ACTS
13:1-5
To
carry the Gospel to our community, we must embrace a God-Given Vision
In Acts 13, Doctor Luke communicates
how this primarily Gentile congregation in Antioch willingly accepts Christ’s
vision. The Word of God will provide the ministry-shaping and purpose-orienting
vision for all genuine churches. We all need some guidance from God to serve as
a legitimate model of vision. In this instance the First Century Church of
Antioch is an excellent prototype to learn from.
Once again, note what
Luke says in Acts 13:2,
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.
God gave vision to the church! It is obedience
to this God-given vision that gives our churches restraint and provides
direction in the local and worldwide mission endeavors. Here we need to entertain
the question of where does vision come from? Who should we look to for vision
for our church and ministry?
THE
VISION FOR MISSIONS MUST COME FROM GOD
Acts
13:2, ... the Holy Ghost said, Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work
whereunto I have called them.
In Antioch we hear the clarion voice of the Holy
Spirit of God directing the church and his specific servants to the communities
and regions beyond the city of Antioch. I do not know if the Spirit of God
spoke audibly or through one of the pastors or a prophet; I do know the church
receive its vision from God. The Source was and should also be divine! God’s
people must insist upon this.
The Vision for the Local Mission Must Originate with God
Matthew 28:18-19, And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me
in heaven and in earth. [19] Go ye
therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:
After our Lord’s death, burial, and resurrection,
He commissioned his first church to take the good news to the entire world. God
was directing his body to action and specifying the nature of that action. The local
evangelistic vision for our communities must originate with God. At Antioch it
was the Holy Ghost of God talking to his churches. Praise God they had a heart
and ears to hear what the Spirit was saying.
A True Vision Is Not Centered in Human Beings,
Either the Pastor or the People, but in God Himself. Vision is not the product of our own
imagination or hopes; it is the discovery of God’s design and plan for each church.
Beloved, we cannot lead a focus group to come up with God’s vision for our
churches. We must consult with God as a collective people.
Missions Begins with a Supernatural Encounter
with a Holy God. Matthew 28:18, And Jesus came
and spake unto them. . ..
You and I must first know God experientially. Once
a believer knows the Lord through study and fellowship he will become
captivated by God’s vision and then join Him in His redemptive activity. One
key to vision discovery is prayer and fasting. “We have not because we ask
not,” explains James 4:2. If we are to find God’s vision for our churches with
regards to our local mission, we must be willing to ask and then to listen.
Because we are activity oriented, our prayer times tend to be long on asking
and short on listening. What is God trying to communicate to your heart through
this message?
God’s Vision Will Be Centered in and Supported by The Word.
Luke 24:44-48 And he [Lord Jesus] said unto them, These are the
words which I spake unto you, while I was yet with you, that all things must be fulfilled, which were written in the law of Moses, and in the
prophets, and in the psalms, concerning me. [45] Then opened he their
understanding, that they might understand
the scriptures, [46] And said unto them, Thus it is written, and thus it behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise
from the dead the third day: [47] And that repentance and remission of sins
should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem.
[48] And ye are witnesses of these
things.
The Lord Jesus Christ understood the importance
of divine revelation providing the particulars of ministry endeavors. His entire public ministry pointed back to what
was foretold about him hundreds of years before in the Word. The content and
focus of His work were prescribed in the body of the Old Testament Scriptures.
Beloved, God still speaks through His Bible. When the Bible is correctly
interpreted and applied it will always provide clear guidance to the Work of
God and His people. What the church in Antioch was embarking upon in Acts 13 had
been commanded by the Lord Jesus years before!
God's vision will always be centered in and
supported by His precious Word—The Scriptures.
God will not communicate
a vision contrary to His own nature, purpose, the old Book. If our vision is a grandiose scheme centered
in our own ego rather than based solidly in Scripture, you can be sure it is
not of God, and He will not empower our churches for this. We must always ask: “Does
our vision find its base in the revealed Word of God? Does it reflect the
character of God Himself? Will it glorify Him?”
Many times, churches are motivated to see how many
people they can win for bragging rights, or to merely outperform the other churches
in town. They are driven to build a name for themselves as a “Evangelistic Church.”
Actually, this really is pride. It sounds like the same things the people at the
Tower of Babel said in Genesis chapter eleven. All of these are poor
motivations! Being zealous for souls for the glory of Christ is wholesome but
getting decisions to make another Face Book post is carnal. The scriptures must
be the beat to which we march.
Vision from God Will Be Grounded in the Great Commission.
Bible
based Vision will always be anchored in the Great Commission (Matt.
28:18-20; Luke 24:44-49; Acts 1:8; Mark 16:15; John 20:21-23).
The Specific Vision for Each Church must Enable it
to Better Fulfill the Great Commission. To make disciples through going, baptizing, and teaching obedience
is not an option for any real church. Unless a church body is first committed
to the Great Commission it is not likely to seek vision nor follow it.
One of the Most Important Series of Messages the
Pastor Can Preach to Prepare People for Discovering a Vision Is a Series on the
Mission and Ministry of the Local Church. Missions Conferences will provide us with the insights and encouragements
to embrace a God-given vision for this world including the local community. Vision emerges when God's people have a
clear understanding of the church's mission. Worldwide evangelization is literally why the
churches exist!
You May Assume that Everyone Knows the Great
Commission Establishes the Marching Orders for a New Testament Church. This is
not true! A recent Christian publication referred to a
survey taken throughout that state concerning the primary task of the church.
Nine out of ten pastors identified the primary task as that of fulfilling the
Great Commission, while only two out of ten church members/attendees did so.
They believed that the primary ministry of the church was to meet the needs of
the members. If we have not first accepted the Great Commission as the marching
orders for the church, we will not know Christ’s vision for His churches.
Clearly, the true Source of Vision is the Lord
God, and He largely communicates that vision through His written Word. Many leaders
claim to have dreams, trances, an epiphany or a ‘word’, but what we need is a
God-given vision rooted in the nature and character of the Lord Jesus Christ. Many
churches virtually waste their existence focused on half-baked human endeavors
that scarcely resemble an authentic work of Christ. For some it is all about
them…all about the buildings, or all about the money. For others church is
merely where they get their religious fix once or twice a month. Beloved, vision
is written revelation in local application. Vision emerges from time in the
presence of God, and meditation on the Great Commission. Remember, “Where there
is no vision, the people perish….” God is speaking, but are you listening?
