Vol. 19.07.45
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‘Among the prophets and teachers
of the church at Antioch of Syria were Barnabas, Simeon (called “the black
man”, Lucius (from Cyrene), Manaen (the childhood companion of King Herod
Antipas), and Saul. One day as these men were worshipping the Lord and fasting,
the Holy Spirit said, “dedicate Barnabas and Saul for the special work to which
I have called them.” So after more fasting and prayer, the men laid their hands
on them and sent them on their way. Barnabas and Saul were sent out by the Holy
Spirit. They went down to the seaport of Seleucia and then sailed for the
island of Cyprus.’ Acts13:1-4
The church played a pivotal role
in the sending forth of their missionaries, by praying for them, they didn’t
stop at this point; their support for them was continual by extending the right
hand of fellowship to them.
Paul’s letters on numerous
occasions bore witness to the church’s support of his mission work. He was
encouraged by some who visited him (1Corinthians. 16:17-18). Christians in
Macedonia gave cheerfully and abundantly to missionaries (Acts 8:1-5),
Christians in Philippi ministered to the needs of missionaries (Philippians.
4:15). The Christians in Paul’s time also supported him in his
travels to reach other places with the gospel of Jesus Christ (Acts 16:6).
Saul and Barnabas are just like
our brothers and sisters today who have left all (extended family, businesses
and personal pursuits) to answer the call of God to labour at the forefront of
the work of reaching various regions in the world with the gospel of Jesus
Christ. These two were part of the church, and from the church, the Holy Spirit
called them to another dimension of ministry.
Today, there is need more than
ever for Christians to support missionaries. As the harvest was plenty then,
the harvest is still plenty. Missionaries are encumbered by numerous challenges
on the field-spiritual, financial, physical, difficulty of terrain and so on-and
the support of Christians is a vital ‘hand of fellowship’ which they require.
Missions stand on two legs; the Goers and the Senders, both of
which must be functional for the world to be reached for our Lord. The
missionaries who are at the forefront of this battle for souls are the goers,
while every Christian who is not a
goer automatically falls into the senders’ category.
Why
should Christians support missionaries?
In a war, aside the foot
soldiers who are on the battleground fighting the enemies, there is always a backup
team responsible for supplying ammunition, food and medical care. The
effectiveness of the foot soldiers depends to a large extent how vibrant their
arsenal is. For every missionary, there must be Christians who are actively
supporting him or her; else effectiveness in the mission field will be elusive.
·
Joining forces with
them in prayer brings results
‘Five of you will
chase a hundred, and a hundred of you will chase ten thousand...’ Leviticus. 26:8
Many a battle that
missionaries have to fight are those that’ll become testimonies and avenues for
the display of God’s power if there will be Christians who will support them
with consistent and fervent prayers. There are lands that are currently
impenetrable except Christians rise to their task as senders and stand in the
gap for God to break up the fallow ground and bring about harvest of souls for
the kingdom.
·
Supplying their
physical needs keeps them focused
Missionaries aren’t
angels, they are men and so have needs. They have the basic needs for food,
shelter and clothing. Besides this, they have family and social obligations and
duties. They must provide for their families, cater for their children’s
education and so on. Many times, they are beset with these needs that they even
compete with the work for their attention. In Jesus’ days, there were women
that supported his ministry out of their substance (Luke 8:2-3). As such, he was
able to ‘go from place to place’, preaching the gospel and liberating men from
darkness. His effectiveness was enhanced because he had these supporters. We
should also support missionaries out of our substance as many of them trust God
for their personal needs and for the work.
By giving to
missionaries out of our substance, we are not ‘helping’ them. Many Christians
see giving to missionaries as helping. Missionaries are not helpless; they have
only found employment in service to God. As their primary occupation is taking
the gospel to unreached nations, God also requires us to give to the work, what
He has placed in our capacity to give. We ought to see supporting them as our
own aspect of this ministry.
Individuals or groups
of Christians can adopt mission fields to support with finance, many times;
missionaries require finance to provide amenities that are lacking for the
people they are reaching for Christ. Some of these places do not even have
access to good healthcare, portable water and so on. Missionary kids can be
adopted and placed on scholarships. With these taken care of, we are fulfilling
our roles as senders, the backup team that God has put in place to join forces
with the missionaries in wrestling for souls.
·
Visiting, contacting
and encouraging them revitalizes them
As a result of the
harsh terrain (physically and spiritually) in which many missionaries are
labouring, they get sapped of energy and despair at times. The visit,
encouragement and prayers of Christians revitalize them and they are able to
face their task with renewed vigour.
By seeing ourselves
as key players in the Great Commission, as both goers and senders are equally
important in this task, every Christian must be actively involved in soul
winning by functioning in the capacity God has placed him. The goers must be
supported and the senders must be supporting. By this, we will be ‘laying
up for we treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, and
where thieves do not break through nor steal’
(Mathew 6:19-20)
Shalom
Oguntokun Esther Adeola
estheroguntokum@gmail.com
estheroguntokum@gmail.com
Author
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The Quiver is the Official Bulletin of The Change of Taste Group (a non-denominational mission intercessory and support group ©2019
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