Acts 1.8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.”
– Peter &John in Jerusalem w/ lame man
– Peter in Judea at Joppa
– Philip in Samaria w/ Simon Magus
– Paul in Athens at Aereapogus
Matthew 28.18-20 18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
if you’re a Christ-follower, you’re not like everyone else!
– you have a mission
– you have a missionary mindset
advantages of indigenous missionaries from HeartCry:
1. Human Resources. get more missionaries if you empower indigenous folks
2. Financial Resources. It costs a great deal of money to send and support North American and Western European missionaries. For what it costs to support one North American missionary with a monthly support of $4,000, it may be possible to support 20 indigenous missionaries!
3. Language and Culture. Any cross-cultural missionary will testify that language and culture are two of the greatest obstacles to the work. It often takes a cross-cultural missionary his first term (4-5 years) just to learn the language and adjust to the culture. Five years and a quarter of a million dollars are spent on the mission field to learn the language, adjust to the culture, and do a minimum of ministry. In contrast, the indigenous or native missionary has no need to learn the language or adjust to the culture that he has known since birth. From his very first day on the mission field, the indigenous missionary can concentrate on his two priorities – evangelizing the lost and planting churches.
4. Identification. There is much anti-American and anti-European bias in many of the least evangelized countries of the world. In many people groups, it is virtually impossible for a Western missionary to preach the Gospel, because he is rejected for his nationality long before he has the opportunity to communicate his message! In contrast, the indigenous missionary has little problem with such bias, because he is of the same flesh and blood as his audience
5. No Difficult Transitions. Having experienced the prestige of a Western missionary as pastor, the church is often no longer willing to accept one of its own. This is not a problem when the church is planted by an indigenous missionary and stays w/ that leadership
6. Focus. It seems that many North American and Western European mission agencies have lost their focus. The Great Commission is first and foremost about preaching the Gospel, discipling believers, and planting churches. Many Western agencies seem to have an exorbitant number of missionaries working as administrators and “facilitators,” while few are ministering as preachers and church planters.
regular missionaries are great,
did you know Jesus said:
Matthew 24.14 And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.
how many in America have heard the gospel of the kingdom?
– how many in the capital region have heard?
Barna ranked Albany, Schdy, Troy as the most post-Christian city in America 2013…then they revisted it in 2015
Who will preach the gospel in Troy? Schenectady? Albany? Colonie? Watervliet? etc.
– should we wait for Africa and Asia to send missionaries here?
we’re already here!
we know the language!
we know the culture!
– we have mission.
– let’s get busy doing it
o invite people to church,
o let ppl know you believe,
o share your testimony
o talk to the new person on Sunday after the meeting ends
all it takes is a shift in thinking
– you are an indigenous missionary
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