Missions in the Bible

Missions is the church's God-given task of declaring the glory of Christ and the good news of salvation to every people, tribe, and nation. It is not a peripheral activity but flows from the very heart of God, who from the beginning purposed to bless all the families of the earth. The Psalmist already sounded this global note when he wrote, "Declare his glory among the heathen, his wonders among all people" (Psalm 96:3). Missions, then, is the outworking of God's eternal plan to be known and worshiped throughout the whole world. In the New Testament, Jesus made missions central to the church's identity. He commissioned His followers, "Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost" (Matthew 28:19), and "Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature" (Mark 16:15). He also tied the unfolding of history to this task, declaring, "This gospel of the kingdom shall be preached in all the world for a witness unto all nations; and then shall the end come" (Matthew 24:14). The power for missions comes from the Holy Spirit. Jesus promised, "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" (Acts 1:8). This verse maps the expanding circles of missions, from the local to the global, all empowered by God's Spirit. The necessity of missions rests on a simple truth: people cannot believe in a Savior they have never heard of. Paul asked, "How shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher?" (Romans 10:14). The goal of missions is gloriously certain, for John saw "a great multitude, which no man could number, of all nations, and kindreds, and people, and tongues" standing before the throne (Revelation 7:9). Missions joins God in gathering that worshiping multitude, and every believer is invited to take part through prayer, giving, and going.