A. What Is Biblical Mission? “Biblical mission means more than simply going overseas to plant churches or spread civilization. It means the church participating in the ‘mission of God (Missio Dei)’ and seeking the restoration of God’s rule and glory throughout the whole earth. Mission is not a program that begins with human enthusiasm; rather, it is the heart of God that runs throughout the Bible, from Genesis to Revelation, and is a fundamental reason for the church’s existence. Let me clearly summarize five essential principles of true mission as presented in Scripture. 🌍 1. The Mission of God (Missio Dei) The subject and initiator of mission is not human beings but God. In order to save fallen humanity, God first comes to us, sends His Son, and sends the Holy Spirit. He is the “missionary God” who sends. Biblical basis: “As the Father has sent me, I also send you.” (John 20:21) Key meaning: The church acknowledges that God has the initiative in mission and serves as His agent, obed...
Our God turns our sorrow
into joy!
God rescued the Jews
from the hands of their enemies,
turning their sorrow and
tears into joy and celebration.
On that historic day,
Mordecai sent letters to all the Jews
throughout the provinces
of the Persian Empire,
instructing them to
annually observe
the 14th and 15th days
of the month of Adar
(the days when the Jews
gathered together and defended themselves
against their enemies,
killing 75,000 who hated them)
as days of feasting and
joy, of giving presents to one another and gifts to the poor.
Thus, the Jews followed
Mordecai's instructions
and celebrated these
days as an annual festival called "Purim,"
meaning "lots"
or "destiny" (Internet).
(Ref.: Esther 9:16-23).
This festival of Purim
commemorates the day when the Jews,
under threat from their
enemy Haman who plotted to destroy them
by casting lots and
choosing the 13th day of the month of Adar,
were instead saved by
God using Esther and Mordecai.
God moved King Ahasuerus
to issue a decree
reversing Haman's evil
plot to annihilate the Jews,
thereby rescuing them
and bringing judgment upon Haman, his sons,
and all the enemies of
the Jews (vv. 24-26, 31).
All the Jews agreed to establish this
tradition of celebration
for themselves and their
descendants,
and for all who would
join their community as Jews,
ensuring that they would
annually observe these two days at the appointed time.
And they vowed to
observe these days of Purim annually,
celebrating them with
joy and sending gifts to each other and to the poor.
These days were to be remembered and observed throughout every generation,
every family, province, and city in the Persian Empire,
so that the Jews would
never forget
the events that had
happened to them (vv. 27-28).
When I meditate on these
words, I am reminded of Psalms 30:11 –
"You turned my
mourning into dancing;
you removed my sackcloth
and clothed me with joy."
Applying Jeremiah 31:13
to this,
"God turns our
sorrow into joy and comforts us,
giving us joy instead of
mourning."
When I reflect on the
mention of the Jews feasting,
I am reminded of Psalms
23:5 –
"You prepare a
table before me in the presence of my enemies;
you anoint my head with
oil; my cup overflows."
Similarly, when God
rescues us and grants us victory, as He did for the Jews,
we learn the lesson to
rest, celebrate,
exchange gifts with one
another, and also to help the poor.
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