TOPIC: Answering a
Missionary Call
MEMORISE: And they went forth, and preached everywhere, the
Lord working with them, and confirming the word with signs following. Amen. -
Mark 16:20
BIBLE IN A YEAR: 1 Kings
4-6
READ: Acts
13:1–5
1 Now there were
in the church that was at Antioch certain prophets and teachers; as Barnabas,
and Simeon that was called Niger, and Lucius of Cyrene, and Manaen, which had
been brought up with Herod the tetrarch, and Saul.
2 As they
ministered to the Lord, and fasted, the Holy Ghost said, Separate me Barnabas
and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them.
3 And when they
had fasted and prayed, and laid their hands on them, they sent them away.
4 So they, being
sent forth by the Holy Ghost, departed unto Seleucia; and from thence they
sailed to Cyprus.
5 And when they
were at Salamis, they preached the word of God in the synagogues of the Jews:
and they had also John to their minister.
MESSAGE:
Missions can be defined as
God specifically sending a person to reach the unreached for him.
The unreached are those
people who have not heard the gospel sufficiently enough to be taken over for
Christ. The sender is God, and the personality sent is the missionary. The
unreached can be within the environment of the missionary or in faraway lands.
A Call is imperative for missionary work. The missionary call is just like any
other call to Christian service. Many people have shipwrecked their lives
because they were not sure of God’s call upon their life. If you are sure of
God’s call upon your life, you will not be tossed to and fro by all shades of
doctrine.
Being called to be a
missionary is by God’s grace; it does not follow a stereotyped style. Factors
underlying God’s call include acknowledging and receiving a claim of ownership
by Christ. You must acknowledge divine ownership upon your life and develop an
understanding of God’s will and have the willingness to do it. You should also
develop sensitivity to the Holy Spirit’s voice by having an open mind, an
attentive ear and a pure heart. In addition, you should be active in God’s
service. A missionary call does not necessarily come through a special
revelation. The call can come through a casual remark by a friend or neighbour
about the heathen. It can be through a letter received from a missionary or through
reading extracts from an article, book or periodical. It can be through a hymn,
an anointed message, counselling from an anointed leader or through divinely
orchestrated circumstances. Are you prepared to answer the missionary call?
A missionary should be
physically fit to withstand adverse situations such as mosquitoes, bad
climates, diseases, poor public sanitation and poor medical services. Also, a
prospective missionary should at least be at the level of his or her audience.
In other words, a missionary must be adequately educated to reach the highest
of all the educated folks in the mission field and should be able to meet and
discuss with other missionaries at their level. To excel as a missionary, you
need a charming personality that is emotionally stable. You should also be able
to adapt to the culture and food of other people. There is equally the need for
you to be patient and persevering. A missionary should be versatile. He or she
should also be submissive to God, the mission board and to his or her superior
officers. Finally, whoever wishes to be a missionary should have a thorough
experience of salvation, sanctification and the baptism of the Holy Spirit.
ACTION POINT: For success
on the field, every missionary should ask for the gifts of the Holy Spirit. Go
ahead and ask for these gifts now.
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