LSW A Passion For The Mission
A Passion For The Mission
I urge you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, that you present your bodies as a living, holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. Romans 12:1 lmb
God calls us to participate with Him in His efforts to invite all mankind into His Family.
He has a simple formula to allow this to naturally happen.
One of them, an expert in religious law, tried to trap him with this question: “Teacher, which is the most important commandment in the Law of Moses?”
Jesus replied, “‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the other commandments and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments.” Matthew 22:35-40
How Do We Love God with “All Our Heart”?
The Hebrew word for heart in Deuteronomy 6:5 is lebab, which translates “inner man;” the source of the life of the inner person in various aspects, with a focus on feelings, thoughts, volition, and other areas of inner life.
We love God “with all our heart” by first worshipping and praising Him.
Praise and worship is simply our human response to His divine presence. The Bible is full of examples of humans responding to God’s presence by worshipping and praising Him.
When all the people of Israel saw the fire coming down and the glorious presence of the Lord filling the Temple, they fell face down on the ground and worshiped and praised the Lord, saying, “He is so good! His faithful love endures forever!” 2 Chronicles 7:3
To the Hebrew mind, the heart was the core of their innermost being. An encounter with God usually evokes some sort of emotional response from this innermost part, recognizing God for who He is and what He has done for us.
The Seven Hebrew Words for Praise
Hallal: To praise the Lord by celebrating, by dancing, by shining forth, by acting clamorously foolish; A very robust liberating kind of praise.
Hallal the Lord! Hallal God in his heavenly dwelling; Hallal him in his mighty heaven! Psalm 150:1
Shabach: To praise the Lord with a shout and a loud voice.
Your unfailing love is better to me than life itself; how I Shabach You! Psalm 63:3
Yadah: To praise the Lord with hands and hand movements.
I bow before your holy Temple as I worship. I will Yadah to your name for your unfailing love and faithfulness, because your promises are backed by all the honor of your name.
Psalm 138:2
Todah: The sacrifices of praise that amplifies a sustained singing; Also refers to praising the Lord as a processing choir or parade, or by giving thanks.
“He who offers Todah honors Me. . . . ”
Psalm 50:23 nas
Zamar: To praise the Lord with the playing of an instrument.
My heart is steadfast, O God; I will sing, I will Zamar.
Psalm 108:1 nas
Tehillah: A praise from your spirit, the pouring out of your heart before God; letting Him know how you feel; being real with Him.
Yet you are holy. The Tehillah of Israel surround your throne.
Psalm 22:3
Barak: To praise the Lord by kneeling or bowing low.
Come, let us worship and bow down. Let us Barak before the Lord our maker. Psalm 95:6
To worship and praise the Lord in these manners is truly loving Him with all your heart!
We get excited at football and basketball games right? We jump and shout at concerts right? (At least I did.) We get emotional! Why shouldn’t we get excited about being in God’s presence?
There is a progression from this exuberant expression to even deeper emotions. As we do sense His presence, this joy and celebration will naturally lead to intimate, reverent communion with Him.
How Do We Love Him with “All Our Soul”?
This word soul in Deuteronomy 6:5 is the Hebrew word nepesh, which carried the meaning of the inner self, i.e., the essence of life, including thinking, feeling, willing, desiring. Your nepesh is the center of your ethics. It is the source of obedience to God’s commands. Jesus said:
“If you love me, obey my commandments.” John 14:15
Obedience to God has always been a big issue in the Bible.
Samuel gave us a great perspective on the importance of obedience to God in an encounter with a disobedient King Saul.
But Samuel replied, “What is more pleasing to the Lord: your burnt offerings and sacrifices or your obedience to his voice? Obedience is far better than sacrifice. Listening to him is much better than offering the fat of rams.” 1 Samuel 15:22
The word obey is used 360 times in the Bible. That’s almost one usage for every day of the year!
The obedience the Lord desires comes from the essence of our being, our nepesh.
It goes beyond our emotions; it is deeper than our intellect.
Our heavenly Father wants a relationship of trust with His Children.
Jesus told us about the importance of obedience in our relationship with Him:
“If you love Me, you will keep My commandments.
16 I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper, that He may be with you forever; 17 that is the Spirit of truth, whom the world cannot receive, because it does not see Him or know Him, but you know Him because He abides with you and will be in you.
Our level of obedience will result in a greater presence of the Holy Spirit in our lives.
21 He who has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me; and he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and will disclose Myself to him.”
Our obedience leads to Jesus personally revealing Himself to us.
“If anyone loves Me, he will keep My word; and My Father will love him, and We will come to him and make Our abode with him. 27 Peace I leave with you; My peace I give to you; not as the world gives do I give to you. Do not let your heart be troubled, nor let it be fearful.
Being obedient to the things Jesus commands us to do leads to God indwelling us and experiencing greater levels of peace and contentment.
Abide in Me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself unless it abides in the vine, so neither can you unless you abide in Me. 5 I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I in him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing. John 15:4-5
Abide: Meno: to be and remain united with him, one with him in heart, mind, and will.
Our obedience to Jesus leads to great spiritual and ministry fruit in our lives.
If you keep My commandments, you will abide in My love; just as I have kept My Father’s commandments and abide in His love. 11 These things I have spoken to you so that My joy may be in you, and that your joy may be made full. John 15:10-11
Obedience in the small decisions of life results in greater joy.
14 You are My friends if you do what I command you. 15 No longer do I call you slaves, for the slave does not know what his master is doing; but I have called you f John 15:14-15
Obedience to our Lord results in friendship with Him.
Obedience results in:
· Great levels of Holy Spirit;
· Jesus revealing Himself more;
· Great levels of peace;
· Being more fruitful;
· Having more joy;
· Friendship with Jesus.
How Do We Love Him with “All Our Mind”?
I believe this love has to do with letting our mind dwell on Him and always keeping all our thoughts inside the corral that’s labeled: “What’s good for my relationship with God.”
This word used for “mind” in the Greek is dianoia, which means reasoning, understanding, thinking. The first way we love God with our mind is by setting our priorities.
Priorities
The Bible is very clear that
1. God is number one,
2. your family is number two,
3. your ministry is number three, and
4. your work is number four.
5. Recreation and everything else follows these.
God also wants us to love Him with our minds.
Our thoughts should always be centered on Him and what’s good for our relationship. Paul puts it this way in 2 Corinthians:
We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ. 2 Corinthians 10:5 nas
It’s important that we bring every thought inside the “sphere of God” in our life. God says that when we do, our relationship with Him will grow. Filling our minds with God’s thoughts has a similar effect. Look how the psalmist describes this process:
How blessed is the man who does not walk in the counsel of the wicked, nor stand in the path of sinners, nor sit in the seat of scoffers! But his delight is in the law of the Lord, and in His law he meditates day and night. And he will be like a tree firmly planted by streams of water, Which yields its fruit in its season, And its leaf does not wither; And in whatever he does, he prospers.
Psalm 1:1-3 nas
Meditation
Meditation is contemplation, pondering. Unlike other forms of Buddhist or New Age meditation where you try to empty your mind, for a Christian, it is filling your mind with God.
When you meditate on God’s Word,
· your spiritual roots will grow stronger;
· your spirit will be continually nourished;
· your character will change to reflect more of Christ’s character;
· there will be fruit of the Spirit in greater measure;
· your intimacy with God will grow!
· You will be receiving true life!
Prayer
Prayer is another way to love the Lord with your mind.
Communication is essential in any relationship that is growing and getting more intimate.
It’s important to decide that you will communicate with God and set time aside regularly to talk with Him.
Jesus gave us some guidelines for our communication with God in Matthew 6:
“When you pray, don’t babble on and on as people of other religions do. They think their prayers are answered only by repeating their words again and again.
Don’t be like them, because your Father knows exactly what you need even before you ask him!
Pray like this: Our Father in heaven, may your name be honored.
May your Kingdom come soon.
May your will be done here on earth, just as it is in heaven.
Give us our food for today, and forgive us our sins, just as we have forgiven those who have sinned against us
. And don’t let us yield to temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.” Matthew 6:7-13
Notice that Jesus says “when you pray” and not “if you pray.”
He also says, “pray like this.” Jesus gave us an outline for prayer.
We are to fill in the specifics. How do you like it when you call someone and get a prerecorded message? Or receive a form letter? That’s probably how God feels when we begin reciting learned prayers with little or no feeling.
· Let God know how you feel about Him. Worship and praise Him.
· Confess any thoughts and acts that are outside God’s character. This confession clears the slate for further conversation.
· Thank God for the good things that He is doing in your life. Even those things that may not be pleasant, but are working for God’s purposes (James 1:2).
· Ask God to give you the things you need in this life. Ask Him to specifically help others who need Him in their life; ask Him to intervene in situations beyond your control.
· How can we expect anything to happen before we have talked to our heavenly Father? It usually doesn’t. With this connection we have to the spiritual world, our prayers can impact areas in far corners of the globe. That is an amazing fact!
Consider this testimony of the far-reaching power of prayer.
A missionary on furlough told this true story while visiting his home church in Michigan:
While serving at a small field hospital in Africa, every two weeks I traveled by bicycle through the jungle to a nearby city for supplies. This was a journey of two days and required camping overnight at the halfway point.
On one of these journeys, I arrived in the city where I planned to collect money from a bank, purchase medicines and supplies, and then begin my two-day journey back to the field hospital.
Upon arrival in the city, I observed two men fighting, one who had been seriously injured. I treated him for his injuries and at the same time witnessed to him of the Lord Jesus Christ. I then traveled two days, camping overnight, and arrived home without incident.
Two weeks later, I repeated my journey. Upon arriving in the city, I was approached by the young man I had treated. He told me that he had known I carried money and medicines.
He said, “Some friends and I followed you into the jungle, knowing that you would camp overnight. We planned to kill you and take your money and drugs. But just as we were about to move into your camp, we saw that you were surrounded by twenty-six armed guards.”
At this I laughed and said I was certainly all alone out in that jungle campsite.
The young man pressed the point and said, “No sir, I was not the only person to see the guards. My five friends also saw them, and we all counted them. It was because of those guards that we were afraid and left you alone.”
At this point in the sermon, one of the men in the congregation jumped to his feet and interrupted the missionary and asked if he could tell him the exact date that this happened.
The missionary told him the date.
And the man who interrupted told him this story:
On the night of your incident in Africa, I was preparing to play golf. I was about to putt when I felt the urge to pray for you. In fact, the urging of the Lord was so strong I called men in this church to meet me here in the sanctuary to pray for you. Would all those men who met with me on that day stand up?
The men who had met that day and prayed for their missionary brother in far off Africa stood to their feet. The missionary wasn’t concerned who they were, he was busy counting how many men were standing.
There were twenty-six.
Now let’s move on to the second most important commandment:
Jesus replied, “‘You must love the Lord your God with all your heart, all your soul, and all your mind.’ This is the first and greatest commandment. A second is equally important: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’ All the other commandments and all the demands of the prophets are based on these two commandments.” Matthew 22:37-40
Luke records that when Jesus was asked, “Who is my neighbor?” Jesus told the story of the Good Samaritan—which showed that “our neighbor” is any fellow inhabitant of this planet who needs help (Luke 10:25–37).
In the pages of the Christian Scriptures, we often see the phrases, “one another” and “each other.” The New Testament gives us at least twenty-one practical ways to love “one another.” Study each of the passages listed below to fully grasp the importance God places on loving one another.
The Twenty One Commandments For Interpersonal Relationships
1. Romans 12:10 Be devoted… Give preference..
2. Romans 12:13 Contribute to the needs of . . .
3. Romans 14:13 Do not judge . . .
4. Romans 14:19 Build up . . .
5. Romans 15:7 Accept . . .
6. 1 Corinthians 12:25 Care for . . .
7. Galatians 5:13 Serve . . .
8. Galatians 6:2 Bear one another’s burdens…
9. Ephesians 4:2 Be patient . . .
10. Ephesians 4:32 Be kind and tenderhearted . . .
11. Ephesians 4:32 Forgive . . .
12. Colossians 3:16 Teach and admonish . . .
13. 1 Thessalonians 4:18 Comfort . . .
14. Hebrews 3:13 Encourage . . .
15. James 4:11 Do not be against . . .
16. James 5:9 Do not complain . . .
17. James 5:16 Confess your sins . . .
18. James 5:16 Pray for . . .
19. 1 Peter 4:8 Keep fervent in your love . . .
20. 1 Peter 4:9 Be hospitable . . .
21. 1 Peter 5:5 Submit . . .
Why is God so intent on making sure that we know how to practically love one another?
There are many reasons.
First, we need to feel love from others.
God has designed us in a manner that requires feelings of acceptance, love, and affection. When that is happening in a healthy manner, our contentment and satisfaction levels are high. When there is an absence of love in our lives, there are serious consequences that affect all levels of society. Just ask any social worker or psychologist. Our jails and institutions are full of people who never received the proper amount of love as a child or young adult.
Second, we need help in this life.
We need help from each other. Anyone who says otherwise is a true “lone ranger” and travelling with “Tonto” (Spanish: idiot). Loving and serving one another is God’s practical solution to many of life’s problems. He doesn’t have to send a legion of angels if He has a few willing servants who will respond to the needs of others around them.
A third reason is that God knows that as we involve ourselves in the lives of others we grow spiritually and become more intimate with Him.
Loving one another in these practical ways allows God’s character to come forth more and more. Asking ourselves, “What would Jesus do,” in each interpersonal situation will always result in a practical expression of love. When we serve others, in effect we are partnering with God in a work that will have profound affect. That other person will benefit from your love, but perhaps the greatest beneficiary will be you.
For those obedient to these twenty-one commandments of interpersonal relationships, many can look back and see when they involved themselves in the lives of others, something happened inside.
It is a spiritual dynamic.
You can’t help but be affected when you pray for someone with a terminal disease. Holding a dying, malnourished baby in your arms for the first time touches something deep inside. Working with a single parent or a person with a sexually transmitted, deadly disease causes something to change in your spirit. Seeing children respond to teaching on the Word of God or to a family rebuild their relationships on godly principles is exciting. Both bring a growth in your faith in the power of the Word.
It is a spiritual dynamic: when we involve ourselves in the lives of others by loving them and serving them, growth in our spiritual character occurs, and we become closer to God.
Why?
Because it is what Jesus would do.
When we “let Him out” to touch others around us, we become more and more like Him.
Working with God in ministry is a means to spend time with Him.
Any time you work with others on a project, you finish that project being better friends with your workmates.
Ministry is an opportunity to co-labor with God here and now.
That’s one of the reasons why Jesus, Peter, James, and Paul commanded the people in the early Church to be involved in ministering to one another.
God’s plan is simple. He wants to bring all men into His family.
This is good and pleases God our Savior, for he wants everyone to be saved and to understand the truth. 1 Timothy 2:3-4
Jesus told us in the Great Commission that wherever we happen to be going, we should be making disciples, baptizing them, and teaching them all He told us.
“Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
Matthew 28:19-20 nas
God wants everybody to be included in His family. We are the ones who deliver the invitations. Consider what Paul said in the Book of Romans:
For “Anyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.” But how can they call on him to save them unless they believe in him? And how can they believe in him if they have never heard about him? And how can they hear about him unless someone tells them? Romans 10:13-14
Think about all the relationships you have.
Not just your family, but what about the guy who works on your car? How about that person who cuts your hair? Your dentist? Your doctor? The guy at the hardware store who helps you find what you need? The person at the checkout counter where you buy your groceries? Your aerobics teacher?
You have relationships with all these people and more. Think about it. With these relationships come ample opportunities to be used by God in this mission that He has given you—to reach out to the lost and needy. Take a moment to go beyond the immediate business needs—move into a more personal level. “Love them” in the course of your daily events. Try it. After all, What would Jesus do in the same situation?
KMart
A few summers ago, I was preparing for a trip to Nicaragua. On our final day in Florida, Laura asked me to go to K-Mart and buy a trashcan that was on sale. I had many things on my list for that day, but it was a savings of three dollars, and we needed a new container.
I went to the store, found the big, black plastic trashcan with wheels and went to the checkout. A young girl with a nametag that read “Candice” took my credit card and began to check me out. I casually asked her if K-Mart was still in bankruptcy. She replied that she didn’t know and didn’t care. That began a conversation that went something like this:
“So you are not a K-Mart career employee?”
“No, I’m a sixteen-year-old single mom with a new baby.”
“That must be challenging. Is your family helping?”
“No, the father is black, and they are racist.”
“Are you involved in a church anywhere?”
“I’ve gone to a few, but there was nothing there for me.”
“You definitely need God’s help now.”
“Why?”
“Because there is a devil out there called Satan who is out to steal from you and destroy your life.”
At this point, Candice took out a piece of paper and began writing.
“How do you spell that?”
“S-a-t-a-n”
She wrote it down. I realized that I needed to tell her more.
“But there is another that you need to know about. His name is Jesus. He has a plan for you and your child and He wants you to know that He cares for you.”
She wrote that name down alongside the first name.
At that point, we begin to have a conversation about Jesus. I encouraged Candice to begin a relationship with God, and let Him guide her life. I could tell by the way that she was looking over my shoulder that the other cashiers were also listening. Fortunately, there were no other customers in any checkout lines. After about five minutes, I said, “Candice, I think that you might find help at a church. Please try to find one. If you like, come to ours.”
I gave her directions to our church, noticed the time, and hurried out the door, dragging the big, black, rolling garbage can. In a few moments I was at the van and opened the back door, having to first move a discarded shopping cart that somebody had left there.
Lazy people!
Much to my dismay, the back was filled with boxes. I remembered that four weeks earlier Laura had placed some of her clothes and Moselle’s baby clothes in the van to take to the Salvation Army. With these boxes in the back, there was no space for the big, black, rolling garbage can. I felt the temperature rise as I realized that now I was going to have to put the big, black, rolling garbage can over the backseat, which looked to be almost impossible due to its size. This was getting too much. After all, why had Laura not followed through and taken these boxes of clothes to the Salvation Army weeks ago? Now I was really getting ticked as I tried to push the big, black, rolling garbage can over the back of the seat into the middle space, but it wouldn’t go; it was too big. In disgust I pulled the big black trash can out and set it on the ground next to the abandoned shopping cart.
I had approached my meltdown point when I looked down into one of the boxes and saw one of Moselle’s (and Arielle’s) infant outfits on top of one of the boxes. I looked and saw another. Then I saw one of Laura’s dresses in another box. By this point, it had begun to sink in, and I began to melt. My knees got weak as I realized how God had began a month earlier to orchestrate a plan to meet Candice’s needs.
“I’ve got to get these boxes into that store and give them to Candice” I thought quickly. I looked to my right and there was the strategically placed “abandoned” shopping cart! Too perfect!
I was in tears as I paused to tell God how sorry I was that I almost blew His plan.
I quickly loaded four boxes of clothes into the shopping cart and hurried back into K-Mart. As I entered, Candice asked me if anything was wrong. I told her that these boxes of clothes were from my family and were for her and her baby and explained what had just happened. As I walked out the door, I heard her let out a shriek as she called out to the other cashiers “Look, I just got some boxes of baby clothes.”
This is a life lesson that I will never forget!
It’s not too difficult to bring the conversation from business to more personal subjects, especially if people sense you are genuinely interested in them. That’s what loving them is all about: taking a personal interest. As you love them, there may be opportunity to reach out to them. Perhaps they have a need you can pray for. Or maybe they might accept an invitation to lunch, or dinner, or church. Even if they initially refuse, they will know you are a person who is genuinely concerned about them. Business relationships become friendships. At some point in their lives, they will need to know someone like you who knows the truth and who is walking in relationship with God.
What this means is that those who become Christians become new persons. They are not the same anymore, for the old life is gone. A new life has begun!
All this newness of life is from God, who brought us back to himself through what Christ did. And God has given us the task of reconciling people to him.
For God was in Christ, reconciling the world to Himself, no longer counting people’s sins against them. This is the wonderful message he has given us to tell others.
We are Christ’s ambassadors, and God is using us to speak to you. We urge you, as though Christ himself were here pleading with you, “Be reconciled to God!” 2 Corinthians 5:17-20
The mission that He has for us is to be His ambassadors to our families, to our neighbors, to all the places we happen to be “going.” It’s really a lifestyle of evangelism.
God will bring people across our paths whom He is inviting into His family.
We are the ones who will extend the invitation.
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