World Wide Missions

What does the Bible teach us about world wide missions? Mark 16:15 states: “And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.”

Matthew 28:19, “Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost.”

Luke 24:47, “And that repentance and remission of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.”

Acts 1:8, “But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.”

There are other verses, but these are the best known, and there is no doubt that God wants Christians to share the gospel with the entire world.

God is so adamant that the gospel is preached throughout the world that during the tribulation, when all Christians are either killed by the Antichrist or in hiding, God sends an angel to proclaim the gospel to everyone. Revelation 14:6, “And I saw another angel fly in the midst of heaven, having the everlasting gospel to preach unto them that dwell on the earth, and to every nation, and kindred, and tongue, and people.”

Does God intend for every Christian to travel the globe? In Bible days, the only means of transportation were by foot, riding upon a beast, or a ship. Today, many people never leave their birth nation. Even fewer travel to other continents. How, then, does the average Christian fulfill their part in spreading the gospel around the globe?

Step in the missionary. Missionaries are people God has called to leave everything familiar and go somewhere else on planet earth to preach the gospel.

How can a Christian help a missionary share the gospel with those around the world, with those we will never meet? Every missionary I have ever met has given me the same list: prayer, financial support, and Bibles.

Some Christians are fortunate enough to go on mission trips. Usually sent by a church, a group will travel to wherever the missionary is and help for a week or two. Sometimes it is swinging a hammer, making needed repairs, or helping with new construction. Sometimes it is teaching classes or even preaching. It could be knocking on doors and sharing the gospel with people. The tasks for a missionary are endless, and a mission trip by a group of Christians provides much-needed temporary help.

Missionaries usually send a monthly or quarterly letter so others can know what is going on and what the prayer needs are. Every Christian should be praying all the time (1 Thessalonians 5:17). Keep a list handy of missionaries’ needs and pray, pray, pray.

The missionary also needs financial support. Missionaries have all the usual expenses we have: rent, vehicle expenses, putting food on the table for the family, utilities, and so on. They also have the added ministry expenses. At first, many missionaries conduct church services in their homes. Still, eventually, everyone doesn’t fit, so a meeting place is rented or built. As mentioned earlier, Bibles and other teaching materials. Items for the children, including infants, such as a playpen or a baby bed, are needed. Being in a foreign land, often running down to the local Christian bookstore is not an option (sometimes even a grocery store may be hours away). Hence, things are not readily available. The financial needs for ministry, at times, seem endless. The missionary needs money. God always provides, and often He provides through other Christians. That’s us.

Through God’s people, churches financially support missionaries in various ways.

Some churches send a specific amount to each missionary they support every month. Other churches will send a specific percentage of their offerings to missions, dividing the funds among the missionaries they support; therefore, the amount of support will vary. Some churches practice what is called “faith promise.” Members of the congregation will pledge a specific amount to give to each missionary. This type of sharing may cause some missionaries to receive more than others, but the giving is more in each person’s control than the church as a whole.

Many Christians may have a burden for a particular mission field and send support to a ministry that their church doesn’t regularly support.

Not a single one of us can do it all. In my lifetime, I have been in forty-five of the fifty states, Canada, and Germany. Many people have traveled more than I, and many others have traveled far less, but it does not matter; every Christian needs to share the gospel with the people they rub elbows with. We need to help those spreading the gospel with those with whom we will never meet.