Christian Foundations 5 - MissionExemplo

THE BEGINNINGS OF MISSION 

For many Christians, the idea of being on a mission to make disciples sounds not just strange and challenging, but incredibly difficult. Who do you start with and how do you start? Do you pick up a Bible and go to the house across the street? Do you try to steer your conversations with your hairdresser to God-type things and hope something sticks? Do you tell your friends and family that God loves them? 

While there is always a cost as we saw yesterday, the beginnings of disciple-making are actually much simpler and easier than you think. As you read the Scripture today, note how Jesus starts his mission with a small band of followers. See how comfortable it is for him because he starts with people who already seem to like him and want to be around him.

Read: John 1:35-46

Journal

1. What is God saying to me? Which verse is most significant?

2. What do I want to discuss/explore further?

3. What do I need to do?

4. What does Jesus do to convert his first disciples to his cause? 

Reflect

In this passage, we see two ways to begin to effectively influence and mission for God:

1.       Start with people who already like you. Jesus’ first disciples were already following his cousin John. They knew about Jesus and wanted to hang out with him for the day. This was before he shared the gospel with them. Have a think for a second. Who in your life likes you, listens to you, trusts you, serves you, or wants to hang out with you? Maybe God has already put in your life those who are ready to hear about what Jesus has done for you. Often, the first step in someone giving their life to Jesus is having a trusted friend who is a Christian.

2.       Invite them to ‘come and see’ Jesus. Andrew and Phillip both had the advantage of being able to grab their brother and friend and take them to see Jesus in the flesh. Of course, we can’t do that today. Or can we? Jesus’ body on earth is now the church, so even though we can’t introduce our friends and family to Jesus personally, we can introduce them to the body of people who have been adopted by God and who are trying to follow his teachings. 

Mission is very hard alone, and as we see in this passage a very natural thing to do once you have found something wonderful is to invite someone close to see it too. Time and time again, Christians in our church have invited their friends to spend time with our church family and to hear about our Jesus. New Christians are often the best missionaries because everything is so fresh and the change in their life is obvious. Invite friends in your circle along to a service, to a small group, to an Alpha Course, or to a barbecue with your church friends, and they will meet Jesus.

Of course, finding people who like you, sharing your story with them, and inviting them to a gathering of God’s people isn’t enough. At some stage, they must hear the specific good news and make a response to Jesus’ invitation to believe, be forgiven, and “follow me.” But that may take longer than you think. To get started, think, “Who has God already sent into my life right now and what can I invite them to?” It might be easier to start a mission than you think.

Pray

Father show me who you have already prepared in advance for me to love, share my story with and invite to see Jesus. I’m excited to be used by you, God. Please give me courage and joy as I fulfill your mission for me. 

Respond

Write down a person/s who likes you, listens to you, and serves you. How could you approach sharing your story with them, or what could you invite them to?