Send Me!

I really enjoy Ed Stetzer, pastor, missiologist, and President of LifeWay Research. I recommend that you follow his blog and twitter feed.

Today Ed further develops his series on Developing Missional Churches for the Great Commission titled, Part Five: God Sends. This is a great read. If you time time read the entire series.

Here are a few quotes:

However, in repeating the truth that "God is a sender," we have failed to say, "Here I am. Send me" (Isaiah 6:8). It is a disconnect between believing that God calls and sends, and being willing to be sent.

Perhaps we have stopped contemplating that it is the personal Creator of the universe who has a glorious pursuit for His creation this is calling and sending us. Perhaps we simply have missed that we were created to advance the name of God throughout the whole earth, and God redeemed us to fulfill that purpose through us. Perhaps we have forgotten that Jesus told His disciples to wait until the Spirit comes before they start the mission, and the Spirit came and the disciples went.

We have the same Spirit in us today, and we have the same mission. Perhaps we have overlooked that when Jesus commissioned His disciples there were some there who were full of faith and some who doubted (Matt. 28:17). Because we believe that God only sends those with risk-taking faith, we conclude that God cannot send us.

Perhaps we have not heard that when He sends us, He sends us with His peace (John 20:21) and the assurance that He has overcome the world (Matthew 28:18, John 16:33).

Let me add a few thoughts. In fact, let me personalize this discussion a bit.

Perhaps I'm too comfortable? Perhaps my time spent with Christ is so infrequent that I no longer even recognize His voice. Perhaps my heart is hardened to the extent that I no longer even care about lost people and what's on the heart of God. Perhaps I'm too preoccupied with my selfish concerns.

Perhaps, I need to come to Jesus with the heart of a child, to look into His eyes, to hear His voice. Perhaps I need to decide if I want to really live as a disciple of Jesus or just go through the motions of playing church.

Ed writes:

Ultimately, churches and individuals make the choice to hear the sending voice of God and obey it. Obedience begins with embracing that God has a glorious purpose for His mission and He initiates the mission by sending His Son and His people. The truth is either we are sent or we have missed our orders.

I don't want to miss anything God has for me or our church. I want to live my remaining years on mission, helping bring the good works of the kingdom and the good news of the gospel to those for whom my Savior died. I want to obediently trust God with the heart of a child, ready to answer the call with the words. "Send me!"

The Spirit and the bride say, “Come!” And let him who hears say, “Come!” Whoever is thirsty, let him come; and whoever wishes, let him take the free gift of the water of life.
Revelation 22:17