.  The vessel had 3 decks with a total deck space of over 101,000 square feet or  to a holding capacity of 522 railway cars. 

One must realize that the Bible regards animals according to “kinds”, which would equate to our reckoning of animals by the modern biological term "genus".  This would lower the amount of specimens on the ark to a total of 16,000 animals.  If we calculate Noah and his sons taking shifts to oversee the entrance of the animals into the ark, we average the rate out to 2 animals entering per second.  With many of the animals averaging the size of a sheep, this all could had been accomplished in the prescribed 7 day period of 7:4,10.  The Ark could had handled up to “35,000” kinds of animals.  With our estimate of 16,000 loaded on the ark, half the space would had remained for Noah and his family. 

2. Is there any historical evidence outside the Bible for the existence of the Ark?

According to Creationist and Ark researcher James T. Hall, there have been several documented sightings of the Ark.[i]

a.    In 400 b.c. Abydenos, the historian and Berosus, the Babylonian High Priest, state that the ark was atop a mountain in Armenia.

b.    Josephus, a Jewish Historian writing in 100 A.D, speaks of the Ark being accessible on a mountain in Armenia.

c.    Marco Polo, an explorer in 1300 A.D, speaks of the Ark on the summit of Mount Ararat.

d.    In 1840 after a major earthquake, Turkish authorities list the remains of the prow  (the front end) of an ancient ship in the mountains

e.    Ed davis, a WWII veteran, reported in 1943 having seen the ark after having been led to the site by a Kurdish resident.

f.     George Greene, a worker for the American Oil Company, reported seeing the Ark perched on a steep ledge while flying overhead in a helicopter in 1952.

All of these reports speak of a large vessel, located in the same location, Mount Ararat.  All these people are from different cultures, times and places.  How could such a large ship be located some 17,000 feet upon a large mountain unless the worldwide flood placed it there!

3. Wasn't the flood just an isolated event experienced by a few people, or was it truly a world-wide event?
Native global flood stories are documented as history or legend in almost every region on earth. Old world missionaries reported their amazement at finding remote tribes already possessing legends with tremendous similarities to the Bible’s accounts of the worldwide flood. H.S. Bellamy in "Moons, Myths and Men" estimates that altogether there are over 500 Flood legends worldwide. Ancient civilizations such as (China, Babylonia, Wales, Russia, India, America, Hawaii, Scandinavia, Sumatra, Peru, and Polynesia) all have their own versions of a giant flood.

These flood tales are frequently linked by common elements that parallel the Biblical account including the warning of the coming flood, the construction of a boat in advance, the storage of animals, the inclusion of family, and the release of birds to determine if the water level had subsided. The overwhelming consistency among flood legends found in distant parts of the globe indicates they were derived, more or less,  from the same origin - the original account as we see in the Bible.  The Israelites would had been exposed to Egyptian  and Canannite flood stories.  Undoubtedly the one given in Genesis is unique, in that it was given by Divine Revelation, whereas all the others were just mere retellings by men. 

In tomorrow's blog we will consider why the flood account is crucial to the Christian faith.

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[i] Dr. James T. Hall.  The Origin of Life.  1989.

The Holy Spirit- His Ministries through the gifts and worship

As we have explored the personality and ministries of the Holy Spirit, the overall goal has been to show how the Holy Spirit acts in the Christian's life as "God in us".  We have seen the Spirit's work in Revelation, Incarnation, Creation and Evangelism.  In today's blog we will be finishing up our short study of the Holy Spirit by noting His work in the gifts and worship.  The reason why I chose to include these last two ministries together is because worship is the Spirit's purpose for the believer, with the gifts being given by the Spirit to accomplish that purpose.  

The Spirit's ministry of the gifts 
There are roughly five main chapters in the New Testament that speak about the various abilities or gifts given by the Holy Spirit.  Out of all of them, 1 Corinthians 12 gives the clearest and fullest treatment.  1 Corinthians 12 shows us the involvement of the entire Trinity in this work, with the Holy Spirit being the chief agent in the distribution of the gifts.  1 Corinthians 12:11 tells us - "But all these worketh that one and the selfsame Spirit, dividing to every man severally as He will."  

For the sake of length, we cannot go into what all these gifts are.  However we can quickly note two things: first that there are roughly 20-30 gifts mentioned in both 1 Corinthians 12 and other passages, and second, the word translated "gifts" could also be rendered "gracings".  Really the idea of spiritual gifts is not like a box wrapped in paper.  Rather a spiritual gift (or gracing) is a manifestation of the unlimited grace of God the Holy Spirit poured out in the believer's life. (compare Romans 5:1-5)  

In 1 Corinthians 12 and 13, we discover 4 major truths about the giving of the various "gifts" or "gracings" of the Spirit:
1. The plans of the gifts is for evangelism and effective Christian living. 12:1-7
2. The pleasures of the gifts are discovered in God's glory and work. 12:8-13
3. The reasons behind the gifts is to motivate God's people for His will. 12:14-26
4. The revelation in the gifts is God's prevailing love. 12:27-13:13

I would encourage the reader to study 1 Corinthians 12 and 13 to gain a better understanding of the gracings of God.  It is through these that the Spirit accomplishes His main purpose for the giving of them - worship

The Spirit's ministry of worship
In Ephesians 2 and 4 we discover that the Holy Spirit distributes gracings or giftings to God's people for the purpose of making a living, breathing temple. (please compare Ephesians 2:21-22).   It is on the foundation of the apostles and prophets (the written word), with Christ Jesus being the determining chief corner stone that the Spirit constructs this living temple.  Then we come to Ephesians 4:9-13, where we see the Holy Spirit giving various offices  to perfect or mature the saints for the work of the ministry. (Ephesians 4:12)  The Spirit's main work as "God in us" is to bring us to the point of the worship and praise of God the Father and the Lord Jesus Christ.  

When we say the Holy Spirit's ministry in worship is to point the way to the Father and Son, being that He is God Himself, the person of the Holy Spirit is automatically included in that worship.  Let me close with these two thoughts of the Spirit's ministry of worship - to make the Triune God experiential in our lives, and to demonstrate the reality of the Triune God to a lost and dying world, both of which bring glory to God.  

The Holy Spirit's work in the incarnation, creation, evangelism

As the Spirit's primary ministry is that of Revelation, all of His other ministries flow from who He is.   As the Holy Spirit works to reveal the work of the Son and the voice of the Father, He reveals His own nature as the God of glory, sharing the same divine life with the Father and Son.  As the God of glory who reveals, the Holy Spirit ministers or has ministered in the other following areas:

The Incarnation
When we say "incarnation", we are referring to the event in which Christ entered into the womb of the virgin Mary and took upon Himself a human nature, literally "being made human flesh".  The term "incarnation" comes from two Latin words: "en" meaning "in" and "carnos"  meaning "flesh".   In a manner that is still more mystery than a known step by step way, the Holy Spirit "hovered" or "overshadowed" Mary, making it possible in history and time for the Eternal Son to become a man.  As Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 4:6, the glory of God is revealed on the face of Jesus Christ. 

Creation
In Genesis 1:1-2 we read of the "Spirit of God" hovering over the waters.  Whenever we see the Spirit hovering over anything in scripture, the idea is to bring forth either life or to manifest the glory of God (or in the case of the incarnation, both).  The Holy Spirit is the Lord and giver of life.  Without Him, life on this planet would not be possible. (Compare Psalm 104:30).

Evangelism
It is the Holy Spirit who applies the salvation accomplished by Christ and planned by God the Father.  It is He, the God of glory, who calls men and women to Christ, convicting and effecting them with the gift of firm persuasion (faith). It is the Spirit who convicts the world of sin, righteousness and judgment.  The Holy Spirit, as God, has ordained Christian people to be the means by which this gospel is brought to lost sinners, in order to accomplish His end: convicting, calling and convincing the sinner of their need for Christ.  No evangelism can be done without the Holy Spirit.

When we think about the Spirit's work in these three areas, we can see how they are all connected.  Because the Holy Spirit works in evangelism to bring forth life out of the sinner's spiritually dead human heart, they in turn are able to see Jesus Christ as the Creator whom they have offended, and the Savior who became a man to save them, and thus believe on Him. (Please compare John 1:12-13; Ephesians 2:1-10)