Last Sunday, we heard about Peter’s encounter with Jesus. Peter got a glimpse of Jesus’ power and authority through the miraculous catch of fish and was stricken by his own brokenness. Instead of excluding Peter, Jesus welcomed him and sent him, saying, “Don’t be afraid, from now on you will fish for people”. This is a pattern repeated for whoever follows Jesus. Jesus draws us in to send us out. He draws us in to know him; he sends us out to make him known.
Sometimes Christians are confused about mission. Mission is simply making Christ known. Sometimes it does include people being “missionaries”, that is, people who go abroad for fulltime gospel ministry. However, mission is much more common. It’s every Christian making Christ known, wherever we are: at work, at home, on a plane trip, wherever.
This Sunday is our Annual Mission Sunday. We welcome Dr Riad Kassis and Dr Patrick Fung from Langham Foundation to our 9.30am and 11.30am services. Langham is involved in the building of God’s church through publishing, training preachers, and providing scholarships to future leaders. St Andrew’s also supports twelve additional organisations and couples serving locally and globally.
Jesus draws us in to send us out
This Sunday, we want to be challenged in how we can support our mission partners, but also how each of us can be involved in mission. Here are four brief encouragements about how we can be involved.
Be informed. Find out about our mission partners and their work. Mission is not a task that we outsource and forget about. Partnership means understanding. You’ll find that as you get to know our mission partners, their ministry will engage you. This is the first step of deeper involvement.
Pray. Pray for our mission partners. Join with us in praying for them on Sundays, but also pray for them individually. Pray also for people in your own life who are yet to know Jesus. Often at St Andrew’s we talk about “the fives”: praying regularly for five people to come to know Jesus.
Give. Our mission partners are dependent on financial support for their ministry. Part of our church budget goes directly to our mission partners. Prayerfully consider how you can partner with them through what God has given you.
Go. Get involved yourself using your time and talents, volunteering by yourself or with your Growth Group. As we serve, God blesses us as our own faith inevitably deepens.
When Jesus saves us, he also sends us out. He wants to use each of us for the cause of his kingdom and a world that knows Jesus.
