This year my team has been going through this hefty book Perspectives on the World Christian Movement. It's amazing. Our bi-monthly Skype session with our class leader covered chapter 8 this week. It was fantastic. Aside from that we've been taking a look at various resources, publications and organizations mobilizing, equipping, and informing the Church of the work yet to be done in accomplishing the Great Commission. If you've never taken a look at it, Joshua Project is an amazing source for information on unreached people groups. Every morning I get an email telling about a group of people somewhere in the world that have yet to know and experience Jesus. In the middle of my morning journal and coffee date with Jesus today I was thinking of the role that God shares with his people in His Mission to save, restore, recreate and bring His kingdom. In His kingdom will be those from every tribe, language, peoples (Rev. 7:9). Thus, the commission and responsibility to take the news and invitation of the kingdom to every tribe, language and people.
So in the midst of Jesus stirring my heart more and more for the unreached, this American comes to speak at a small local church while on vacation. All of a sudden he has the audacity to state that the whole world has been evangelized. Honestly, I was in shock. I'm looking around at the small congregation, a people group who have been preached a gospel muddied by denominationalism, humanism, legalism, and a lot of weird historical influence. I'm considering my life here, and that we strive to make the Gospel known, to disciple and invite people into kingdom community. The verses may have been said. But the hearts have yet to turn from other things. Life in Jesus is not an add-on to what we already have. It means the death of all the old and the birthing of what is new. More than anything his statement saddens me because we delay the beautiful coming of the Kingdom if we believe there's no more work to be done, no more mission to live out. (Matthew 24:14) And in places like this, we lose the heart to give our lives for theirs. I want to see hastened the day when all peoples hear for such a glorious moment awaits the completion of the mission: The coming of our King. The righting of all that is wrong. Healing of all that is broken. Perfect, unhindered, magnificently glorious fellowship with the most colorful and diverse family imaginable and our Father. Thy Kingdom Come, Thy Will Be Done.
