Why Missionaries? | Bishop M.L. Walls

Love you, ain't he it? I told the church one time not

too long ago, a few weeks ago, and I said there's only one

Mitchell Shelby. Thank God there's only one.

Well, anyway, let me stop there. It is such an honor and

blessing. I, I had a timeless this morning

and you all endured it and that, that everything went great.

And what a what a beautiful spirit in this place.

Amen. We do give honor to Bishop McGee

and I wish I was act as young acting as he is, but anyway, and

I wish I was tall as brother Paul McGee.

I've I'd be I'd be a giant with that.

But your pastor and a beautiful pastor's wife have been such a

blessing to me. And through the years,

friendship, fellowship, love, there's nobody, nobody, no

people like God's people like it's been a good day and it's so

good to be back here. And indeed an honor to have

brother laying here and this this girl's birthday girl and

and it's been an honor to travel with brother laying in

different. I don't remember how many places

we don't keep track of those things, I don't think, but he

did. I did follow him one place way

back in the boonies somewhere and Birmingham, Myanmar.

And that's where he got us in being shot at.

It's it's his fault. I followed.

I followed him and he, he knew where he was going.

I didn't. I was just tagging along.

But let's pray, Father, we thank you tonight for your goodness,

your blessings, the privilege and deed to be here one more

time. We've come to exalt your name.

We've come to give you glory and praise and honour, for you alone

are worthy of it. We ask your hand your blessings

on the Father furtherance of this service tonight that hearts

and lives be touched for your glory Lord for your glory Amen.

You may be seated. This is missionary service.

All of these beautiful pictures here and and this is so unique

this one here. If I if I wasn't a Christian, I

yes, I'd I'd be tempted to steal that one, but that's that's a

unique picture. But thank the Lord.

Thank you, brother McGee, for allowing me and inviting me or

or was it she that did it? But anyway, excuse me.

I didn't have to say that missionaries a title that our

purpose here tonight and our message here tonight.

I'm going to talk a little bit from the Bible, but I really

want to talk about those people that I've done there and

whatever. But why?

Why missionaries? Why missionaries?

You see, I've been around a while and I can remember way

back Yonder, I can remember listening to preachers, pastors

who didn't believe in missionaries.

I know it's been a long time ago, but so help me, I was

there, I've been there. And past pastors would say

something about why send somebody to another country?

We got plenty around here that needs to be preached to.

And I didn't say it then. I probably didn't think it then,

but I thought you ignoramus, why are there?

Why are there missionaries? I want to give you 3 scriptures

to begin with tonight in Matthew 28 and verse 19, that familiar

go ye into and teach all nations.

I'll just paraphrase it, teach all nations.

Mark comes along in chapter 16 and said verse 15 go you into

all the world and then Luke comes back in chapter 24 of Luke

and verse 47 of repentance and remission of sin shall be

preached in his name among all nations.

So we got nations, we got a world, we got nations that

covers every square mile, every square foot of our world.

It's it's this these verses. What Geez, these are comments

from Jesus challenges. Well, that's not charges, let me

call it that, charges from Jesus.

This was not a wish list on his part.

It was not as suggestions. Would you please?

He was saying go, go, go, unless we are willing to go ourselves

to some foreign country and to preach this glorious message to

the masses that need to hear it, or unless, unless we do the the

next best supporting those that do go.

I don't know who coined the phrase.

The first time I recall hearing was our beloved brother Elkins.

I've heard him. I heard him said more than once,

some go by giving, some give by going.

And that is so applicable and so so right. 1967, 1967 for the

Paul price was our we called them 4 admissions back then

instead of world. But the Paul price was passed

for the church in Barberton, OH, we got acquainted.

I was evangelist at that time. Anyway, he invited me to go with

him on my first missionary trip since the lay hole Columbia,

South America way back into. We flew in and then rode a bus

for I don't know how long, how many hours long ways to get back

to work. Back in those days in 1967 was

my exposure to foreigners in preaching the the gospel.

The next year, I asked for the price about going again.

He was returning to that place and I took Sister walls with me

that time scheduled to spend one week or so, many days or nights.

And then Brother price, he got this big idea.

He said, why don't you and Sister Walls just stay here and

preach a revival for for another week?

And of course, if I knew then what I know then, now I well, I

don't need to go there, I don't think.

But anyway, but anyway, they up and left us and left just lost

my myself there for another week and we got exposed to world

missions efforts. And that was my introduction, my

introduction. And I'm so thankful for that

introduction. I would want to trade it for

anything. And I believe because of

missionaries, somebody's being baptized right now in Jesus Day.

I believe someone is speaking to speak in another language

somewhere right now because of a missionary.

I have, of course, I do have correspondence with the Brother

Mahar in India, his father, Brother Shield, Mahar's taken

over the work there, and his father's long since been dead.

But anyway, he came by Mandora while we were visiting there in

a revival with Brother Shields and he had just been down to

Kentucky in preaching a service and he stopped to visit with us

and took us to Indy, Indianapolis and fed us some

Indian food that Curry stuff, Curry on.

I watched that brother eat it and I wonder how.

But anyway, I didn't, I didn't mean to go there, but I did.

But anyway, Brother Morar told us that in this service in in

Kentucky that he had one of those Kentuckians and

Kentuckians needed, but in one of those Kentuckians came to the

altar receive the Holy Ghost. And Brother Lane can verify this

or confirm it. But Brother Moore was telling us

about how not how many, but letting us know there are many,

many dialects in the India. Got an add to you?

How many 1500 dialects in India? And Brother Maror said, I heard

that Kentuckian. He's he's, I forget where it's

where it's called, where he's from up in northern part, I

guess you'd call it of India to who?

Yeah, I guess it's what he said. That's where that's where he is.

But brother Meror said, I listened to that Kentucky and

received the Holy Ghost. He didn't call him Kentucky.

And I did received the Holy Ghost and he was speaking in my

dialect. And if that's not proof of the

Holy Ghost, there just ain't any proof.

Amen. But anyway, it's quite an

experience when I went to this is just missions night.

And you don't expect me to run the aisles and jump up and down.

No, that was this morning. And I never did get that

fulfilled either. But, but anyway, this is

missions night, so we want to talk about missions, talk about

missions. But anyway, I had the honor when

I took the church up, took the pastorate of the church in

Medora in 1975. And two years later, two years

later, we had bought a 15 passenger van.

We hooked it up to a trailer back there for all the luggage

and filled it with some young people and a few adults and took

them down into Mexico. Mexico.

It was about 600 miles from the border way down to Morro Lyon

and down in down in Mexico. So I think I want to do this.

I can I brag on myself just a little bit.

I want to think that Medora picked up some vision and some

burden and some love because of my exposing them.

Later. We we took a bunch down to

Venezuela so they they know what it is or they knew what it is.

It's been a while since we've done that.

But but anyway, and also I'm so proud to stand here tonight and

there is a card right here for the Hirsch family, Dylan and

Katie and Joy and Julian and I call that little one Izzy or

something like that. I don't I keep forgetting what

her name is, but it's something it's something kind of easy, but

they're from Medora Pentecostal Church, Amen.

And that that makes me feel so proud because a small church in

a small little town, about 600 population or so, we have the

three dish missionary families in foreign countries or this

one's getting ready to go to a foreign country.

I'm so proud of that Amen. I'm, I'm not, I'm not taking the

credit for it, but I sure think I had something to do with it.

Amen. And I told the church, I said,

now the first Sunday of every month is going to be Mission

Sunday. Everything in the offering is

going to missions. And they didn't argue.

Even the board didn't get upset. I don't think we had a board,

but trustees, we'll call that, you know, I don't know about

them boards. But anyway to think about what

were we have come back there in 1967.

All I know is we had one missionary and it was a woman,

Sister Steve in Sintilejo, Mexico or in Colombia.

As far as I know, I don't know of any other missionary that we

had one missionary, 1 missionary.

I'm so proud to be able to look at the assemblies of the Lord

Jesus Christ. Now we used to have that

missionary, but he done unmissioned us and he's, he's

got, he's got up to a higher louder or somewhere.

I don't know why, but he is certainly much involved as

regional field supervisor for South Asia.

Brother Lane, we love you and appreciate, appreciate you.

You have left a big footprint, not just in India, but wherever

you go, wherever you go. And we're proud of that.

But anyway, you know, again, that was as far as I know, one

missionary right now. We got a missionary in in

Argentina. Got a missionary Cuba, getting

ready to have a missionary family in Honduras.

We got two missionary families or missionaries in Mexico.

We got the Irwins down in New Zealand.

We did have the marshals in Papua New Guinea, but now

they're in Shiloh. But anyway, and, and, and

brother, Sister Edmunds, Gary and Sandra Edmunds in Taiwan and

Brother Namie, Sister Namie, Mark and Deborah in the

Philippines. And I remember having the

opportunity to call him when we were needing a missionary in the

Philippines and he answered the phone and the very question in

essence, I asked him, I said, Are you ready to get involved in

Kingdom work or something like that?

Be a missionary. And right after that he's in the

Philippines, been there for a long time doing a tremendous

work, Amen. Randy and Deborah Watts are in

Rwanda, the the Azar family are in Beirut, Lebanon, Amen.

The Colveys, Brandon, Vanya, Esther and Hannah are in

Bulgaria and the Addams family from right here in Indiana, Amen

are in in Poland, Krakow, Tony and Rhonda and Brock.

And again, I'm proud of those stumbles.

Mark and Wanda stumble, Jordan and Lindsay and the kids,

Harrison, Helen and Henry are in Russia.

And let's not overlook brother and sister Spear.

What a what a testimony we could give about them the work that

they have done and are doing in Uganda, Brother sister roads

that are getting involved in Uganda, the Grims in Kenya, the

Marais in South Africa, the the Kraus family in the in Germany,

Augsburg, Mama, how we have spread our wings and I'm so

thankful for the assemblies of the Lord Jesus Christ.

We are where we've never been before.

Souls are being reached. And I just told you while ago, I

believe someone's getting baptized right now in the name

of Jesus Christ, Amen. I don't know if any of y'all

bothered to look at your Facebook today or not, but on my

Facebook, soon as I got we out of church this morning, brother,

brother Spear had sent me a big old long record about they found

some islands off of Uganda and they made their way out to to

the islands. And he tells us in that report

that they're, they're limited to how many they allow on the

island. And he said they had already

travelled there to try to get in.

And they said, we've already, you know, it's all full.

And somebody began to pray and talk to the captain or whoever.

And so he took somebody away and put them in their place.

You don't think God works in mysterious ways, his wonders to

perform? Yes he does, Yes he does.

Yes he does. But anyway, I searched and

searched some time ago for the word missionary in the Bible.

You know, it's not there. The word missionary is not in

the someone, surely someone so important as a missionary work.

We would think somewhere it would be be published there in

the Bible teaching converts the word of God.

Anyway, in the book that familiar passage in Ephesians 4

and 11, you know what it is where the Bible says God gave

gifts unto unto the church, gifts unto the church

concerning. He gave some apostles and some

prophets, some evangelists, some pastors and some teachers.

I got to look into that one day and I thought, it doesn't say

missionary. It doesn't say some missionaries

and some apostles. But then I got to look at that

fivefold ministry and I, I thought, I think a missionary

that carries this Apostolic one God, Jesus name truth to people

who have never heard it is an apostle.

He fills that robe. He's not called a missionary,

maybe by the Bible, but he is by us.

I think the missionary who accepts the challenge to walk

among the heathen, among those who worship false gods, is a

prophet preaching the the to the people and delivering them from

the idolatrous ways. Probably a different kind of

lifestyles. I think he's a prophet.

I think the missionary who travels through a strange

country, and we know some of them, one of them is named

Jeremy Lane. He's he's, he's liable to going

anywhere as a what Was it 18 when you first did it or oh, it

was 20. Here I was thinking you were a

teenager. You were older, 20 years old.

Put a backpack on his shoulders and walked in India.

I wouldn't have done that because I'm not brave enough.

No, I wouldn't have done that because I'm not Jeremy Lang.

If I may respectfully just say Jeremy Lang.

And it was Jeremy Lang, Brother Lang that God spoke to, not in

the walls, not in the walls. So I think what our dear brother

Jeremy Lang, Brother Lang did could certainly be categorized

or labeled an evangelist, an evangelist.

And I think, I think a missioner goes to a country and

establishes a work and teaches words of truth and whatever in,

in some foreign country and, and gets them all gathered up and he

anoints them and blesses them. And then they go out from him

and establishes churches and starts teaching like what's

happening in Uganda right now. Amen.

I think they fit in the category of pastors, teachers.

So I think we got missionaries listed in our Bible and it's

right there in Ephesians chapter 4 and verse 11.

Ephesians 4 · chapter mention

Amen. The I read, I guess it was my

dictionary somewhere. I didn't put where I read it,

but a definition to as a missionary is a person sent on a

religious mission, especially one sent to promote Christianity

in a foreign country. That's what they label as a

missionary. It's very true that we have

those with a burden to travel to foreign countries again, like

our dear missionaries now that are represented right here for

the assemblies, Lord Jesus Christ.

But the real definition of a missionary is much deeper and

more important than just a board of a dozen men saying, we

appoint you to go to Timbuktu. Now it starts before that.

If it hadn't started before that, I'd rather not be involved

in even listening to them or talking to them about wanting to

go. Listen to what Jesus said in

Matthew 9 and verse 38, that familiar verse, Pray ye the

pray, pray ye therefore the Lord of the harvest that he will send

forth laborers into his harvest. It's been said, I've never tried

to figure it out. Maybe some of y'all can help me,

but I I'm almost certain I've heard it said that this is the

only prayer request that we have recorded that Jesus gave pray to

his apostles. Pray you therefore that the Lord

of the harvest will send forth laborers into his harvest.

Now that that two word expression send forth is so

interesting to me and has such a an interesting definition, I

guess we'll say I looked at Strong's.

He's a smart one about words. Mr. Strong says it's the Greek

word baalo. I may not be pronouncing that

right, but anyway, that's the way I pronounce it E KB Allo.

But anyway, and he said the word means to eject literally or

figuratively. It means bring forth.

It means cast forth out. It means drive out.

It means expel. It means thrust out.

It means put forth out. It means send away.

Amen. If, if you, if you've, if you've

received a call to become a mission or you're not going to

be able to take care of yourself, you're not going to be

able to sit still. You're not going to be able to

just come to church and pray and saying go back home.

It's going to bother you at night.

It's going to stir up your dreams.

Amen. You're going to feel because if

you're a missionary, it's the Lord Jesus Christ that's pushing

you out and saying, you got to go to Timbuktu.

You got to go. It's, you're not, it's not a

choice. It's not a decision.

It's a calling. It's a it's a holy function, a

holy calling. Such a person should be held in

deep respect and daily prayer. I pray for every one of these

every day my mind only the Lord Jesus Christ in heaven is going

to reveal their reward waiting for them tomorrow.

I want to request, just pause right here and request a prayer

for Brother, Sister Spear. They don't know that I'm doing

this, of course, and maybe they'd rather I didn't do it,

but I just feel like doing it. Brother, Sister Spear labored

and labored and labored in Norway.

Just couldn't get anything built up, as it were.

And it even had some talking about, you know, that that

they're not, I don't know about maybe shouldn't say it that way,

but he's he's not succeeding. And I hear people talk like

that. I feel like saying shut your

mouth, shut your mouth. That work is not determined by

number. That's that's like saying my

church is bigger than yours or your church is bigger than mine.

Phooey. It doesn't matter if the church

is 25 or 2500 or 25,000. It's where we are and what we're

doing for God that matters. And God's not going to reward us

for the number we have in attendance.

He's going to reward us for how much we prayed, how much we

fasted, how much we preached, how much we've been obedient to

the Word of God. I told brother speared more than

once about the work there. Anyway, he got the bright idea

of sending out invitations to come to Norway and he had

several, several, several invitations from the Africans,

but they couldn't get out because of visas.

But after a while he was able to get they a few begin to come

sometime at the beginning. It's like two or three.

I believe the first ones and those that were coming were

Trinitarian pastors, Trinitarian people.

Oh, Trinitarian, you done gone to the wrong place.

If you want to stay at Trinitarian, you better stay

away from Sam and Betty Spear. Ever far as I know, Everlast,

and I don't know how many groups they had, they had several

groups that would come in and they'd stay around a few days

and, and sit in the room there and he'd begin to teach.

They'd begin to teach. And, and before they got back on

the plane and headed back to Uganda or somewhere, they'd been

out of one of those Fords or water holes and baptized in the

name of Jesus Christ. And if they needed it filled

with the Holy Ghost and went back home teaching one God.

Hey man, and they would say they would say to brother sheep

Brother Spear, you need to come over here and teach my church

this and one of the saddest thing I've heard more than once

about those Ugandans that was other Spears told me more than

once that those precious Trinitarian pastors that are

church some of them got several churches pastor of several

churches are over several churches and and no telling how

many times those pastors would tell brother Spear or whoever is

teaching. We have never been told this

before. We have never been told this

before. Well, I can tell you right now,

I tried to call for the spirit, couldn't get him, tried to

e-mail him, didn't he didn't answer.

I guess he was out there on the island.

He didn't have his computer with him or something.

But anyway, I wanted to get some direct numbers and, and

whatever. But anyway, I can the last time

I talked to him, which is probably maybe a month ago or

less now, he calls me every month or so.

Anyway, in the last account is I asked him about he said brother

walls. There's so many.

I've quit counting. I've quit counting.

Hey, man, it's it's amazing. It's amazing that those it's you

were talking about thousands. We're not talking about hundreds

or dozens. We're talking about thousands

and many, many hundreds, if not thousands are Trinitarian,

former Trinitarian pastors and teachers.

He's done. And it's all started in that

little place called Tall Norway, and look what it's become now.

It's awesome. There's no telling how large it

has become, and it's still going.

Pray for them because they have reached the age and they reached

the point of health problems that they are going to have to

step aside and let somebody else take over that responsibility.

Pray for them. That's not going to be an easy

thing for them to maybe this is probably streaming and I wish

maybe I should have said that. But anyway, pray, pray for them.

Please pray for them in visiting missionaries in their fields of

Labor, which we've had the honor of doing so numerous times.

One of the things that affects me when I go to have gone to

foreign fields is in, in look, see where they have to live or

do live and where they have to travel to preach.

And, and I kind of shake myself a little bit if it were as it

were, and say, how can anybody do this?

How can anybody do this? But I'm a bashful Missourian, I

guess. But and #2 because God didn't

whisper in my ear. He didn't push me out.

He pushed them. But how amazing it is.

I've watched them many, many of them.

I've watched them, how they act, how they react and and I can say

Randy and Deborah Watts belong in Rwanda.

I can say all the time that brother and sister laying him by

himself at first were in India. They belong there.

They belonged there. The Namies they belong in, in

the Philippines, God just wells them together.

They fit, they fit. Our prayers and support is

behind every missionary that's appointed by the department

because we know that they've heard from God and they're

obeying his will for their ministry.

So let me close here and then let's let's pray and commit

ourselves. I started with the question, Why

a missionary? My answer to that question is

who else will carry the gospel to some foreign country?

They don't need a visitor. They don't need a vacationer.

They need a missionary. Why a missioner?

How else will that Great Commission be carried out?

Why a missionary? How else could a native, shall I

say, in Argentina? Or I mentioned Timbuktu, I don't

know if we have anybody close to there.

But how else will that native in Argentina be exposed to the

truth and be in the rapture except a missionary?

Come and say, brother, sister, this is the way home, this is

the way home. And why a missionary?

Because of the scripture I read. Go ye into all the world and

preach the gospel to every creature and closely.

Let me say that you've read this before.

I have no memory about where I first found it or wrote it.

Read it. Every gospel writer was a

missionary. Everyone of them.

Every epistle that was written to a church was written to a

missionary church. Every church that's mentioned in

the New Testament except the Jerusalem church was a foreign

or a world missions church. Every epistle of the New

Testament is about missionary work in some degree.

Every epistle written in the New Testament was written by a

missionary. If there were no missionaries, I

guess we could say we'd have no reason for a New Testament.

That's what it's all about. That's what it's all about.

Every apostle except possibly James.

But every apostle became a missionary, a mission.

Everyone of them except 1. You remember who that is?

Of course, he became a traitor, sold our Lord for a few pieces

of silver. Thank God for missionaries and

thank God and thank you, pastor, for letting me share with you

our thoughts, our feelings. God help us, God help us.

God help us. Please stand with me, Lord.

This is such a important service tonight, such an important

gathering reason for a gathering.

I know I've stumbled through what I've tried to talk tonight,

but God, I ask for your spirit, for your presence, God, Lord, to

take over this service. We see all of these cards that

are laid out here on this table. They need support, they need

help. Amen.

His brother McGee said it'd be great if the missionary would

never have to come back home to travel around the world from

motel to motel and wherever, just to raise the funds to go.

Brother Gil, our Pastor Medoras made the expression, I wish we

could just send the hershes and take care of them ourselves.

Well, we'd have to take care of Mark and 1:00 to 2:00 and Jordan

and Lindsay too, three of them. But I would to God we could do

that. Boy, it would be wonderful.

Lord, if you talk to Mr. Elon Hurtnam Musk, tell him to pay

his tithes just one month to us and we take care of all those

missionaries. Bless those that are gathered,

these beautiful people here at the First Apostolic Church.

And as we come by and lay hands on these cards and call the

names of these missionaries, bless them, Lord, bless them,

Lord, may they, may they feel your presence as we pray here

tonight. Who knows what, what situation

they may be in, what need that they may have, May it be

supplied, God, for your glory, Jesus.

Jesus, Amen.