GOD S GLORY AMONG THE NATIONS LEADER GUIDE

Transcription

1 GOD S GLORY AMONG THE NATIONS LEADER GUIDE

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3 Table of Contents Week God s Glory Among the Nations... 2 Week Genesis 1 Abraham Moses Priestly Blessing... 6 Week David Solomon Isaiah Jonah Malachi Jesus and the Scriptures Week Jesus and The Kingdom of God Jesus and The Great Commandment Week Jesus and His Joy The Early Church Paul Revelation Week Jesus and The Great Commission... 26

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5 God s Glory Among the Nations I am the Light of the world. John 8:12 This is an amazing claim! He is the Light of the world, and He is the one who brings light to the nations. When we look at the Scriptures, it becomes evident that Jesus is the fulfillment of all Old Testament promises and announcements of this light that would come and reveal the glory of God to the nations. I am the Lord; that is My name; My glory I give to no other, nor my praise to carved idols. Isaiah 42:8 This text reveals the vitally important biblical truth that the mission of God is grounded in God s glory among the nations. There is an undeniable thread throughout Scripture that God is passionate that His name be glorified. The mission of God for the glory of God cannot be reduced to a handful of Scriptures here or there, but it is the entirety of Scripture the narrative of God s mission. The Bible is a missional document from beginning to end. PAUSE VIDEO Group Discussion What is the difference between these two phrases? 1. The biblical basis of mission. 2. The missional basis of the Bible. If we operate under the first presupposition, then we tend to search the Bible for a verse here or a verse there that supports the point we are attempting to make about mission. This will lead us to compartmentalize missions as one of the programs in our lives and churches. If we operate under the second presupposition, then we will see that the mission of God is the major thrust of the whole Bible. Within this paradigm, we will be unable to compartmentalize missions in our lives and churches. Instead, the mission of God becomes our driving force so that we become what God is about the spread of His glory among the nations. When we see the mission of God as the very heartbeat of God throughout all of Scripture, and when His mission becomes the spiritual DNA of our church, we cannot help but do missions. Our hope is that the mission of God might be truly driven into our hearts through His Word. KEY TERMS Mission The all-encompassing biblical and theological truth that God is passionate for His name to be known and proclaimed among the nations for His glory. Missions The activities of our mission. These activities flow from our mission. We are driven by our mission to do missions. 2

6 Arise, shine, for your light has come, and the glory of the Lord has risen upon you. For behold, darkness shall cover the earth, and thick darkness the peoples; but the Lord will arise upon you, and His glory will be seen upon you. And nations shall come to your light. Isaiah 60:1-3 Gather all nations and tongues, and they shall see my glory Isaiah 66:18 For the Gentiles to glorify God for His mercy Romans 15:9 At its foundation, the mission of God is the glory of God among the nations. It is all about the glory of God. The chief end is God s own glory. We are created for His glory (Isaiah 43:7). We are saved for His glory (John 17:24). We are a part of God s church for His glory (1 Peter 4:10-11). KEY TERM Gentiles The root of the word Gentiles is the Greek word ethne, which is where we get our word for ethnicity. It is the word used for nations in the Great Commission. As Christians, we affirm that we exist for the glory of God. It is not about us; it is all about Him. Our lives and our churches exist to bring Him glory. PAUSE VIDEO Group Discussion As individuals and as a church, what should be our motivation for participating in the mission of God? Some may say lostness or need ought to motivate us to participate in the mission of God. Though these are good reasons, we must ultimately be driven by a desire for God s glory to be known and proclaimed among all nations of the earth. Missions is not ultimate; God is. The reality is that there are billions of people who have not heard that God created them to be His worshippers. Therefore, we have a mission. Worship is the ultimate goal of missions. Missions exists because worship doesn t. JOHN PIPER, LET THE NATIONS BE GLAD Not only is it the goal, but worship is the fuel of missions. How can we recommend something to another unless we ourselves have and cherish it in our own lives? Passion for God and a desire to worship Him must come before we are to share with others. The ultimate goal for you, your family and your church is worship. Missions then exists because worship does not exist in and among many places and peoples on earth. 3

7 To be without Christ is to not be able to worship God. There are millions and millions who have never heard of Christ as the light the only hope for salvation. The Great Commission is a call to fill the earth with worshippers of God through faith in Jesus Christ. God is passionate for His name to be known and proclaimed among all the nations for His glory. END VIDEO Group Discussion From what you have heard in this first session, what is the Lord saying to you? What are the changes in your life and in your church that God is leading you to make? What are some steps to make the mission of God a greater priority in your own life and church? Please, take time to pray together for God to help you to reorient yourselves and your church around the mission of God, that His name might be known and proclaimed among all nations for His glory. 4

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9 Genesis 1 Abraham Moses Priestly Blessing In the first session, we learned that God s Word affirms that our motivation is rooted in the mission of God that is revealed in Scripture that His name be known and proclaimed to all nations for His glory. This begins from the very first chapter of the Bible. God blessed them; and God said to them, Be fruitful and multiply, and fill the earth. Genesis 1:28 What does it mean when God commands them to fill the earth? God wanted the earth to be filled with human beings made in His own image. In that command to fill the earth, He desires that the earth be filled with worshippers of God from all the cultures, nations and peoples. The Great Commission then is a restatement and clarification of God s original commandment to fill the earth with worshippers of God (Matthew 28:18-20). Even from the creation account, we can see the mission of God in the first verses of the Bible. We see His heartbeat, passion and desire for the nations to know of His glory. For further study, see Ephesians 3: Progressing through the Scriptures, we see greater clarity in the mission of God. Now the Lord said to Abram, Go forth from your country, and from your relatives and from your father s house, to the land which I will show you; and I will make you a great nation, and I will bless you, and make your name great; and so you shall be a blessing; and I will bless those who bless you, and the one who curses you I will curse. And in you all the families of the earth will be blessed. Genesis 12:1-3 All the nations of the earth will be blessed! You have been blessed, that you may be a blessing to the nations. It is the mission of God. It is the reason we are on this planet to be a blessing to the nations. The same promise was given to Isaac (Genesis 26:3-4), and later Jacob (Genesis 28:14). God desires for the earth to be filled with worshippers who display and proclaim His glory. Beyond that, He has provided us the resources to fulfill His desire for the world. We are blessed to be a blessing to the nations so that they might know the glory of God. You might say, well that is in the Old Testament. That cannot be for me. Well, look at Galatians. The Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles (or the nations, peoples) by faith, preached the gospel beforehand to Abraham, saying, All the nations will be blessing in you. Galatians 3:8 If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham s seed, and heirs according to the promise. Galatians 3:29 6

10 It is clear that the New Testament Church understood that this promise to Abraham was carried forward to them as the people of God. They too were blessed to be a blessing to the nations. For further study, see Hebrews 6: If you belong to Christ, then you have been blessed by God in order to be a blessing to all nations. God desires all nations to know of His greatness and to worship Him in all of His beauty, majesty and glory. We have been blessed with material, financial, spiritual, personal and family blessings so that we might be a blessing to all nations. PAUSE VIDEO Group Discussion How does this promise to Abraham in Genesis 12:1-3 apply to you and your church? Are there ways that we are disobeying God by hoarding our blessings, holding on to our blessings and using our blessings for something other than making God s glory known among the nations? We also see the mission of God in the account of Moses. But, indeed, for this reason I have allowed you to remain, in order to show you My power and in order to proclaim My name through all the earth. Exodus 9:16 From God s perspective, the great exodus is about His name being known and His glory being displayed throughout the whole earth. He goes further to bless them with such a priestly prayer in Numbers 6: But, why would He bless them in this way? God be gracious to us and bless us, and cause His face to shine upon us. Selah. That Your way may be known on the earth, Your salvation among all nations. Let the peoples praise You, O God; let all the peoples praise You. Let the nations be glad and sing for joy; for You will judge the peoples with uprightness and guide the nations on the earth. Selah. Let the peoples praise You, O God; let all the peoples praise You. The earth has yielded its produce; God, our God, blesses us. God blesses us, that all the ends of the earth may fear Him. Psalm 67:1-7 The purpose of this priestly blessing is that the nations of all the earth might know and fear God. It should be our daily prayer that our Lord would give us a blessing today so that we can use all of our resources and blessings to proclaim His salvation to the ends of the earth. If we are not using the blessings that God has given to us, then we are missing out on the whole reason for why we are here. Our motivation for being involved in missions is driven by the glory of God. The blessings that we have are for one purpose: they are to be used for His glory among the nations. PAUSE VIDEO 7

11 Group Discussion and Prayer Will you put your blessings on the altar? Will you release your life to be used for God s glory among the nations? Will you release your children or grandchildren? Will you release your finances? Are you willing to say, Lord, use what You have given me for Your glory among the nations? Our motivation for being involved in the mission of God is rooted in a theological and biblical understanding of God s glory among the nations. If we are not using the blessings that God has given to us, then we are missing out on the reason that God has us on this planet. He wants to use us and our church as His instruments to make His glory known among all the peoples of the earth. What if what we are giving God now is not what He desires? What if we are giving Him coconut pie instead of chocolate? END VIDEO Group Discussion What is the Lord saying to you? Is there any coconut pie in your life or the life of your church that God is leading you to change, to begin to bring to Him what He really wants, which is a focus on bringing His glory to the nations? Please take time to pray together for God to help you to reorient yourselves and your church around the mission of God, that His name might be known and proclaimed among all nations for His glory. 8

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13 David Solomon Isaiah Jonah Malachi Jesus and the Scriptures In last week s lesson, we learned that we are blessed in order to be a blessing so that God might receive glory and worship from every nation. We finished in Numbers 6 with the priestly blessing, and after the priestly blessing, we see that God continues to reveal His plan for the nations through King David. DAVID There shall come the root of Jesse, and He who arises to rule over the nations, in Him shall the nations hope. Romans 15:12 There are many Scriptural references that refer to the Messiah coming through the line of David, from the root of Jesse. Verse 12 tells us why the Messiah comes, and the verse ties the purpose of David to David s lineage. It is through the lineage of David that One will come who will bring hope to the nations (see also Psalm 22:27-28). SOLOMON Even in the account of Solomon, King David s immediate heir, Solomon offers a prayer of dedication for the temple. In this prayer, Solomon declares that the purpose of the temple is to display the glory of God for all the peoples of the earth (2 Chronicles 6:12). ISAIAH In Isaiah, we see that Isaiah calls the people of God to be a light to the nations so that God s salvation may reach to the ends of the earth (Isaiah 49:6; 52:10; 56:6-7). Chapters of the book of Isaiah are especially rich with descriptions of how all the nations will come and worship God. The Lord Jesus, in Luke 4:16-21, quotes from the heart of this section of Isaiah (chapter 61) in order to announce His Messiahship. In Luke 4, Jesus opened the scroll and looked for the Isaiah 61 passage, but why? Because Jesus announces that the purpose of His Messiahship is so the nations will uphold and display the glory of God. Nations will come to your light, and kings to the brightness of Your rising. Isaiah 60:3 Then their offspring will be known among the nations. Isaiah 61:9 10

14 For as the earth brings forth its sprouts, and as a garden causes the things sown in it to spring up, so the Lord God will cause righteousness and praise to spring up before all the nations. Isaiah 61:11 The nations will see Your righteousness, and all kings Your glory. Isaiah 62:2 They will declare My glory among the nations. Isaiah 66:19 SIDE NOTE Isaiah 60 is a description of a day that will come when people from all nations will worship Jesus. But notice whom the Lord mentions in verses 6-7: Midian, Ephah, Sheba, Kedar and Nebaioth. These are the Arab descendants of Abraham. In Isaiah 60, God reveals His love and desire for salvation for the Arabs. Western Christianity struggles with a bias against Arabs, but in the end, Scripture calls us to love the Arab people! In Luke 4, Jesus quotes from this section of Isaiah that describes all the nations coming to worship God. He does so to announce His Messiahship, indicating that it is through Him that the nations will uphold and display the glory of God. PAUSE VIDEO Group Discussion If Christ reveals Himself through God s glory among the nations, then what would Jesus priority be for your church? What are some ways you and your church can engage in the mission of God in ministry to Muslim peoples? Jesus priority for His church is that we be driven by the mission of God and that we engage in mission activities to proclaim His glory among the nations. JONAH Then the people of Nineveh believed in God; and they called a fast and put on sackcloth from the greatest to the least of them. Jonah 3:5 Consider the mission of God in the book of Jonah. Jonah wanted God to destroy Nineveh. He was so prejudiced against them that he was not even willing to deliver to them the message that would save them. Instead, he wanted to restrict God s salvation to only the people of Israel. However, it was God who had been offended by the sin and ADDITIONAL VERSES Jeremiah 3:17 Through Jeremiah, the purpose of God is to gather the nations to worship Him. Daniel 7:13-14 Through Daniel, God wants all peoples, nations and languages upholding and displaying His glory. Habakkuk 1:5 Through Habakkuk, God will show His mighty works among the nations. 11

15 idolatry of the Ninevites who wanted the rebellious Ninevites to uphold and display His glory. MALACHI For from the rising of the sun to its setting, My name will be great among the nations. Malachi 1:11 Through Malachi, God reveals His passion for His name to be known and proclaimed among the nations. PAUSE VIDEO Group Discussion What has been helpful to you, and what has been challenging to you in this overview of the mission of God in the Old Testament? Who are the Ninevites to you and your church? What are some ways you can minister to them for the glory of God? JESUS AND THE SCRIPTURES Luke 2:41-51 provides the account of Jesus at the temple when He was 12. Though His parents did not understand, Jesus tells His parents that He had to be in His Father s house and about His Father s business. Luke initiates a theme here, which resurfaces a few more times in the gospel story and culminates at the end of the book of Luke. Several more times in the Gospel of Luke, we see that those who were listening to Jesus did not understand fully what was taking place (Luke 4:22; 9:44-45; 18:31-34; 24:5-8; 24:25-27). However, Luke brilliantly brings these misunderstandings to the book s climax where Jesus, Himself, makes clear His Father s will. He said to them, This is what I told you while I was still with you: Everything must be fulfilled that is written about Me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms. Then He opened their minds so they could understand the Scriptures. He told them, This is what is written: The Messiah will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day and repentance for the forgiveness of sins will be preached in His name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things. Luke 24:44-48 In this passage, Jesus summarizes both the message of the Old Testament and the message of His own ministry that forgiveness of sins is to be proclaimed to all the nations. Jesus is helping His disciples understand that the message of the Scriptures is about proclaiming repentance for the forgiveness of sins to all nations. That is the Father s business. 12

16 END VIDEO Group Discussion and Prayer Is the Father s business the priority of your life, your family s life and the life of your church? When Jesus opens our minds to understand the Scriptures, we as His disciples must reprioritize our lives to embrace God s passion for His glory among the nations. The priority of Jesus must be our priority. The priority of our lives must become the proclamation of the forgiveness of sins in the name of Jesus to all nations. 13

17 of churches that are all engaging this people group is beginning to form. Imagine these efforts leading to Vietnamese Buddhists in your state coming to faith in Christ, being trained and equipped, and then going back to their country of origin as missionaries to reach unreached people groups there with the gospel. One small, predominantly Anglo-American church, located about an hour and a half outside of Washington D.C., approached it from another perspective. They partnered first with the International Mission Board to adopt an unreached and unengaged people group, the Biafade of Guinea Bissau in West Africa. Working with IMB missionaries on the ground, they developed a strategy through short-term mission trips to see churches planted among this people group in Guinea Bissau. When they discovered there was a large population of West African Muslims living northeast of Washington D.C., they immediately began to see how they might begin to reach that community with the gospel as well. Through the providence of God, a small, predominantly African-American church caught the vision for seeing this West African community in D.C. reached with the gospel as well. Immediately, these two churches began working together to prayerwalk, develop gospel-centered relationships and evangelize in that area of the city. The hope is to see Bible study groups started and ultimately churches multiplied among the West African Muslims there. In both of these cases, the engaging churches developed a focus on a specific people group. Why? First, engaging the same or a similar people group locally, regionally and on the other side of the world brings continuity to what your church is doing. You are able to give your members knowledge and skills to be on mission in your immediate local context that will transfer over to regional and international church-planting work. What if, in your own city, your members were learning to greet their Moroccan neighbors in Berber, becoming skilled at navigating cultural norms in their neighbor s homes and sharing the gospel with their neighbors within an Islamic worldview? Imagine the kind of support your members would receive on short- term mission trips to the churches on the ground among the Berbers in New York City or to the missionaries in the Atlas Mountains of Morocco. Second, these people group populations living in our cities are networked throughout the entire world already through familial and other relational ties. If they are, then we should strive to be as well. Our church has begun a focused work among the Sene-Gambian Wolof community living in Raleigh. My wife and I took a trip up to New York City to visit some new friends who were working among a West African people group in Harlem and the Bronx. Within a few hours of conversations there in Harlem with Senegalese, we realized the two communities were most definitely interconnected. Our relationships with Senegalese in North Carolina began to lead to inroads in the Senegalese community in NYC, and vice versa. One campus pastor in the Raleigh area has seen many former Buddhist Chinese students come to faith in Christ. Within days, these students were sharing the gospel over Skype with family living in Los Angeles and even back in China. One such student even started a house church by sharing the gospel with his family back home. Another brother, Chris, was a missionary in Mali for a couple years. He struggled to get the gospel to several villages in Mali that were extremely hostile to him and did not allow him to share with them about Jesus. When he returned to North America, he was able to find his people group in New York City. After building relationships with individuals, who by the providence of God happened to be the purse strings of those very same villages, he was able to return and see churches planted there among them in Mali. When you begin to engage people group communities locally, realize that they are connected and networked with others from their group across the globe. Can you envision the global impact of the gospel-centered relationships you are building with people group communities in your neighborhoods? As believers, we need to be using globalization in this way for the global advancement of the gospel. As you think about focusing the attention of your church on a particular people group in your city, how do you know which one to focus on? Consider several factors that will help to frame this decision-making process. First, pray and ask the Lord to show you where He is already working among the people groups in your city. Then join Him in that work. Second, if you focus on a people group that is in close geographical proximity to your congregation, then your members will have an easier time of living life with those in your focus people group. Third, you may want to focus on a people group that is already close to the heart of your members. For example, if your church has been sending short-term teams to partner with a missionary in India who is working with the Punjabi people, then it will be much easier for them to get excited about reaching the same (or a similar) people group in your city. Use connections your members already have around the world to inform whom and how to engage people groups locally. Allow the Spirit to work, and follow the Lord s leading as He places compassion and zeal in the hearts of your people for 14

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19 Jesus and The Kingdom of God Jesus and The Great Commandment In the session last week, we learned that when Jesus opens our minds to understand the Scriptures, we see that the whole Bible is about the glory of God among the nations and proclaiming His salvation to all nations. This is the Father s business and the undeniable thread throughout the whole of the Bible. JESUS AND THE KINGDOM OF GOD In His hometown, Jesus begins to describe the nature of the kingdom of God. We have already studied the portion of Luke 4 where Jesus announces the purpose of His Messiahship that the nations would uphold and display the glory of God. Up to this point, all those who heard Him spoke well of Him because of His gracious words (Luke 4:14). In His first statements after the announcement of His purpose, Jesus tells two stories from the Old Testament that send a polarizing message. But I say to you in truth, there were many widows in Israel in the days of Elijah, when the sky was shut up for three years and six months, when a great famine came over all the land; and yet Elijah was sent to none of them, but only to Zarephath, in the land of Sidon, to a woman who was a widow [1 Kings 17]. Luke 4:25-26 And there were many lepers in Israel in the time of Elisha the prophet; and none of them was cleansed, but only Naaman the Syrian [2 Kings 5]. Luke 4:27 In the first story, though there were many widows in Israel, God chose to bless someone from a foreign people group. In the second, God decided to show His love, mercy and healing to an enemy of Israel a terrorist, a foreign king, a Syrian. Through these stories, Jesus demonstrates that the kingdom of God is not about keeping the message of freedom, liberty and salvation for our own people. Jesus tells us that the message of freedom, liberty and salvation is for all the nations. Those from Jesus home town did not receive this teaching well. And all the people in the synagogue were filled with rage as they heard these things; and they got up and drove Him out of the city, and led Him to the brow of the hill on which their city had been built, in order to throw Him down the cliff. But passing through their midst, He went His way. Luke 4:

20 I wonder how many of our churches are trying to throw Jesus off the cliff today because we reject His heart for the nations? Jesus demonstrates in His first sermon that He came to redeem a people from every people group. Woe to us if we fail to see the love of God for all the nations. Woe to us if we fail to see God s desire to gather a host of worshippers from all the peoples who will uphold and display His glory among the nations. The message of freedom and liberty and salvation is for all the nations. PAUSE VIDEO Group Discussion What do we learn about the mission of God from Jesus first sermon in Luke 4? Of all the illustrations in the Old Testament, why do you think Jesus selected these two? After reflecting on Jesus sermon, what is the application on your life and your church s life? JESUS AND THE GREAT COMMANDMENT A teacher of the law comes to Jesus and questions Him regarding the greatest commandment. Jesus responds by quoting two Old Testament passages: And He said to him, You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the great and first commandment [Deuteronomy 6:5]. Matthew 22:37-38 The second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets [Leviticus 19:33-34]. Matthew 22:39-40 Jesus is saying that everything in the Bible in some sense depends on these two commandments: the commandment to love God and the commandment to love our neighbor. This becomes even more stunning after looking at the context of Leviticus 19:33-34, the passage Jesus was quoting from. This passage in Leviticus is about God s command that His people love the foreigner who was living among them. God desires that His people welcome and love the foreigners now living in our neighborhoods so that the glory of God might be made known among all the nations. PAUSE VIDEO 17

21 Group Discussion and Prayer What do we learn about the mission of God when we see this Great Commandment given to love God and love neighbor? Describe how we can demonstrate love toward our foreign neighbors. How does Matthew 16:13-18 apply to you and your church? Consider the story of Dr. Martha s martyrdom for the sake of the spread of the glory of God among the nations. She lived and died for the mission of God and His glory among the nations. Are you willing to pray, give and go? Is your church willing to embrace the mission of God? END VIDEO CONSIDER THESE OTHER VERSES Matthew 8:5-12 [Roman Centurion] Jesus honors the faith of the Roman centurion and teaches that the kingdom of God is about God s glory among the nations. John 4:7-45 [The Samaritan Woman] Jesus shares God s message with a Samaritan woman someone from an outside people group. John 10:16 [Other Sheep] Jesus says, I have other sheep, which are not of this fold; I must bring them also, and they will hear My voice; and they will become one flock with one shepherd. John 12:20-23 [The Hour Has Come] When these Greeks come and say, Sir we would see Jesus, Jesus says, Now the hour has come. Matthew 24:14 [Then The End Will Come] Jesus indicates the He is not coming back until we finish the task. Mark 16:15 [All the World] Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. Group Prayer Time What if you were to send at least 10 percent of your membership on a mission trip this coming year? Pray that God might send at least a tithe of your church membership on a mission trip this year. Pray that we will live for the mission of God and His glory among the nations. Pray that God would bless us so that we might use what He gives us to glorify His name among the nations. 18

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23 Jesus and His Joy The Early Church Paul Revelation In session four, we learned that Jesus wants us to proclaim God s love, mercy and salvation for all the nations. We are not to sit on the message and keep it for our own people group; rather, we are to proclaim and display the kingdom of God to all the nations of the earth. JESUS AND HIS JOY At the end of Luke 10, we find an amazing description of the joy of Christ. At that very time, He rejoiced greatly in the Holy Spirit and said, I praise You, O Father, Lord of heaven and earth. Luke 10:21 What was it that caused Jesus so much joy? This took place after the disciples could not cast the demon out of the boy and Jesus rebuked them (Luke 9:1-6; 9:38-41). It happened after the disciples argued about who among them was the greatest (Luke 9:46-48). This transpired after the disciples were so inwardly focused that they wanted to stop someone else from doing good only because that person was not in their group (Luke 9:49-50). It occurred after the disciples expressed their desire to call down fire to destroy a whole Samaritan town for their rejection of Jesus (Luke 9:51-56). Jesus was filled with joy after three men saw the cost of following Jesus and make excuses and walk away (Luke 9:57-62). Now after this the Lord appointed 70 others and sent them in pairs ahead of Him to every city and place where He Himself was going to come. Luke 10:1 The Scripture says that after this the Lord appointed 70 others (Luke 10:1). God is so passionate for His name to be known and proclaimed that He will skip you and your church and He will appoint someone else to make His name known and proclaimed. Today, Jesus wants His name known and proclaimed among every nation and people group, but there are thousands of unreached people groups who have yet to hear. Jesus has not gone there yet because we have not gone out ahead of Him into every city and every place where He wants to go. In Luke 10:2-9, Jesus gives full instructions to those He was sending out. The 70 others went out on their Luke 10 mission trip and followed Jesus instructions exactly. Then, in Luke 10:17, the 70 returned with joy. This joy of the 70 others is a stark contrast to the return of the 12 only a chapter earlier (Luke 9:10). Still, the joy of the 70 was misplaced. Jesus instructs them that despite the miracles they had seen, the real miracle is that their names were written in heaven (Luke 10:20). If we go on a mission trip and we see a demon cast out or an evil spirit being subject to us, most of us would describe that as a demonstration of the power of God a miracle. While this is miraculous, the greatest miracle in the universe is that your name is recorded in heaven. The greatest miracle is that Jesus died and rose for you that Jesus saved you. The reason that we participate in the mission of God is so that others might experience that miracle so they can be worshippers of God and along with us spread His glory among the nations. 20

24 PAUSE VIDEO Group Discussion What did we learn about the mission of God in Luke chapters 9 and 10? When you see what brings Jesus joy, what is the application in your life and in your church? Let us hope that we will be like the 70 and give of our lives and our resources to bring joy to Jesus by bringing the glory of God among the nations. THE EARLY CHURCH But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth. Acts 1:8 In the first seven chapters of the book of Acts, the church remained in Jerusalem and did not obey this command of Christ to be His witnesses to the peoples in Judea, Samaria and the ends of the earth. The church actually does not obey the command to be Christ s witnesses to the ends of the earth until Acts 8:1, when the Holy Spirit used persecution to scatter the church throughout the whole region. Why should anyone hear the gospel twice before everyone has a chance to hear it once? OSWALD J. SMITH Some might say, as the early church did, that we should not seek to take the gospel to other places or peoples while we have people here right around us who are still in need of salvation. Oswald J. Smith gives a compelling answer to this refrain. He said, Why should anyone hear the gospel twice before everyone has a chance to hear it once? The early church finally made it outside of Jerusalem when Philip travelled to Samaria, where he preached the gospel and many came to faith (Acts 8:4-25). Philip then leads an Ethiopian eunuch to Christ along the road to Gaza (Acts 8:26-40). Later in Acts, Peter is led to take the gospel to a Roman centurion named Cornelius. It is in his home that salvation was formally given to the Gentiles to the nations (Acts 10:1-11:18). THE APOSTLE PAUL The apostle Paul s driving passion was the mission of God the glory of God among the nations. In Romans 15, we see that Paul firmly believes that for him, the work was finished throughout the whole region from Jerusalem to Illyricum (Romans 15:19). Though there were still unbelievers in that geographic area, there were also reproducing disciples and churches. And thus I aspired to preach the gospel, not where Christ was already named. Romans 15:20 21

25 We desperately need missionaries like Paul, who will go not to the places that are already reached, but to the unreached places, the hard places. The need is for God s people to embrace the mission of God and go to the places that have little or no access to the gospel. If we embrace the mission of God, then we embrace the urgent need for Paul-type missionaries who are willing to cross language and culture and face danger for the glory of God among the nations. The need of the hour is for Paul-type missionaries who are willing to go to the hard places, to the unreached places where Christ has not yet been named. See Paul s passion for the nations in his last words in 2 Timothy 4: percent of all Christian workers go where a work is already established. Only 5 percent go where people have little to no access to the gospel. PAUSE VIDEO Group Discussion What did you learn about the mission of God in this overview of the New Testament and in the life and ministry of the apostle Paul? When we see that Paul wanted to go where Christ had not yet been named, he wanted to go to the unreached places. What is the application in your life regarding those unreached places and peoples? What is the application for your church regarding those places and peoples? REVELATION From the very first chapter of the Bible to the very last chapter of the Bible, Scripture is united in calling its reader to join in the common theme the mission of God. Throughout the whole of Scripture, God desires His glory to be upheld and displayed among all nations. And they sang a new song, saying, Worthy are You to take the book and to break its seals; for You were slain, and purchased for God with Your blood men from every tribe and tongue and people and nation. You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to our God; and they will reign upon the earth. Revelation 5:9-10 Listen to this promise! Through the death of Jesus and His shed blood upon the cross, He purchased some from every tribe, every nation and every people upon the earth. How can we not go and claim what has been purchased? After these things I looked, and behold, a great multitude which no one could count, from every nation and all tribes and peoples and tongues, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, and palm branches were in their hands; and they cry out with a loud voice, saying Salvation to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb. Revelation 7:

26 Here is the fulfillment of the mission! Worshippers of the one true God from every nation, people, tribe and tongue. If this is how the Bible says it will all come to an end, then why wouldn t we participate in the mission of God as the single theme in our lives, the life of our family and our church? Why wouldn t we be focused and committed to giving, praying, going and sending to the nations? Then he showed me a river of the water of life, clear as crystal, coming from the throne of God and of the Lamb, in the middle of its street. On either side of the river was the tree of life, bearing twelve kinds of fruit, yielding its fruit every month; and the leaves of the tree were for the healing of the nations. Revelation 22:1-2 From Genesis chapter one through the Revelation chapter 22, the Scriptures demonstrate God s desire for His glory among the nations. What about you? Will you put your yes on the altar? Will you embrace the mission of God, that His glory might be made known among all the nations? END VIDEO Group Prayer Time Ask God to enable you to embrace the mission of God, to be willing to go and display God s glory among the nations, and, in particular, to go to the unreached places for the glory of God. 23

27 of churches that are all engaging this people group is beginning to form. Imagine these efforts leading to Vietnamese Buddhists in your state coming to faith in Christ, being trained and equipped, and then going back to their country of origin as missionaries to reach unreached people groups there with the gospel. One small, predominantly Anglo-American church, located about an hour and a half outside of Washington D.C., approached it from another perspective. They partnered first with the International Mission Board to adopt an unreached and unengaged people group, the Biafade of Guinea Bissau in West Africa. Working with IMB missionaries on the ground, they developed a strategy through short-term mission trips to see churches planted among this people group in Guinea Bissau. When they discovered there was a large population of West African Muslims living northeast of Washington D.C., they immediately began to see how they might begin to reach that community with the gospel as well. Through the providence of God, a small, predominantly African-American church caught the vision for seeing this West African community in D.C. reached with the gospel as well. Immediately, these two churches began working together to prayerwalk, develop gospel-centered relationships and evangelize in that area of the city. The hope is to see Bible study groups started and ultimately churches multiplied among the West African Muslims there. In both of these cases, the engaging churches developed a focus on a specific people group. Why? First, engaging the same or a similar people group locally, regionally and on the other side of the world brings continuity to what your church is doing. You are able to give your members knowledge and skills to be on mission in your immediate local context that will transfer over to regional and international church-planting work. What if, in your own city, your members were learning to greet their Moroccan neighbors in Berber, becoming skilled at navigating cultural norms in their neighbor s homes and sharing the gospel with their neighbors within an Islamic worldview? Imagine the kind of support your members would receive on short- term mission trips to the churches on the ground among the Berbers in New York City or to the missionaries in the Atlas Mountains of Morocco. Second, these people group populations living in our cities are networked throughout the entire world already through familial and other relational ties. If they are, then we should strive to be as well. Our church has begun a focused work among the Sene-Gambian Wolof community living in Raleigh. My wife and I took a trip up to New York City to visit some new friends who were working among a West African people group in Harlem and the Bronx. Within a few hours of conversations there in Harlem with Senegalese, we realized the two communities were most definitely interconnected. Our relationships with Senegalese in North Carolina began to lead to inroads in the Senegalese community in NYC, and vice versa. One campus pastor in the Raleigh area has seen many former Buddhist Chinese students come to faith in Christ. Within days, these students were sharing the gospel over Skype with family living in Los Angeles and even back in China. One such student even started a house church by sharing the gospel with his family back home. Another brother, Chris, was a missionary in Mali for a couple years. He struggled to get the gospel to several villages in Mali that were extremely hostile to him and did not allow him to share with them about Jesus. When he returned to North America, he was able to find his people group in New York City. After building relationships with individuals, who by the providence of God happened to be the purse strings of those very same villages, he was able to return and see churches planted there among them in Mali. When you begin to engage people group communities locally, realize that they are connected and networked with others from their group across the globe. Can you envision the global impact of the gospel-centered relationships you are building with people group communities in your neighborhoods? As believers, we need to be using globalization in this way for the global advancement of the gospel. As you think about focusing the attention of your church on a particular people group in your city, how do you know which one to focus on? Consider several factors that will help to frame this decision-making process. First, pray and ask the Lord to show you where He is already working among the people groups in your city. Then join Him in that work. Second, if you focus on a people group that is in close geographical proximity to your congregation, then your members will have an easier time of living life with those in your focus people group. Third, you may want to focus on a people group that is already close to the heart of your members. For example, if your church has been sending short-term teams to partner with a missionary in India who is working with the Punjabi people, then it will be much easier for them to get excited about reaching the same (or a similar) people group in your city. Use connections your members already have around the world to inform whom and how to engage people groups locally. Allow the Spirit to work, and follow the Lord s leading as He places compassion and zeal in the hearts of your people for 24

28 WEEK 6 25

29 Jesus and The Great Commission In our last session, we saw how the Bible clearly says that in the end, some from every nation, tribe and tongue will be present in heaven. This truth demands that we ask then, why wouldn t we participate in the mission of God and live with a passion for the nations? Why wouldn t we let the mission of God become the single theme for our life, our family and our church? In our final session, we will explore the most familiar passage in the mission of God the Great Commission. And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age. Matthew 28:18-20 First, notice that Jesus is the one who initiates the Great Commission because the Great Commission belongs to God. It is rooted and founded in the nature of God as triune. The Father sends the Son, who accomplishes salvation for the nations and sends the Holy Spirit, who empowers the church to carry that saving message unto all the world. ALL AUTHORITY Jesus has authority in every realm. He possesses every kind of authority in heaven and on earth. He has authority in both the spiritual and the physical realm. The Lord Jesus Christ has comprehensive authority over the whole of the created order. If we believe that Jesus has comprehensive authority, then does Jesus not have the right to issue the Great Commission? Does Jesus not have the power and the ability to carry out the Great Commission through us? Does He not have the right to expect His followers to obey the Great Commission? If we believe that Jesus Christ has all authority, then we have no excuse. His authority eliminates every possible reason and excuse that we might give as to why we cannot complete the Great Commission. PAUSE VIDEO Group Discussion What excuses do we make for not participating in the Great Commission? What excuses do our churches make? What changes would we see if we really believed that Jesus Christ has all authority? 26

30 ALL NATIONS To obey the Great Commission means that we must go from where we are to another culture, context or people than our own. We must go to the nations. To obey the Great Commission means that we must go outside our comfort zone and engage cultures that are different from ours. We must lay down our prejudices toward other cultures, and we must lay down our idolatrous love for our own comforts. Who will go to the hard places? Who will sacrificially use their resources to send others and help fund the Great Commission? Who will be faithful to pray? HOW ARE WE DOING? The IMB tells us that there are about 16,000 people groups in the world, and over 6,500 of them are unreached people groups. Over 3,500 of them are unreached and unengaged people groups. 95 percent of all Christian workers stay with the reached. Only 5 percent serve among the unreached. 96 percent of all finances stay with the reached. Only 4 percent go to the unreached. There are 6,500 unreached people groups, and the goal of the Great Commission given to us by Jesus Christ is to plant a growing church within every one of these people groups so that we can make disciples and obey the third all of the Great Commission. ALL COMMANDS The third all has to do with teaching the new disciples of all nations to observe all that Jesus commanded us. This points back to the command of Christ to make disciples of all nations. We are commanded to make disciples and teach them to observe all that Jesus has commanded. But where does discipleship take place? Where do we teach the commands of Christ and hold one another accountable to observe those commands? These activities take place in the context of a community of faith the church. For discipling to take place, there must be a community of faith. Therefore, the immediate objective that will lead to the fulfilment of the Great Commission is to plant churches. We want to see disciples multiplied and churches planted within every one of the unreached people groups throughout the world. This will require a long-term view, commitment and strategies. PAUSE VIDEO Group Discussion What would it take for your church to connect with and begin serving among an unreached people group, whether here in North America or around the world? Consider connecting with the Great Commission Partnerships office of the Baptist State Convention of North Carolina. WITH YOU ALWAYS It is a great comfort to know that each day that we live, Jesus presence is always with us. There is not a single second of our lives that He leaves us. 27

31 The purpose for this promise of the constant presence of Jesus is not so that we can seek our best life now. This promise is not so that we will feel more comfortable within our lives now. The purpose of Jesus constant presence is so that we will have all that we need to fulfill Jesus Great Commission to see the glory of God among the nations. The purpose of Jesus constant presence is so that we can go to the hard places, where there is danger, where there is risk, to go to all the nations and proclaim the glory of God. Christ has all authority so that we might go to all the nations and teach all things, which Jesus commanded for all of our days. From Genesis to Revelation, we have seen the theme of the mission of God to make His glory known and proclaimed among the nations. Is your mission in life the same as the mission of God? Are you willing to sacrifice anything to see the nations reached for the glory of God? Do you make decisions in regard to mission based on safety or the lack of funds? Should we not make decisions for reaching the nations based on how much glory God will get? Will you commit your life and your resources for the mission of God, that the Great Commission might be fulfilled? If Jesus is Lord of the nations, if He has ransomed people for God from every tribe, tongue, people and nation, if He has all authority in heaven and on earth, if Jesus has commanded us to go and make disciples of all nations and has promised to be with us to the end of the age, then let us be a church that will not rest until the mission is done. END VIDEO Group Discussion Are you willing to pray the following? Lord, I want to be a part of your glory among the nations. Lord, I put my yes on the altar. Lord, wherever You lead, I ll go. Pray that we will not be driven by whether it s safe enough or if we have enough money, but pray that we will be driven by a desire for the glory of God. Pray that we would be a church that displays the glory of God among the nations. 28