Misseo Dei
Nov/14/10 08:19 Filed in: Sunday Series
God is always at work. We find our greatest value and purpose when we join the missio dei, the mission of God. New Hope is turning inside out to take part in that which really matters, loving and caring for the people God loves!
I am challenged in my heart today to follow the heart of God. God said of David that he was a man after God’s own heart. (1 Samuel 13:14) What is on God’s heart? It is the most important question we can ask.
We find value when we realize that we are on God’s heart. God’s heart is turned towards you. I use the word you in the singular form. God’s heart is turned toward you personally. Imagine the God of the universe is intimately concerned about you! You are of great value to Him.
We find our purpose when we align ourselves with the heart of God. God works purposefully. He is on a mission. As a community New Hope will find her greatest purpose only as we align with the missio dei, the mission of God.
Think about it, God is on a mission. That mission was and is fully revealed by Jesus Christ. Jesus encountered the Samaritan woman at the well. This was a strategic encounter. He "had to go" to her. It was purposeful. It was an encounter that was out of his socioeconomic norm. It was a cross cultural encounter. From this encounter. Jesus found nourishment.
John 4:34-38 (NLTSE)
[34] Then Jesus explained: “My nourishment comes from doing the will of God, who sent me, and from finishing his work. [35] You know the saying, ‘Four months between planting and harvest.’ But I say, wake up and look around. The fields are already ripe* for harvest. [36] The harvesters are paid good wages, and the fruit they harvest is people brought to eternal life. What joy awaits both the planter and the harvester alike! [37] You know the saying, ‘One plants and another harvests.’ And it’s true. [38] I sent you to harvest where you didn’t plant; others had already done the work, and now you will get to gather the harvest.”
That is a profound statement. The Son of Man found nourishment from being about the Father's business, which is to bring the gospel to people who desperately need it. I believe there is malnourishment in e church today because people have neglected the mission of the Father.
God’s mission is to seek the lost.
Luke 19:1-10 (NLTSE)
Chapter 19
Jesus and Zacchaeus
[19:1] Jesus entered Jericho and made his way through the town. [2] There was a man there named Zacchaeus. He was the chief tax collector in the region, and he had become very rich. [3] He tried to get a look at Jesus, but he was too short to see over the crowd. [4] So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree beside the road, for Jesus was going to pass that way.
[5] When Jesus came by, he looked up at Zacchaeus and called him by name. “Zacchaeus!” he said. “Quick, come down! I must be a guest in your home today.”
[6] Zacchaeus quickly climbed down and took Jesus to his house in great excitement and joy. [7] But the people were displeased. “He has gone to be the guest of a notorious sinner,” they grumbled.
[8] Meanwhile, Zacchaeus stood before the Lord and said, “I will give half my wealth to the poor, Lord, and if I have cheated people on their taxes, I will give them back four times as much!”
[9] Jesus responded, “Salvation has come to this home today, for this man has shown himself to be a true son of Abraham. [10] For the Son of Man* came to seek and save those who are lost.”
This account is filled with some incredible little nuggets. First I love the fact that Jesus came to the spot in the NIV. There is an appointed place where God comes looking for you.
Second I love the fact that Jesus knew where Zacheus was.
Third I love the fact that Jesus knew him by name. There is relationship here. Zacheus wasn't just a stat. He was a person who was lost.
Jesus found him and saved him. Saved him from what? A life without meaning. A life where Zacheus was more concerned with money than people. Saved from a life of self absorption.
God’s mission is to serve.
Matthew 20:26-28 (NLTSE)
[26] But among you it will be different. Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant, [27] and whoever wants to be first among you must become your slave. [28] For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
There is much talk in this day about leadership. That is well and good, but let us remember the standard Jesus set for leadership, it is servanthood!
Think of it God incarnate, God in the flesh came to serve those whom He created. This was such an important part of the passion of Christ that He told Peter if he was not permitted to wash Peter's feet than Peter would have no part in the Kingdom.
John 13:8 (NLTSE)
[8] “No,” Peter protested, “you will never ever wash my feet!”
Jesus replied, “Unless I wash you, you won’t belong to me.”
Philippians 2:5-11 (NLTSE)
[5] You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had.
[6] Though he was God,*
he did not think of equality with God
as something to cling to.
[7] Instead, he gave up his divine privileges*;
he took the humble position of a slave*
and was born as a human being.
When he appeared in human form,*
[8] he humbled himself in obedience to God
and died a criminal’s death on a cross.
[9] Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honor
and gave him the name above all other names,
[10] that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
[11] and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.
God’s mission is to save.
Psalms 79:9 (NLTSE)
[9] Help us, O God of our salvation!Help us for the glory of your name.
Save us and forgive our sins for the honor of your name.
John 3:17 (NLTSE)
[17] God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him.
Jesus came to save. There is much emphasis in this day in saving our planet. But I tell you it is even more important that people get saved! Hell is a real place! And for many it is not a place that will happen some day. They are living in a hellish situation now. Jesus came to save!
God’s mission is to sanctify.
John 17:17-19 (NIV)
[17] Sanctify* them by the truth; your word is truth. [18] As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. [19] For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified.
John 17:15-20 (MSG)
Just as I didn't join the world's ways.
I'm not asking that you take them out of the world
But that you guard them from the Evil One.
They are no more defined by the world
Than I am defined by the world.
Make them holy—consecrated—with the truth;
Your word is consecrating truth.
In the same way that you gave me a mission in the world,
I give them a mission in the world.
I'm consecrating myself for their sakes
So they'll be truth-consecrated in their mission.
I'm praying not only for them
But also for those who will believe in me
Because of them and their witness about me.
A missional person must be centered on Christ.
When you take on the misseo die. You are taking in something that's bigger than you. Too care about people means you will encounter problems that you cannot solve in your own strength. That is why we must offer a hope that is greater than just this world's answers. It is not closed minded to come to the truth that Jesus is the way the truth and the life. (John 14:6) And that salvation can be found in no other name.
Acts 4:12 (NLTSE)[12] There is salvation in no one else! God has given no other name under heaven by which we must be saved.”
In this day and culture there is a temptation to try to water this statement down for fear of seeming to be intolerant, but it is truth. To not help people see this reality is the ultimate cruelty. Jesus is THE answer for the world today.
A missional person engages in conversation.
Misseo Dei is always about people. The mission is people oriented not task oriented. To reach people with the good news you have to speak to them in their language.
Mark 16:15 (NLTSE)
[15] And then he told them, “Go into all the world and preach the Good News to everyone.
Preaching the Gospel is more than proclamation it is conversation.
Matthew 28:18-20 (NLTSE)
[18] Jesus came and told his disciples, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. [19] Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations,* baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. [20] Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
A missional person is a person of compassion.
God's very nature is one of compassion
Psalms 145:9 (NLTSE)
[9] The LORD is good to everyone. He showers compassion on all his creation.
Matthew 9:36-38 (NLTSE)
[36] When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them because they were confused and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. [37] He said to his disciples, “The harvest is great, but the workers are few. [38] So pray to the Lord who is in charge of the harvest; ask him to send more workers into his fields.”
Look God's compassion is what drives the commission of His followers.
The compassion of Jesus moved him into a position of healing.
Matthew 14:14 (NLTSE)
[14] Jesus saw the huge crowd as he stepped from the boat, and he had compassion on them and healed their sick.
When we are moved with compassion we are put in a place where we too can bring healing in the name of Jesus.
A missional person is a person of covenant.
God has committed His love to us, completely, and freely. This commitment of love requires a reciprocal commitment to love Him completely and freely. This is covenant. When we enter into that covenant we become energized with the same heart to love even as God loves..
John 15:9-19 (NLTSE)
[9] “I have loved you even as the Father has loved me. Remain in my love. [10] When you obey my commandments, you remain in my love, just as I obey my Father’s commandments and remain in his love. [11] I have told you these things so that you will be filled with my joy. Yes, your joy will overflow! [12] This is my commandment: Love each other in the same way I have loved you. [13] There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. [14] You are my friends if you do what I command. [15] I no longer call you slaves, because a master doesn’t confide in his slaves. Now you are my friends, since I have told you everything the Father told me. [16] You didn’t choose me. I chose you. I appointed you to go and produce lasting fruit, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask for, using my name. [17] This is my command: Love each other.
The World’s Hatred
[18] “If the world hates you, remember that it hated me first. [19] The world would love you as one of its own if you belonged to it, but you are no longer part of the world. I chose you to come out of the world, so it hates you.
As I bring this to a close there are two applications.
#1 You are the misseo dei.
You are God’s mission. He love’s you and has a great plan for your life. If you have been MIA, today God is here to find you. Maybe you have never surrendered your life to Jesus. I can assure you that He is the One who brings value and meaning to your life. He is the one who will bring salvation and wholeness to your life. Give your life to Jesus today.
#2 We can get so sidetracked by tasks and pursuits that prove to be so trivial over time. Today, God is calling for you to join the misseo dei.
This missional mind set will be one that points you to loving and caring for people. God is moving His people from having ministries to ministering to people. Today God is looking for someone who will care about what He cares about, people. I challenge you to take on the misseo dei. Be specific and ask God who 3 people that you can target to bring into the Kingdom of God.
We find value when we realize that we are on God’s heart. God’s heart is turned towards you. I use the word you in the singular form. God’s heart is turned toward you personally. Imagine the God of the universe is intimately concerned about you! You are of great value to Him.
We find our purpose when we align ourselves with the heart of God. God works purposefully. He is on a mission. As a community New Hope will find her greatest purpose only as we align with the missio dei, the mission of God.
Think about it, God is on a mission. That mission was and is fully revealed by Jesus Christ. Jesus encountered the Samaritan woman at the well. This was a strategic encounter. He "had to go" to her. It was purposeful. It was an encounter that was out of his socioeconomic norm. It was a cross cultural encounter. From this encounter. Jesus found nourishment.
John 4:34-38 (NLTSE)
[34] Then Jesus explained: “My nourishment comes from doing the will of God, who sent me, and from finishing his work. [35] You know the saying, ‘Four months between planting and harvest.’ But I say, wake up and look around. The fields are already ripe* for harvest. [36] The harvesters are paid good wages, and the fruit they harvest is people brought to eternal life. What joy awaits both the planter and the harvester alike! [37] You know the saying, ‘One plants and another harvests.’ And it’s true. [38] I sent you to harvest where you didn’t plant; others had already done the work, and now you will get to gather the harvest.”
That is a profound statement. The Son of Man found nourishment from being about the Father's business, which is to bring the gospel to people who desperately need it. I believe there is malnourishment in e church today because people have neglected the mission of the Father.
God’s mission is to seek the lost.
Luke 19:1-10 (NLTSE)
Chapter 19
Jesus and Zacchaeus
[19:1] Jesus entered Jericho and made his way through the town. [2] There was a man there named Zacchaeus. He was the chief tax collector in the region, and he had become very rich. [3] He tried to get a look at Jesus, but he was too short to see over the crowd. [4] So he ran ahead and climbed a sycamore-fig tree beside the road, for Jesus was going to pass that way.
[5] When Jesus came by, he looked up at Zacchaeus and called him by name. “Zacchaeus!” he said. “Quick, come down! I must be a guest in your home today.”
[6] Zacchaeus quickly climbed down and took Jesus to his house in great excitement and joy. [7] But the people were displeased. “He has gone to be the guest of a notorious sinner,” they grumbled.
[8] Meanwhile, Zacchaeus stood before the Lord and said, “I will give half my wealth to the poor, Lord, and if I have cheated people on their taxes, I will give them back four times as much!”
[9] Jesus responded, “Salvation has come to this home today, for this man has shown himself to be a true son of Abraham. [10] For the Son of Man* came to seek and save those who are lost.”
This account is filled with some incredible little nuggets. First I love the fact that Jesus came to the spot in the NIV. There is an appointed place where God comes looking for you.
Second I love the fact that Jesus knew where Zacheus was.
Third I love the fact that Jesus knew him by name. There is relationship here. Zacheus wasn't just a stat. He was a person who was lost.
Jesus found him and saved him. Saved him from what? A life without meaning. A life where Zacheus was more concerned with money than people. Saved from a life of self absorption.
God’s mission is to serve.
Matthew 20:26-28 (NLTSE)
[26] But among you it will be different. Whoever wants to be a leader among you must be your servant, [27] and whoever wants to be first among you must become your slave. [28] For even the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve others and to give his life as a ransom for many.”
There is much talk in this day about leadership. That is well and good, but let us remember the standard Jesus set for leadership, it is servanthood!
Think of it God incarnate, God in the flesh came to serve those whom He created. This was such an important part of the passion of Christ that He told Peter if he was not permitted to wash Peter's feet than Peter would have no part in the Kingdom.
John 13:8 (NLTSE)
[8] “No,” Peter protested, “you will never ever wash my feet!”
Jesus replied, “Unless I wash you, you won’t belong to me.”
Philippians 2:5-11 (NLTSE)
[5] You must have the same attitude that Christ Jesus had.
[6] Though he was God,*
he did not think of equality with God
as something to cling to.
[7] Instead, he gave up his divine privileges*;
he took the humble position of a slave*
and was born as a human being.
When he appeared in human form,*
[8] he humbled himself in obedience to God
and died a criminal’s death on a cross.
[9] Therefore, God elevated him to the place of highest honor
and gave him the name above all other names,
[10] that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow,
in heaven and on earth and under the earth,
[11] and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord,
to the glory of God the Father.
God’s mission is to save.
Psalms 79:9 (NLTSE)
[9] Help us, O God of our salvation!Help us for the glory of your name.
Save us and forgive our sins for the honor of your name.
John 3:17 (NLTSE)
[17] God sent his Son into the world not to judge the world, but to save the world through him.
Jesus came to save. There is much emphasis in this day in saving our planet. But I tell you it is even more important that people get saved! Hell is a real place! And for many it is not a place that will happen some day. They are living in a hellish situation now. Jesus came to save!
God’s mission is to sanctify.
John 17:17-19 (NIV)
[17] Sanctify* them by the truth; your word is truth. [18] As you sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world. [19] For them I sanctify myself, that they too may be truly sanctified.
John 17:15-20 (MSG)
Just as I didn't join the world's ways.
I'm not asking that you take them out of the world
But that you guard them from the Evil One.
They are no more defined by the world
Than I am defined by the world.
Make them holy—consecrated—with the truth;
Your word is consecrating truth.
In the same way that you gave me a mission in the world,
I give them a mission in the world.
I'm consecrating myself for their sakes
So they'll be truth-consecrated in their mission.
I'm praying not only for them
But also for those who will believe in me
Because of them and their witness about me.
A missional person must be centered on Christ.
When you take on the misseo die. You are taking in something that's bigger than you. Too care about people means you will encounter problems that you cannot solve in your own strength. That is why we must offer a hope that is greater than just this world's answers. It is not closed minded to come to the truth that Jesus is the way the truth and the life. (John 14:6) And that salvation can be found in no other name.
Acts 4:12 (NLTSE)[12] There is salvation in no one else! God has given no other name under heaven by which we must be saved.”
In this day and culture there is a temptation to try to water this statement down for fear of seeming to be intolerant, but it is truth. To not help people see this reality is the ultimate cruelty. Jesus is THE answer for the world today.
A missional person engages in conversation.
Misseo Dei is always about people. The mission is people oriented not task oriented. To reach people with the good news you have to speak to them in their language.
Mark 16:15 (NLTSE)
[15] And then he told them, “Go into all the world and preach the Good News to everyone.
Preaching the Gospel is more than proclamation it is conversation.
Matthew 28:18-20 (NLTSE)
[18] Jesus came and told his disciples, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. [19] Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations,* baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. [20] Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
A missional person is a person of compassion.
God's very nature is one of compassion
Psalms 145:9 (NLTSE)
[9] The LORD is good to everyone. He showers compassion on all his creation.
Matthew 9:36-38 (NLTSE)
[36] When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them because they were confused and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. [37] He said to his disciples, “The harvest is great, but the workers are few. [38] So pray to the Lord who is in charge of the harvest; ask him to send more workers into his fields.”
Look God's compassion is what drives the commission of His followers.
The compassion of Jesus moved him into a position of healing.
Matthew 14:14 (NLTSE)
[14] Jesus saw the huge crowd as he stepped from the boat, and he had compassion on them and healed their sick.
When we are moved with compassion we are put in a place where we too can bring healing in the name of Jesus.
A missional person is a person of covenant.
God has committed His love to us, completely, and freely. This commitment of love requires a reciprocal commitment to love Him completely and freely. This is covenant. When we enter into that covenant we become energized with the same heart to love even as God loves..
John 15:9-19 (NLTSE)
[9] “I have loved you even as the Father has loved me. Remain in my love. [10] When you obey my commandments, you remain in my love, just as I obey my Father’s commandments and remain in his love. [11] I have told you these things so that you will be filled with my joy. Yes, your joy will overflow! [12] This is my commandment: Love each other in the same way I have loved you. [13] There is no greater love than to lay down one’s life for one’s friends. [14] You are my friends if you do what I command. [15] I no longer call you slaves, because a master doesn’t confide in his slaves. Now you are my friends, since I have told you everything the Father told me. [16] You didn’t choose me. I chose you. I appointed you to go and produce lasting fruit, so that the Father will give you whatever you ask for, using my name. [17] This is my command: Love each other.
The World’s Hatred
[18] “If the world hates you, remember that it hated me first. [19] The world would love you as one of its own if you belonged to it, but you are no longer part of the world. I chose you to come out of the world, so it hates you.
As I bring this to a close there are two applications.
#1 You are the misseo dei.
You are God’s mission. He love’s you and has a great plan for your life. If you have been MIA, today God is here to find you. Maybe you have never surrendered your life to Jesus. I can assure you that He is the One who brings value and meaning to your life. He is the one who will bring salvation and wholeness to your life. Give your life to Jesus today.
#2 We can get so sidetracked by tasks and pursuits that prove to be so trivial over time. Today, God is calling for you to join the misseo dei.
This missional mind set will be one that points you to loving and caring for people. God is moving His people from having ministries to ministering to people. Today God is looking for someone who will care about what He cares about, people. I challenge you to take on the misseo dei. Be specific and ask God who 3 people that you can target to bring into the Kingdom of God.