Sermon Central
-
The Way: To The Mission Field Series
Contributed by David Richardson on Mar 3, 2004 (message contributor)
Summary: Jesus was on a mission! He was a missionary! So were John the Baptist and the Apostles, and when you let Him be Lord and Savior of your life, YOU became a missionary, too!
The Way: To the Mission Field
Scripture Reading: John 14:1~6
"Do not let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God ; trust also in me. 2 In my Father’s house are many rooms; if it were not so, I would have told you. I am going there to prepare a place for you. 3 And if I go and prepare a place for you, I will come back and take you to be with me that you also may be where I am. 4 You know the way to the place where I am going." 5 Thomas said to him, "Lord, we don’t know where you are going, so how can we know the way?" 6 Jesus answered, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.
I. The Introduction
What is a missionary? What is the right definition for the word missionary? An on-line dictionary says that a missionary is “One who is sent on a mission, especially one sent to do religious or charitable work in a territory or foreign country.”
One who is sent on a mission? Jesus was on a mission! He was a missionary! John the Baptist, the Apostles, the disciples of the Apostles, and, when you put your faith in Jesus Christ, when you let Him be Lord and Savior of your life, YOU became a missionary. Did you know that? You became the one who is sent. Many people give far too much credit to missionaries. They say, “Oh, God must really appreciate what you’re doing.” Or, “You’re probably going to get lots of rewards when you get to heaven.
We’re all missionaries! When we became a child of God, we became missionaries for God. There are “missionaries” right here in this church that have been born in this country, ‘born-again’ in this church, and minister right here. I’m not talking about those that have been sent from a foreign country, I’m talking about those that have lived their whole lives in one church and one area of the world.
The definition that I read earlier, “One who is sent on a mission, especially one sent to do religious or charitable work in a territory or foreign country.” The first part of that definition, “One who is sent on a mission…” tells us the essential meaning of the word, Missionary. We are all on a mission, a mission for God! And, for this mission to be fruitful, to undergo inspection, to withstand the judging fire, and to be evident to believers and non-believers, it must have PROOF! That word, PROOF, is broken down into five steps in today’s message
P = The Preparation
R = The Request
O = The Ordination
O = The Obligation
F = The Fulfillment
This gives others and us the proof that we are indeed accomplishing the mission that God put us here on earth for. The proof that we are following God’s will for our lives.
Did you know the number one question that people have for pastors is, I’m not sure what God’s will is for my life, can you help me?
People everywhere struggle with knowing God’s will for their lives. But, they don’t have to. God tells us in His Word that He will help us with anything we ask. Why not the most important thing, His will for our lives?
Psalm 32:8 I will instruct you and teach you in the way you should go; I will counsel you and watch over you.
As we continue with Jesus on The Path to Jerusalem we will see the proof in His youth, His adolescence, and His adult walk with the Father.
What’s the PROOF? Where’s the PROOF? How do we know that the PROOF we see is proof that we are actually accomplishing God’s will? Well, there’s proof in the PROOF.
II. The Message (The Way: To the Mission Field)
A. The Preparation
Jesus prepared for His mission way before the creation of the world. And, when He was a young, He learned and followed His earthly father and mother’s teaching of the Old Testament scriptures and the teaching in the outside courts of the synagogues. So, by the time He reached the appropriate age to enter the temple as a young man, He had been prepared and met the laws and conditions to do so.
Our preparation as young children should not be that much different. As children we should have been schooled and taught the scriptures, and been given a good example by our fathers and mothers. However, that is not always the case. Whichever way we happen to arrive at the age of being able to know what it means to accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior, we will arrive. We will be presented with the choice.
