Why So Few Churches Go Where The Need Is Greatest- Part 2
In part 1, we looked at three reasons churches do not go to some of the least reached places with the gospel.
In part 2 of this post, I want to cover two more critical reasons churches do not go to the world's unreached people. They are:
Fear of going to unreached places
A misunderstanding of the word Nations in the scripture.
FEAR
A few years ago I asked a mentor/friend, Dr. Nik Ripken, a question concerning the safety factor in going to some of the least reached places. He looked me square in the eye and said in that encouraging yet convicting way: “Can you show me in the Bible where it promises we will be safe?”
He was right, Jesus never promised us we would not be persecuted. In the same breath, Dr. Ripken would also say that those who run toward unnecessary danger are crazy. Nowhere does it say we are to be foolish in our going? So how would I answer this question:
Isn’t going to these unreached places dangerous?
There are dangerous places, and we do not foolishly run into places we know will get us or our national partners in trouble. At the same time, many places people say are dangerous are not. We exercise wisdom in deciding to go to any mission field. We speak with our missionaries on the ground to advise us when and when not to come. We also do not allow fear to drive our mission work.
We have seen in our mission trips that people fear certain countries due to the news media. The news does not always accurately picture life in other countries. News agencies exist to make money. Danger and fear sell much better than good news.Please be awaree of taking your cues from the media.
2. Fear Should not drive your mission strategy. Fear is not something Lord wants us to embrace. If safety becomes our driving factor, we will avoid many American cities. Over the years, I have had church members who feared going to Islamic countries. Once I take them and they see it for themselves, that fear dissipates. They understand they are safer there than in many American cities. They gain a new boldness, which carries over when they get home.
The Word Nations
I used to think God’s command to go to the nations meant going to poor, foreign countries to share the gospel. While this is part of it, my initial understanding of the word “Nations” in the bible was wrong.
In the Old Testament, the word for nations ( Goy) means a group of people connected by language and other factors. A people group. Some may live in the same political country, but some may not. The word does not refer to geo-political lines.
In the New Testament, the word nations is ethnos in Greek, where we get the English word ethnic. Here again, the word has little to do with political boundaries. When the bible tells us to go to the nations, it is not saying go to countries. It is saying to go to the ethnic groups of the world. I contend that we should prioritize going to the ethnic groups that have not heard of Jesus. (See Romans 15:20)
Therefore, to see Rev. 5:9 and 7:9 happen, with all ethnicities represented around the throne, we need to actively take the gospel to the over 3000 ethnic groups where there are no Christians. There is no one available to tell them about Jesus in their language.
This lack of understanding about the word nations can cause us to target just any foreign place and call it missions. I believe this is what the vast majority of churches do. If we do not understand that the word nations = Ethnic group and that there are 6000 unreached, we will continue to choose foreign places already reached. Most churches choose mission trips based on the church's and people's needs and desires versus scriptural priority.
If we are to see the great commission succeed, our mission work needs to understand that going to the nations means going to different ethnic groups that have no Christians among them.
How are we doing with this task?
This video says it all. Having a correct understanding of the scriptures means everything regarding missions. I hope that more churches will take on the task of reaching ethnic groups around the world that have little to no gospel access.