Mission Critical
Mission Critical: The Call to Be Available
In a world filled with countless missions and noble causes, one mission stands above all others—a mission with eternal consequences. It's not about earthly achievements or temporary victories. It's about carrying the gospel of Jesus Christ to a world desperately in need of hope, healing, and redemption.
The God Who Sends Imperfect People
Here's a truth that should encourage every believer: God doesn't wait for perfect people to accomplish His work. If He did, He'd be waiting forever.
Consider the disciples huddled behind locked doors in John 20:19-22. These weren't spiritual superheroes wearing capes of righteousness. They were broken, fearful men. Peter had denied Christ. Thomas doubted. Others had abandoned Jesus in His darkest hour. Yet these were precisely the people Jesus chose to change the world.
When Jesus appeared to them, He didn't scold them for their failures. Instead, He spoke peace over their fear—twice, because sometimes we're hard-headed and need to hear it again. Then He breathed on them and said, "Receive the Holy Spirit." He commissioned them with these powerful words: "As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you."
Imagine interviewing candidates to change the world. Would you choose a denier, a doubter, and a group of quitters? Of course not. But that's exactly who Jesus chose, because God has never looked for perfect people. He looks for available people.
Cracked Vessels and Shining Light
The apostle Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 4:7, "But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us." We are cracked vessels—imperfect, broken, and flawed. But here's the beautiful paradox: when light enters something broken and cracked, it illuminates. It brings light into darkness.
Think of a stained glass window. It doesn't shine because it's perfect. It shines because light passes through it. The power was never in the disciples themselves. The power was in the Christ who sent them.
Many believers excuse themselves from mission work because they feel inadequate. But when God calls us to go—whether physically, financially, through prayer, or in whatever capacity—He's not asking if we're adequate. He's asking if we're willing.
Paul celebrated his weaknesses because where he was weak, God was strong. We should celebrate our inadequacies too, because they remind us that we're not sufficient in ourselves. But if we're willing and available, God will turn our weakness into strength. It's our availability meeting God's ability.
The Pattern of Sending
Throughout Scripture, sending is not just something God does—it's who God is. God sent Abraham from his homeland. He sent Moses back to Egypt. He sent judges to deliver Israel, including Deborah when no men were willing to lead. He sent David, the prophets, John the Baptist, and ultimately, in the fullness of time, God sent Jesus Christ.
John 3:16 reminds us that God loved, God gave, and God sent Jesus. Love always moves, always sacrifices, and always goes.
The question today isn't whether God is calling people. The question is whether His people are listening. When Jesus returns, will He find a church filled with people who knew they were called but never made themselves available? Or will He find a ready, willing, and able church?
The Antioch Model: A Church That Changed the World
The church at Antioch provides a perfect model for what a missions-focused church looks like. They were misfits and marginalized people who had experienced the transforming grace of God. Acts 11:20-21 tells us that ordinary believers—not apostles, not celebrity preachers, not seminary professors—began sharing the gospel, and "a great number who believed turned to the Lord."
These weren't people with perfect theology or impressive credentials. They were everyday Christians sharing an extraordinary gospel. The church grew because believers understood that evangelism was everyone's responsibility, not just the pastor's job.
The Antioch church had four distinctive characteristics:
They Were a Witnessing Church: You can't witness about something you haven't experienced. These believers had encountered God's grace and couldn't help but share it.
They Were a Giving Church: Acts 11:29 says "the disciples, as each one was able," gave to meet needs. The church expanded not because they were wealthy, but because they cared. They understood that generosity fuels ministry.
They Were a Praying Church: Acts 13:2 reveals that "while they were worshiping and praying and fasting, the Holy Spirit spoke." Prayer always precedes sending. Missionaries are born in prayer. Churches are planted in prayer. Nations are reached through prayer.
They Were a Sending Church: Acts 13:3 says "they placed their hands on them and sent them off." They didn't send leftovers—they sent Barnabas and Saul, some of their best. Real missions always costs something.
The Unfinished Task
Billy Graham's wife, Ruth, once said, "You don't measure yourself against your success. You measure yourself against the unfinished task."
Today, millions worship Jesus around the world. Hundreds of thousands of churches exist globally. Thousands of missionaries serve faithfully. Yet billions still have little or no access to the gospel.
The task remains unfinished. Until Gabriel blows that trumpet and Jesus returns, the job isn't done. As long as you have breath in your lungs and blood flowing through your veins, your task isn't complete.
Think of it this way: when a rocket launches into space, only part of it reaches orbit. But thousands of people make the launch possible—engineers, fuel crews, technicians, support teams. Without them, the rocket never leaves the ground. The missionary may stand on the field, but behind every missionary is a praying, giving, sending church.
What Will You Do?
The greatest mission known to humanity isn't about building the biggest buildings or having the most impressive programs. It's about the greatest evangelism the world has ever seen—reaching the least, the last, and the lost with the story of Jesus that saves, delivers, heals, and restores.
God isn't asking you to be perfect. He's asking you to be available. He's asking what you can sacrifice from your comfort and carnality to ensure the message of truth reaches someone who has never heard it.
The question isn't whether you're adequate for the task. The question is: Are you willing? Will you pray? Will you give? Will you go? Will you be available?
The mission is critical. Eternity hangs in the balance. And God is looking for ordinary people to carry an extraordinary message to a desperate world.
In a world filled with countless missions and noble causes, one mission stands above all others—a mission with eternal consequences. It's not about earthly achievements or temporary victories. It's about carrying the gospel of Jesus Christ to a world desperately in need of hope, healing, and redemption.
The God Who Sends Imperfect People
Here's a truth that should encourage every believer: God doesn't wait for perfect people to accomplish His work. If He did, He'd be waiting forever.
Consider the disciples huddled behind locked doors in John 20:19-22. These weren't spiritual superheroes wearing capes of righteousness. They were broken, fearful men. Peter had denied Christ. Thomas doubted. Others had abandoned Jesus in His darkest hour. Yet these were precisely the people Jesus chose to change the world.
When Jesus appeared to them, He didn't scold them for their failures. Instead, He spoke peace over their fear—twice, because sometimes we're hard-headed and need to hear it again. Then He breathed on them and said, "Receive the Holy Spirit." He commissioned them with these powerful words: "As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you."
Imagine interviewing candidates to change the world. Would you choose a denier, a doubter, and a group of quitters? Of course not. But that's exactly who Jesus chose, because God has never looked for perfect people. He looks for available people.
Cracked Vessels and Shining Light
The apostle Paul wrote in 2 Corinthians 4:7, "But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us." We are cracked vessels—imperfect, broken, and flawed. But here's the beautiful paradox: when light enters something broken and cracked, it illuminates. It brings light into darkness.
Think of a stained glass window. It doesn't shine because it's perfect. It shines because light passes through it. The power was never in the disciples themselves. The power was in the Christ who sent them.
Many believers excuse themselves from mission work because they feel inadequate. But when God calls us to go—whether physically, financially, through prayer, or in whatever capacity—He's not asking if we're adequate. He's asking if we're willing.
Paul celebrated his weaknesses because where he was weak, God was strong. We should celebrate our inadequacies too, because they remind us that we're not sufficient in ourselves. But if we're willing and available, God will turn our weakness into strength. It's our availability meeting God's ability.
The Pattern of Sending
Throughout Scripture, sending is not just something God does—it's who God is. God sent Abraham from his homeland. He sent Moses back to Egypt. He sent judges to deliver Israel, including Deborah when no men were willing to lead. He sent David, the prophets, John the Baptist, and ultimately, in the fullness of time, God sent Jesus Christ.
John 3:16 reminds us that God loved, God gave, and God sent Jesus. Love always moves, always sacrifices, and always goes.
The question today isn't whether God is calling people. The question is whether His people are listening. When Jesus returns, will He find a church filled with people who knew they were called but never made themselves available? Or will He find a ready, willing, and able church?
The Antioch Model: A Church That Changed the World
The church at Antioch provides a perfect model for what a missions-focused church looks like. They were misfits and marginalized people who had experienced the transforming grace of God. Acts 11:20-21 tells us that ordinary believers—not apostles, not celebrity preachers, not seminary professors—began sharing the gospel, and "a great number who believed turned to the Lord."
These weren't people with perfect theology or impressive credentials. They were everyday Christians sharing an extraordinary gospel. The church grew because believers understood that evangelism was everyone's responsibility, not just the pastor's job.
The Antioch church had four distinctive characteristics:
They Were a Witnessing Church: You can't witness about something you haven't experienced. These believers had encountered God's grace and couldn't help but share it.
They Were a Giving Church: Acts 11:29 says "the disciples, as each one was able," gave to meet needs. The church expanded not because they were wealthy, but because they cared. They understood that generosity fuels ministry.
They Were a Praying Church: Acts 13:2 reveals that "while they were worshiping and praying and fasting, the Holy Spirit spoke." Prayer always precedes sending. Missionaries are born in prayer. Churches are planted in prayer. Nations are reached through prayer.
They Were a Sending Church: Acts 13:3 says "they placed their hands on them and sent them off." They didn't send leftovers—they sent Barnabas and Saul, some of their best. Real missions always costs something.
The Unfinished Task
Billy Graham's wife, Ruth, once said, "You don't measure yourself against your success. You measure yourself against the unfinished task."
Today, millions worship Jesus around the world. Hundreds of thousands of churches exist globally. Thousands of missionaries serve faithfully. Yet billions still have little or no access to the gospel.
The task remains unfinished. Until Gabriel blows that trumpet and Jesus returns, the job isn't done. As long as you have breath in your lungs and blood flowing through your veins, your task isn't complete.
Think of it this way: when a rocket launches into space, only part of it reaches orbit. But thousands of people make the launch possible—engineers, fuel crews, technicians, support teams. Without them, the rocket never leaves the ground. The missionary may stand on the field, but behind every missionary is a praying, giving, sending church.
What Will You Do?
The greatest mission known to humanity isn't about building the biggest buildings or having the most impressive programs. It's about the greatest evangelism the world has ever seen—reaching the least, the last, and the lost with the story of Jesus that saves, delivers, heals, and restores.
God isn't asking you to be perfect. He's asking you to be available. He's asking what you can sacrifice from your comfort and carnality to ensure the message of truth reaches someone who has never heard it.
The question isn't whether you're adequate for the task. The question is: Are you willing? Will you pray? Will you give? Will you go? Will you be available?
The mission is critical. Eternity hangs in the balance. And God is looking for ordinary people to carry an extraordinary message to a desperate world.
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