The Plan of Missions Goal: To review the goal, result and activities of missions Objectives: 1. To recognize that Jesus Christ is the Lord of the Harvest. And share His desire for to save the lost. 2. To understand how the goal of missions is to be achieved through evangelism, discipling and establishing of churches; 3. To review the result of missions; and 4. To consider the four basic characteristics of mission activity. 5. To remember that missions are work guided by the Holy Spirit.
Text: Matthew 9:28, Psalm 96:3; Matthew 16:18, Matthew 28:18-20, Ephesians 4:12, Hebrews 4:16, Memory Verse: Acts 2:37-38 Lesson Content Goal of Mission The goal of mission is to share the gospel where it has not been heard by confronting the hearers with the Saviorhood and Lordship of Christ and urging them to submit their hearts and lives to Him. To achieve this goal it would involve three activities running concurrently: 1. Evangelism: communicating to others the good news of salvation through Jesus Christ Interesting to note that Paul concentrated on larger cities (or in our present day context, areas where there are large number of people who have not heard the Gospel); he preferred to preach to responsive peoples, using the natural “bridges” of relatives, friends and other contacts in spreading the gospel 2. Discipling: building up believers and training them to witness to others The new believers learn to use the Bible as their key resource for instruction and guidance c.f. John 8:31. They also love the brethren. “Evidence of right relationships identifies disciples before the watching world. The resources and relationships available to disciples are attractive to others, resulting in a multiplication of converts.” (World Missions Today, page 32).
3. Establishing churches Paul baptized converts on the confession of their faith and he remained long enough in one place to establish a church to nurture it to mature stability. He started “home churches” everywhere he went and used a large number of “fellow workers” to spread the gospel and minister in the house churches. (Please bear in mind the historical context for the setting up of home churches.)
The Result of Mission 1. Establishment of an indigenous church/assembly An indigenous assembly is one, which reflects the culture in which it is located, administering and supporting its own life and outreach.
The history of the assemblies in Singapore provides interesting lessons for us on the establishment of indigenous assemblies. It started with Mr. Philip Robinson in 1864. Originally from England, he was a businessman/trader by profession and not the conventional missionary that we may have in mind. But he took his Christian witness seriously and with some likeminded believers had a real burden to be ambassadors for the Lord to reach all races on our island. Arising from this initial witness and the subsequent evangelistic efforts by overseas and local brethren, the Lord gave the increase resulting in the various autonomous local assemblies now found all over Singapore. Four characteristics of mission activity 1. Cross cultural We must be mindful of the challenges when conveying the Gospel to people of another society. They may differ in language, values, thought forms and behavior. 2. International Currently about two thirds of all missionaries come from North America nut increasingly more are being sent by churches from the Africa, Asia and South America. 3. Cooperative Work in the mission field whether in evangelism, education, medicine, literature evangelism, radio ministry or other activities increasingly require people with diverse skills working individually and collaboratively for the spiritual welfare of those being reached for Christ. 4. Holistic To meet the needs of the whole person, work in the mission field has being extended to include the mission hospital/clinic and mission school. By showing Christian compassion and care in a practical way many have been lead to Christ. Examine the missionary efforts of our assembly and you will see these four characteristics being displayed. Although we may not have sent missionaries from our assembly overseas for an extended period of time, various brothers and sisters from our assembly have served for short stints in places involving different cultures like India, Nepal, Sri Lanka, Cambodia, Myanmar, Indonesia. Do we know who they are and their on-going ministries in these places? Other medical professionals in our midst have also conducted various short-term dental, medical and eye care trips to various countries in ASEAN to extend the agape love to the needy and lost. Despite the military dictatorship in Myanmar and the prohibition of outright evangelism, we thank God for the setting up of the Pyin Oo Lyin Harvest Training School. This is example involving cross-cultural ministry and international co-operation. It is a joint venture effort involving financial support from some members of Bethesda Hall Ang Mo Kio, Christian Missions in Many Lands, Inc. (USA) and contributions from the local Eupeong Assembly. Nine-month bible courses are conducted annually to equip believers in their service and evangelism efforts. A missionary from one of the Korean assemblies first initiated this work. Another exciting work to be commenced in the near future is the setting up of The Canaan School of Cambodia, a mission school in Phnom Penh to meet the educational needs of the local children. The current education sector is grossly inadequate. It is estimated that 75 to 80% of teachers fled or were killed during the 1970s and 1980s.This school will seek to
publicly honor Christ in its creed, policy and deed. Beginning from the kindergarten level, this effort will mobilize the help of Christian brothers and sisters from overseas and locally. Interestingly, this school although not operationally yet (as at this time of writing) could be traced back to The Technical School of Cambodia founded by a missionary brother from Korea to provide technical courses such as sewing skills, IT and language courses. The initial funding of CSC is by a group of individuals from our assembly. What a wonderful investment in the youth of Cambodia! Let us pray that many young people will hear the Gospel and that they will come to know Jesus Christ as their Savior and Lord. Questions 1. What does Jesus’ command mean in Matthew 28:19? How should it be carried out in missions today? 2. What is an indigenous church? 3. Review the four basic characteristics of mission activity in the context of our assembly efforts in this area. 4. What mission activities are you aware, going on around you? Life Application Question 5. Discuss practical ways you can evangelize and disciple at your workplace or school. I.e. review your daily routine to see if you could make evangelism/witnessing part of your everyday activity. 6. How can you effectively witness for Christ daily? (Matthew 5:13-14) Resource References 1. World Missions Today, Evangelical Training Association, 1997. 2. The Bethesda Legacy, Edited by Tong Suit Chee, 2004. 3. Post Centennial Blessings of the Lord, Bethesda Hall (Bras Basah) 1964-1985, printed 1985. 4. A Call to Prayer for the Children, Teens, and Young Adults of the 10/40 Window, Pegues and Huff, published by YWAM, 2002. 5. Check out http://www.canaanschool.org/ for more details on the Canaan School of Cambodia