| __________________________________________________________________________________________________ "Yea, so have I strived to preach the gospel, not where Christ was named, lest I should build upon another man's foundation" Romans 15:20 __________________________________________________________________________________________________ |
Romans 10:13 "For whosoever shall
call upon the name of the Lord
shall be saved. 14 How then shall
they call on him in whom they have
not believed? and how shall they
believe in him of whom they have not
heard? and how shall they hear
without a preacher? And how shall
they preach, except they be sent?"
Are you not glad that the Gospel is a whosoever Gospel? Red and yellow, black
and white, they are precious in His sight. Anybody and everybody can call on the
Lord, but there remains one key and this is what the Apostle Paul is admonishing
us in. They must call on Him to be saved, but they must believe to call upon Him.
They must hear in order to believe, and they must have a preacher to hear. But
there will be no preacher unless he is SENT.
As I ponder on this passage I think about all the ingredients involved, the order
they are included, and the importance implied. "Missions" is the Mission of the
church, therefore, we should be very familiar with this process. As one preacher
stated,“The first work of the whole church is to give the Gospel to the whole
world.” And yet we understand that Christ alone can save the world, but Christ
cannot save the world alone. The gaping need of missions is not understood by
travels and teachings, but simply by the meditation of the Scripture listed here in
Romans 10.
I first want to make the very basic observation that the masses of the world are not
saved. We are told of how few opportunities the Gospel is afforded in these vast
densely populated lands of the 10/40 window. So it is fair to say that they are not
saved because they do not believe, and they do not believe because they have not
heard. To add to my observation, we see the few missionaries on the field that are
spread so very thin geographically. We can conclude that they are not hearing
because no one is there to tell them. And could it be that there is no one there
because they are not being SENT?
Notice that it begins with the sending. First, we understand sending is the position
and power of the church. It was to the church that this commission was given. It
was to the church that the authority was granted. It was for the church that our
Christ laid down His life. The church can have help, but it cannot be replaced. It
alone sends the Gospel through the preachers. Secondly, it is to be "proactive"
sending. One has said that if you aim at nothing you get it every time.
Of a truth we get what we emphasize and grow what we plant. If a church is to
send, then it must be proactive in the sending. That man or woman that goes forth
to preach the Gospel on the foreign soil will follow the church's faith. We certainly
know that if we have a great music program then our members and their children
will grow in music. Likewise if we have an exciting youth ministry then this ministry
will grow and attract other young people to attend. We understand that leadership
is necessary to instill anything within the lives of the membership, from keeping the
buildings clean to living a life of holiness. Doesn't it stand to reason that if the Great
Commission is the mission of the church, then we should first lead in that direction?
As Oswald J Smith spoke, “If God wills the evangelization of the world, and you
refuse to support missions, then you are opposed to the will of God.”
I firmly believe that the same problem that we have in America is likewise what
they face in the Philippines.
Heb 13:7 "Remember them which have the rule over you, who have spoken unto
you the word of God: whose faith follow, considering the end of their
conversation."
As in all commandments of God it takes faith to obey and follow. We see this to
be true even more so when it comes to missions. If we who have the rule do not
have the faith to lead our church into missions, then we leave no faith for them to
follow. I am a Christian minister of nearly 20 years and have served in all
capacities of the Lord's work. My step to the mission field has only caused me to
understand the fears and hardships that our God- called missionaries go through.
How much could be avoided when one is truly being sent? My job is to go; the
church's job is to send.
By sending I am referring specifically to the church paving a way for that
missionary to travel and get to the field. Each church and missionary would be
different but there should be no doubt in that missionary's mind that he is being
sent! I am not saying that other churches should not be involved in support, but
only one church can send!
We preachers mark the great lacking need of men and women whom are willing to
go! I wonder if the real great lacking need is in churches which are willing to send!
Perhaps the reason they are not saved is simply because we have just stopped
sending. You may say, “I support missionaries monthly.” That is certainly
commendable and necessary, but support and sending are different. You can
support without sending but you cannot not send without supporting. Sending is a
pulpit to the pew endeavor. Whereas we should support but we should also be
plowing the field so we can one day send.
Marty Stalnaker, Uttermost Missions
call upon the name of the Lord
shall be saved. 14 How then shall
they call on him in whom they have
not believed? and how shall they
believe in him of whom they have not
heard? and how shall they hear
without a preacher? And how shall
they preach, except they be sent?"
Are you not glad that the Gospel is a whosoever Gospel? Red and yellow, black
and white, they are precious in His sight. Anybody and everybody can call on the
Lord, but there remains one key and this is what the Apostle Paul is admonishing
us in. They must call on Him to be saved, but they must believe to call upon Him.
They must hear in order to believe, and they must have a preacher to hear. But
there will be no preacher unless he is SENT.
As I ponder on this passage I think about all the ingredients involved, the order
they are included, and the importance implied. "Missions" is the Mission of the
church, therefore, we should be very familiar with this process. As one preacher
stated,“The first work of the whole church is to give the Gospel to the whole
world.” And yet we understand that Christ alone can save the world, but Christ
cannot save the world alone. The gaping need of missions is not understood by
travels and teachings, but simply by the meditation of the Scripture listed here in
Romans 10.
I first want to make the very basic observation that the masses of the world are not
saved. We are told of how few opportunities the Gospel is afforded in these vast
densely populated lands of the 10/40 window. So it is fair to say that they are not
saved because they do not believe, and they do not believe because they have not
heard. To add to my observation, we see the few missionaries on the field that are
spread so very thin geographically. We can conclude that they are not hearing
because no one is there to tell them. And could it be that there is no one there
because they are not being SENT?
Notice that it begins with the sending. First, we understand sending is the position
and power of the church. It was to the church that this commission was given. It
was to the church that the authority was granted. It was for the church that our
Christ laid down His life. The church can have help, but it cannot be replaced. It
alone sends the Gospel through the preachers. Secondly, it is to be "proactive"
sending. One has said that if you aim at nothing you get it every time.
Of a truth we get what we emphasize and grow what we plant. If a church is to
send, then it must be proactive in the sending. That man or woman that goes forth
to preach the Gospel on the foreign soil will follow the church's faith. We certainly
know that if we have a great music program then our members and their children
will grow in music. Likewise if we have an exciting youth ministry then this ministry
will grow and attract other young people to attend. We understand that leadership
is necessary to instill anything within the lives of the membership, from keeping the
buildings clean to living a life of holiness. Doesn't it stand to reason that if the Great
Commission is the mission of the church, then we should first lead in that direction?
As Oswald J Smith spoke, “If God wills the evangelization of the world, and you
refuse to support missions, then you are opposed to the will of God.”
I firmly believe that the same problem that we have in America is likewise what
they face in the Philippines.
Heb 13:7 "Remember them which have the rule over you, who have spoken unto
you the word of God: whose faith follow, considering the end of their
conversation."
As in all commandments of God it takes faith to obey and follow. We see this to
be true even more so when it comes to missions. If we who have the rule do not
have the faith to lead our church into missions, then we leave no faith for them to
follow. I am a Christian minister of nearly 20 years and have served in all
capacities of the Lord's work. My step to the mission field has only caused me to
understand the fears and hardships that our God- called missionaries go through.
How much could be avoided when one is truly being sent? My job is to go; the
church's job is to send.
By sending I am referring specifically to the church paving a way for that
missionary to travel and get to the field. Each church and missionary would be
different but there should be no doubt in that missionary's mind that he is being
sent! I am not saying that other churches should not be involved in support, but
only one church can send!
We preachers mark the great lacking need of men and women whom are willing to
go! I wonder if the real great lacking need is in churches which are willing to send!
Perhaps the reason they are not saved is simply because we have just stopped
sending. You may say, “I support missionaries monthly.” That is certainly
commendable and necessary, but support and sending are different. You can
support without sending but you cannot not send without supporting. Sending is a
pulpit to the pew endeavor. Whereas we should support but we should also be
plowing the field so we can one day send.
Marty Stalnaker, Uttermost Missions
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| How Shall They Hear? |
March 4, 2011
