“For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but to save the world through him.”
~John 3:16-17 (NIV)
Today we remember history’s cruelest event: the crucifixion. Although the murder of Jesus is indeed the cruelest event in history, it is at the same time beautiful. It’s beautiful because the crucifixion was God’s greatest act of love!
That is the way of sacrifice: it is painful and beautiful all at once. Whenever we sacrifice we give up something we love for something we love even more. Giving up something we love hurts, but giving it up for something (or someone) we love more is generous, meaningful and inspiring.
Jesus sacrificed everything for his mission. Then he passed that mission on to us. As I reflect on Christ’s sacrifice this “Good Friday,” I’m filled with thoughts about our Christ’s mission becoming our mission. I’m filled with thoughts about the sacrifices he made for the mission and, by extension, the sacrifices we must make for ours!
Thought 1: Mission requires sacrifice and excuses are no excuse.
When it came right down to it, Jesus made no excuses although he had plenty of good ones!
- This is gonna hurt…BAD!
- These people aren’t worth the trouble.
- This is going to be humiliating.
- I’m God, I shouldn’t have to put up with this!
- I won’t get to finish watching this season of “Jerusalem Idol”.
No excuse ever excuses us from our mission. Jesus had a specific mission: to die for mankind’s sin. After fulfilling his part he then gave us a specific mission: to share the gospel with all of mankind.
Many times we are full of excuses when it comes to fulfilling our mission.
- We are too busy.
- We need more family time.
- We don’t have enough money.
- People may not respond.
- We might be persecuted.
- It’s too hard.
- We’ll miss our favorite TV show.
Thought 2: Mission may require the sacrifice of our friends, dignity, and comfort.
- People will think we’re nuts.
- People will humiliate us.
- We may have to have uncomfortable conversations.
- We may have to do unpopular/politically incorrect things.
- On the foreign mission field we may have to sleep in unusual places and eat food we don’t like.
- We may not get to sit on our over-stuffed sofas as much as we used to.
- We may need to lower our standard of living in order to invest more money in our mission.
- We may need to stop buying $4 coffee every day to fund missions.
- Ultimately we may even have to suffer emotional or physical pain for the mission.
When all was said and done, the mission cost Jesus his very life. He suffered like no one in human history before or since, but he did not compromise the mission. He gave everything he had to give, even his own heartbeat and breath.
Thought 3: Mission may require the sacrifice of our lives.
Christians are martyred around the world, even today. According to the Gordon-Conwell Theological Seminary, an average of 171,000 Christians worldwide are martyred for their faith each and every year. Let that number sink in. It would take nearly two and a half football stadiums to contain that many people. Those people believed so much in their mission, they were willing to die for it, just as Christ did.
Thought 4: The sacrifices required for mission are worth it!
The torture and death of Jesus is one of the most gruesome tales in human history. Yet through the awfulness of this story we find the most beautiful tale as well: God wants to forgive and save us! Jesus’ mission privileged us with the opportunity to be forgiven and to know God, but also to participate in the mission. Today we learn from Jesus’ example that the mission is costly, but it’s so worth it. Let us be motivated by Jesus’ example today to do whatever it takes to reach the world with his Love.