Global Missions

[its_brad]

If the “Glory of God” is the goal of history (Lecture 11), how central is global missions to the ministry of the local church?

[SeaPeak]

The Glory of God is for all people to come to Him and that all peoples hear and understand the gospel of salvation. Piper in his book “Desiring God” on page 226 says, “My assumption is that people without the gospel are without hope, because only the gospel can free them from their sin. Therefore, missions is utterly essential in the life of a loving church, though not all Christians believe this.“ (Emphasis is mine.) We truly only glorify God when we purpose to do all that He commands and be obedient to Him in every way. The Great Commission (Mathew 28:19&20) commands us to make disciple of ALL nations and Jesus has told us that before the end shall come the gospel must be preached to the all the world. (Matthew 24:14)

[Schmiedc]

Romans 11:33-36 teaches us that God works all things together to the praise of his own glorious grace and for our good by deciding before the foundation of the world to send Jesus to the cross and by electing before the foundation of the world those who would be saved by Christ's death.

In this context global missions is the agent through which God's glory is maximized. Involvement in missions is then part of God working out His plan to maximize His glory. All of us have an integral part in this effort. That is why we are here!

[Schmiedc]

Maximizing the glory of God should be our highest goal and it should manifest itself in our vocation, relationships, leisure, church ministry, and finances. This focus helps us to set clear priorities as we glorify God first. As we think of our own life we should pursue actions in this context.