JESUS MISSION & MINISTRY TO HIS CHURCH
His Mission is our mission
Hebrews 13:8 “Jesus Christ is the same yesterday and today, and forever.” And, He commands us to have this same mind and attitudes in our practices and faith.
Likewise, Jesus’ MISSION is the same today as when He began. It has not changed.
Jesus is the Christ, the Messiah, the Savior of the world. His primary mission is all about Salvation. Jesus, Himself, said, “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son, so that everyone who believes in Him will not perish, but have eternal life.” (John 3:16-19)
Our Mission
Jesus’ Misson gives us our mission: To lift up the name of Jesus, and He will draw all men to Himself. Our mission is to do His works because He has prepared those works ahead of time that we should walk in them. (John 12:32, Ephesians 2:10)
JESUS’ MINISTRY is our ministry
Jesus’ Church is alternately known as His followers, His disciples, Christians or The Church. In other words, we – you and I – are His Church.
Jesus’ ministry to His Church – to you and me – is “Three Fold”*:
(1) To our physcial Body (soma),
(2) To our Soul (psuche) mind, will and emotions,
(3) to our Spirit, (pneuma) i.e., the entire person.
Here are just a few of many examples from the Bible:
(1) 1 Thessalonians 5:23 – And the very God of peace will sanctify you wholly; and I pray to God that your whole spirit and soul and body be preserved blameless unto the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.
(2) Hebrews 4:12 – For the word of God is quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and discerns the thoughts and intents of the heart.
(3) Matthew 22:37 “And Jesus said to him, “‘YOU SHALL LOVE THE LORD YOUR GOD WITH ALL YOUR HEART, AND WITH ALL YOUR SOUL, AND WITH ALL YOUR MIND.’
(4) Matthew 1:21 “She will give birth to a Son; and you shall name Him Jesus, for He will save His people from their sins.”
The world “SAVE” = Strong’s Bible concordance #4982 sṓzō (comes from sōs, “safe, rescued”) – sózó: to save
Original Word: σῴζω
Part of Speech: Verb
Transliteration: sózó
Phonetic Spelling: (sode’-zo)
Definition: to save
Usage: I save, heal, preserve, rescue. Properly, deliver out of danger and into safety; heal, preserve, save (self), do well, be (make) whole.
Interestingly, this word has it roots from
(Renewing the) SPIRIT – God rescuing believers from the penalty and power of sin – and into His provisions (safety). cured, ensure salvation;
(Saving the) BODY – universally, save, one from injury or peril; to save a suffering one from perishing, e. g. one suffering from disease, to make well, heal, restore to health. get well, made well, preserved, recover, restore, save. saved, saves, saving.
(Saving the) SOUL – make healthy in the mind, will and emotions.
- PNEUMA = SPIRIT (The heart or the core of one’s being)
- PSUCHE = SOUL (The mind, will and emotions)
- SOMA = BODY (The physical and observable)
(*Jesus’ ministry to each person is three-fold. Do not be confused by an invention known as the “five fold ministry”, which is actually a misnomer and is used inaccurately describe and to misapply the function of the Offices of Spiritual gifts; (1) apostles, (2) prophets, (3) evangelists (4) pastors and (5) teachers, found in Ephesians 4:11 )
THE CHURCH
(1) THE CHURCH – Ecclesia (Ekklesia) in Christian theology means both: (a) a particular body of faithful people, and (b) the whole body of the faithful.
THE CHURCH is YOU and ME.
“The hope of the church yet lies in the purity of her theology, that is, her beliefs about God and man and their relation to each other.” – A.W. Tozier
The hope of the church – YOU and ME – lies in the purity of OUR theology, that is, OUR beliefs about God and man and their relation to each other.
LET’S GET THIS RIGHT
- Ecclesia is not a building and our relationship to a building.
- Ecclesia is not a legal entity and our relationship to that entity.
- Ecclesia is not a owned our managed primarily by a man or woman and our relationship to any man or any woman.
- Ecclesia is not a 501(c)(3) government approved organization and our relationship is not with the government and its rules.
THE CHURCH is YOU and ME and is about our relationship with Him.
And we better get our thinking right about this, because the time of His Return is upon us – He is not coming for the Church Board, or the Denominational Headquarters, or the Church “leadership” – JESUS IS COMING FOR HIS BRIDE – THE CHURCH – YOU AND ME.
And He expects us to have this right because He is going to ask us.
“The hope of the church yet lies in the purity of our theology, that is, our beliefs about God and man and our relation to each other.”
John 13:35 “By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.”
THE ROCK
(2) Mathew 16:13 “Now when Jesus came into the region of Caesarea Philippi, He was asking His disciples, “Who do people say that the Son of Man is?” Verse 14. And they said,
- “Some say John the Baptist; and others,
- Elijah; and stillothers,
- Jeremiah,or
- one of the otherprophets.” Verse 15. He *said to them, “But who do you yourselves say that I am?” 16 Simon Peter answered, “You are the
- Christ, the Son of the living God.”
Verse 17. And Jesus said to him, “Blessed are you, Simon Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven. Verse 18. And I also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it. Verse 19. I will give you the keys of the kingdom of heaven; and whatever you bind on earth shall have been bound in heaven, and whatever you loose on earth shall have been loosed in heaven.”
It is important to understand the nuance of the language Jesus uses here. He calls Peter by name, Pétros in the Greek language, which is an isolated rock or a stone as one would throw. But, the ROCK upon which Jesus will build His Church is the word “pétra”, which is a huge mass of interconnected rock, a “solid or native rock, rising up through the earth”.
This is important because Jesus is telling you, and all of His followers, about your position, your ability, your responsibility and your authority in His Church:
- I will build My Church, you and others like you; and
- the gates of Hades will not overpower you and others like you.
- verse19. I will give you and others like you the keys of the kingdom of heaven;
- and whatever you and others like youbind on earth shall have been bound in heaven,
- and whatever youand others like you loose on earth shall have been loosed in heaven.”
Finally, Jesus says He will give you and others like you, that is, His Church, the keys to the kingdom of heaven. We can pursue this as a metaphor, but, there are specific references to these KEYS in the scriptures.
The most significant is The Key of David is a term found in Revelation 3:7 and Isaiah 22:22.
A key indicates control or authority; therefore, having the Key of David would give one control of David’s domain, i.e., Jerusalem, the City of David, and the kingdom of Israel.
The fact that, in Revelation 3:7 Jesus holds this key shows that He is the fulfillment of the Davidic Covenant, the ruler of the New Jerusalem, and the Lord of the kingdom of heaven.
And, you, coming to Him as to a living stone which has been rejected by people, which is choice and precious in the sight of God, you also, as living stones, are being built up as a spiritual house for a holy priesthood, to offer spiritual sacrifices that are acceptable to God through Jesus Christ. 6 For this is contained in Scripture:
“Behold, I am laying in Zion a choice stone, a precious cornerstone,
And the one who believes in Him will not be ]put to shame.”
This precious value, then, is for you who believe; (1 Peter 2:4-7)
You and I must take up our appointed positions. We must shake of the lethargy of the 21st century postmodern religion we call ‘church’ and take the Gospel of Jesus to the streets, the byways, the hedges and towns, into our neighborhoods, and as scriptures tell us, BECOME THE LIVING STONES, A LIVING SACRIFICE.
I. THE MISSION OF THE CHURCH
Go into the World and Make Disciples
Matthew 28:18 says,“And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me. Verse 19. Go, therefore, and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, Verse 20. teaching them to follow all that I commanded you; and behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
II. THE MINISTRY OF THE CHURCH
Equip the Saints, Build up the Body of Christ
Ephesians 4:1-13 tells us, “Therefore I, the prisoner of the Lord, urge you to walk in a manner worthy of the calling with which you have been called, with all humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love, being diligent to keep the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. There is one body and one Spirit, just as you also were called in one hope of your calling; one Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all who is over all and through all and in all.
But to each one of us grace was given according to the measure of Christ’s gift. Therefore it says, “WHEN HE ASCENDED ON HIGH, HE LED CAPTIVE THE CAPTIVES, AND HE GAVE GIFTS TO PEOPLE.” (Now this expression, “He ascended,” what does it mean except that He also had descended into the lower parts of the earth? He who descended is Himself also He who ascended far above all the heavens, so that He might fill all things.) And He gave some as apostles, some as prophets, some as evangelists, some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of ministry, for the building up of the body of Christ; until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ.
We are saved by God’s grace through faith in Jesus and called to serve. We are God’s church.
Here is a list of the Gifts which God gives His Body. See if you can find which gift(s) is/are yours? Can you imagine how different things would be in The Church and the world around us if we engaged and used these Gifts, daily?
Romans 12 1 Corinthians Corinthians 12 Ephesians 4
Prophecy Word of wisdom Apostle Apostle
Serving Word of knowledge Prophet Prophet
Teaching Faith Teacher Evangelist
Exhortation Gifts of healing Miracles Pastor
Giving Miracles Kinds of healing Teacher
Overseer Prophecy Helps
Mercy Distinguishing spirits Administration
Tongues Tongues
Interpretation of tongues
Sometimes, Spiritual Gifts are mistakenly considered to be a natural talent or a person’s proclivity, a natural inclination. Natural talents can mimic Gifts of the Holy Spirit, but, they will never accomplish God’s purposes effectively. Please remember, these are not natural talents. These are supernatural Gifts of the Holy Spirit. Here is a more detailed description and function of the Gifts. https://whitestone2020.com/spiritual-gifts/
III. “THE CYCLE OF DISCIPLESHIP”
The pastor is not called to be the sole disciple-maker of the Body of Christ. The Church, you and I, are the “called out ones”, the disciple-makers.
Pastor: This term derives from a Greek word for “shepherd”. Pastoral Gifts include integrity and compassion.
By way of examples, the tasks of a Near Eastern shepherd were to watch for enemies trying to attack the sheep to defend the sheep from attackers to heal the wounded and sick sheep to find and save lost or trapped sheep to love them, sharing their lives and so earning their trust. This is the role and task of a pastor.
During World War II, a shepherd was a pilot who guided another pilot whose plane was partially disabled back to the base or carrier by flying alongside him to maintain visual contact. This, too, is the role of a pastor.
Jesus gave us the model for the Cycle of Discipleship:
- CONFESS JESUS: Romans 10:9 If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved.
- FOLLOW JESUS: Matthew 4:19 And He said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you fishers of men.”
- DO HIS WORKS: Matthew 10:5 Jesus sent These twelve out after instructing them: 7“And as you go, preach, saying, ‘The kingdom of heaven is athand.’8“Heal the sick, raise the dead, cleanse the lepers, cast out demons. Freely you received, freely give. 9“Do not acquire gold, or silver, or copper for your money belts, 10or a bag for your journey, or even two coats, or sandals, or a staff; for the worker is worthy of his support.
- GO INTO THE WORLD: Mark 16:15 And He said to them, “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation. 16“He who has believed and has been baptized shall be saved; but he who has disbelieved shall be condemned. 17“These signs will accompany those who have believed: in My name they will cast out demons, they will speak with new tongues; 18they will pick up serpents, and if they drink any deadly poison, it will not hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.”
- MAKE DISCIPLES: Matthew 28:19 “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, evento the end of the age.”
- BE ONE BODY: 1 Corinthians 12:25 “So that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another. 26And if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it; if one member is honored, all the members rejoice with it. 27 Now you are Christ’s body, and individually members of it. 28 And God has appointed in the church, first apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healings, helps, administrations, various kinds of tongues.
- LOVE ONE ANOTHER: Ephesians 4:22 “Indeed you have heard Him and have been taught in Him, just as truth is in Jesus, 23 and that you be renewed in the spirit of your mind, 24 and put on the new self, which in the likeness of God Therefore, laying aside falsehood, SPEAK TRUTH EACH ONE of you WITH HIS NEIGHBOR, for we are members of one another. 26 BE ANGRY, AND yet DO NOT SIN; do not let the sun go down on your anger, 27 and do not give the devil an opportunity. 28 He who steals must steal no longer; but rather he must labor, performing with his own hands what is good, so that he will have something to share with one who has need. 29 Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification according to the need of the moment, so that it will give grace to those who hear. 30 Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption. 31 Let all bitterness and wrath and anger and clamor and slander be put away from you, along with all malice. 32 Be kind to one another, tender-hearted, forgiving each other, just as God in Christ also has forgiven you.”
We must return to the FOUNDATION, the CORNERSTONE of JESUS’ CHURCH. Technology has changed, but the methods and ways of Jesus are eternal. We must return to the model of Jesus for our Mission and our Ministry. It will be an adventure with eternal benefits like you have never imagined!
Your Brother and Friend,
Mike Young
Resources:
Whitestone Fellowship 