The book What In The World Is God Doing: The Essentials Of Global Missions: An Introductory Guide by C. Gordon Olson serves as an introduction to missions where the information is based largely on the author’s knowledge and experience, giving the book a balance between practice and theory. It discusses the five dimensions of world missions, namely the Biblical dimension, the historical dimension, the contextual dimension, the regional dimension, and the functional dimension.1
Insights
One insight that I’ve gained from the book is that Christianity has experienced a massive growth over the years, and yet Christians aren’t necessarily knowledgeable about the gospel and what it takes to be a Christian. According to the Lausanne Statistics Task Force,2 the period between 1934 and 1994 saw an increase of 1300% in the number of Christians in the world. This meant that the number of Christians grew from 40 million to 540 million in the span of sixty years3. However, this number does not reflect the number of true Christians who really practice the Christian faith and who really know the word of God. Furthermore, being a Christian requires having a personal faith in Jesus Christ, but this faith is developed only if one has knowledge of who Jesus Christ is, what He is like, and what He has done.
This is the reason why we need missionaries, which brings me to my second insight, which is that all Christians are called to be witnesses for Christ, but “not all Christians are called for a full-time, specially gifted ministry of evangelism.”4 This allows me to have a greater appreciation for the work that missionaries do. Because of them, Christians all over the world are enriched with the Word of God. This allows Christians to become truer to the faith, that is, learning about the Gospel enables them to live truly Christian lives and not be Christians only by name. In the same manner, missionaries are able to spread the Word even to those who have not heard of it; thus, enabling them to also share in the blessings of God’s grace. Although we can say that we can still contribute to the missionary work in our own ways – for example, through prayers, donations, and others – this doesn’t eliminate the need for missionaries who can physically go to the places where there are many people who are deprived of the Word of God. Being physically with these people enables them to more easily teach these people about the Word of God. Moreover, by being physically present in these places, the missionaries are also able to help the people in various tangible ways.
While I have gained a greater appreciation for missionary work, I’ve also realized that the Christians who are left behind are just as valuable. Although not every Christian can be a missionary, every believer can be a missions-minded Christian. While we definitely lack missionaries, it is also essential that others get left behind to provide support for those who go on missionaries. They will also serve to provide the needed services for their local communities. For example, those who are left behind can ensure that the missionaries continue to have the resources they need. They can also provide the aid needed by the people in their community. I think that this sort of creates a balance. It also makes me realize that all of us play an important role in our Christian community.
As well, this brings up the difference between mission and missions where mission refers to the church’s general mission of living a Christ-like life and spreading the word of God while missions refers to the actual missionary work where missionaries cross geographical and cultural borders to actually preach the Word and have a one-on-one interaction with the people. In this light, the people who get left behind can still continue to fulfill the church’s mission while the missionaries get involved in more in depth work for the Lord.
The fourth insight that I’ve gained is that God’s purpose of salvation is for the entire human race and not just for the Jews. I’ve always wondered why the Jews were the central characters in the Bible and yet there are now more Christians in other parts of the World. Although I’ve never questioned the universality of God’s salvation before, I now have a better understanding that it is not meant only for a few – that is, it is intended for everyone – and I also now understand why God had to take care of the Jews first. This brings to mind the great missionary work accomplished by Mother Teresa5 in India, a country that is predominantly Hindi. Despite being non-Christians, these Hindis were blessed by God through the works of Mother Teresa. This again shows the universality of God’s salvation.
Moreover, this universality is depicted even in the Bible where Jesus and the apostles had constantly preached and provided healing to the Gentiles. Whenever a Gentile approached Jesus, He never turned them away and even gave the healing that they were asking for. It is then only right that we extend the same blessings to our non-Christian brothers regardless of their faith and culture.
Finally, I gained the insight that missionaries are truly gifted people in that they are gifted with discernment and commitment. It is always said that God speaks to us, but we often don’t listen or we often don’t understand the message. It is then admirable how the missionaries are able to discern their calling, as this doesn’t normally come in a mysterious or magical way. With a lot of people not following the path of a missionary life just because they fail to discern their calling, I think that the missionaries are blessed in this way. In the same manner, I also think that they’re gifted with commitment, as it takes a great deal of personal sacrifice and dedication to pursue the vocation of a missionary and to persevere and keep at this kind of work. It can then be hoped that by educating the youth about missionary work, more will be able to discern their calling and develop the commitment needed for this kind of work.
References
Jeffrey, Grant R. Final Warning. Eugene, OR: Harvest House Publishers, 1996.
“Mother Teresa of Calcutta (19910-1997).” Vatican.Va. July 1, 2012.
http://www.vatican.va/news_services/liturgy/saints/ns_lit_doc_20031019_madre-
teresa_en.html
Olson, C. Gordon. What In The World Is God Doing: The Essentials Of Global Missions: An
Introductory Guide. 5th edition. Cedar Knolls, NJ: Global Gospel Publishers, 1998.
