Wednesday: Paul in the Mission Field
From
Jerusalem and round about as Illyricum I have fully preached the gospel of Christ
(Rom. 15:19, NKJV). What crucial element for any kind of mission work can we find in this text? See also 1 Cor. 1:23; 1 Cor 2:2; Gal. 6:14; Phil. 1:15-18.
One thing is certain about all of Paul’s missionary endeavors: no matter where he went, the preaching of Christ and Him crucified was central to his message.
Image © Pacific Press from GoodSalt.com
By making it so, he was being faithful to the call that Christ had first given him, that he should preach about Jesus. The message for missions today is obvious: whatever else we preach and teach (and as Seventh-day Adventists, we have been given so much that needs to be shared with the world), we must keep Christ and Him crucified at the front and center of all our outreach and mission work.
Paul, though, didn’t preach Jesus just as some sort of objective truth and then go on his merry way. Central to his work was to raise up churches, to start Christian communities region by region throughout his part of the world wherever he could. In the truest sense, his work was church planting.
There is another element to Paul’s missionary work as well.
Read Colossians 1:28. What does it sound like Paul is saying? That is, is this evangelism or discipleship?
If one reads many of Paul’s epistles, it’s clear that they often are not evangelistic, at least in the sense that we use the term, that of reaching out to the unchurched. On the contrary, many of the letters were written to established church communities. In other words, included in Paul’s missionary endeavors was the work of pastoral care, edification, and nurturing the churches.
So we can see at least three central elements to Paul’s missionary activity: proclaiming Jesus, church planting, and nurturing established churches.
Think about the last time you witnessed to someone, in whatever capacity. How central was Jesus to what you said? How can you make sure that you always keep Him central?
There is a great temptation to always preach some ego into our sermons or sharing and we must be always by moment by moment remind ourselves in the split seconds to avoid it by speedy prayers. It only can happen or be avoided in every delivery of either sermon or canvasing or bible study if we are alert and stick to your practiced presentation and not to veer off it, for example in Colporteur we are stressed keep to your canvas strictly and only for 7 minutes and for the rest of the time keep quiet in order to allow the Holy Ghost to woo the prospect, if not you will fail to win client and this principle goes for in sermon, canvas, bible study.
Once we include ourself or other material it is not Christ centered as He said “when I am lifted up I will draw mean unto me”.
A famous non-Christian leader is reputed to have said, “I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.” Whether or not accurate it is not hard for anyone to take such a position; for the loveliness and selflessness of Jesus is almost undeniable, except the enemy of souls cast a shadow over the mind’s eye. As well the professed followers of Christ are imperfect and at times misrepresent their master.
Still the question arises, why do people see clearly the beauty of Christ, but choose not to follow Him? People make excuses, including pointing to fellow imperfect humans, to mask their own unwillingness to do what discipleship demands, even full surrender (Mark 8:34-38).
By proclaiming Christ and teaching duty and responsibility (Colossians 1:28) Paul makes it clear sinners are not called to just an admiration club and to merely note that God is likable, but to a transformation community, a group of believers who are being restored to the image of their maker. As believers surrender they are being transformed into the image of the Lord from glory to glory (2 Corinthians 3:18).
In the judgment the wicked will bow and acknowledge the goodness of Jesus any way (Romans 14:11), and then be punished (Revelation 20:12-15).
The lost will not have as an excuse that there were too many hypocrites in church, or someone else caused them to stumble. Still the saints are called to reveal the character of Christ in their life and witness in part so as not to give the accuser of the brethren (Revelation 12:10) added ammunition to assail and deceive the world.
The revelation of the character of Christ in the life of the believers make a statement about which side they are leaning on and limits Satan’s charges.
Thanks, Hugh, I look forward to reading your comments each day… they are so encourging and enlighting. God has given you a special gift; blessings!!
Thanks for the discussion. When we examine Paul’s life and reflect to our lives we learn a lot through him.
Bro Hugh, thanks so much for your thoughts which are so relevant and pregnant with real life application . Please keep posting these Spirit filled remarks.
Thank you very much for your inspirational messages. I am spiritually filled with your powerful messages. Paul’s life experiences and eventually transformed and changed into christ-like life impact my life and will eventually change me too.
A special gift to you and shared to us is a blessing. May God richly Bless you.