UNITY
“FOR EVEN THE SON OF
MAN CAME NOT TO BE
SERVED BUT TO SERVE,
AND TO GIVE HIS LIFE AS
A RANSOM FOR MANY.”
MARK 10:45
Making the choice to serve
and show unconditional love
toward others is the greatest
thing we can do with our
lives. I believe that this is the
key to living the way that
God created us to be; living in
community with and service
to others. The mission field,
in particular, can provide you
with a new perspective by
giving you the opportunity
to experience different
situations outside the context
of your “regular” daily life.
Intentionally putting yourself
into a new context stretches
you physically. It tests your
patience and it even makes
you socially uncomfortable
at times. These situations
can feel like significant
challenges in the moment,
but I guarantee that these are
the times you will be most
thankful for on the other side
of that experience. Over time,
as you continually test your
boundaries and learn to trust
God more, you will come
to realize one very important
truth about being a
Christ follower:
GOD IS FAR MORE
CONCERNED WITH
YOUR GROWTH AND
YOUR HEART THAN
HE IS ABOUT YOUR
PERFECTION. PERIOD.
I’ve found, over the years, that
each time I put myself out
there to serve my neighbors,
my community, or serve in
another country altogether,
God reveals another layer of
His perspective of the world
to me. In other words, the way
I view the world now is very
different than the worldview
I had when I began this life
journey. At first, the emotions
associated with pushing my
boundaries were powerful.
Sometimes the weight of my
fear felt like it was crushing
me and I pulled back, but
other times the experience
was exhilarating. As time
passed and God began to
reshape me, I leaned into my
commitment to make it about
others, and that grew in me
a confidence rooted in the
strength of Jesus Christ.
GOD CALLS US TO UNITE
HIS CHURCH UNDER THE
NAME OF JESUS.
You may know something
about the apostle Paul, who
is widely considered to be
the first and most influential
missionary in the history of
the Christian church. Paul
took a number of mission trips
all over the Mediterranean
region spanning many years
of his life. Most of his travel
was by sea for great distances
and then on foot to reach
individual communities as
he shared the news of Jesus
Christ. During his ministry,
Paul worked to overcome two
great challenges in nearly
every community
of Christians.
The first challenge was that
people continually struggled
with the idea that salvation
and eternal life is found only
through the saving grace of
Jesus. In the time of Paul,
the pervasive belief was that
God’s love had to be earned
through following rules and
traditions. Even among Christ
followers, people would
disagree with one another
and argue over what rules
one had to follow to be
considered a “Christian.” From
being circumcised to giving
the right sacrifices, it was a
constant struggle for Paul to
clarify to these “Christians”
that forgiveness and salvation
is freely given to those who
put their faith in Jesus, and
is bought by the blood of His
atoning sacrifice on the cross.
It’s a gift far too costly for us
to even consider earning on
our own.
The second challenge was
the constant disagreement
and fracturing of the
Christian church. Whether it
was leadership differences,
personality differences, or
anything else, the Christian
church would oftentimes
disagree on topics internally,
separate into smaller groups,
and operate independently
of each other. It was common
for these first churches to
operate as rivals to each
other, all under the banner of
Jesus Christ.
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