mis•fit noun
Definition: 1. somebody who does not belong: somebody who does not fit comfortably into a situation or environment.
“My prayer is not that you take them out of the world but that you protect them from the evil one. They are not of the world, even as I am not of it. Sanctify them by the truth; your word is truth. As you have sent me into the world, I have sent them into the world…” John 17:15-18
Jesus’ prayer to God in Gethsemane’s garden rings hauntingly true today as we have witnessed how the lines between the church and the world have become ever increasingly fuzzy. These days it is common to see true Christians mask their faith in order to “fit in” under the false precept of “becoming all things to all men”. Many evangelical preachers have traded the consuming fire of God’s word for a message that rings closer a children’s song by a purple dinosaur (not that I have anything against purple dinosaurs – especially if you’re in preschool), while others have gone to the other extreme, completely cutting themselves off from all things secular, thus rendering God’s message powerless to change others.
So what should we as disciples of Christ think of Jesus’ prayer for his disciples the night before his crucifixion? Jesus prayed that his disciples be Sanctified (set apart) to him yet did not take them out of the world, but in fact sent them into the world set apart by the truth of the word to save the world!
“Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, to God’s elect, strangers in the world, scattered throughout Pontus, Galatia, Cappadocia, Asia and Bithynia, who have been chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father, through the sanctifying work of the Spirit, for obedience to Jesus Christ and sprinkling by his blood: Grace and peace be yours in abundance.” 1 Peter 1:1-2
Strangers In The World
Peter addresses his readers as strangers in the world. As a missionary I can definitely relate to being a stranger in a strange place. It is not comfortable, The food is different, you get lost easily, people think and do things differently than you do and you feel out of place. Although the recipients of this letter had been dispersed throughout Asia Minor by persecution Peter’s implications were much deeper addressing them as strangers in the world.
A few years ago I was in a round table discussion on missionology and we were comparing the effectiveness of cross cultural-mission teams and mission teams who came from the same or similar culture as the target group. To the surprise to many, statistically cross-cultural mission teams tended to fare better than teams for whom language and culture were not a barrier. Many of the participants stated that resources were the number one factor, being that most of the cross-cultural teams came from developed nations whereas the other teams usually came from developing nations. Although I believe that economics can have a great impact on the efectiveness of a mission team, my experience is that the fact of being a place that does thing differently (many times backwards) than what is natural to you is a powerful and constant reminder that you are there for a purpose.
I truly believe that that is why Jesus teaches us that we belong to the Kingdom of Heaven and not to this world. We are commanded not to love this world (1John 2:15), we should not even be friends with this world (James 4:4). We are an alien people called to live by a higher standard and though we must live in this world we will not, cannot be of this world.
Scattered
“On that day a great persecution broke out against the church at Jerusalem, and all except the apostles were scattered throughout Judea and Samaria…. Those who had been scattered preached the word wherever they went.” Acts 8:1,4
So often godly men and women can get so wrapped up in the worries of this world that we can forget our mission. Just a few chapters earlier the church was arguing almost to the point of distraction over who was going to distribute food to the congregation’s widows. God shook the church up by way of persecution and all the sudden the Gospel message had returned to the center of the Church’s activity. Many times God shakes our lives up so that the Gospel can resettle in the middle of our life’s activity. As a missionary one of my favorite scriptures has been John 3:8, “The wind blows wherever it pleases. You hear its sound, but you cannot tell where it comes from or where it is going. So it is with everyone born of the Spirit.” This scripture has rang true so many times in my life, from moving on two days notice to another country, learning a new language, trusting that somehow we would find funding many times the same day that payments were due. All of these experiences molded me and stretched my faith and devotion to God. It is that constant feeling of, “I don’t belong here, but I’m here for a reason”, that motivates us towards Jesus’ vision for his church. Let us all embrace the times of scattering in our own lives and when the pieces fall back into place let them fall around the Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Chosen
“But you are a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people belonging to God, that you may declare the praises of him who called you out of darkness into his wonderful light.” 1 Peter 2:9
As Christians we have been set apart or chosen for a special purpose; to declare the wonders of God. So many Christians feel empty and frustrated in their walk with God because they have misunderstood the concept of sanctification. Instead of feeling the call to attack the gates of Hades (Mt 16:18) we often feel the call to the monastery. Although we were called out from the futile life style that we lived before our calling, we were not called to separate ourselves from the world but rather declare God’s mercies to those who are still enslaved by sin.
My prayer is that we will all be Mission Minded Misfits and spend less time fitting in and more time standing out. (Mt. 5:16)
God bless;
Bill
