Missions in the Bible

Missions in the Bible
By Dr. Peter Hammond

1. Rock of Ages, cleft for me, let me hide
myself in Thee;
Let the water and the Blood, from Thy
riven side which flowed,
Be of sin the double cure, cleanse me
from its guilt and power

2. Not the labours of my hands, can
fulfil Thy Law’s demands;
Could my zeal no respite know, could
my tears forever flow,
All for sin could not atone, Thou must
save, and Thou alone.

3. Nothing in my hand I bring, simply to
the Cross I cling;
Naked, come to Thee for dress,
helpless, look to thee for grace,
Foul, I to the Fountain fly, wash me
Saviour or I die.

4. While I draw this fleeting breath,
When mine eyelids close in death;
When I soar to worlds unknown,
See Thee on Thy judgement throne,
Rock of Ages, cleft for me, let me hide
myself in Thee.

Let the Earth Hear His Voice

After our Lord Jesus Christ rose from the dead
He revealed God’s eternal purpose
to His disciples.

“And beginning with
MOSES and ALL the
prophets, He explained
to them what was said
in ALL the Scriptures
concerning Himself ...
He said to them, ‘This
is what I told you while
I was still with you :

Everything must be
fulfilled that is written
about Me in the
LAW OF MOSES,
the Prophets
and the Psalms.’
Then He opened their
minds so they could
understand the
Scriptures.

He told them,
THIS IS WHAT IS
WRITTEN:
The Christ will
suffer and rise from
the dead on the third
day, and repentance
and forgiveness of
sins will be
preached
in His Name
TO ALL
NATIONS.’”
Luke 24 : 27, 44-47

Most of us have closed minds and we need Jesus
to open our eyes to see Him in all the books of
the Old Testament, in the Law of Moses, in the
writings of the Prophets and in the Psalms.
Jesus broadened the vision of His disciples to
see all nations in God’s purpose

Missions
in the Old Testament

The Protoevangetium : Genesis 3:15
1. Salvation is initiated by and achieved by
God - “I will ...”

2. Salvation will
come through
a Mediator
who is related
to mankind
- “The Seed.”

3. Salvation will
involve the suffering
of the Redeemer -
“The enemy will
bruise His heel.”

4. Salvation will destroy Satan
- “He will crush your head.”

The first eleven chapters of Genesis are
sweepingly universal.

All mankind
fell into sin
and rebellion
against God.

God judged the sin of mankind.

God
deals
with all
the world
as a
whole.

“The Lord had said to Abram, ‘Leave your
country, your people and your father’s
household and GO to the land I will show you.

I will make you into
a great nation and I
will bless you, I will
make your name
great, and YOU
WILL BE A
BLESSING ... and
ALL PEOPLES ON
EARTH WILL BE
BLESSED
THROUGH
YOU.’ ” Genesis 12 : 1-3

This principle of Divine election for universal
service is stated and re-stated time and again in
Genesis.

“Abraham will surely become a great and powerful
nation, and ALL NATIONS ON EARTH will be
blessed through him.” Genesis 18 : 18

“And through
your offspring
ALL NATIONS
ON EARTH
will be blessed,

because you have obeyed Me.”
Genesis 22 :18

God re-stated this Divine call and commission to
Abraham’s son, Isaac:
“through your offspring ALL NATIONS ON
EARTH will be blessed.” Genesis 26:4

God also re-
confirmed this
missionary call
to Isaac’s son,
Jacob :
“ALL PEOPLES
ON EARTH will
be blessed
through you and
your offspring.”
Genesis 28:14

The Missionary Call of Israel
“Then Moses went up to God,
and the Lord called to him from
the mountain and said,
‘This is what you are to say to
the house of Jacob and what you
are to tell the people of Israel:
You yourselves have
seen what I did to
Egypt, and how I
carried you on eagles’
wings and brought you
to Myself.

NOW, if you obey Me fully and keep My
Covenant, then out of all nations you will be
My treasured possession. Although THE
WHOLE EARTH IS MINE, you will be for
Me a KINGDOM OF PRIESTS and a HOLY
NATION. These are the words you are to
speak to the Israelites.’ ”
Exodus 19 : 3-6

Israel was being constituted
as a nation of unique position
among the nations. All the
earth belonged to God. What
made Israel unique was its
missionary call, its priestly
position, its mediatorial
mission as God’s bridge to
the nations.
The Queen of Sheba

Israel was not meant to be a
storehouse of God’s blessings
but a channel. God did not
choose Israel so that she
could be selfish. Israel was
saved to serve. She had
received God’s Word in order
to proclaim it. The
descendants of Abraham had
been blessed only so that they
could be a blessing to
“all the families of the
earth.”
(Genesis 12:1-3)

Israel was never meant to live for herself alone.
Israel’s call was to be God’s chosen instrument
to bring God’s Word to the nations.
“I will also make you a light for THE
GENTILES, that you may bring My salvation
TO THE ENDS OF THE EARTH.”
Isaiah 49 : 6

Called to be God’s witnesses to the nations, Israel’s
commission was both prophetic and missionary.
They were to receive God’s Word and to proclaim that
Word as God’s priests to the nations.

The recorded
messages of
the prophets
of Israel and
the recorded
history of the
people of
Israel
continue to
speak as
God’s Word
to us today.

In this way the descendants of Abraham have been a
“blessing to all nations on earth” – through the Bible.

But, God has used Israel in an even greater way, for not only
did God’s Word come through Israel but God Himself. He not
only sent His prophets through Israel, but He also sent His
Son. Israel was the channel for God’s Word, God’s Son and
God’s Salvation for the world!

Now, God’s Word comes to all God’s people
everywhere :
“But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood,
a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you
may declare the praises of Him who called you out
of darkness into His wonderful light.” 1 Peter 2 : 9

While Israel as a whole generally
failed to fulfill this missionary
calling, she did produce some
excellent missionaries, including :
Abraham,
Joseph,
Moses,
Daniel,
Esther,
Jonah and many others.

More than this, through
Israel, God spoke.
He spoke through the
prophets, He spoke through
Israel’s history and
ultimately, He spoke in and
through His Son – Jesus the
Messiah.

“Now these things
occurred as examples…”
1 Corinthians 10:6

Through Israel, God’s royal priesthood, the world has
received the Bible, which is God’s Word, and Jesus
Christ, who is God’s Son.
“May Your ways be known on earth, Your salvation
among all nations . . . May all the peoples praise
You . . . all the ends of the earth will fear Him.”
Psalm 67

“Ask of Me, and I will make the nations your inheritance,
the ends of the earth your possession. You will rule them
with an iron sceptre; You will dash them to pieces like
pottery. Therefore, you kings, be wise; be warned, you
rulers of the earth. Serve the Lord with fear . . .”
Psalm 2:8-11

“All the ends of
the world shall
remember and
turn to the
Lord, and all
the families of
the nations
shall worship
before You. For
the Kingdom is
the Lord’s and
He rules over
the nations.”
Psalm 22:27-28

“In His days the righteous shall
flourish… He shall have dominion
also from sea to sea and from the
river to the ends of the earth. Those
who dwell in the wilderness will bow
before Him, and His enemies will lick
the dust… Yes, all kings shall fall
down before Him, all nations shall
serve Him… All nations shall call Him
blessed… let the whole earth be filled
with His glory. Amen and Amen.”
Psalm 72:7-19

“For to us a Child
is born, to us a Son
is given, and the
government will
be on His
shoulders . . . of
the increase of His
government and
peace there will be
no end.”
Isaiah 9:6-7

“In the time of
those kings, the
God of heaven
will set up a
Kingdom that
will never be
destroyed, nor
will it be left to
another people.
It will crush all
those kingdoms
and bring them
to an end, but
will itself
endure for
ever.”
Daniel 2:44

“He was given authority, glory and sovereign
power; all peoples, nations and men of every
language worshipped Him. His dominion is an
everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and
His Kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.”
Daniel 7:14

“Then the sovereignty, power and greatness of
the kingdoms under the whole heaven will be
handed over to the saints, the people of the Most
High. His Kingdom will be an everlasting
kingdom, and all rulers will worship and obey
Him.” Daniel 7:27

“The Lord will be King over the whole earth.
On that day there will be one Lord,
His Name the only Name.”
Zech. 14:9

“when the earth shall be filled with the
knowledge of the Lord, as the waters
cover the seas.” Habakkuk 2:14

“The Lord will be awesome to
them, for He will reduce to
nothing all the gods of the earth;
people shall worship Him,
each one from his place,
indeed all the shores of the
nations.”
Zephaniah 2:11

Acts 2 : 4 – The Holy Spirit Came Down
Acs 1 : 9 – The Lord went up
Acts 2 : 4 - 8:4 – The Disciples Went Out

Pentecost had a
strategic missionary
purpose.
The Harvest Festival was held 7
weeks after the “First fruits”
(Christ’s resurrection) when the
Great Missionary Psalm 67 was
sung and people gathered “from
every nation under heaven.”

Acts 1 : 8 summarises Acts:
“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and
you will be My witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria,
and to the ends of the earth.”

Acts records the spread of the Gospel from Jerusalem,
throughout Judea and Samaria to the Gentiles of Syria,
Asia Minor and Greece.

The account starts in Jerusalem,
centre of Israel and the spiritual capital of the world,

and it ends in Rome, centre of the Gentile world and
secular capital of the world.

The Christian message is for all men, of all generations, of
every culture on earth.

Christ Himself commanded the Church to cross all
boundaries, cultural and geographical, in order to take the
message “to the ends of the earth” (1:8).

It is His will that His people
“bring salvation to the ends of the earth” (13 : 47).

There was much
opposition to the
spread of the
Gospel to the
Gentiles
(11:2-3, 13:45;
15:1) so that God
had to initiate
every stage of its
early development.

An angel of the Lord led Philip to the Sudanese Treasurer
(8:26).

The Lord Himself appeared to Saul to commission him as
the leader of the mission to the Gentiles (9:6; 26 : 17,18).

An angel instructed
the Roman
centurion,
Cornelius,
to call for Peter
(10: 3-5).
The Lord gave Peter
a vision (three times)
to prepare him for a
Mission to the
Gentiles
(10 : 15-20).

The Holy Spirit guided the
church at Antioch to send
Barnabas and Saul on a
mission to the Gentiles
(13 : 2,3).
God gave Paul a vision to
lead him to take the Gospel
to Europe
(16 : 9,10).
The Lord instructed Paul
to testify in Rome (23:11).
Unquestionably,
God wanted the Gentiles to
be evangelised!

God not only guided the Mission to the Gentiles, He also
poured out His blessings upon every aspect of it.

The Holy Spirit was poured out upon Samaritans
(8:15-17). The Gentiles in Cornelius’ house received the Holy Spirit
in the same miraculous way that the disciples had on the day of
Pentecost (10: 44-47).

God put His seal of support on the first Gentile mission of Paul and
Barnabas by performing many signs and wonders during the
outreaches (15:12).

The hated Samaritans respond to the
Gospel (8:5);

An
“unclean”
Gentile
(and a Roman
soldier at that!)
(10 : 44-48)

Women turn to Christ
(9:34) and are used by
Him in ministry (21:9).
All prejudices are
confronted.
No-one is barred.
Everyone is welcome.
God’s grace knows
no barriers!

• Sudanese Treasurer (8)
• The persecutor, Saul (9)
• The Roman Centurion, Cornelius (10)
Three remarkable conversions :
The sons of Ham, Shem and Japheth.

The power base of the church shifts from Jerusalem to Antioch, from
Peter to Paul, from Hebrews to Gentiles.
The child is outgrowing the parent.

The Missionary sending model of Antioch
(13 : 1-3).
A praying and fasting congregation which sends out two of
its leaders.

The Early
Church’s
advantages
included:
a common
(lingua franca
– Greek)
language,
Roman peace
and
good roads.

Their difficulties included - there were so few of
them (120 to start with), they had no learning, no
organisation, (no printing presses, radio stations,
films, tapes, etc. obviously).

They had to contend with tremendous racial barriers, class
structures, religious pluralism,

extreme decadence in society, political suspicion (and later
persecution) from Rome and general cynicism of pagan
society.

Yet, they succeeded in conquering the Roman Empire because: they
lived their message and were transformed by it; their dedication and
willingness led them to obey
no matter what the cost;

their obvious
love for one another;
their enthusiasm
and joyful
sense of discovery;

their endurance; their concern for the non-Christians;
their priorities of “prayer and the Word”,

were evidence of
the overflowing,
life-changing,
character-transforming
power of the Spirit.

They exercised an every-member ministry; they had
shared leadership, dynamic, fresh and varied worship;
they emphasised teaching and obedience to God’s revealed
Word.

Every member
Evangelism
(Acts 8:1,4).
Spontaneous,
natural,
continuous,
joyful sharing
of the Gospel.

They worked from where they were (Jerusalem)
outwards in ever-widening ripples (Acts 1:8)

They
concentrated on
the
“God-fearing
fringe”
(e.g. Acts 10; 13, etc.)

They ran a lot of
home meetings
(Acts 17:5; 18:7; 21:8; 12:12;
20:7; 2:46; 5:42; 28:23;
16:32; 19:22)
informal,
relaxed gatherings for
fellowship,
prayer,
communion,
follow-up,
evangelism, etc.

They often held
discussions on
neutral ground
(Acts 3; 22;28).

They wrote
and used the
Scriptures and
literature.

They engaged in
missionary journeys
(e.g. Acts 13-14; 16-20, etc.)

They relied on personal conversations.

a. preached a PERSON. A Christ-centered
message, emphasising His death
and glorious Resurrection.
1. The Apostle Peter at Pentecost:

b. proclaimed a
GIFT.
The gift of
forgiveness,
of the
Holy Spirit,
of adoption
and reconciliation.

c. looked for a RESPONSE.
Repentance,
Faith in Christ,
and baptism.

a. The INCARNATION.
“God has come right
into our midst.”
An Historic
and unique
event.
2. Most Gospel Messages
in Acts Include:

b. FORGIVENESS
of sins.
Striking at the heart
of our problems.

c. The CROSS.
God has acted.
The Lord Jesus has
been crucified.
He is our
Atonement,
guilt-bearer
and expiation of
our sins.

d. The RESURRECTION
- Christ Jesus
is alive!
He is Lord and
reigning on
High

e. The evangelists
preached CHRIST.
A person - not a
system.
An experience of
vital relationship to
Christ is needed.

a. The Person and
Character of Jesus
Christ as God
incarnate.
3. Put Another Way,
The Gospel in Acts
Emphasises:

b. The Teachings of Jesus Christ on God, life, the
Kingdom and human destiny.

c. The Death of
Jesus Christ as the
Atonement
for sin.

d. The Resurrection of Jesus Christ.
He is our living Lord.

God created all
the races of
mankind (17:26);
God now
commands all
men everywhere
to repent (17:30);

God will judge the whole world (17:31).

“Seek first the Kingdom of God, and His
righteousness and all these things will be added
unto you.” Matthew 6:33.

“Come, follow Me,”
Jesus said,
“and I will make you
fishers of men.”
Matthew 4:19

“He who sows with tears will reap with joy.”
Psalm 126:6

“Therefore go and make disciples . . .”
Matthew 28:19

Frontline Fellowship
PO Box 74
Newlands
7725
Cape Town
South Africa
E-mail: admin@frontline.org.za
Web: www.frontline.org.za

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