Why Study Mission? pt 2, "Mission is messy"
"Mission is messy"
Last week I pointed out a few technical definitions of the term "missiology" it may or may not be apparent right now, but I hope if you continue on this journey with me, I will make it more apparent as we go along. I have a friend who loves to say, "mission is messy." This is because mission involves man. According to the Bible, man is finite, wayward, and sinful (Deut 29:29, 1 Co 2:11, Isa 53:6, Rom 3:23). We are really messed up!
A couple of weeks ago I bought some brand new plates. At that time, my son and I had just moved into our rental unit, and I decided to teach him to do some chores to call him to be a little more helpful. I showed him how to wash plates just to get him started. He's 9, so I didn't think it was too big a job for him, but not long after giving him that job, I heard a soft cracking sound in the dishwater as I turned to walk away from him. Guess what? He broke one of our brand new plates. I had to finish the job for him, and I haven't allowed him to wash plates since then. He messed up.
Man has not only messed up (actions), man is messed up (being). But God has made Himself responsible for fixing mankind. We cannot save ourselves from sin, we cannot change who we are, but God can. We are saved, or freed from sin (fixed up) because God has decided to act on our behalf purely out of love for us. (Eph 2:8,9) When man messed up, God said, "I will put enmity between thee and the woman" (Gen. 3:15 KJV). The term "enmity" literally means hatred and implies separation. In that one act, God essentially separated mankind from immediate and eternal annihilation as a Divine act of grace and restored our freedom to choose a relationship with God. Do you get it? God restored our power to choose! When man sinned, God gave back to mankind his most significant power. Had we lost that, we would have been eternally damned, ready for roasting with no escape. The fact that we can exercise the power of choice today in even the most minor aspect of our lives is a daily reminder of what God has done and how gracious and merciful He is to us. This is literally the meaning of the term "probation"--manifested in the fact that God has given man the opportunity to choose life even though he is fallen and under the condemnation of death.
I'll continue to explore the messiness of mission in my upcoming blog.
Please share your thoughts in the comments section below.
Last week I pointed out a few technical definitions of the term "missiology" it may or may not be apparent right now, but I hope if you continue on this journey with me, I will make it more apparent as we go along. I have a friend who loves to say, "mission is messy." This is because mission involves man. According to the Bible, man is finite, wayward, and sinful (Deut 29:29, 1 Co 2:11, Isa 53:6, Rom 3:23). We are really messed up!
A couple of weeks ago I bought some brand new plates. At that time, my son and I had just moved into our rental unit, and I decided to teach him to do some chores to call him to be a little more helpful. I showed him how to wash plates just to get him started. He's 9, so I didn't think it was too big a job for him, but not long after giving him that job, I heard a soft cracking sound in the dishwater as I turned to walk away from him. Guess what? He broke one of our brand new plates. I had to finish the job for him, and I haven't allowed him to wash plates since then. He messed up.
Man has not only messed up (actions), man is messed up (being). But God has made Himself responsible for fixing mankind. We cannot save ourselves from sin, we cannot change who we are, but God can. We are saved, or freed from sin (fixed up) because God has decided to act on our behalf purely out of love for us. (Eph 2:8,9) When man messed up, God said, "I will put enmity between thee and the woman" (Gen. 3:15 KJV). The term "enmity" literally means hatred and implies separation. In that one act, God essentially separated mankind from immediate and eternal annihilation as a Divine act of grace and restored our freedom to choose a relationship with God. Do you get it? God restored our power to choose! When man sinned, God gave back to mankind his most significant power. Had we lost that, we would have been eternally damned, ready for roasting with no escape. The fact that we can exercise the power of choice today in even the most minor aspect of our lives is a daily reminder of what God has done and how gracious and merciful He is to us. This is literally the meaning of the term "probation"--manifested in the fact that God has given man the opportunity to choose life even though he is fallen and under the condemnation of death.
I'll continue to explore the messiness of mission in my upcoming blog.
Please share your thoughts in the comments section below.
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