Becoming the Church for the Sake of the World: ACMC Recap

God has planned throughout history to bring His Gospel to the nations. At last Saturday's ACMC conference, Tom Telford identified 7 missional characteristics of the apostolic church, and then suggested 10 ways in which churches today can strengthen their missions commitment.

In his keynote talk, Telford considered the church of Antioch, as it is described in the book of Acts, as the model of a missional church. The believers in Antioch, he said, had 7 critical characteristics that empowered their missions efforts:

1. Missions and evangelism were seamlessly woven together. Their concern for the world drew strength from their efforts to reach their neighbors, rather than sapping energy from it.
2. Persecution grew their commitment to Christ, rather than diminishing it. Their faith had foresight; they were confident in the ultimate victory of God.
3. Sound doctrine increased their joy and their desire to glorify God. They saw the broad scope of God's plan, clearly stated in Gen. 3:15 and Gen. 12:1-3, to bless the nations through his chosen people.
4. A generous spirit led them to share with others, even as they had been given everything in Christ.
5. Organization and sound planning were not neglected as "unspiritual," but rather were regarded as the necessary means for translating their missions commitment into concrete action.
6. Worship was central to the life of their church. They knew that, as John Piper says, worship is the goal of missions. God is seeking a people who will worship Him, in spirit and in truth.
7. They sent their best people out as missionaries. A healthy church aims to reproduce itself, and is not afraid to sacrifice for the sake of the greater Body.

After laying the Biblical foundation for church involvement in missions, Telford suggested 10 ways in which churches and individual Christians can deepen their missions commitment and increase their effectiveness.

1. Make sure your church understands God's heart for missions. We need to read the Bible holistically, as the story of Christ the Redeemer and His work to build a Kingdom from every tribe, tongue, and nation. Missions could easily become a chore if we lose sight of the broader mission of God.
2. Send your pastor to Perspectives, and to the mission field if possible.
3. Don't criticize your pastor. Humility is the best way to effect change.
4. Have a well-trained missions leadership team. If possible, pay for them to take the Perspectives course.
5. Mentor younger people; encourage their interest in missions. Many missions leaders are in their 40s or above; the younger generation must have the training and motivation to carry the work forward.
6. Partner with a cross-cultural church and/or a church from another part of the world. Not only will this expand your cultural awareness, it can open up new possibilities for partnership and support through missions consortia.
7. Be strategic in your support for missions. Focus on the areas of greatest need and promise: the cities, unreached peoples. The Apostle Paul made it his goal to go where Christ had previously been preached - who are the apostolic missionaries whom you and your church could support?
8. Start a missions discipleship program in your church, with the goal of making all members of the congregation "world Christians" who have a vision for how God is expanding the Church globally.
9. Emphasize missionary care. Missionaries are not superhuman; they too have spiritual needs.
10. Look into the possibilities of business as missions. This new way of doing missions is breaking down some of the traditional barriers between missions work and "ordinary work." All work can be Kingdom work, if it is done with the proper vision.