Bad Missions: Cults, Catholic and Protestant Missions

MISSIOLOGY

LECTURE 12

THE MISSION

Bad Missions: Cults, Catholic and Protestant Missions

Mission Mistakes: Many churches will say their mission is to reach the lost, but when you examine where most of their time, effort, money goes, it is very different from that.

Ecumenical – Get along Divisiveness Tear down these walls Mission is to all be ‘one’

Entertaining – Church is boring ‘hype’ it up look at how the world does it worship teams

Only going to reach the world (Mission) by attracting it

Emotional – Everyone wants warm fuzzies Feel good Don’t dare stomp on toes

Emotionally charged but Scripturally bankrupt Mission is to make them feel good so they come back

Empathy – Socially caring as Mission Food,Medicine,Housing etc Afterall, it shows you care

So, let them go to Hell with full bellies!!!

Equality – Treat everyone and everything equal Don’t put down anyone Let’s all get along Appease

special interest groups Don’t preach on that sin Mission is to be ‘politically correct

Economy driven – What every pastor pushes the most (buildings) Indirect evangelism (reach them by

attracting them in) Mission is to look good Build buildings

Existing – Us 4 and no more Old Fashioned (so old your near death) Trials have come and we are

basically just trying to survive Mission is simply to exist

Almost correct Missions: setup colleges and Christian schools; mass evangelism; para-church cooperation; preaching revivals and conferences; holding youth camps; printing ministry (tracts, Bibles)…etc..

Absolutely correct Missions: [let’s learn what God says about this]

John 20:21-23 Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you. And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost: Whose soever sins ye remit, they are remitted unto them; and whose soever sins ye retain, they are retained.

They (Missionaries) are to be properly sent (Father sent Jesus who sends through His churches).

They are to focused on the sin situation of people.

Mark 16:15 And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.

They are to actually ‘go’; go away from where they live…somewhere else.

The extent of their going is into ‘all’ the world…i.e. every continent, country, and city.

They are to preach the gospel (not a watered down easy believism, though).

It is to be preached to every creature (human); ‘every’; not just those who happen to come to hear you.

Luke 24:47-49 And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem. And ye are witnesses of these things. And, behold, I send the promise of my Father upon you: but tarry ye in the city of Jerusalem, until ye be endued with power from on high.

The Missionaries are to include ‘repentance’ (and remission of sins) in what they preach.

Every nation is to hear this; language barriers must be dealt with and overcome.

Starting point would be the surrounding large city they live in.

They need(ed) to have the power from the Holy Spirit which uniquely manifested in the Lord’s churches.

There was only one valid reason to ‘tarry’….to wait for the baptism with the Holy Ghost.

Matt 28:19-20 Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world. Amen.

There is teaching involved with the preaching of the gospel; they need to be carefully taught the truth.

After they are saved, they need to be baptized correctly; this implies a church to be in existance nearby.

These baptized converts are then to be taught the New Testament.

They are to be taught to actually ‘observe’ what the NT says, not just learn it.

Acts 1:8 But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.

The Holy Ghost will give you the power necessary to complete this Mission.

The power is focused on being witnesses for the Lord Jesus Christ.

Start in your general city area and then branch out to outlying areas, other counties, other states, other nearby countries, further away countries, and even unto the uttermost part of the earth!

Acts 14:21-28 And when they had preached the gospel to that city, and had taught many, they returned again to Lystra, and to Iconium, and Antioch, Confirming the souls of the disciples, and exhorting them to continue in the faith, and that we must through much tribulation enter into the kingdom of God. And when they had ordained them elders in every church, and had prayed with fasting, they commended them to the Lord, on whom they believed. And after they had passed throughout Pisidia, they came to Pamphylia. And when they had preached the word in Perga, they went down into Attalia: And thence sailed to Antioch, from whence they had been recommended to the grace of God for the work which they fulfilled. And when they were come, and had gathered the church together, they rehearsed all that God had done with them, and how he had opened the door of faith unto the Gentiles. And there they abode long time with the disciples.

They taught and preached the gospel in each city; city by city.

The converts of each city were visited again and some later date and confirmed, encouraged, exhorted.

A church in each of the cities was already planted prior to this confirming (i.e. first visit).

Ordain national pastors in each church in each city.

Return to original sending church to report the results of the Mission; the Mission which they ‘fulfilled’!

2 Tim 2:2 And the things that thou hast heard of me among many witnesses, the same commit thou to faithful men, who shall be able to teach others also.

The Missionary needs to train faithful male converts to be these men that are ordained in every church.

Summary: Missionaries are to be properly sent; and ‘go’, without tarrying, preaching and teaching about sin, repentance, the gospel to every soul in every city, city by city, of every nation through the power of the Holy Spirit; baptizing each convert into an established church and ordaining trained men to be the elders of each church; and to return to these cities to encourage the churches; and eventually report back to their sending church once they have fulfilled this most noble Mission

Whose Mission is it? “Ye”..yours…the church’s…specifically, those in a church that are commissioned out to do the mission.

True Missions is a repetitive process by a Missionary (team) who goes from location to location completing the Mission. I believe that a true Missionary (as we call them) who is going to follow the true Mission (as understood in the above passages) will not be stationed at one church, one location, for his time as a Missionary, but rather will go from one location to the next, completing the Mission each and every time.