A Missional Church

My work is a labour of faith for the edification of the church of Jesus Christ. Yesterday at least 10 people came up to me after the sermon and thanked me. A few more greeted me outside the church doors (the church is located in one of the KK's Malls). I preached on the given text from Acts 11:19-26 on the "Missional Church". It was not just a history lesson of the church in Acts 2,000 years ago, but through the Spirit we could bring to bear what the Lord has to say to his church today for the testimony of Jesus is the spirit of prophecy (Rev 19:10). 

So I started by noting that at first the early church in Jerusalem only preached to their own race and nation, the Jews. Even when they were scattered abroad to Antioch, the Jews from Jerusalem only preached the Gospel to the Jews in Antioch until others came from Cyprus and Cyrene who spoke to the Greeks. 

I mentioned that even Peter had to be convinced by a vision of the Lord to go to Cornelius' house and preached the Gospel to him, a Roman centurion (Acts 10). Who were the Greeks? I spoke about the Greek culture and language that dominated the Mediterranean world of the time despite Rome being the superpower of the day. 

That Greek was spoken by all nations, including the Jews was one historical fact of the first few centuries. I applied that (Acts11:19-20) to the context of Sabah and Malaysia and noted that to be effective in spreading the Gospel, we had to proficient in Malay, the language of the land and also English, the Greek equivalent of today. 

Especially in Kota Kinabalu (and the church located right in the city centre in one of the biggest Malls), one must be conversant in Malay and English to spread the Gospel to all races and nations that settle in the city or visitors/tourists that come our way. 

Then, I spoke about the Jerusalem Church sending Barnabas and how the early Church was united with the mother church in Jerusalem. I spoke about Barnabas, being a good man who sold his land and gave the proceeds at the apostles' feet. 

I spoke about how in my three pastorates I had difficulty in convincing my fellow leaders to use the church funds to help the poor and needy within our ranks. 

Then, I spoke about the essential requirements of ministry and a leader to be filled with the Holy Spirit and of faith. I said without the power of the Spirit, no one would be converted and it is not just about building churches or physical infrastructure. (I was honoured to be the guest preacher in the service where they launched their mission month and the building of a new church in Banggi Island). 

Finally, I spoke about Barnabas finding and bringing Paul to minister alongside with him in Antioch and how crucial it is for the evangelised to be taught and become disciples. How important it is for us to recognize each other's gifting like Barnabas towards Paul as many leaders were still unsure about Paul's allegiance to Christ at that time.