Why Missions?

And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,  teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:18-20)


What is the big deal about missions? Aren’t there enough missionaries serving the world by now? A deeper look into mission work will reveal the truth. In reality, mission work is vital for all of Christ’s followers if we are going to be obedient and fulfill the Great Commission.


One reason we should seriously consider being involved in some way with missions is because the potential “harvest” is enormous. There are so many lost that have never even heard about Jesus Christ, much less His gift to us. We are the ones called to tell them. In addition, there are so many who are earnestly looking for the truth. They will search for and try all the wrong things. Missionaries are simply those Christians who are seeking to find these people and point them to Christ, the Way, the Truth, and the Life.


Sadly, there are few Christians that are actually soulwinners. It is estimated that 95% of the people that attend church will never lead anyone to Christ. How sad! Yet it's not hard to believe. To add to this obvious tragedy, the majority of Christians are poorly equipped to spread the Gospel. Without a thorough knowledge of God’s Word, they will be ineffective witnesses for Christ even if they do try to share their faith. Probably most Christians will quickly give excuses as to why they can’t witness. But we have Jesus' power within us! We must stop excusing ourselves and start willingly sharing God’s truth to the world. Remember, missionaries don’t have to go to a foreign country or leave home to witness to others. The mission field is all around us.


We, as Christ’s followers, are called and commanded to spread the Gospel message. A missionary is simply someone with a mission; soulwinning is our mission straight from God. However, whether God has called us to do it at home or abroad, we must realize we can’t do it alone. Without the guidance and wisdom of the Holy Spirit, we will fail. Let each of us surrender fully to the amazing power and supernatural strength of God’s Spirit and start obeying Jesus’ command. There are many people from various “religions” who are passionate about sharing their faith. We need to wake up and realize that we should be far more passionate about witnessing because we know the truth.


We are the only ones who can shine Jesus’ light to the world. Whether we give to missionary work, pray for those in far-off countries, go ourselves and serve in a foreign land, or just stay at home and share Jesus with those around us doesn’t really matter, as long as we are where God wants us to be. If we claim to follow Christ, let’s not be ashamed to share the message of His salvation to all the world.


JPK