“Missions is not the ultimate goal of the Church. Worship is. Missions exists because worship doesn’t. Worship is ultimate, not missions, because God is ultimate, not man. When this age is over, and the countless millions of the redeemed fall on their faces before the throne of God, missions will be no more. It is a temporary necessity. But worship abides forever. ”
Frontier missions consists of proclaiming the Gospel of Jesus to unreached peoples throughout the earth. Right now the opportunity to proclaim the Gospel among the Muslims may be the greatest missions opportunity history has ever seen. There are three key reasons why frontier missions are vital.
The salvation of God’s elect: Jesus commissioned His church to proclaim His Gospel to all nations (Matt 28:19-20). He has chosen the heralding of the Gospel to sinners as the primary means of their salvation (Rom 10:9-15). He has promised to save people from every tongue, tribe, and nation (Rev 5:9). Therefore we must respond to this great harvest (Matt 9:36-38). If we could mobilize Christians to not consider their lives more valuable than Christ’s calling (Rom 8:18) and go throughout the world with the Gospel (Matt 24:14), the tragic global statistics would change and the church rejoice.
The joy of God’s Church: Every Christian is a missionary; you either go, or send. When people believe the Gospel, both individuals and cultures are changed. This change produces blessing to the local church, city, and society while storing up a crown of glory for the sending church (1 Thess 2:19-20). When churches partner with Jesus in fulfilling the great commission: God’s sheep are gathered (Jn 10:15--17), His return is hastened (Matt 24:14), and our joy overflows (1 Thess 3:6-10, Acts 20:35). Christ commanded us to love Him and others for His glory and our joy (Jn 15:8-14). This is not selfishness, but joy filled sacrifice for the glory of God.
The worship of Jesus: “Missions is not the ultimate goal of the Church. Worship is. Missions exists because worship doesn’t. Worship is ultimate, not missions, because God is ultimate, not man. When this age is over, and the countless millions of the redeemed fall on their faces before the throne of God, missions will be no more. It is a temporary necessity. But worship abides forever.”[2] May the worthiness of Christ compel us to go, not out of duty or need, but out of passion for the glorification of our King.
[2] Let The Nations Be Glad, (Page 2) by John Piper 1993