Why Rethinking Missions?

In the years leading up to 2020, I felt that God has been trying to get the attention of the American church about our priorities in the area of global missions. The turmoil we experienced in 2020 such as: the onset of Covid-19, social justice riots, and political upheaval only served to strengthen that conviction. Why?

Difficulty in life often serves to sharpen our focus on the purposes of God.

• Think of what is must have been like when God confused the languages of the people at the tower of Babel. They were working together on a great project until suddenly they couldn’t communicate any longer….mayhem, confusion, frustration…they must have felt it all. But after God confused their language, they ultimately spread out over the whole earth which was what God had commanded Adam in the beginning….

God blessed them and said to them, "Be fruitful and increase in number; fill the earth and subdue it. - Genesis 1:28

• In the New Testament, the stoning of Stephen sparked great persecution in Jerusalem which caused Christians to scatter away from Jerusalem, resulting in the spread of the Gospel into other parts of the world.

And there arose on that day a great persecution against the church in Jerusalem, and they were all scattered throughout the regions of Judea and Samaria, except the apostles.- Acts 8:1b

• Paul the Apostle, writing from prison, assured the church that God was using the turmoil in his life for a greater purpose.

Now I want you to know, brothers and sisters, that what has happened to me has actually served to advance the gospel. - Philippians 1:12

While I don’t believe that God causes all the turmoil that happens around us, I do believe that He uses it to accomplish His ultimate purpose… the advancement of the Gospel. If God is trying to get the attention of the church, here are my thoughts on what He may be saying.

Three Facts About the American Church and the Unreached

1. While we may need to make adjustments in the “why” and “how” of our missions focus, the most glaring issue right now is the “where” of global missions.

Did you know that only about 1 in 30 missionaries reach the least reached of our world? Many groups concerned with the remaining task of touching the whole world with the gospel have produced a variety of studies that tell us how many people groups remain unreached by the message of Jesus.

One group published this astonishing fact: in spite of decades of missionary outreach, 87% of people in the Muslim, Hindu, and Buddhist world do not know a single Christian. In 2013 these three groups comprised 40% of the world’s population. (AGWM Missiological Committee, 2013)

2. While some churches excel in global missions, on average the US church makes little impact on the unreached.

According to Joshua Project (2019) statistics, North American churches spent 85 percent of their budgets for internal purposes. While 15 percent went toward outreach, only 2 percent of that went to global outreach and “Only a small portion of that 2% goes toward unreached peoples.”

3. Too often missions efforts are more focused on meeting a ministry need in the local church than on finishing the remaining task of global evangelization.

While global missions can and should contribute to the passion and spiritual growth of the members of the congregation, this should never be their purpose. There is no condemnation here, just a simple observation that we tend to fall prey to meeting the needs right before us without realizing that we may be using up valuable resources that could be touching something very close to the heart of God.

How should We Respond?

1. Begin with prayer. Ask God to expand your vision and show you how you might need to adjust priorities in your missions values.

2. Ask this probing question of our churches and missions organizations: What percentage of our resources (people and finances) is dedicated to the effort of touching the unreached or least reached people of the world?

3. Begin to explore ways to encourage missionaries to “reached” areas of the world to shape their ministries toward addressing the plight of the unreached peoples.

Jesus told us in Matthew 24:14 - And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come. Could it be that God is speaking in the middle of the turmoil in our lives in order to turn our hearts toward those who have yet to have the chance to hear?

Till All Hear,

Murphy Matheny