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...
Those who suffer according to the will of God “Therefore, those also who suffer according to the will of God shall entrust their souls to a faithful Creator in doing what is right” (1 Peter 4:19). Why do we Christians suffer? I think of three reasons for that: (1) because of our sins, (2) because God wants to bless us, and (3) because we are living worthy of the gospel. Of course not all our sufferings are due to our sins. But somehow it is not easy to shake off the thought that many of our sufferings are the result of our sins. I think a good example of this is Prophet Jonah. Why did Jonah suffer? Why was the ship that he was aboard almost broken? (Jonah 1:4) The reason was that Jonah disobeyed God's command (vv. 2-3). Likewise, we too can suffer hardships when we disobey God's command. But I think it is dangerous to think that all our sufferings are all due to our si...