Chosen For This Time and Place

As the Father sent Jesus, he also sends us into our time and culture. Mark Driscoll says, "It is imperative that Christians be like Jesus, by living freely within the culture as missionaries who are as faithful to the Father and his gospel as Jesus was in his own time and place" (The Radical Reformission). We have been chosen by God to live in this time and place in order to fulfill the mission of God. Acts 17:26-27 tells us that God has determined the exact place and time where we should live so that that men may find him. It is truly awesome to realize that you have chosen by God to be his representative to this world. It is both a great privilege and a great responsibility. Paul describes our calling in the following way: "We are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were entreating through us; we beg you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God" (2 Cor. 5:20).

We Have Come To Serve

Christian ministry is God's way of showing the love of his Son Jesus through his church. Christians must strive to always be like Jesus, our perfect example. Jesus said, "the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many" (Mark 10:45). This scripture beautifully embodies the task of Christian ministry. To be a minister is to be a servant. We are to serve and give our lives for others. Serving is the example that Jesus gave; therefore we should follow it. As the church we are called to care for a lost and dying world that is in desperate need of a savior. Too often we compartmentalize the different ministries of the church. We have viewed social ministry as something we do on one hand and evangelism on the other. God is calling the church to rediscover the biblical model of holistic ministry. Jesus met both the physical and spiritual needs of the people he ministered to. As the Body of Christ on earth, we are his representatives to a lost world. Therefore, what we do and say are of eternal importance.

The Missional Coin

There are two primary ways that every Christian can become missional. The first is by sharing a verbal witness. This is also known as the evangelical witness, or more commonly, evangelism. This is when you share the gospel message with your words. The second way we can fulfill the mission of God is called the social witness. The evangelical and the social are two sides of the same coin. We are called to lead people to Christ with both our words and our actions. To be continued.