This month our church is emphasizing missions. This week, the youth of Fellowship Bible Church are working with the North American Mission Board (NAMB) in Memphis, TN. in hopes of reaching citizens of the Mid-South for Christ. Also, on Sunday, July 20th, our church will devote a day to learning about and praying for missions. On this day we will have short-term and career missionaries from India and the Philippines come and speak as well as a national from Brazil.The reason our church emphasizes missions is because worship is the ultimate goal of the church and is non-existent in many areas of the world. According to John Piper, “Missions exists because worship does not.” A church cannot say that worship is a priority without making missions a priority.
Many, nonetheless, argue that worship and missions are unrelated; defining worship as an act that takes place between an individual and God. Worship, however, is much more than that. Believers are not simply called by God to make much of Him, but are also expected to make others glad in Him so that God can be known and worshiped where he is not. In fact, a desire to do missions should flow from a heart of worship. This “heart of worship” is demonstrated by the psalmist who said, “The Lord reigns, let the earth rejoice; let the many coastlands be glad” (Ps. 97:1).
Those churches that do not get excited about missions should question whether or not they are truly worshipping God. Piper affirms, “Where passion for God is weak, zeal for missions will be weak. Churches that are not centered on the exaltation of the majesty and beauty of God will scarcely kindle a fervent desire to ‘declare his glory among the nations’” (Ps. 96:3).
Believers must realize that genuine mission ministry will not take place until authentic worship does. My prayer, for evangelical churches everywhere, is that they would be able to say with the psalmist, “(We) rejoice in the Lord…(We) will be glad and exult in you” (Ps. 104:34; 9:2). I also pray that they would desire to see the nations come to enjoy God through Christ for His glory.
Piper, John. Let the Nations be Glad. Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 17-18.
