It seems that one of the defining characteristics of living out our christian faith is whether or not we’re involved in some type of mission service.  As a young believer it seemed pretty clear cut that mission work was something that was done “over there” and far from “here”.  I am still somewhat convinced that the collective understanding of the Christian community is not far from this type of mindset.  However, as I’ve matured in my faith, I have come to understand the real grit of missions is quite the opposite.

Venture with me very quickly to Acts 1:8:
⁸But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.” (NIV)
Christ Jesus was telling his disciples how the transfer of responsibility was going to play out.  In order to understand this exchange, there are a few basic ideas you should be familiar with.  Jerusalem is the hometown or homebase of the disciples.  Judea is the region that is home to Jerusalem, somewhat like a state.  Samaria is the territory to the north of Judea that is home to a race of people that was deadset against Judea – enemies and adversaries.  The ends of the earth were all of those unexplored, unfamiliar, foreign lands.

What Christ is telling you and me, along with the disciples, is that when you receive the gift of salvation from Christ, you’ve got some work to do.  At the end of Matthew, Jesus tells the disciples to go into the world and to the ends of the earth making disciples.  He returned to His command in the book of Acts to layout the mission plan and “next steps”.   Most of our mission work in western culture seems to start at the ends of the earth and work back home… which is backwards.

Christ Jesus had some very stern words for those religious types who went abroad to do their work with unclean hearts.  Read this and ponder it for a second:

¹⁵“Woe to you, teachers of the law and Pharisees, you hypocrites! You travel over land and sea to win a single convert, and when he becomes one, you make him twice as much a son of hell as you are. (NIV)

I love this picture of Christ Jesus!  Up in the face of hypocrites and disgusted with their behavior.  So what good is it for you and I who travel afar to do “God’s work” only to come home and continue a life of neglect with our faith?

The task that we have before us follows this path:

1. Jerusalem:  This is your home.  Live and act as Christ would have you live in the privacy of your own home.  Be authentic to yourself and to your immediate family.
2. Judea:  This is your extended family and your community.  Witness to the majesty and grace of Christ Jesus within your own family and your community and peers.  Your mission work continues here.
3. Samaria:  The mission field is full of land mines in samaria – these are your enemies, the people you don’t like, or the person or persons that have wronged you.
4. The ends of the earth:  Now go take care of business far away.

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