Painter Print

Sent church is definitely a popular saying that is everywhere these days. the notion that we are obligated to categorize places of worship, missional, has since the beginning of creation been a tiny bit odd to me. come on, shouldnt all bodies of Christ be missional in their very nature? Shouldnt a church, at its very base, yearn to connect their culture and neighborhood with the good news as a missionary would in a another country? Isnt that what the bodies of Christ is commanded to do in the final charge of Christ in Matthew 28:19? Our own city deserves this style of church. Church in Austin is slowly gravitating to what Christ instructed in Holy Word.

Jesus gives the command in Acts 1:8 saying, “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” Acts 1:8 justifies this subject as, right before Jesus Christ ascends to Heaven, He sends the disciples on a story that would begin right in their own community. He begins with their local place of Jerusalem, and then enlarges the call to the far parts of the earth.

As disciples of Jesus, we are not moved to social clubs, but to be missional persons who are aggressively going out and connecting with others right where they are with the story of Christ. We have seen this throughout history: God sends Abraham on a mission to exit his city and his people and go to the land that God would show him (Gen. 12:1), God motivated Moses on a mission to restore an enslaved people and lead them to freedom (Exodus 3:8-10), God motivated Jesus on a mission to creation to pull all things to Himself through the crucifixion (Colossians 1:20). And now God is sending people on a mission to engage homes, cities, peoples, and even nations with the message of Jesus (Matt. 28:19 Mark 6:7 Luke 10:1 John 20:21 Acts 1:8). If we reject this urge and continue to see the churches like a members only country club ” urging that people fix their act, pay their fees, and come to our place of worship God will continue His mission without us.