God’s Heart for the Nations
Our God is a missionary God who created human beings in His image and for a relationship with Him.
From the time when the first man and woman He created chose to rebel against Him, God has been pursuing the restoration of His relationship with humanity.
Since the time of Abraham, we see that God has chosen a people to join with Him in seeking restoration of relationship with all of humanity.
Jesus Christ came as the Word of God in human form to model God’s heart and His way of living. Through His death and resurrection, He paid the debt for our sins. He makes it possible for all who will believe to be transformed into ambassadors of God, initiating reconciliation with peoples of every tribe, nation, and language.
We can better understand World Mission and how it relates to the Church and our lives by exploring the following;
- God’s heart for the Nations
- Understanding and Reaching Across Cultures
- World Religions and Cults
- The Uniqueness of Jesus Christ
From the very beginning to the end, the Bible message is a missionary message.
It begins with Creation followed by the Fall and the involvement of the missionary God in restoring the broken relationship between Him and humanity. Let us observe the missionary nature of God in His missionary manual that He has given us, the Bible.
Introduction
The Book of Genesis begins with the beautiful story of Creation (Genesis 1 – 2), followed by the disobedience of our first parents who allowed sin to enter the world and God’s response (Genesis 3-10). When mankind sinned, our missionary God took the initiative to come and find our parents, Adam and Eve (Genesis 3:8-9). Then God divided them from Himself in order to win them back.
The Story
Our missionary God didn’t give up even when mankind continued to sin against Him. He called Abram, whom He later called Abraham, and worked through him by setting apart a missionary people (Old Testament). He later became flesh, died for us, destroyed the power of death by His flesh (Matthew-John), and displayed the way of life to all people (New Testament). If we closely look at all Bible stories, they are mission stories.
- Genesis 12:1-3: God promised to bless Abraham to make him a blessing for all the families of the earth. In the same way, God blesses us to make us a blessing for all people.
- 1 Samuel 17:45-46: David overcame the giant in the name of the Lord God so all the earth would know that there was a God in Israel, who saves. In the same way, God will give us victories over the giants in our lives and ministries so that we can make His name known among the nations of the world.
- Psalm 46:10: When we trust and wait upon the Lord beyond the situations that surround us, He shows us His protection, care, and provision so that through His activity in our lives, He will be exalted among all the nations and He will be exalted in all the earth.
- Isaiah 49:6: God promised to make the people of Israel a light for the Gentiles, so that they would bring His salvation to the ends of the earth. Similarly, through the work of our Lord Jesus Christ, He called us to walk in His light to bring salvation for all the people of the world and to the ends of the world.
- Daniel 6: God gave Daniel the courage to be faithful to His God and, miraculously, He rescued him from the hands of his enemies so that all people and nations would know the one true God (Daniel 6:25-27). In the same way, Daniel’s three friends trusted in their God and gave themselves to fire. In a miraculous way, God delivered them from the burning fire so that their God was known as the God who saves. Through our trust in Him, God will do miracles in our lives too so that all people and nations will know the one true God.
- Jonah 1-4: God called Jonah to go and present the message of repentance to the people of Nineveh. His heart is always for the outsiders, for those with whom we might not want to relate as Jonah did not. The only book in the Bible that is concluded with a question is the Book of Jonah where God asks Jonah, in response to his anger over Ninevah being saved, “Should I not have concern for such a great city?” (Jonah 4:11). When God calls us for His mission, it is very important to obey. It is good to keep in our mind that His heart is always for outsiders.
- Luke 4:14-30: Jesus was filled by the Holy Spirit for the mission to bring the Good News to the poor, to heal the brokenhearted, and to set the oppressed and the captives free. In the same way, the Spirit of the Lord empowers us to give us God’s heart for the outsiders and for our enemies so that they will come to know and worship Him.
- Mark 6:30-44 and Mark 8:1-25: We read here that Jesus, moved with compassion, miraculously fed a large crowd so as to show the love of God for them. Jesus is the bread of life for all peoples of the world (John 6:35).
- Acts 1:8; Acts 2:5; Acts 3:24-26: God empowered the disciples with the Holy Spirit so as to make them a blessing to all people. Since the day of the Pentecost, God has poured out the Holy Spirit on His people to make them a blessing to the people groups of this world.
- Acts 13:42-47: The Good News of Jesus is for the Jews and then, through them, for all people everywhere. Once we receive the Good News of Jesus, it is our responsibility to share it in our actions and words. God’s blessing for us must make us a blessing to others.
- Revelation 7:9-12: We are told that the end goal of our missionary God is to see people from every nation, tribe, and language come to the knowledge of God and worship Him from eternity to eternity (Matthew 24:14).
- John 3:16: God so loved the world, He gave His Only Son, Jesus, to come to this world in the form of a human being. Jesus, who by nature is God (Philippians 2:6-8), gave up everything for the sake of us and died on a tree to erase all our sins and curses and to destroy the work of the enemy, Satan, so that we could share in His blessings of abundant life (John 10:10). He conquered death, granted us victory, ascended to heaven, and sent us the Holy Spirit to help us to live according to His life. One day, he will come back to take us home (Acts 1:11).
Conclusion
The Book of Revelation culminates in final battles with the enemy, God’s glorious Kingdom, and the climax of the salvation story. Jesus, the King of all kings and the Lord of all lords, will establish His Kingdom, and He will rule with righteousness from eternity to eternity. Until then, our mission is not complete.
We are the children of the missionary God, and we need to knit our hearts with His heart so as to fulfill the mission of our Father—to reach the lost world with His name, to make Him known among the nations.
He has blessed us so as to make us a blessing for the nations. One day, the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea (Habakkuk 2:14)!
What do we learn from the heart of our missionary God, and what is our part?
Global Disciples Canada is a Christian mission organization that trains local leaders living near least-reached communities to multiply disciples for Christ. One-third of our world hasn’t heard the Good News of Jesus. Yet. Global Disciples refers to these as “least-reached” people, and fewer than 10% of all missionaries work among these groups. We live in a time where many of these people are within reach of a local church. Through our simple and effective strategy of training and coaching, believers share the Gospel in their own nations and cultures. Jesus said, “Go and make disciples of all nations,” and we’re committed to doing just that. If you are looking for a Christian mission organization to partner with to become a better disciple and help make disciples, connect with us today!
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