Raising Men and Women for the work of the Lord, through the Power of the Holy Spirit

MISSIONS

WHAT IS CHRISTIAN MISSION ?

      Christian mission brings the message of salvation in Christ alone to all ethnic groups so that they have the undisputed opportunity to become new persons in Christ (2 Cor. 5:17).

      Matthew 24:14  And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come. (The NIV is used, unless noted.)

      Romans 15:20  It has always been my ambition to preach the gospel where Christ was not known, so that I would not be building on someone else's foundation.

      Luke 24:46 He told them, "This is what is written: The Christ will suffer and rise from the dead on the third day,  47 and repentance and forgiveness of sins will be preached in his name to all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.

      Mission glorifies God by bringing new worshippers to Him “from every nation, tribe, people and language”—Rev. 7:9-10.

WHAT IS CHRISTIAN MISSION ?

      While Jesus met physical/emotional needs,  preaching good news took the higher priority—it has eternal consequences.

      Luke 4:40-44  40 When the sun was setting, the people brought to Jesus all who had various kinds of sickness, and laying his hands on each one, he healed them.  41 Moreover, demons came out of many people….  42 At daybreak Jesus went out to a solitary place. The people were looking for him and when they came to where he was, they tried to keep him from leaving them.  43 But he said, "I must preach the good news of the kingdom of God to the other towns also, because that is why I was sent."  44 And he kept on preaching in the synagogues of Judea.

WHAT IS CHRISTIAN MISSION ?

      The best strategy to disciple the nations is for frontier missionaries to plant viable ethnic churches, which will continue to evangelize and disciple their own people.

      “St. Paul’s theory of evangelizing a province was not to preach in every place in it himself, but to establish centres of Christian life in two or three important places from which the knowledge might spread into the country round.” Roland Allen, Missionary Methods: St. Paul’s or Ours? 1930. p. 18.

      Discipleship--Christians becoming more and more like Christ--is more the responsibility of the church that is planted, than of missions.

      Matthew 28:19-20 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,  20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you…."

      Colossians 1:28  We proclaim him, admonishing and teaching everyone with all wisdom, so that we may present everyone perfect in Christ.

      Missionaries assist the national church in fulfilling her mission in ways such as providing evangelistic tools, education and medical and community ministry.

Doing Jesus’ Work Cross-culturally

      More generally, mission is continuing to do Jesus’ work.

      “As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.”--John 20:21 (out of our comfort).

      “The Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost.”—Luke 19:10

      To destroy the Devil’s work—1 John 3:8

      “preach Good News to the poor…free the prisoners…release the oppressed”—Luke 4:18

WHAT IS A CHRISTIAN
MISSIONARY ?

      A Christian missionary is God’s ambassador bringing the message of salvation in Christ alone to another people, so that members will have the opportunity to be born from above.

      John 3:3  In reply Jesus declared, "I tell you the truth, no one can see the kingdom of God unless he is born again."

      This is a narrow definition of classic mission. Certainly Christian support personnel and those in mercy ministries in cross-cultural ministries are missionaries.

Distinguishing Traits of a Missionary

      A missionary is sent by God on a task.  The word “missionary” is the Latin equivalent of the Greek “apostle,” or “sent one.”

      A missionary usually goes to a different culture and ethnic group.  Paul went to Gentiles and Peter to Jews (Gal. 2:8).

      This distinguishes them from “witnesses,” the work of every Christian, and from local evangelists.

      Missionaries are sent by God, through the Spirit, usually by local churches (Acts 13:3).

Missionaries are Called by God

      Missionaries are distinguished by a “call” from God (Acts 13:2), although some believe Matt. 28:18-20 (“the Great Commission”) suffices for a call to everyone.

      The call may be to a specific people—however defined, to a country, or to a kind of ministry, such as teaching or medicine.

      A missionary is not someone who simply does the work of a deacon:

      Comforting the grieving

      Taking food to the hungry (Acts 6:1-4), etc.

      A missionary is not someone who does the work of an evangelist among his or her own people.

      “If everyone is a missionary, then no one is a missionary.” It has been defined away.

Why Support Global Missions ?

      God wants no one to be lost (go to hell), but all to repent (2 Pet. 3:9).  Missions is God’s work, not the responsibility of any one
sending nation or people.

      We see this in the Old Testament:

      God sought out Adam after he sinned.

      God called Abraham in order to bless “all peoples” through Jesus (Gen. 12:3; 18:18)

      The “Servant of the Lord,” meaning both Jesus and Israel, was to bring God’s salvation “to the ends of the earth” (Isaiah 49:3-6; Acts 13:46-47).

      Jesus’ earthly ministry was to Jews (Matt. 15:24), but He also served the Samaritan (John 4).

      His death was a ministry for all the lost (2 Cor. 5:14-15).

      The Jews were ethnocentric—focused upon themselves--content to keep salvation among themselves.

      In the New Testament the Son of Man came to seek and save the lost (Luke 19:10).  We are now His “feet” to reach the lost, wherever they are (Rom. 10:14-15).

      Christians are now mediators (priests) between God and unbelievers (Rom. 15:16).

      Christ told the 11 apostles to witness not only in Jerusalem, but even to the uttermost parts of the earth (Acts 1:8).  Those 11 could not possibly go everywhere—it is the work of the global Church until all are evangelized.

The Global Kingdom Grows

      It grows from a mustard seed to a tree

   -- Matthew 13:31-33

      The Kingdom grows MYSTERIOUSLY toward a final HARVEST--Mark 4:26-29.

      Christianity is the best-distributed religion on the planet. Only Christians are found in all 238 countries and Christians are found in at least 11,500 of Earth’s 12,600 ethnic language groups. Christians are a majority in 5 of the 6 continents (Asia is the exception).

      Michael Jaffarian, “The demographics of world religions entering the 21st century,” in Between past & future, J. Bonk ed. 2003, pp. 261-62.

Important Terms

      First World

      The West, the North, most-developed, secularized nations

      Second World

      Communist sphere of influence (East), more-developed, anti-religious nations

      Third World

      Non-aligned nations, the South, least-developed, religious nations¹

      Four-fifths World (Asia, Africa, Latin America)

      58% of Christians live here, versus 42% in the West²

1 David B. Barrett & Todd M. Johnson, World Christian Trends AD30-AD 2200, p. 71

2 Michael Jaffarian, “The demographics of world religions entering the 21st century,” in Between past & future, J. Bonk ed. 2003, pp. 257-258.

Terminology

      World A

      The unevangelized world

•         =1,800,228,000 in mid-2005, or 27.9% of Earth’s  population

      World B

      The evangelized non-Christian world

•         = 2,517,617,000 in mid-2005, or 39%

      World C

      The Christian world

•         =2,135,783,000 in mid-2005 or 33.1%

(Source: Int’l Bulletion of Missionary Research, 1/05, David B. Barrett and Todd M. Johnson, p. 29.

These “worlds” are each roughly a third of the world populaton—Perspectives Study Guide, 1999, p. 86.)

      ”People Group”

      “A significantly large grouping of individuals who perceive themselves to have a common affinity for one another because of their shared language, religion, ethnicity, residence, occupation, class or caste, situation, etc., or combinations of these.”  Lausanne Strategy Working Group, 1982

      For evangelistic purposes: “The largest group within which the gospel can spread as a church planting movement without encountering barriers of understanding or acceptance.” This is also the definition of a “unimax” people. Lausanne Strategy Working Group, 1982

Great Commission Christians

      Definition: “Believers in Jesus Christ who are aware of the implications of Christ’s Great Commission, who have accepted its personal challenge in their lives and ministries, and who are seeking to influence the Body of christ to implement it.” World Christian Database www.worldchristiandatabase.org

       In 1900, Great Commission Christians were 14% of all Christians

       In 2005, they are 32% and estimated to be the same percentage in 2025. Int’l Bulletion of Missionary Research, 1/05, David B. Barrett and Todd M. Johnson, p. 29.

Independent Churches are the Fastest Growing

     Independent churches are distinct from historical denominations and the major Christian blocs of Protestantism, Catholicism, Orthodoxy and Anglicanism have grown from 1.3% of Christians in 1900 to 20% in 2000. They numbered 426.7 million in mid-2005, second only to Catholicism as a bloc.

        Independent churches include Third Wave (after Pentecostal and Charismatic), charismatic churches Pentecostal, African Independent Churches, ethnic churches, community and Fundamentalist churches

Michael Jaffarian, “The demographics of world religions entering the 21st century,” in Between past & future, J. Bonk ed. 2003, pp. 264-5.

Independent Churches  Are The Fastest Growing Churches

        Independent churches in the 1990s grew 53% by natural population increase, but 47% by conversions! Michael Jaffarian, “The demographics of world religions entering the 21st century,” in Between past & future, J. Bonk ed. 2003, pp. 265.

        They are 20% of all Christians in 2005.

Barrett, Int’l Bulletin of Miss. Research, Status of Global Mission, 1/05

Growth Rates: Pentecostal/Charismatics

      Pentecostals/Charismatics grew 7% from 2000 (532,917,000) to 2004, (570,806,000). In mid-2005 they were 28% of all Christians and are estimated to be 31% by 2025¹. 29% of their growth in the 1990s was by conversion².

       Annual growth rates, 2005:
            Pentecostals:   2.24%

            Evangelicals:   2.21%

            All Christians    1.31%

            Muslims:             1.93%

            Hindus:            1.49%¹

1  Barrett, Int’l Bulletin of Miss. Research, Status of Global Mission, 1/04, 1/05

2 Michael Jaffarian, “The demographics of world religions entering the 21st century,” in Between past & future, J. Bonk ed. 2003, pp. 267.

Spectacular Pentecostal Growth

This material is taken from “Where Are We Now?” by Luis Bush, from the Mission Frontiers June 2000 edition. © 2000.  Reprinted with permission.   www.missionfrontiers.org

Growth Rates: Natural and Conversion

Annual growth rates, 2005:
Pentecostals:   2.24%

Evangelicals:   2.21%

Independent Christians:  2.39% (fastest growing religious group with 25 million or more members)

All Christians    1.31%

Muslims:              1.93%

Hindus:             1.49%

Barrett, Int’l Bulletin of Miss. Research, Status of Global Mission, 1/04, 1/05

Michael Jaffarian, “The demographics of world religions entering the 21st century,” in Between past & future, J. Bonk ed. 2003, pp. 264-5.

Growth Rates: Islamic & Hindu

      Islamic growth in the 1990s was 96% by natural increase (excess births to deaths) and 4% by conversion (less defections). Christian growth globally was 90% natural increase and 10% by conversion. Hindu growth is entirely by birth (they have a negative conversion rate).

       Muslims are projected to grow from 20.4% of global population in mid-2005 to 25% of population in 2050. Hindus are expected to decline from 13.5% to 13.2% in the same period and Christians to increase marginally from 33.1% to 34.3%.

Michael Jaffarian, “The demographics of world religions entering the 21st century,” in Between past & future, J. Bonk ed. 2003, pp. 257-258.

“Status of Global Mission, 2005,” Int’l Bulletin of Mission Research, 1/2005; World Christian Trends, p. 4

Growth Rates: Africa

        In 1900 9.2% of Africa was Christian. In 2000, 45.9% were. Population grew 626% in that period, while Christianity grew by 3,500%.

        However, while the global Christian conversion rate in the 1990s was about 10% (conversions less defections), the conversion rate for Africa was only 4.8%. Most growth is by population increase.

        Ethnoreligionists (tribal religions) were 63 million in 1900 and 97 million in 2000.

Michael Jaffarian, “The demographics of world religions entering the 21st century,” in Between past & future, J. Bonk ed. 2003, pp. 255, 260-261.