by Dr. Don Sisk

Often we hear certain sayings that have been repeated so frequently that they are accepted by the great majority of people as true. Just because something has been said over and over, does it become a truth?

People who teach evolution began by teaching a theory. However, that theory has been taught for so long and by so many people that it is now accepted as a truth by a great majority of the people in our country. The repeating of that error did not make it a truth. I suppose if you tell a lie often enough, many people will begin to believe it. Sad to say, even some of the people who tell the lies have told them for so long that they begin to believe them themselves.

I have seen the little cliché printed on bumper stickers, Bible covers, and t-shirts, “God said it. I believe it. That settles it.” That is a nice cliché, but it only has an element of truth. The fact is if God said it, it really does not matter whether I believe it or not - it is settled. God does not give us His revelation for our approval. Our acceptance of the revelation does not add any authenticity to it. It affects us positively if we believe it and negatively if we reject it. However, it does not affect the revelation.

For many years I heard a phrase repeated in offertory prayers that seemed very humble and gracious. The phrase was, “Dear Lord, bless those who give and bless those who cannot give.” I heard that so many times that I incorporated it in my offertory praying. However, several years ago I read II Corinthians 9:7 where the Bible says, “Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give: not grudgingly, or of necessity: for God loveth a cheerful giver.” God spoke to my heart about that verse and showed me that there is no such thing as someone who cannot give. Giving is not a matter of can or can’t. Giving is a matter of will or won’t. Everyone can do something. Even though the prayer seemed very humble, it was not a scriptural prayer.

In the area of missions, we often hear phrases such as, “Every person is either a missionary or a mission field.” By this we are indicating that every believer is a missionary. Everyone should be involved in worldwide evangelization, but not every believer should be called a missionary any more than every believer should be called a pastor or an evangelist.

Every believer should be a witness. This is clear from the Scriptures. In Acts 1:8, Jesus said to His disciples, “But ye shall receive power, after that the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be witnesses unto me both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea, and in Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.” Witnessing is not the task of a few. Witnessing is the responsibility of every born-again believer. We are to tell what we know, what we have seen, and what we have heard.

Every believer should also be involved in giving to missions. The Bible simply says, “Every man according as he purposeth in his heart, so let him give.” I believe that the Scriptures teach us that every Christian should give to worldwide evangelization on a regular basis. I read a few days ago that the average per capita giving in Protestant churches for world evangelization is $.45 per week. Can you imagine the impact that would be felt around the world if every Christian gave regularly, systematically, and sacrificially to the work of God? The deputation time for the missionaries would be cut drastically. The Bibles that could be purchased, the Gospel pamphlets that could be printed, the buildings that could be built, and the radio and television time that could be purchased would greatly facilitate reaching the world with the Gospel message in our generation.

Every Christian should be willing to go as a missionary. Everyone will not go. Everyone cannot go. However, everyone should be willing to go.

Every believer should have a regular, knowledgeable prayer time for worldwide evangelization. In our day of tremendous communication, there is no reason for anyone to be ignorant concerning the needs of the world and the needs of missionaries. Every believer should make it his responsibility to find out what needs to be done and what is being done, and to pray intelligently for missionaries, for the countries to which the missionaries are going, and for open doors to preach the Gospel to the whole world. The Bible says in Proverbs 21:1, “The king’s heart is in the hand of the Lord, as the rivers of water: he turneth it whithersoever he will.” On your knees you can travel around the world. One of the greatest needs in our generation is intercessors who will spend time with God for the world.

Let me quote a noted missions authority. Dr. Herbert Kane, who has written many books on worldwide evangelization, says, “In traditional sense, the term 'missionary'has been reserved for those who have been called by God to a full-time ministry of the Word and prayer (Acts 6:4) and who have crossed geographical and/or cultural boundaries (Acts 22:21) to preach the Gospel in the areas of the world where Jesus Christ is largely, if not entirely, unknown (Romans 15:20).” It is very obvious that God does separate some to be pastors and evangelists, some to be teachers, and some to cross cultural and geographical boundaries to preach the Gospel in the regions beyond. These we have designated as missionaries.

Another phrase we often hear is, “All of our money goes for missions.” This is an often-repeated answer when someone asks, “How much money does your church give to missions?” By saying that all of their money goes to missions, they are saying that everything the church does is missions. I believe in this sense we have confused two words - “missions” and “mission”. The entire ministry of the church would be the mission of the church. However, historically and traditionally missions has been a much more narrow concept. Dr. George Peters, another noted missions authority, says, “Missions is a specialized term. By it I mean the sending forth of authorized persons beyond the borders of the New Testament church and her immediate Gospel influence to proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ in Gospel-destitute areas, to win converts from other faiths or no faith to Jesus Christ, and to establish functioning, multiplying, local congregations who will bear the fruit of Christianity in that community and to that country.” Many people use the phrase “All of our money goes to missions” to cover up the fact that very little of their money actually goes to missions. There are many things that are certainly deserving of support from the church; however, all of those things should not be listed under the term “missions.”

We must be careful that we do not let oft-repeated phrases, clichés, or fables become fixed truths in our thinking. Some great truths have been repeated often. The often repeated truth does not weaken the truth; in fact, it becomes dearer to us. Thank God for those often repeated truths. However, there are half-truths or, in some instances even lies that have been repeated over and over and sadly have become fixed truths in our own thinking. If God said it, it is true. If man said it, it is always open for examination. None of us mortal beings is infallible. Our thinking should be, “If God said it, I believe it. If some man said it, I will consider it. I will sift it through the Word of God. If it agrees with God’s Word, it is true. If it does not, it is not.”

Tuesday, February 7, 2012

John 15:5 I am the vine, ye [are] the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing.

Jonathon & Mandy Crews -  BRAZIL
Joel C & Brooke Daku -  KIRIBATI
Paul W & Martha Daku -  FIJI ISLANDS