Intro

Said this a lot in the first year I was here, want to come back to it for the next few weeks.

This is who we are as believers, as a church. It starts with who God is—Father, Son, Spirit—and flows from there to who he’s made us to be, why he’s left us here.

Last week, we looked at that final statement, “…disciples who make disciples in all of life.”

We looked at Jesus’ final words before he ascended from Matthew 28…

“All authority has been given to me in heaven and on earth. 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 everything I have commanded you. And remember, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

Matthew 28:18–20

Everything he commands us to do revolves around two words: “make disciples”

Today, look at the same event from a different perspective, this time from Acts 1…

But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come on you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”

Acts 1:8

1. Missonal Identity

While the Spirit is the one who does that work in us, it’s not like the Father and the Son are not involved.

A. He comes looking for Adam & Eve.

B. He calls Israel to be a light to the nations.

“I am the Lord. I have called you
for a righteous purpose,
and I will hold you by your hand.
I will watch over you, and I will appoint you
to be a covenant for the people
and a light to the nations,
in order to open blind eyes,
to bring out prisoners from the dungeon,
and those sitting in darkness from the prison house.

Isaiah 42:6–7

Of course, Israel wasn’t faithful in that role, but God keeps sending—prophets, plagues, still pursuing his people, calling them to be what he’d chosen them to be.

C. He sent his Son.

D. He sent his Spirit.

E. He sends his people.

Everything is from God, who has reconciled us to himself through Christ and has given us the ministry of reconciliation. That is, in Christ, God was reconciling the world to himself, not counting their trespasses against them, and he has committed the message of reconciliation to us.

Therefore, we are ambassadors for Christ, since God is making his appeal through us. We plead on Christ’s behalf, “Be reconciled to God.”

2 Corinthians 5:18–20

God does not merely send the church in mission. God is already on mission, and the church must join him. This also means, then, that the church does not simply have a missions department; it should wholly exist to be a mission.

Tim Keller

It all starts with him, and our desire to please him, to make him happy.

Think of the story of the Lost Sheep in Luke 15:

“What man among you, who has a hundred sheep and loses one of them, does not leave the ninety-nine in the open field and go after the lost one until he finds it? When he has found it, he joyfully puts it on his shoulders, and coming home, he calls his friends and neighbors together, saying to them, ‘Rejoice with me, because I have found my lost sheep!’ I tell you, in the same way, there will be more joy in heaven over one sinner who repents than over ninety-nine righteous people who don’t need repentance.

Luke 15:4-7

There is literally nothing we can do with the 99 that brings Jesus as much joy as rescuing the 1. Yes, we care about the 99. We want to minister to each other and take each other deeper in the gospel, making disciples, not just decisions. But nothing we can do with the 99 brings Jesus as much joy as rescuing the 1.

2. Missional Clarity

Nobody would argue that the world has changed, would they? Western culture has largely become a non-Christian, (actually post-Christendom) society.

But if you look at most churches, they’ve really made little adjustments to make disciples in this new reality.

Their members don’t want to change, because change is uncomfortable. They sit on furniture designed in the 1940s, listen to music from the 1950s, and listen to a pastor dressed like he got stuck in the 1960s.

J.D. Greear

The sad truth is that many of these churches have prioritized maintaining their traditions over reaching their grandchildren.

But when we recapture our identity as missionaries, things change. If we really believe, to the core of our being and at the core of our being a church, that mission is not just something the church does, not something we can opt out of; when it becomes more than just a strategy, a preference, or a style of ministry, then that brings a level of clarity that doesn’t exist otherwise.

3. Missional (in)Security

We can be honest, this makes us all feel a little insecure, doesn’t it?

”That’s just not me.”

Good thing you have the Spirit!

Don’t let a one idea of what it means to share the Gospel to be the thing that keeps you from actually doing it.

Paul in Ephesians 4 talks about the “gift of an evangelist”

Gifted evangelists telling the rest of us that we should
behave like gifted evangelists has a debilitating effect.

Michael Frost, Surprise the World

”I don’t know what to say.”

Good thing we have the Spirit.

I get it. It’s awkward. But you don’t have to make it awkward.

“I don’t have what it takes.” Yes you do; you have Jesus’ Spirit speaking inside you. It’s no longer about your ability, but your availability.

“I don’t have time.”

Good news: I’m not announcing a new program today!

• How many times do you eat per week? (14–21)
• How many have co-workers?
• How many have neighbors?

Called Nilknarf

• Clear call from God.
• Around 40,000 people, more than half of them lost.
• 30% of households have children.
• About 20% live in poverty.

Those who are paying attention might have figured out my trick… Nilknarf is Franklin spelled backwards.

Come forward, mark your house on the map, pray for your neighbors, and yourself.

• Pray assuming that your residence is providence.

Don’t be afraid, little flock, because your Father delights to give you the kingdom.

Luke 12:32