The Local Church and The Great Commission: One Mission, Two Contexts

Second, we also strive to make disciples in “unreached” contexts. Unreached contexts are areas around the world where the church does not yet exist. Our primary role in unreached contexts is to help establish and plant the church. In the book of Acts and Romans, the apostle Paul is regularly taking the gospel into unchartered territory and laboring to help establish the church (Acts 13-22 and Romans 15:20-24).  Currently, in our world, there are many areas where the church does not yet exist. There is much work to be done in the unreached contexts.

The majority of local churches are involved in global mission in the reached contexts.  That is good. We need to continue to go to those areas and help strengthen the existing churches and assist them in making disciples, caring for the poor, widows, and orphans. At the same time, more churches need to place a higher emphasis on the unreached areas and people groups around the globe. The church does not exist or is very weak among the Tajik’s (Tajikistan/Afghanistan), Yemini Arabs (Yemen), Somali (Kenya/Ethiopia/Somalia), and Malay (Malaysia). It is not enough to shuttle a group of people to Central America once a year, build some houses, and say that we are doing global missions.  Fulfilling the Great Commission involves evangelism, disciple making, and church planting.  This is a mandate that involves every Christian, and every Church, for 365 days a year.  There is one mission, but we strive to accomplish this mission in two different contexts.  Let’s get active in strengthening and establishing the church for the glory of God among all nations!

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