The Message of Missions

As Pastor Kyle had already introduced, Brother

Greg and Paige, of course they don't need any

introduction to most of us here at Mamrie. As

he said, this was our home church for many years.

I suspect that none has done more probably to

impact the missions program of our church more

than Greg. Greg and Paige and their family spent

20 years there in Africa. I believe the missions

program was started in the 80s, and then this

was the first missionary family that was sent

out of Mamre to go to a foreign field, and certainly

the Lord used them and blessed them. I was privileged

to go there really in the last couple years of

their tenure there in Africa, and what a blessing

it was. We are deeply indebted to God's grace

and his servants that he has used in the life

of this church. I thank a Fellowship Baptist

this morning. He's the lead pastor. He's their

senior pastor. And they allowed him to graciously

come here. When I was thinking about missions

emphasis, I would be remiss if I did not think.

I would love for Greg to come back and speak

to us. And I think it's the message of missions,

I think. I could be wrong. I don't know exactly.

But this is something that's so very important

to the life of our church. And I don't think

anyone has more vested personal stake in it than

Greg does. And so, brother, if you would come

at this time. Well, I thought I was going to

be okay until he said all that stuff. Certainly,

thank you, Ryan, for the invitation to return

to Mamre to preach. This place stirs a lot of

emotion for me. Precious memories and wonderful

people, friends in the gospel. I should have

gotten more sleep last night, but I did not.

I always get a bit weepy when I am tired. are

newer to the church. It's a blessing to see you.

And I am a really mild -mannered guy. Wow. Okay.

So, wish you hadn't have done that. Picture this

scene with me. You're at a family reunion and

old Uncle Jim stands up. He's got a plate of

potato salad and he says, Listen up. All of the

people at this family reunion from my side, they're

the real family. And the rest of you, you're

just add -ons. Outsiders. We welcome you to the

table. We don't like you that much. Now that

would be ridiculous, wouldn't it? But for many

years, many of us have absorbed an incomplete

idea about God's plan of salvation. All my young

life, Until my dear grandmother, who was a godly

woman, died when I was at the age of 16. She

loved the Lord, and she would always tell me,

Greg, the Jews are God's chosen people. So I'm

like, okay. There's a Jewish -Israeli flag up.

Okay, great. And that was like it. I just knew

that. It was inbred in me, integrated sternly

from the early beginnings. But when we sometimes

say the Jews are God's chosen people, we stop

there. And something that I have come to understand

more in my... personal development and growth

in the Lord and study of the Word and personal

experience is that it's true. Israel is God's

chosen people. But I think we need to add an

addendum to that when we speak with something

like, but they are not God's only chosen people.

The Bible makes it very clear. That the gospel

has always been global in scope and an unalterable

idea from God's mind. The gospel sprang from

God's mind. The God who made heaven and earth

is no tribal deity. He is. The God of all creation.

And His plan of salvation reflects that universal

scope. From the very moment sin entered the world,

God already had a plan that stretched far beyond

any single nation or ethnic group. The global

message of missions is not some afterthought.

or plan B that God came up with when the Jewish

people didn't respond as expected. This has been

His intention from the beginning. And the message

of missions isn't something that we just do.

It's something that flows from the very heart

of God. It speaks to who He is. not concerned

about just one and only people group, as the

God of all creation, His plan of salvation reflects

a universal perspective. The foundation of this

global gospel was laid in the very first promise

that God made to Abraham. In Genesis chapter

Genesis 12 · chapter mention

12 and verse number 3, the Word of God says,

In you all the families of the earth shall be

blessed. Notice the word families. It's a Hebrew

word, mispachat. And it refers to all the clans

and family groups that make up humanity. This

wasn't a promise limited to Abraham's immediate

descendants. It was a covenant that the entire

world was in view. And when God called Abraham,

He wasn't just choosing one man. He was choosing

one man through whom He would reach all men.

And the Psalms echo this global vision repeatedly.

Psalm 67. Verses 2 through 4, there's a prayer.

That your way may be known on the earth. Your

saving power among all nations. Let the peoples

praise you, O God. Let all the peoples praise

you. Let the nations be glad and sing for you.

So the very way this psalm is structured shows

us that God's blessing flows outward like a river

from one people to all people. Isaiah gives us

perhaps the clearest picture of this global mission

in the Old Testament. In Isaiah 49 .6 we read,

I will make you as a light for the nations, that

my salvation may reach to the end of the earth.

Now, Isaiah, in his writing and transcribing

these words, uses an interesting word for nations.

Again, it's a Hebrew word, goyim. And it refers

specifically to non -Jewish people. The Gentile

dogs, if you will. So God was declaring that

His Messiah would not just be a light for Israel,

but a light that would illuminate the darkness

for every people group on planet earth. This

wasn't an expansion of the plan. This was the

plan. Even Daniel in his apocalyptic visions,

he confirmed this global scope. Daniel chapter

Daniel 7 · chapter mention

7 and verse 14. And to Him was given dominion

and glory and a kingdom that all peoples, nations,

and languages should serve Him. His dominion

is an everlasting dominion which shall not pass

away and His kingdom one which shall not be destroyed.

The Son of Man in His coming kingdom would not

be limited by geography, ethnicity, or culture.

His kingdom would encompass every possible division

that separates humanity. The word peoples here

emphasizes ethnic groups. Nations emphasizes

political boundaries. And languages emphasizes

cultural distinction. And God's kingdom transcends

them all. Hosea gives a beautiful picture of

God's heart for those who are, quote, not my

people. In Hosea chapter 2 and verse 23, God

Hosea 2 · chapter mention

declares, I will say to not my people, you are

my people. And he shall say, you are my God.

This prophecy is one that... Paul later applies

to the Gentiles in Romans 9, verses 25 -26 and

Romans 9:25–26

shows us that God's definition of chosen has

always been broader than human definitions. God's

choosing isn't about ethnicity. It's about His

sovereign grace reaching whoever He wants, whomever

He wills. As a matter of fact, The Word of God

to Hosea here in chapter 2 and verse 23 is the

passage that God used to call my family from

Tanzania. And I love all the flags. Thank you

for that. It's wonderful. Love the globes as

well. Speaking of the global gospel. And I was

at my breakfast table. In Moshi, Tanzania, at

the foot of Mount Kilimanjaro, reading Hosea

one day, and Paige and I had had, you know, discussions

leading up to this, and I just felt like that

there was an uprooting going on in our hearts.

You know, has our time come to an end here in

Tanzania? And if so, what do I do? I mean, we've

spent so much time and energy and churches have

invested thousands of dollars and mammary hands

and trips and miles and energy and effort. But

I knew that a missionary's primary objective

is to work himself out of a job. And I was reading

Hosea, and as the passage goes, God tells Hosea,

whose wife has two children by other men, by

whoredom, adultery. Hosea is God's man, and God

says, yep, you're going to love them, you're

going to raise them, you're going to keep them.

And the first one, You're going to name Lo -Ami,

not my people. And the second child, you're going

to name Lo -Ruhamah, no mercy. Because my people

are not my people, and I'm not going to show

mercy. That's chapter 1. Chapter 2, he says,

all right, Hosea, here's the deal. You're going

to change your kids' names. What? Change their

names? He says, yeah. Ami, Lo -Ami, I want you

to drop the lo. and call that child Ami. And

Lodohama, delete the Lo, call that child Lohama.

He said, because my people were my people, then

they weren't my people, but you know what I'm

going to do? I'm going to make them my people

again. And I showed him mercy, and now I'm not

showing him mercy for a period of time, but I'm

going to show him mercy again. And it was odd.

I'd read that dozens of times before, but that

morning, I asked the Lord, Are you calling me

back to my people? Who were not my people for

all these years. I've turned into a Swahili.

And enjoy living in Tanzania. Love the people.

Love serving you. I have no idea. I have no idea

how. How would I ever go back? And when I, my

people, I love Mamrie, Kitz Hill. I shout glory

every time I see the steeple going to my daughter's

house and whatever. I mean, I just love this

place. But you guys know that I was kind of transplanted

in here from West Virginia. And I didn't realize

what a cultural divide that Ohio River provides.

And it was so distinct. I felt the call of God

was, My people, Barbersville, West Virginia.

Kyle, thank you for saying Fellowship and Huntington,

but we are in Barbersville. It's like saying

Mamrie's in Ironton. We're at Kitts Hill, brother.

We're on top of the hill. Seven and a half miles

out, 141. I've told so many people, how do you

get there? Seven and a half miles, 141, outside

of Ironton. So we're in Barbersville, right?

That's where I went to high school. I grew up.

And I was like, I have no idea. I have no idea.

How? How? How am I going to serve the Lord in

Barbersville? I mean, that's ridiculous. That's

wild. And we just began to pray about it. I went

to high school with the mayor. I said, Mayor,

something weird is going on in my heart. I feel

like there's something God wants me to do in

Barbersville. He said, well, when you get home,

we'll go to lunch and we'll see what there is.

I don't need paid or anything like that. I just

feel like there's something I need to do. And

we returned to the U .S. in May of 2017 for a

furlough. And within the first three days, we

went to a dinner with my cousin. And they knew

Fellowship supported us when we were on the mission

field in Tanzania. And my cousin's wife said,

did you hear about Pastor Jerry, who was the

pastor at Fellowship Baptist Barstow? I was like,

no. He's retiring. And we just looked at each

other over the chips and salsa. And we're like,

wow. So, long story short, I contacted somebody

at the church. Went through the application process.

Was interviewed. And God saved me out of Barbersville.

20 plus years they were not my people. But God

in His sovereignty and wisdom has made them my

people again. And we have been blessed. I've

seen many of my own family members baptized and

come into the church. This Rock Hilligan right

here, she's done alright in adapting to the Barbersville

culture as well. And when Jesus Christ stepped

onto the stage of history, He immediately shattered

narrow visions of God's kingdom. In Matthew chapter

Matthew 8 · chapter mention

8 and verse 11, He declared, many will come.

from the east and west, and recline at table

with Abraham and Isaac and Jacob in the kingdom

of heaven. Picture the scandal this must have

caused for this carpenter's son to begin to speak

about the far corners of the earth, these goyim,

these Gentiles who'd never even heard of Moses,

or... kept the law or needed to keep the law,

that they would sit at the same table as the

patriarchs. Well, the kingdom feast was not going

to be an exclusive Jewish gathering. It would

be a global celebration. And the great commission

of Matthew 28, go therefore and make disciples

of all nations, baptizing them in the name of

the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,

All that I have commanded you, and behold, I

am with you always, even to the end of the age.

The word nations here is pantata ethne. All ethnic

groups. Jesus wasn't sending His disciples to

establish franchise churches. He was commissioning

them to reach every distinct people group on

earth. And John's gospel adds another crucial

dimension with Jesus' words in John chapter 10

John 10 · chapter mention

and verse number 16. And I have other sheep that

are not of this fold. I must bring them also,

and they will listen to my voice. So there will

be one flock and one shepherd. Jesus was speaking.

to Jewish listeners about Gentile believers who

didn't even know they were His sheep. They didn't

even know it. And His mission included people

who hadn't even heard of Him yet, people who

hadn't been born. And the global scope of the

Gospel means God has sheep in every nation waiting

to hear the shepherd's voice. And the book of

Acts becomes a thrilling account of this global

vision becoming a reality. Acts 1 .8, but you

will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come

upon you. Why do we have the power? Why is He

given that power? Make me a better person? Help

me when I'm sick? This is why He gave the power.

So that we would be His witnesses in Jerusalem,

Judea, Samaria, and to the end of the earth.

Notice how this kind of unfolds like a missions

atlas. From the local, Jerusalem, to the regional,

Judea, to the uncomfortable, Samaria. Even the

impossible, the end of the earth. This wasn't

just a mission strategy. It was a prophetic outline

of how the gospel would spread across every barrier.

And then in chapter 10, Peter's encounter with

Cornelius represents a watershed moment in understanding

the global gospel. And in verses 34 and 35 of

Acts 10, Peter declares, truly, I understand

that God shows no partiality. But in every nation,

anyone who fears Him and does what is right is

acceptable to Him. Now this is revolutionary

thinking for first century Jews. And it should

be revolutionary thinking for you. And for me

too. The Greek word that Peter used when he said

God shows no partiality literally means face

receiver. Face receiver. Think about how many

people you look at and you're just like, I don't

like to look at them. Right? External appearance,

social status, or ethnic identity is showing

partiality. God doesn't do that. And Peter is

saying that God doesn't look at the face of a

person and make judgments based on what he sees

there. He doesn't see Roman and think enemy,

or Gentile and think unclean, or centurion and

think oppressor. He doesn't look at the R's and

the D's and the I's and think conservative, liberal,

libertarian. That's not how God looks at people,

but how often we're skewed in our perceptions

of people and what really matters about that

person. Here's another beautiful component of

the message of missions. It's not just that God

doesn't show partiality to people based on their

ethnicity or background. It's that God doesn't

show partiality even to his own chosen messengers.

Based on their failures and their limitations,

Peter was far from perfect. But God used him

to deliver this revolutionary message about divine

impartiality. And Paul's ministry exemplifies

this global vision in action. In Acts 13, Paul

and Barnabas cite Isaiah 49 and verse 6, declaring,

The Lord has commanded us, saying, I have made

you a light for the Gentiles, that you may bring

salvation to the ends of the earth. And when

the Gentiles heard this, they began rejoicing

and glorifying the Word of the Lord. And as many

as were appointed to eternal life, believed.

The joy of the Gentiles wasn't just about personal

salvation. It was about finally understanding

that they were included in God's plan from the

beginning. And I'm going to tell you this. There

are... Numerous people outside of the church

who are stumbling over us. Trying to come to

Christ. And we are impeding their path because

of our partialities. Because of our indiscretions.

Because of our very words that wound. And we

must, like the Apostle Paul, know. That we should

not be ashamed of the Gospel. For it is the power

of God of salvation to everyone who believes.

The phrase to everyone is crucial because it's

not limited by ethnicity, cultural or political

background or modern thought. The Gospel is powerful

enough to save anyone and everyone who responds

in faith. of sexual orientation or political

ideology or what someone might spew even out

of their own vitriol. The gospel is powerful

enough to save anyone and everyone who responds

in faith. The Jews, it went to them first. Now,

it doesn't mean they were more important. It

just means they were the first. to receive the

promises that were always intended for all peoples.

Romans chapter 10, Paul makes the global scope

Romans 10 · chapter mention

crystal clear. There is no distinction. There

is no distinction between Jew and Greek. Now,

New Testament, no distinction. The same Lord

of all, bestowing His riches on all who call

upon Him for... Read that last line with me.

Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will

be saved. Wow! What a promise! The word everyone

is Greek, pas, three simple letters, P -A -S.

And it means absolutely everyone, without exception.

God's riches aren't distributed based on ethnic

privilege. They're available to anyone who calls

upon His name. Galatians 3 .8 shows us that this

global vision was always part of Scripture's

message. The Scripture foreseeing that God would

justify all the Gentiles by faith preached the

Gospel beforehand to Abraham saying, and you

shall all the nations be blessed. Paul argues

that the gospel was actually preached to Abraham.

The global mission isn't a New Testament innovation.

It's the fulfillment of Old Testament insurances.

The book of Revelation gives us the ultimate

vision of this global gospel. Revelation 5, verse

Revelation 5:9

9, the redeemed sing to the Lamb. Worthy are

you to take the scroll and to open its seals,

for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed

people from God from every tribe and language

and people and nation. Praise God! How comprehensive

in nature this message is. Tribe. Family groups.

Language. Cultural distinctions. People, ethnic

identities, and nation, political boundaries.

Every possible way that we humans divide ourselves.

Now, I'm still struggling with Michigan, amen?

Pray for me there. these divisions represent

in God's redeemed and blended family. Revelation

7. God shows the ultimate family reunion. After

this I look, behold a great multitude that no

one could number from every nation, from all

tribes and peoples and languages standing before

the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white

robes with palm branches, Palms of victory in

their hands and crying out with a loud voice,

Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the

throne and to the Lamb. Man, read that one with

me too. Salvation belongs to our God who sits

on the throne and to the Lamb. This isn't a Jewish

gathering and it's not a Western church conference.

This is the destiny of missions. This is the

family reunion where no uncle can exclude you.

No outsider label can define you. And every human

distinction dissolves in the worship of the Lamb.

The global gospel is an unalterable idea from

God's mind. unchanging truth. It's a paradox

of good news that reveals our bad nature. It

exposes the full brunt of mankind's total depravity.

If you start thinking well of yourself, open

your Bible to Romans 3. Read verses 9 -20 and

let God put you in your place one more time.

Because our sin nature, our total depravity isn't

just about individual mistakes. Oops! It's about

inherent spiritual sickness. It's a disease that

separates humanity from holy. Almighty God. This

gospel also reframes a seemingly bad narrative.

The crucifixion of Christ. What appears as a

brutal finished work on the cross is in fact

the ultimate act of love and redemption. Now

this truth can be jarring as shown by A very

personal illustration. When I was early in my

days in Tanzania, teaching through the Old Testament

from creation to Christ, and there was a young

lady who came to the Bible study. Her name, Esther

Juma 'inne. And Esther was sitting on one of

our makeshift benches that we had under the tin

roof of our church with off -cut tree lumber

just... Doing the best we could to have a place

in the shade. Let me make a point here as well.

I had someone one time when I was returning to

the U .S. And it wasn't about our church. It

was actually about fellowship where I pastor

now. And they were undergoing a renovation in

2015. And it was going to cost over a million

dollars. And he said, you're a missionary. You

go to the mission field. Do you think a church

should spend a million dollars? To help people

feel comfortable on Sunday morning? I said, well,

I don't know if I can answer that completely

and directly, but let me say this. When we have

church in Tanzania, we have choices. We could

sit out under the baking sun and we could worship

with everybody sweating bullets and miserable,

or we could find a shade tree. And we prefer

to worship comfortably in the shade. Well, we

had a shaded area that we built. Spent some money

on it. And as I was telling the story of Abraham

offering Isaac and was going through it somewhat

dramatically and when I showed Abraham raising

the knife, Esther Juma 'in had never heard that

story and her eyes got as big as saucers. Because

she did not know that God provided a ram in the

thicket to save. Isaac's life. You don't need

to know any Bible stories. You don't need to

know Moses. You don't need to know about Noah

and the ark or Daniel and the lion's den to go

to heaven. But you need to know Jesus. And this

message of Jesus' sacrifice and the initial shock

of His violence at the cross, that is what makes

salvation possible. So the Gospel. is good news

also because it excludes man's bad notions. Bad

notions that seem to be good in thought and theory

to man because they come from man. And that is

the gospel dismantles the false idea that we

can earn salvation through our own efforts. Instead,

it paints to faith in Christ's free gift of grace

as the only path. And this flies in the face

of all human religions and philosophies that

suggest we can save ourselves. Biblical Christianity,

and I'm open to correction if I'm wrong, but

you find me, any other belief system, on planet

earth, on any continent, in any village that

tells mankind you can do nothing to make God

happy. You must receive His free, unmerited favor

and grace. There is not another one. No chance

on earth, in heaven, or the depths of hell. It

is only Bible Christianity. That is the exclusive

difference. It's a radical, humbling truth that

offers hope beyond our own flawed attempts. Speaking

of flawed attempts, I tried to be done by noon,

but that emotion stuff at the beginning kind

of messed me up. If you need to go eat, if you're

that hungry, I will not be offended at all if

you leave. Order me a plate. I'll be there soon.

So what does this mean for us? There's no room

in the life of a believer for prejudice. If God

shows no partiality, neither can we. Racism,

ethnocentrism, and favoritism have no place in

the church. Now I'm going to tell you this. Doesn't

mean I don't struggle with it from time to time.

And every time I preach to people, I'm preaching

to me too. So yeah, there are times when I practice

prejudice and I have to be corrected and I come

back and I've got to stop it. There's certainly

no excuse for apathy. If God's heart beats for

the nations, ours must too. Missions is not an

elective. It's our family business. And we should

have no fear in witness. If the gospel is God's

power for salvation, we don't have to make it

attractive. We just have to share it faithfully.

But let me tell you this. And it took me a while

to learn this. And I apologize to any of you

that I offended many years ago or maybe today.

It took me a while to figure out I don't have

to be offensive. The message is offensive enough.

I can be kind. I can smile. And I can say, if

you don't believe in Jesus, you'll go to hell.

I'm sorry. I don't have to be mean about it.

Okay? We can have discourse without blowing up.

And dropping TNT everywhere we go. And there's

going to be no surprise in heaven. I think it's

so stupid. People say, well, we're going to be

surprised who's in heaven. No, nobody's going

to be surprised who's in heaven. Because when

we arrive to the throne room, we're not going

to be shocked to see faces and colors and languages

and cultures unlike our own. Because that was

always the plan. And people say, are we going

to know each other in heaven? Let me ask you

this. Do you think you're going to be dumber

or smarter in heaven? Are you going to be dumber?

No. You're probably going to be smarter in heaven.

Here's what I think. You're not just going to

know each other. You're going to know everybody.

They're like, what's up, Paul? Hey, Moses, Daniel.

How's it going? You're going to know everybody.

I mean, it's really, we're all going to be surrounding

the throne and worshiping the Lamb. Because one

day, the family reunion will come. Not in the

backyard with folding chairs and barbecue, but

around the throne of God. And there's going to

be no Uncle Jim to stand up and exclude other

people in the family. Every voice will blend

in worship. Every tribe represented. Every language

singing. Salvation belongs to our God and to

the Lamb. This is the message of missions. The

gospel is global in scope and unalterable in

its essence. It began in the mind of God. It

was fulfilled in the work of Christ. It's carried

on by the church and it will be consummated in

glory. So, church, let us live and pray and give

and go with that vision burning in our hearts.

Until the earth is filled with the knowledge

of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover

the sea. The Lord bless you. Keep you. The Lord

make His face to shine upon you and be gracious

to you. The Lord lift up His caps upon you and

give you peace. Amen, Greg. Thank you so very

much, brother. As he was speaking this morning,

my heart was rejoicing with everything you said.

I was so moved, so blessed by the preaching this

morning. I was thinking about this passage in

Ephesians 4. Junior Church, you can come in.

I know they're out there. Go ahead and bring

them in. There is one body and one spirit, just

as you were called in one hope of your calling.

One Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and

Father of all who is above all and through all

and in you all. When we celebrate the ordinances

or the sacraments as we want to be called, we

think of baptism. The one joins the many in baptism.

And today we celebrate the table of the Lord

and the many become one. The same feast that

Greg was talking about, we get a foretaste even

today as we commune with the risen Christ in

the Lord's Supper. Just a foretaste of what it's

going to be when we commune with him on that

day face to face. But what excites me, and I

think about this every Lord's Day that we do

this, is the same thing that makes us want. It's

Christ. The same Lord's table in Tanzania and

Moshi and Mwanza will be celebrated somewhere

in that country, and it will be by the same Lord,

in the same faith, worshiping the same God. It's

true in Africa. It is true in Mexico. It's true

in the Philippines. It's true in Korea. It is

true in Brazil. This is God's work. And we are

brought into it by grace. Praise him. Friends,

you're here today because of grace. God has looked

with favor upon you. And you're a blessed people.

Deacons, if you would come as we prepare our

hearts to receive the Lord's table at this time.