Go Therefore

"'Son of man,' he said, 'I am sending you to the nation of Israel, a rebellious nation that has rebelled against me. They and their ancestors have been rebelling against me to this very day. They are a stubborn and hard-hearted people. But I am sending you to say to them, ‘This is what the Sovereign Lord says!’ And whether they listen or refuse to listen — for remember, they are rebels — at least they will know they have had a prophet among them.

"'Son of man, do not fear them or their words. Don’t be afraid even though their threats surround you like nettles and briers and stinging scorpions. Do not be dismayed by their dark scowls, even though they are rebels. You must give them my messages whether they listen or not. But they won’t listen, for they are completely rebellious! ..."

"... Then he said, 'Son of man, go to the people of Israel and give them my messages. I am not sending you to a foreign people whose language you cannot understand. No, I am not sending you to people with strange and difficult speech. If I did, they would listen! But the people of Israel won’t listen to you any more than they listen to me! For the whole lot of them are hard-hearted and stubborn. But look, I have made you as obstinate and hard-hearted as they are. I have made your forehead as hard as the hardest rock! So don’t be afraid of them or fear their angry looks, even though they are rebels."

 "Then he added, 'Son of man, let all my words sink deep into your own heart first. Listen to them carefully for yourself. Then go to your people in exile and say to them, 'This is what the Sovereign Lord says!' Do this whether they listen to you or not.'"

~Ezekiel  2:3-7, 3:4-11 New Living Translation (NLT)

As I've been reading through Ezekiel, the one thing that has really stood out to me is just how relevant the writings of this Old Testament prophet are given the chaos and moral decay of today's society.

Just as in Ezekiel's day, many of our nations have turned their backs on God. Our people — my people — are rebelling against Him and His laws just as the children of Israel did during the Babylonian Exile. (ca. 597/581 BC)  And just as in the days of Ezekiel, I feel that God is calling the Church to stand up and and deliver His message of salvation to our own people — the hard-hearted and rebellious nations living in open defiance of Him and His word. 

Think about this for a moment: what do you think would happen if the Church spent just as much time and effort on reaching their local communities as they do on foreign missions? 

If we the Church — the unified Body of Christ — took the Great Commission seriously and began making disciples of all nations, including our own, do you think we would see a change in our communities, countries, and maybe even the world as a whole?

If we stopped isolating ourselves and started investing our time in building relationships with our unsaved neighbors, showing them the Gospel by the way we live, instead of pushing them away with our hypocrisy, do you think that maybe, just maybe, they would be more inclined to listen to us when we tell them about our faith? (1 Peter 2:12, 3:13-17)

In my community of 20,000 people, there is a church on virtually every street corner. Yet, like most of the United States, over 80% of the people in my town are un-reached. Despite the fact that they have ample access to the scriptures, Biblical ignorance is everywhere. Indeed, few people know the difference between the Iliad and the Old Testament! Most don't know anything about Jesus' teachings, or what Christians believe, aside from what they hear from the media or see on the internet. Many think that they will go to heaven because they've read parts of the Bible, believe in God, are a "good person" or go to church from time to time. And most of the people I've talked to about my faith don't want anything to do with "man-made religion" because the few churches that do attempt local missions go about it the wrong way, and end up pushing people away from God.

It is shameful. We pray for revival, yet few of us actually do anything about it. Instead, we look at all of the wickedness in our world and complain about how bad things are, while at the same time holding to the notion that if we just elect the right person to make the right laws, we can get our country back on track. Do we honestly think that electing a godly leader will fix our nation when the hearts of the people are far from God?

What if instead of trusting in elected officials to fix the social problems and spiritual decay in our world, we examined ourselves; purifying our hearts before God by asking God to reveal anything in our lives that may be interfering with our ability to effectively serve Him. If we ask God to make us able to serve Him and allow Him to prune our hearts, He will use us to change the world. (John 15:2)

The time is now, Christian. Whether you like it or not, you became a missionary the moment you surrendered your life to Christ. You are now Christ's ambassador, the salt and light of the world. (2 Corinthians 5:20, Matthew 5:13-16) There's a mission field is right outside your front door; an entire nation in need of God. The harvest is great, but the workers are few. (Luke 10:2-3) So fulfill your calling and go!

"'...I (Jesus) have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. 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.'"

~Matthew 28:18-20 New Living Translation (NLT)