The Mission Field Has Come to Us

The mission field has come to us!

As I was headed to church recently, I found myself following right behind this van. I have, on many occasions, made the statement that the mission field has come to us. I have also, at times, made the statement, "You no longer have to fly all the way around the world to go to the mission field."

The above pictures are demonstration of the fact that those statements are true and accurate.

Now, we can "lament" the fact that we are now "surrounded" by false religions such as Islam, Hinduism, Mormonism, etc. (In fact, I have had people say, "Send them back from where they came from!") But, I don't believe that is a proper response.

God loves every man, woman, and child - regardless of their religion!

"For God so loved the world..." John 3:16

Do we have a heart of love and compassion for each man, woman, and child that we come in contact with? Do we see them, as God does, as having an eternal soul that will spend eternity in either Heaven or Hell? (Hebrews 9:27; Revelation 20:11-15) Is that truth - that realization - driving us to action?

God has commanded us to go and proclaim!

"...Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature." Mark 16:15

Are we thanking God that He has allowed the mission field to come to us? Are we taking the opportunity to proclaim the Gospel with those we come in contact with? Are we taking the opportunity to confront (in a loving manner) individuals with the truth of the Gospel? (If you don't know what the Gospel is, read 1 Corinthians 15:1-6 or watch the video at www.salvationfocus.com.)

Are we taking these truths seriously?

We can't continue to simply go through our days giving "lip service" to these truths but not truly allowing these truths to affect our lives; to affect what we do with our days - how we live our days. These truths must be at the forefront of our minds. We must constantly keep these truths in front of us and allow these truths to stir us to action.

Will you, today...

• Strike up a conversation with someone? If you are going to obey Christ's command to us to share the Gospel then you are going to have to speak with others.

• Give a Gospel tract to someone? Probably the simplest way that we can share the Gospel with others is to give them a Gospel tract. We have plenty of Gospel tracts available to South Charlotte Baptist Church. Be prepared to share the Gospel by keeping them in your vehicle.

• Think outside the box? Do you want to know something? When I saw that van, my initial thought was, "I've never seen anything like that." But my next thought was, "Why didn't I think about that?" Why haven't we put a more impressive message on our church vehicles? Why haven't we wrapped our church vehicles in the Gospel message? Maybe we should?!?!