Mission

Estimated Read Time: 9 Minutes

Welcome to the fourth article in our Digital Meet:MH Membership class. In this article, we’ll be discussing the mission that we’re all on as followers of Christ, and what it looks like for us as a church to engage in that mission.

Making Disciples who Make Disciples

The new family that is created by God through his gospel exists for more than the good of those who make up the church family.  Healthy churches should be a family on mission.  This is usually true of any gathering of people.  If they are to stick together for any amount of time, they usually need a purpose.  We at MERCYhouse are on a mission “to make disciples who make disciples on campuses, in communities, and among the unreached people of the world.” 

We’ll start with defining what a disciple is, then talk about how you make one, then talk about our strategy for doing so in three different contexts.  

The clearest and most concise description of the mission of the church in the Bible is from Matthew 28:18-20 and is known as the great commission: 

Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

Contained in this short statement from Jesus are the basics of disciple making.  Let’s look at four different ideas contained in this statement:

1. Making Disciples is a Divine Mission 

Jesus let’s his disciples (and us) know that this endeavor of making disciples among all the nations is being done in the divine power of the One who has all power and authority over heaven and earth.  He’s saying these words post-resurrection so he’s done more than enough to prove that he means what he says.  Jesus is the divine King over all things and all people.  He even wraps up his comments by saying that he is “with you always, to the very end of the age”.  Making disciples is a divine activity for sure and will be carried out by King Jesus.  If this is what Jesus wants and he promises to give us his power and presence to do it, we want MERCYhouse to be a church that aggressively cooperates with this mandate.   

2. Making Disciples involves the teaching of Sound Doctrine

The way people are saved from sin is by grace through faith in the gospel.  This gospel is news.  It’s made up of words that communicate ideas.  When Jesus says that we are to baptize people into the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, he’s implying that we are to be teaching people who Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are and what the triune God has been doing to bring about the saving of human beings and gather them into the church.  This saving is not merely words but it certainly isn’t less.  Paul says this to the church of Thessalonica in 1 Thessalonians 1:4,5:

For we know, brothers and sisters loved by God, that he has chosen you,5 because our gospel came to you not simply with words but also with power, with the Holy Spirit and deep conviction.

The gospel is words.  Words that the Holy Spirit uses powerfully to bring salvation to sinners like you and me.  Disciples must know what those words are and how to communicate those to others.    

3. Making Disciples involves Training to Obey

Not only are disciples supposed to understand the gospel and how they’ve been saved from sin, they’re also supposed to understand that this same gospel has saved them to a life of obedience to King Jesus.  This is communicated when Jesus says that we are to teach them to “obey everything I have commanded you”.  This is the ongoing demonstration of God’s saving work in the disciple’s life.  We summarize this obedient life with what we call the “five devotions”.  These include devoting oneself to the word, worship, fellowship, prayer, and mission (see Acts 2:42, 1:8).  While these are not an exhaustive list of Jesus’ commands, they give a good snapshot of what the obedient Christian life looks like.  As you may remember, we mentioned these devotions above in the FAMILY section of this booklet.  No new Christian automatically knows how to worship Jesus, pray, read their Bible, love other believers, and tell others about Jesus.  They have to experience the “show and tell” ministry of discipleship - baptizing them into the Name of Father, Son, and Spirit (Doctrine) and teaching them to obey all that Jesus has commanded (Devotions).  

We briefly mentioned the fifth devotion in the family section of this booklet.  Before the community of Acts 2 was gathered through the giving of the Holy Spirit and the preaching of the word, the church was given a mission.  That mission is summed up in the words of Jesus in Acts 1:8: 

“But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”

Again, in these verses, Jesus affirms the divine power that is present for mission (Just like Matthew 28).  And what is that mission?  Make disciples of everyone from our neighborhood to the nations.  It’s in the power of the Holy Spirit that the Apostles (and us) are sent out on a mission to bring the gospel to those who have not yet heard and build them up as disciples once they have responded with faith.  This brings us to the fourth part of Jesus’ vision for discipleship.

4. Making disciples includes the development of every Christian in the skills for making disciples of others. 

The final thing that Jesus is revealing in Matthew 28 about disciple making is the mandate to make disciples who make disciples.  Think about who Jesus is talking to in this chapter.  He’s telling his disciples he’s made to go make more disciples.  In the early days of his relationship with these men, he told them that if they followed him he would “make them fishers of men” (see Matthew 4:19).  He’s been letting them know throughout their entire time with Jesus that they are being sent on a mission to make more disciples who will make disciples who make disciples...  This is to be the mission of every Christian.  This is to be the mission of every church.  

In summary, we believe our DIVINE mission as a church, is to make disciples of Jesus by a) establishing church members in their belief of sound DOCTRINE, b) equipping those members in their practice of the five DEVOTIONS, and c) facilitating the DEVELOPMENT of members to make disciples of others both in the church and in the world.    


Making Disciples in Our Context

While every church is supposed to make disciples, every church has a unique context in which to make those disciples.  We at MERCYhouse seek to intentionally make disciples in three distinct areas: on campuses, in communities, and among the unreached people of the world.  

Campuses

We live in an area that is teeming with college students.  There are about 35,000 college students in our immediate area plus many other young adults that call our valley home.  While the population of our region is primarily people in the age demographic of 18-25, the population of area churches tends to be much older.  This isn’t all their fault since the Millennial and Gen Z generations are the most unchurched generations in American history.  That said, God has consistently opened a door for gospel ministry with students from all Five Colleges and we see this as a tremendous opportunity for making disciples who make disciples all over the world.  If you become a member of MERCYhouse (both students and non-students), you will be expected to participate in this very important ministry through your prayers, your giving, and your work as a disciple maker of students in our region. 

Communities

While student ministry is an important priority, we also want to make disciples of people in our communities as well.  Many of our friends and family need to hear the gospel and be shown what it looks like to follow Jesus.  Much like the student population, most of our population of permanent residents in this region don’t even know what the gospel is. Reaching those in our communities is going to happen through ordinary Christians reaching out to the unbelieving world with both love and truth.  Being a member at MERCYhouse means being “on mission” to make disciples in your family, your neighborhood, your workplace or anywhere else God may place you.   


This emphases on our communities also  includes our children’s ministry known as “MERCYhouse kids”.  We see reaching and discipling children as an essential part of the mission to make disciples in our community.  The children themselves need the gospel as do their many friends at school and in their neighborhoods.  We do this by teaching kids a gospel-centered curriculum on Sunday mornings and by equipping their parents who are the primary disciplers of their children.    

The Unreached

While our immediate area is a mission field, we are also called to make disciples of all nations.  No church is exempt from participating in this global mission of Jesus no matter how small.  Let’s take a minute to define what we mean when we say “unreached”.  Most mission organizations categorize people groups as “unreached” when less than 2% of the population is made up of Christians who believe that the Bible is God’s word and that salvation is found through Christ alone.  Research indicates (see Joshuaproject.net) that regions with less than a 2% Christian presence do not have enough local churches and resources to get the gospel message out without outside help.  An even worse scenario are groups categorized as “unengaged”.  This kind of group would not only have very small numbers of Christians but also be devoid of any local churches and without a significant presence of outside mission work.  Most of these people groups are found in what’s called the 10/40 window. The 10/40 Window is the rectangular area of North Africa, the Middle East and Asia approximately between 10 degrees north and 40 degrees north latitude.  (see below).

As a church we make efforts to make sure we are PRAYING and GIVING and GOING with the goal of seeing these unreached and unengaged people groups are reached with the gospel.  This is done through the giving of a portion of our weekly offering to outside ministries, periodic prayer times for missionary efforts around the world, church mission trips, and sending out church members to live overseas for the cause of Christ.