How Serious Is Your Church About Missions? Part 5 of 6 Are All Christians Missionaries?

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The word missionary is an extra-biblical term that means different things to different people. Generally, evangelical Christians understand a missionary is someone with a special calling from God to leave their home and live in another country to share the gospel. It is commonly understood that this calling is not universal for all Christians but only for a select few. We must ensure that we correctly understand our role in reaching the unreached and if this responsibility is for all who know Christ. If, after reading this post, you are compelled that all Christians have a missional responsibility to reach the nations, then please share with others and work together to understand better what God wants for His people. 

It seems clear that the Bible directs all believers to share the gospel by implication or command. Texts such as Matthew 5:16, Matthew 28:19 and 20, Matthew 24:14, Mark 16:15, Psalm 96:3, Romans 1:16, 1 Peter 3:15, Acts 1:8, Romans 10:13 and 14, John 12:48, and many others make this abundantly clear. When you read 2 Corinthians 5:20 and 1 Peter 2:5-9, it becomes unquestionable that our calling as Christians is to be God’s messengers. 2 Corinthians 5:20 refers to Christians as ambassadors for Christ and as ministers of reconciliation. This demonstrates that everyone who has been reconciled with God through Christ is His gospel representative. 

A common understanding of the responsibilities of being an ambassador should be enough for the average Christian to see the high calling that God has placed on His people. The early church recipients of 2 Corinthians would have understood the representative concept of a Roman ambassador for the emperor. So, the level of positional authority would have been far more significant than our modern concept of an ambassador today. In modern times, ambassadors fill negotiator roles far more than being a representative of an absolute earthly power. The church must understand that they represent the supreme power in the universe who has complete rule over all things. The more the church understands this, the more it will be a willing and faithful ambassador for Christ. 

Christians feel free to go anywhere they need to for a promotion or a new job without any specific calling but will rarely go for the sake of the gospel. It shouldn’t be the exception that Christians go, but the norm. 1000s of Americans can choose to live in unreached areas of the world for jobs and retirement reasons, many of whom are not Christian. They go because they want to. How is it that so few Christians are willing to go to unreached areas for the sake of the gospel? How is it that non-Christians can make the life transition, but most Christians cannot? If you believe you are Christ's ambassador, where is the best place for you to go for Him?

The church must see global evangelism differently. We have to live 1 Peter 2:9, where we see that Christians are God’s called people and His royal priests. These titles give the church another biblical encouragement to be God’s missional people. This passage also identifies a clear purpose for a people who will proclaim the greatness of knowing God and how to know Him. God designating all Christians as royal priests should elevate them to a place where they see the significance of God's calling on their lives, which should result in a life lived to the fullest for the cause of Christ. The small number of missionaries gives ample evidence that the church is not expressing these Biblical realities with enough zeal. So, considering the above passages, how does it impact your view of missionaries? Are you personally responsible for getting the gospel to the nations of the world? Does God have a calling for you that is far greater than you previously realized?