Active and Ongoing

January 15, 2025

“In the same way that (the Father) gave me a mission in the world, I give them a mission in the world.” John 17:18 MSG

“Just as you sent me into the world, I am sending them into the world.” John 17:18 NLT

It’s easy to think of our relationship with God, our salvation, as an event, not a lifestyle of following Jesus, fulfilling our mission in the world. But that’s a misnomer, and to one degree or another, followers of Jesus have been making that mistake since the beginning. Jesus’ last words to His disciples is that they were to go and share the Good News of the Kingdom of God to all people everywhere, and He even called the names of specific places, “even to the ends of the earth.”

They immediately started sharing on the Day of Pentecost, witnessing to everyone there. Many people from far places were there because it was celebration time in Jerusalem. Jews from all over the known world were there. Of course, there were many who believed and received the message then, but Jesus had told them to go to everyone in every place, to Jews and Gentiles alike.

For quite a while they were stuck. They stayed in Jerusalem. They shared with the people in circumstances and relationships that perhaps generally made sharing the Good News more comfortable and easier. History tells us that most of the disciples stayed in Jerusalem until about AD 42. But God was not going to let it rest. For one thing, God allowed disruptions that scattered them, most notably persecution from Herod Agrippa.

Then about seven years after Jesus returned to heaven, He found a man named Saul whom He anointed and spectacularly called while Saul was in the middle of persecuting Christians. His conversion was so transforming that after a short period of training, he began traveling everywhere talking about Jesus and the life He gives. He was an amazing missionary. His inspired words make up the majority of the New Testament, and the book of Acts tells the story of how the gospel spread largely through him.

Paul confronted other followers of Jesus with opportunities and new reminders that they were to fulfill the mission everywhere. Peter was a dynamic Jesus-follower, but he had a hard time letting go of his Jewish perspectives and only sharing with his own people. God spoke to him through visions and even confrontation from Paul about the love God had for people who were different. Jesus came to make salvation available to the whole world. That is still the mission.

• Who needs you to share the Good News with them, but it’s outside your comfort zone? What will you do about it?