COV LIFE BLOG

CLC Missions Conference 2014 – Why Missions?

Missions is not the ultimate goal of the church. Worship is. Why the substitution of “worship” for “the glory of God”? Why not say, “Missions is not the ultimate goal of the church. The glory of God is?” The reason is that missions is demanded not by God’s failure to show glory but by man’s failure to savor the glory.

Missions exists because worship doesn’t. The ultimate issue addressed by missions is that God’s glory is dishonored among the peoples of the world. When Paul brought his indictment of his own people to a climax in Romans 2:24, he said, “The name of God is blasphemed among the Gentiles because of you.” That is the ultimate problem. That is the ultimate outrage.

The infinite, all-glorious Creator of the universe, by whom and for whom all things exist – who hold’s every person’s life in being at every moment (Acts 17:25) – is disregarded, disbelieved, disobeyed, and dishonored among the peoples of the world. That is the ultimate reason for missions.

The aim of missions is that there be a church who worships God through Jesus Christ in all the peoples and tribes and languages and ethnic groups of the world. We have seen this goal of missions most clearly in the result of missions in Revelations 5:9. The song to Christ in heaven will be, “Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open it seals, for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation.” Jesus Christ, the Son of God, died to redeem a worshiping people for his Father from all the peoples, tribes, languages, and nations. Missions exists to plant Christ-purchased, God-exalting worshipping communities of the redeemed in all the peoples of the world.

The first great passion of missions, therefore, is to honor the glory of God by restoring the rightful place of God in the hearts of people who presently think, feel, and act in ways that dishonor God every day, and in particular, to do this by bringing forth a worshiping people from among all the unreached peoples of the world. If you love the glory of God, you cannot be indifferent to missions. This is the ultimate reason Jesus Christ came into the world. Romans 15:8-9 says, “Christ became a servant to the uncircumcised… in order that the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy.” Christ came to get glory for his Father among the nations. If you love what Jesus Christ came to accomplish, you love missions.

John Piper
“Let the Nations Be Glad”

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Heart Preparation
Read Matthew 25:14-30. This Sunday’s sermon will be based on the Stewardship of Life. How are you stewarding the days God has entrusted to you? Are you storing up treasures in Heaven? Are you making the most of every moment?