The Greatest Vision Of All Time
Inspired by Bryn MacPhail
We all have this idea, this “vision” of what we would want our lives to look like. We have a picture in our mind… Whether we recognize it or not. Our vision for our lives may be simple. It may also be complex. We may be very aware of our vision, or we may be moving unaware towards fulfilling our vision. But each of us possesses a vision of what we would like life to be and of what we would like to become. The one thing we may or may not have a vision for is what the God's Church should look like.
We need to ask ourselves: What is the primary work of the church?
As Christians we often say that it is our job to make Christ known. If this is true, our vision should be the answer to the question: What do we need to do to succeed in making Christ known? If we all agree that making Christ known in this world is our main goal, then we need to agree that the goal of every ministry is to ensure that we are moving in ways that best promote the name of Christ.
Aren't you thankful that God did not leave it up to us to come up with this vision? Jesus made His vision for the Church clear. We call it "The Great Commission". The vision cast by Christ is a vision for ALL TIME. The words spoken by Jesus two thousand years ago is no less relevant today.
Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
Matthew 28:16-20
There is a lot we could unpack from these verses, but the question right now is this: how can we summarize the vision that Christ has cast for His Church? And this is it:
1. Bring in others
2. Teach Jesus
Bring in others? From where? Everywhere - as far as the world extends. Bring in Others? For what? To make disciples. If they agree to come in, what do we do? First, we baptize them. Secondly, we teach Jesus. Which teachings? ALL that Christ commanded is to be taught, not just with words, but with actions as well. Teach Christ by living like Christ. This should be the focus of every church and every Christian.
When it comes to ministry and us focusing on bringing in others and teaching Jesus, we should not be doing things just for the sake of doing things. We should not be doing things just because we see another church doing it. We should not be doing things simply because we did it last year and the year before. Whatever we do needs to be sharpened by this vision: to bring in others and to teach Jesus. This vision will hopefully give birth to new ideas, new initiatives. With a renewed focus, some things will be highlighted that we are doing that is no longer in alignment with the vision cast by Christ. A renewed and clear focus/vision should give birth to change.
Change is an ugly word. Change is often looked down upon because of all the unknowns associated with it. Personally, right now, I do not have specifics on what changes need to be made, but I do believe that if the change is purposeful and supports the vision, it should be embraced.
Right now, I’m most concerned about the what and the why of the Church and of each of us as individuals. Our why? Promoting God’s name and His glory. Our what? Bringing in others and teaching Jesus. Once we agree on the what and the why, we can then begin to concentrate on the how. Our plans to fulfil this vision will constantly be changing. Some plans will succeed. Some will fail. But I would rather fail in active attempts to fulfil a God-ordained vision than to sit about idly and do nothing.
There is so much uncertainty in all this... But guess what? We are sufficiently supported. What does the last part of Matthew 28:20 say? By the way: I will be with you always, even until the end of the age. He promises to be there, to help us as we make His name and His glory known throughout the earth.
We all have this idea, this “vision” of what we would want our lives to look like. We have a picture in our mind… Whether we recognize it or not. Our vision for our lives may be simple. It may also be complex. We may be very aware of our vision, or we may be moving unaware towards fulfilling our vision. But each of us possesses a vision of what we would like life to be and of what we would like to become. The one thing we may or may not have a vision for is what the God's Church should look like.
We need to ask ourselves: What is the primary work of the church?
As Christians we often say that it is our job to make Christ known. If this is true, our vision should be the answer to the question: What do we need to do to succeed in making Christ known? If we all agree that making Christ known in this world is our main goal, then we need to agree that the goal of every ministry is to ensure that we are moving in ways that best promote the name of Christ.
Aren't you thankful that God did not leave it up to us to come up with this vision? Jesus made His vision for the Church clear. We call it "The Great Commission". The vision cast by Christ is a vision for ALL TIME. The words spoken by Jesus two thousand years ago is no less relevant today.
Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
Matthew 28:16-20
There is a lot we could unpack from these verses, but the question right now is this: how can we summarize the vision that Christ has cast for His Church? And this is it:
1. Bring in others
2. Teach Jesus
Bring in others? From where? Everywhere - as far as the world extends. Bring in Others? For what? To make disciples. If they agree to come in, what do we do? First, we baptize them. Secondly, we teach Jesus. Which teachings? ALL that Christ commanded is to be taught, not just with words, but with actions as well. Teach Christ by living like Christ. This should be the focus of every church and every Christian.
When it comes to ministry and us focusing on bringing in others and teaching Jesus, we should not be doing things just for the sake of doing things. We should not be doing things just because we see another church doing it. We should not be doing things simply because we did it last year and the year before. Whatever we do needs to be sharpened by this vision: to bring in others and to teach Jesus. This vision will hopefully give birth to new ideas, new initiatives. With a renewed focus, some things will be highlighted that we are doing that is no longer in alignment with the vision cast by Christ. A renewed and clear focus/vision should give birth to change.
Change is an ugly word. Change is often looked down upon because of all the unknowns associated with it. Personally, right now, I do not have specifics on what changes need to be made, but I do believe that if the change is purposeful and supports the vision, it should be embraced.
Right now, I’m most concerned about the what and the why of the Church and of each of us as individuals. Our why? Promoting God’s name and His glory. Our what? Bringing in others and teaching Jesus. Once we agree on the what and the why, we can then begin to concentrate on the how. Our plans to fulfil this vision will constantly be changing. Some plans will succeed. Some will fail. But I would rather fail in active attempts to fulfil a God-ordained vision than to sit about idly and do nothing.
There is so much uncertainty in all this... But guess what? We are sufficiently supported. What does the last part of Matthew 28:20 say? By the way: I will be with you always, even until the end of the age. He promises to be there, to help us as we make His name and His glory known throughout the earth.
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1 Comment
Very good insight, and very helpful. Thank you for sharing this inspirational thought.