Not Business As Usual But A New Assignment
To be sure, Jesus didn't become human and then left to provide content for blockbuster movies that can be replayed at Easter. He wasted no time to communicate a new assignment to His disciples when He appeared to them on the evening of Resurrection Sunday itself: “As the Father has sent Me, so I am sending you.” He knew only too well how likely they would return to fishing or, as we say today, their business as usual (BAU). When He sent His disciples out to the nations and commissioned them to reach out to everyone, He also left for all believers an important lifelong assignment.
Today, Pastor Beatrice Kang gave a passionate persuasion to not ignore God’s assignment to believers. Resurrection Sunday may be over, but Resurrection Life has only begun - not for some of us but for all of us who know Jesus. We cannot allow ourselves to a BAU existence with a ritualized Christian life that departs from a lifestyle that reflects the missional Kingdom mandate.
What does this mandate look like in our lives?
It is a way of thinking and living that carries the urgency of the mission and that will change our whole perspective on life and how we live. We will feel short-changed from throwing ourselves into pursuing income-generating goals as we experience diminishing returns in satisfaction and happiness. We will see how endless recreational activities while creating great Instagram-worthy stories and grabbing images, cannot replace life-building real conversations with others. We will experience a sense of alienation from the true purpose of our salvation even when pouring ourselves into noble life missions like serving our families, the community, and animal rescue. Something will begin to gnaw at us.
Yet, prioritizing God’s mandate in our lives means that we can do all this and seize the opportunities for human connections that open up and allow us to fulfill our God-given mission in this world.
Nothing changes; yet everything changes when we embrace the Great Commission as a life perspective that primes us to reach out, build relationships and demonstrate the love of God in ordinary life and everyday situations.
But how can we do it so effortlessly?
WHATEVER
“the Son can do nothing by Himself; He can do only what He sees His Father doing, because whatever the Father does the Son also does.”
JOHN 5:19 NIV
Jesus used ‘whatever’ to show categorical acceptance and total agreement with God. It is not a do-as-told but a do-as-seen and do-as-a-fulfilment response to God. He follows through on the Father’s will and on the Word of God because, in the first place, He came to fulfil it (Matthew 5:17). And He modelled for us an attitude of following “whatever the Father does, the Son also does” (John 5:19).
After His resurrection, He who is sent becomes the Sender. But who are we sent to?
WHOEVER
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.
JOHN 3:16 NIV
On the most basic level, we’re called to create and deepen our connection with people regardless of their race, language, health, occupation, lifestyle, proximity to us, time zone and whatever our personal opinion of them. Jesus approached and responded to whoever He met on any given day – prostitutes, invalids, the disabled, demon-possessed, the ordinary masses, those in high places, people who climbed trees and taxed people, married people, single people, men, and women, young and old.
‘Whoever’ also describes people who are different from ourselves – even those we meet in church. It is a term that equalizes everyone in God’s heart.
It’s common for people to confine themselves to activities and social interactions according to their personality, gender, education, life stage, personal conviction, or relative position in the faith community. We can make excuses and limit our interactions with others because of our feelings of inadequacies, social anxieties, and busy schedules, and if we are not careful, we may even let our discriminations hold us back from being friendly with some people.
Who is the ‘whoever’ in your life each day? Are there people you see often but struggle to make a simple connection with? Do you hide in your car to avoid small talk? Is your line of vision constantly trained towards a phone screen that has no soul?
The Bible has a great piece of advice from Proverbs 11:30 for improving our social connections: "the one who is wise saves lives" (NIV) and “a wise person wins friends” (NLT).
To be sure, the global church is not called to be ‘pew warmers. After His resurrection, ‘Jesus breathed on His disciples and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit.”’ God has given all believers the same Holy Spirit to set us on fire for His Kingdom!
Today, the global pandemic has removed social barriers and fostered human connections in unprecedented ways. Yet our greatest challenge may be inertia and the barriers that lie hidden within us. Let the transformative power of the Holy Spirit rework us until we can say “The one who is sent – is as He who sends him/her.”
