What is the Mission of the Church?

Chris Roberts

Mission • Sermon • Submitted 2 months ago • Presented 2 months ago

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What is Mission?

Possibilities

Glorifying God and enjoying Him forever.

Loving God and loving neighbor

I don’t believe the answer to our question is simply a synonym for living a faithful Christian life.

The Word We are Working With

Dictionary

an important assignment, typically involving travel abroad

the vocation of a religious organization to spread its faith.

a strongly felt aim or calling.

Synonyms

aim

assignment

calling

charge

commission

duty

purpose

The Fad

“In his influential book Transforming Mission, David Bosch rightly argues, “Since the 1950s there has been a remarkable escalation in the use of the word ‘mission’ among Christians. This went hand in hand with a significant broadening of the concept, at least in certain circles.” It used to be that mission referred pretty narrowly to Christians sent out cross-culturally to convert non-Christians and plant churches. But now mission is understood much more broadly. Environmental stewardship is mission. Community renewal is mission. Blessing our neighbors is mission. Mission is here. Mission is there. Mission is everywhere. We are all missionaries.” (Kevin DeYoung and Greg Gilbert, What Is the Mission of the Church?)

1If everything is mission, nothing is mission.—STEPHEN NEILL

Other catchy words of the last many years: missional

To have a mission presupposes two things

Being sent

Being given a task

When we ask what is the mission of the church we are asking, what are the specific tasks or purposes that God has sent the church into the world to do?

What I want to propose to you is that the mission of the church is more specific than good deeds, building community. Often what we view as the mission of the church is really either the results of the church doing its mission or simply side benefits of the church doing its mission. Helping the poor, feeding the hungry and building community are all byproducts when the church actually does what it has been called to do. However, when we make those things the goal we will miss the mark God has given us.

What is Church?

Many people today understand the church as a building. This is not a biblical understanding of the church. Romans 16:5 “Greet also the church in their house. Greet my beloved Epaenetus, who was the first convert to Christ in Asia.”

The word “church” is a translation of the Greek word ekklesia, which is defined as “an assembly” or “called-out ones.”

Perhaps there are some pieces being put into place.

The church is a group of people “called out”

The church is a group of people “sent out”

There are two categories of the church biblically.

Universal Church

Consists of everyone, everywhere, who has a personal relationship with Jesus Christ.

“For we were all baptized by one Spirit into one body—whether Jews or Greeks, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink” (1 Corinthians 12:13).

This verse says that anyone who believes is part of the body of Christ and has received the Spirit of Christ as evidence. All those who have received salvation through faith in Jesus Christ comprise the universal church.

The universal church are all those who have been “called out” of the world by salvation in Jesus Christ.

The universal church has also been “sent out” to preform the tasks God has called us to. We will define those in a moment.

Local Church

The local church is described in Galatians 1:1–2: “Paul, an apostle . . . and all the brothers with me, to the churches in Galatia.”

Here we see that in the province of Galatia there were many churches—they had a localized ministry and were scattered throughout the province.

They were local churches. A Baptist church, a Lutheran church, an E-Free church, etc., is not the church, as in the universal church; rather, it is a local church, a local body of believers. The universal church is comprised of everyone who belongs to Christ. Members of the universal church should seek fellowship and edification in a local church.

The local church has been “called out” in two senses

Because it is comprised of believers everyone who is a part of a local church has already been “called out” as a member of the universal church.

We are also locally “called out” of our communities to gather at a specific time and place.

We are locally “sent out” as well.

The church is a creation of God (Acts 20:28; 1 Corinthians 3:9, 17; 15:9), founded and owned by Jesus Christ—“I will build My church” (Matthew 16:18)—and directed and energized by the Holy Spirit (1 Corinthians 10:17; 12:5–27; Romans 12:4–5). Therefore, it is the church’s joy to look to God to explain His design for the church and His mission for it. God’s mission for the church proves to have several parts.

What is the Mission of the Church?

The church as been universally called out by gospel and sent out to share the gospel.

The local church has been gathered to equip the saints in order that they might accomplish on an individual level what the church has been called to do on a universal level.

The greatest summary of our mission in Scripture is the Great Commission

Matthew 28:18–20 “And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.””

Authority

If a mission is a task given then we must ask who has given us this task and is it right for them to do so? Do they have the authority to tell me what to do?

v. 18 answers that question when it comes to the commissioning of the church. Jesus declares He has the authority.

His authority has been questioned in the past.

Mark 11:27–28 “And they came again to Jerusalem. And as he was walking in the temple, the chief priests and the scribes and the elders came to him, and they said to him, “By what authority are you doing these things, or who gave you this authority to do them?””

John 17:2 “since you have given him authority over all flesh, to give eternal life to all whom you have given him.”

Command

Doesn’t always mean that you have to cross an ocean.

There should always be a connection to the local church even in the going out.

Missionaries should be supported by and accountable to local churches.

How often does the Bible say that our primary means of evangelizing should be bringing people to church? It never says that. We are called to go out into the world and share Christ. The local church is supposed to equip us to to that through discipleship.

Make

Not converts

Not confessors

Disciples - an on going commitment of growth

Baptize

A public declaration of not only belief but also discipleship.

The language is imperative. The assumption of this verse is that everyone who accepts Christ will be baptized by the church.

If you haven’t been baptized I would encourage you to come and talk to me. I would love to show you from the Scriptures why we do this and why we deem it necessary.

Teach

Teaching is a part of the disciple making process.

Errors in doctrine result in errors in behavior or lifestyle.

Promise

I will be with you always to the end of time.

Christ is not only the authority behind the command He is also the One who enables its completion.

What is the mission of the church? To universally spread the gospel of Jesus Christ through the enabling and equipping of the local church.