Dispatched for Mission

By Paul Gilbert

At Four Oaks Church, we are blessed to have a number of people who work in law enforcement, and we're so grateful for their service. I've seen first hand how seriously they take their duty. There have been times when I've been having coffee with one of them, and suddenly their radio bursts to life. They are being dispatched.

When this happens, their demeanor changes. They suddenly become very serious and focused on the task before them. Why? Because they have been sent on a mission. They have been given an assignment, and they take that assignment very seriously. They know that critical things are at stake in the mission they've been given.

We too, have been given a mission. You could say that we've been "dispatched." In John 20:21, Jesus said to his disciples, "As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you." Just as the Father sent the Son on a mission to save sinners, so the resurrected Jesus sends his disciples (including each of us!) on a mission as well. You see, the resurrection of Jesus was not the end. Rather, it was the beginning of the church's mission to the world.

And what exactly is that mission? Is our primary mission to fix people's marriages or to carry out social justice or to give people a sense of community? While all those things are vitally important, they were not Jesus' primary mission and they are not our primary mission. At the heart of Jesus' mission was reconciling sinners to God through his sinless life, sacrificial death, and victorious resurrection.

This is the heart of our mission as a church as well. While we absolutely value marriage and community and social justice, we first and foremost are called to proclaim forgiveness of sins through Jesus Christ. Each of us is called to be an ambassador for the gospel. We're called to tell people the good news that Christ has lived, died, and risen for them.

This week, let me encourage you to live with your mission in mind. As you interact with your coworkers and friends and neighbors, ask the Lord for opportunities to speak the gospel. Ask the Lord to open doors so that you might tell the good news of what Christ has accomplished for you.

Jesus told his disciples that the fields were ripe for harvest. We believe that to be true here in Tallahassee. Speak boldly this week, knowing that God is with you on your mission.