In this sermon we'll be talking about the joy that comes from experiencing God’s Harvest in our lives and the excitement we can have from partaking in what He is doing in us and in others around the world. As others have sown His word in our hearts, we also have the amazing opportunity to sow His saving and sanctifying truth in others and those coming after us, rejoicing together in what He has done for His people.
The joy of missions is that over 2000 years ago the Son of Man finished the work necessary to bring salvation to His people across timelines and generations. And as His plan for salvation unfolds in our time on earth, we can freely and joyfully go into the world, knowing that God’s people have been paid for, and that He will not lose a single one of His sheep!
May the certainty of Christ’s loving work in His Church across time and space be a source of constant joy and celebration.
As we go into Missions Week, I want to start out by challenging us to pray that we might see the call to missions as the greatest and most beautiful reality and hope that this world could ever imagine. The news constantly bombards us with story after story of heartache, evil, violence and war. The hopelessness of the world around us can only be countered by the truest and greatest news in the world – The King has returned to reclaim his world.
Yet, here is an interesting thought that we ought to consider on missions week: Maybe, it isn’t just the world that needs missions. Maybe, it’s the church that needs missions. Maybe, there are things in our hearts and lives that cannot change until we find ourselves in the position of being Christ’s ambassadors and experience not simply how desperate the world is for Christ but how desperate we are for Him as well. Missions aren't simply the place where God changes the world. Missions are the place where God changes me.
The sermon this week is called “A Heart for Missions.” I am praying not simply that we will have a heart of missions at Waterbrooke. I am praying that we also might have a heart from missions – the heart of Christ for broken sinners like you and like me. Christ loves to minister to His people as He ministers through His people. He meets our deepest needs as we seek to minister to the deepest needs of others. Let’s pray for that. Looking forward to seeking a real work of God in and through us all as we consider and pray over His mission in this world. See you Sunday, Lord willing!