Have you questioned “your mission”. There’s a better question to ask…
“What is God’s mission?”
God is on a mission to reconcile all things to Himself through Christ—and He invites us to join Him in that mission.
Biblically speaking, What’s God’s mission?
Here’s a good Biblical Definition of God’s Mission:
God’s mission is to redeem and reconcile people from every nation, tribe, and tongue to Himself through Jesus—and to renew all things under His reign.
God on Mission
God’s mission begins with God Himself—not the church, not humanity. From Genesis to Revelation, God is the initiator, the actor, and the finisher of the mission.
God is on mission. He has been on mission throughout history to accomplish His purpose throughout the earth. Each time we see God in the Bible, He is acting in accordance with His purpose.
- God’s purpose is that His Kingdom would be established
- God’s purpose is the redemption of humanity
- God’s purpose is that everyone (all people) would be reconciled to Himself to reveal Himself everywhere.
- God’s purpose is to be glorified. He desires that his global church community to come together in unity to be a vessel for His glory, through which He can reveal His love and salvation to the world
- God’s purpose is making disciples of all Nations
God’s Mission is to Establish His Kingdom
Or should we say, God’s mission is to re-establish His Kingdom?
God created the world in love. In Genesis 1-2 God made man in His image to reflect Him- “for Relationship”. Man lived in a perfect world, walking with God. The world was “very good.” In Genesis 3 brokenness and separation entered. The image of God was distorted, but not destroyed. Hope was not lost. Throughout the resto of the old Testament mankind attempted to re-establish Heaven on Earth- God’s kingdom.
Then Jesus arrived with the solution. Jesus is the fulfillment of God’s mission.
Jesus prayed, “Our Father in heaven,
hallowed be your name.
10 Your kingdom come,
your will be done,
on earth as it is in heaven. -Matthew 6:9-10
God’s mission is the redemption of Humanity
To accomplish His mission of redeeming the World from sin He sent His only Son Jesus to the world (John 3 16).
Look at these key verses:
- God seeks and saves the lost (Luke 19:10).
- His desire is that none should perish (2 Peter 3:9).
- Jesus came to give His life as a ransom for many (Mark 10:45).
God’s mission is the reconciliation of All Things
God’s ministry of reconciliation is not just individuals, creation itself will be restored. God’s reconciling mission includes everything… justice, healing, peace, and the defeat of evil.
Romans 8:19-21 explains this hope:
For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God.
This important verse really explains God’s reconciling mission:
“For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in [the Son], and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven” –Colossians 1:19
God sent His Son to give complete reconciliation for all things to Himself …
At its core, God’s mission (also called the Missio Dei) is His redemptive purpose to restore all creation to Himself through Jesus Christ.
God on Mission
God’s Mission is to be Glorified Among All Peoples
Everyone, everywhere should have an opportunity to worship God.
Ultimately, God’s mission is about His glory—displayed and delighted in by a a great multitude of redeemed people from every nation :
After this I looked, and 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 in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!” (Revelation 7:9–10).
God is on a mission to accomplish His purpose: to create worshippers.
This verse defines God’s purpose:
Like your name, O God,
your praise reaches to the ends of the earth;
your right hand is filled with righteousness. Psalm 48:10
Psalm 96:3 not only describes God’s mission, but our mission. In fact, it’s one of the Old Testament Great Commissions:
Declare his glory among the nations,
his marvelous works among all the peoples!
It’s a universal call to worship Him. This psalm urges all people, from every nation, to sing a new song and praise God.
John Piper restates the case for focusing our motive in mission on God’s glory in the worship of the nations. Piper says that world evangelization is a secondary, means-to-an-end activity.
God’s glory is the primary purpose for mission.
John Piper quoted this point in his book Let the Nations Be Glad!,
“Missions exists because worship doesn’t.”
Piper writes, “Worship, therefore, is the fuel and goal of missions. It’s the goal of missions because in missions we simply aim to bring the nations into the white-hot enjoyment of God’s glory. The goal of missions is the gladness of the people in the greatness of God.”
In other words, the reason God gives us our mission is to bring about obedient, love-filled and life-giving worship among peoples and in places where there is none.
Making Disciples of All Nations
God’s promise to Abraham was global in scope: “In you all the nations of the earth will be blessed” (Genesis 12:3). God blessed us so that we can be a blessing.
God sent His Son Jesus Christ to sum up His entire mission. Jesus not only commanded us to love God above all other things and to love others, but Jesus also commissioned us:
“Go therefore and make disciples of all nations…” (Matthew 28:19).
Now that we have a biblical explanation of God’s mission, how should we respond?
God is on a mission to reconcile all things to Himself through Christ—and He invites us to join Him in that mission.