Missio Dei

July 21, 2013

Text: John 20:21-22

Introduction:

 Why missions? 

A. Bill Bright

B. David Platt

C. John Piper

Lesson:

""What was God doing before creation?”

The doctrine of the covenant of redemption reveals to us that there exists between the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit perfect love and harmony. Their promises and commitments to each other demonstrate their love for each other. The Father’s love for the Son is expressed in his reward of a people whom the Son will rule as King. The Son’s love for the Father is expressed in his submission to the Father’s will, even at the highest personal cost. The Spirit’s love for the Father and the Son is expressed in his work to bring this plan to completion. And the Father and Son’s love for the Spirit is expressed in pouring him out on the church as their special gift from heaven. . . . Yet the doctrine of the covenant of redemption also teaches us that God is eternally moved to communicate to others this love that he experiences within himself. . . . God has decided to share his love with his elect. In his sovereign will, he chose to make us the objects of the eternal, mutual love between the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. We did nothing to move him to this love, for he loved us while we were still sinners and his enemies (Rom. 5:8-10). Rather, he acted first by setting his love on us before the foundation of the world in this great covenant involving each person of the Godhead. In the covenant of redemption, we see that our salvation is Trinitarian from beginning to end, carefully planned in eternity past and executed in human history. What amazing love is demonstrated by the fact that Christ came on a specific mission to fulfill his covenant obligations and obtain redemption for us (Michael Brown and Zach Keele, Sacred Bond, 37)!

The Covenant of Redemption in the gospel of John (Jn. 5:30, 36; 6:29, 37-40; 10:17-18; 17:1b-5)

""Mission . . . in biblical terms, while it inescapably involves us in planning and action, is not primarily a matter of our activity or our initiative. Mission, from the point of view of our human endeavor, means the committed participation of God’s people in the purposes of God for the redemption of the whole creation. The mission is God’s. The marvel is that God invites us to join in,” (Christopher Wright, The Mission of God, p. 67).

Reflection:

What is the Bible primarily about?

“To the only wise God be glory forevermore through Jesus Christ! Amen.” (Rom. 16:27).