There is a church because there is a mission, not vice versa.
David Bosch
In 1999, two researchers at Harvard University conducted a humorous experiment to explore people’s attention to details. For the experiment, participants were invited to watch a video of six players passing a ball between them. Three players wore black shirts and the other three wore white ones. The study participant was instructed to count the number of times that players on the white-shirt team passed the ball while ignoring passes made by those wearing black shirts. About 30 seconds into the video, while the players shuffled about the room, passing the ball, a person dressed in a gorilla costume entered the scene, walked among the players and exited. The video continued for another 30 seconds and, afterward, study participants were asked how many passes were made. Next, they were asked if they saw the gorilla. Remarkably, only 48% of people noticed the gorilla in the video!
The experiment was designed to explore the theory of “inattentional blindness” or “selective focus,” where people often miss the most important thing while concentrating on less significant details. This is a common problem among Christians. Churches focus on helping people connect with God and others (BELONG) and emphasize spiritual growth (BECOME), but they often stop short of the most significant goal: to mobilize disciples for mission (BEYOND).
If you are a pastor reading this book, this is a good time to pause and ask yourself the questions, “What is the purpose of my church? Why do I do what I do? Have I been focusing on the right thing or has my attention to some things caused me to lose focus on the larger goal of the church?” Not just pastors, but every attendee should ask the same questions.
To understand the mission of the church, we must understand the mission of God. In Genesis 1 and 2, God created the world and people for His glory (see Psalm 19:1 and Isaiah 43:7). That is, everything was created to make much of the magnificence of its Creator. However, in Genesis 3, sin corrupted the world and turned God-centered people into self-centered rebels. The rest of history is God’s reclamation of His glory through the redemption of sinners.
Genesis 12:1-3 is a significant text in salvation history. God called Abram (an act of Divine grace) to be the father of the Jewish people and promised his people land, spiritual blessings and innumerable descendants. Unfortunately, many ancient Jews and modern readers interpret God’s promises to Abram to be exclusive, as if God’s blessings were intended for only one group of people. However, God concludes His covenant, “all peoples on earth will be blessed through you.” The Jews were blessed to be a blessing.
With a similar theme, Psalm 67 highlights God’s missional purposes. In verse 1, the psalmist prays, “May God be gracious to us and bless us and make his face shine upon us.” Reflecting the priestly blessing (Numbers 6:24-26), this verse requests that God shower His kindness upon His people. But God’s blessings to people are never meant to end with people. Rather, His blessings pass through people to others so that others may experience the goodness of God. Verse 2 highlights this goal: “that your ways may be known on earth, your salvation among all nations.”
This “blessed-to-be-a-blessing” principle is frequently repeated in the New Testament:
“You are the light of the world. A town built on a hill cannot be hidden. Neither do people light a lamp and put it under a bowl. Instead they put it on its stand, and it gives light to everyone in the house. In the same way, let your light shine before others, that they may see your good deeds and glorify your Father in heaven.” (Matthew 5:14-16)
Go rather to the lost sheep of Israel. As you go, preach this message: ‘The kingdom of heaven is near.’ Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse those who have leprosy, drive out demons. Freely you have received, freely give. (Matthew 10:6-8)
Jesus said, “Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you.” (John 20:21)
Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Father of compassion and the God of all comfort, who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God. (2 Corinthians 1:3-4)
Now I rejoice in what I am suffering for you, and I fill up in my flesh what is still lacking in regard to Christ’s afflictions, for the sake of his body, which is the church. (Colossians 1:24)
You are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light. (1 Peter 2:9)
This pay-it-forward principle is clear. Those who have been enlightened, shine brightly among others. Those who have received, give. Those who have been comforted, comfort others. Those who enjoy peace, announce peace. This is the mission of the church: to extend the blessings of God into the world so that the world may come to know God and worship God. Alan Hirsch, in Forgotten Ways, writes,
When the church is on mission, it is the true church. The church itself is not only a product of that mission but is obligated and destined to extend it by whatever means possible. The mission of God flows directly through every believer and every community of faith that adheres to Jesus. (p. 82)
Similarly, in his excellent book titled The New Testament Order for Church and Missionary, A.R. Hay rightly observes,
The Lord founded the church as a missionary organization. It was not an ecclesiastical organization with missionary endeavor as a department of its work. Missionaries were its leaders. Its primary purpose was missionary and all its members engaged in the propagation of the gospel. (p. 131)
When I arrived at Central Bible Church in 2005, I found a church that understood the first step in the spiritual pathway: BELONG. Our church set the standard for biblical community, with many of its members growing in relationship with God and each other. But, while our communities were encouraged to participate in local and global outreach, the church had virtually no culture of mission. The church was inwardly focused but lacking external impact.
During that time, I was midway through my graduate studies in seminary and was reading several books on the purpose of the church. One book, The Continuing Conversion of the Church, was especially helpful. Author Darrell Guder notes that for most churches, the end of discipleship is discipleship. That is, most churches have a church-centric goal of making their own people better. But, God’s end for discipleship has always been mission. God changes people to change their world. Expanding a definition borrowed from another missional writer, David Bosch, Guder states,
Mission (may be understood) as being derived from the very nature of God. It (is) thus put into the context of the doctrine of the Trinity, not of ecclesiology or soteriology. The classical doctrine of the mission Dei as God the Father sending the Son, and God the Father and the Son sending the Spirit (is) expanded to include yet another “movement”: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit sending the church into the world….mission is not primarily an activity of the church, but an attribute of God…Mission is thereby seen as a movement from God to the world: the church is viewed as an instrument of that mission…There is church because there is mission, not vice versa. (p. 20)
Those who BELONG to Jesus and BECOME more like Jesus go BEYOND to take Jesus into their world. “‘Come, follow me,’ Jesus said, ‘and I will make you fishers of men’” (Matthew 4:19). This is God’s goal for every Christian. This is His goal for every church. The church is God’s instrument of redemption in the world. We must never so focus on community and transformation that we lose sight of this biblical mission.
Into the Church
When Peter preached his first sermon at Pentecost, “three thousand were added to their number that day” (Acts 2:41). As the community of believers grew more connected, “the Lord added to their number daily those who were being saved” (Acts 2:47). As the church expanded and began to move into the world, manifesting the power of God and preaching the Gospel, “many who heard the message believed, and the number of men grew to about five thousand” (Acts 4:4). As we grow disciples, we grow churches.
But, when churches grow, the needs within churches increase. As the Jerusalem church added to their numbers, “the Grecian Jews among them complained against the Hebraic Jews because their widows were being overlooked in the daily distribution of food” (Acts 6:1). Up to this point, the Apostles were able to manage all the ministry themselves. But now, more servants were required to ensure the continuing success of the church. So, the leaders directed the people to “choose seven men from among you who are full of the Spirit” (6:3). People were the answer.
It is significant that the primary requirement for these additional servants is that they be full of the Holy Spirit. The reason is because the Spirit forms character and those who serve in the church must, first and foremost, be men and women of character. Serving the church requires humility, generosity and compassion—all virtues of the Spirit (see Philippians 2:1-4). God prioritizes character over competency when appointing servants in the local church.
Another reason why the Spirit is so essential is because the Holy Spirit equips people for service. The Apostles explained that it would not be good for them to neglect their ministry of preaching the word to wait on tables. It wasn’t that their responsibility was superior, but that they had been equipped for one kind of service, and the care of widows required servants equipped for that particular task. The Holy Spirit gives gifts to His people and then gives His people to one another.
A right understanding of spiritual gifts enables believers to go BEYOND into their church. The Bible teaches several fundamental truths about spiritual gifts:
Every Christian has at least one spiritual gift. Paul writes, “Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good” (1 Corinthians 12:7) and “to each one of us grace has been given as Christ apportioned it” (Ephesians 4:7). Not only pastors, but all Christians have received at least one spiritual gift.
Spiritual gifts are given according the will of the Holy Spirit. No one earns or learns a spiritual gift. Rather, “but one and the same Spirit works all these things distributing to each one individually as He wills” (1 Corinthians 12:11). Spiritual gifts are manifestations of God’s grace, given freely and without condition. A Christian may desire a gift (1 Corinthians 14:1), but that is no guarantee that the gift will be given.
Each Christian has a responsibility to use their gift. Peter commands, “As each one has received a gift, minister in it to one another, as good stewards of the manifold grace of God” (1 Peter 4:10). Likewise, Paul urges his young disciple, Timothy, “Do not neglect the gift that was given you” (1 Timothy 4:14). Gifts are not given to be stored, but to be used.
Do not forget the Parable of the Talents where a master left his stewards in charge of his resources (Matthew 25:14-30). One servant squandered what had been entrusted to them, but one proved to be faithful. That one, not the lazy one, was later entrusted with more responsibility and enjoyed the happiness of his master.
Spiritual gifts are intended to be given away. God gives gifts to His people and then He gives people to His church to accomplish the mission of the church. The gifts He gives are not for the recipient but intended for the Body. We see this principle at work in one of the most extensive passages on spiritual gifts in Ephesians 4:11-16. The Apostle Paul instructs the church:
It was he who gave some to be apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers, to prepare God’s people for works of service, so that the body of Christ may be built up until we all reach unity in the faith and in the knowledge of the Son of God and become mature, attaining to the whole measure of the fullness of Christ. Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of men in their deceitful scheming. Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will in all things grow up into him who is the Head, that is, Christ. From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.
There is a custom among certain Aboriginal tribes in Australia. At a predetermined time, each young person is entrusted with secret knowledge or a special skill vital to the tribe’s survival. It may be directions to a watering hole or the medicinal benefits of a particular plant. No one else is given that information. In this way, each person becomes essential for the welfare of the whole community. Everyone has a role to play.
Paul explains that the whole Body of Christ will grow and flourish “as each part does its work.” There are no insignificant body parts in the church (1 Corinthians 12:12-26). Each one is vital to the whole.