AS WE JOURNEY
2003-04 Offering for Global Missions: Everyone, Everywhere OURS IS A GLOBAL GOSPEL.
The incredible Good News for the whole world is that Jesus is
the image and incarnation of the invisible God. Other pictures of God are simply not as satis12
fying as the one that God has painted for us in the life and ministry of Jesus.
Stanley Leary photo
Jesus presents Himself to us not only as God’s representapresence is not known. We want every person in the world tive or God’s servant, but as one whose relationship to God, to hear the Jesus story in their own language and culture. origin from God, oneness with God and life in God is unlike This is not to imply that God is not already at work among any other human being who has ever lived. Jesus presents the unevangelized. God is surely at work and Jesus goes Himself to us as the one who by His death on the cross is ahead of us before we ever arrive to witness and minister. the world’s Savior. Jesus offers Himself as the one who The mandate is clear: everyone, everywhere. because of His obedience to God in death reconciles us to Another aspect to our global mission is that it is shared God. Jesus presents Himself as the by Christians from every part of the one who overcomes death. He is globe. Some of us falsely assume resurrected after crucifixion and that the global mission of the offers His eternal and abiding preschurch will be fulfilled primarily ence to all who will receive it. by Christians in North America, Ours is also a global church. when actually there are more misRecently, Cooperative Baptist sionaries from other parts of the Fellowship announced a partnerworld than there are from North ship with the Center for the Study America. The explosion of the of Global Christianity. We helped gospel witness in China is one of fund a world Christian database the great movements of God in the that provides valuable reference past 25 years. What is happening in information and analysis tools for Korea and parts of Africa is nothmissions. In receiving a brief ing short of amazing. Fellowship Coordinator Daniel Vestal overview of this database, I was So take heart and rejoice. But at reminded again how rich and beautiful is the worldwide the same time, be aware of unmet need and unreached peoBody of Christ. Beginning with a small rag-tag group of disples. For ours is a global challenge. There are still a billion ciples, the Christian movement has expanded to encircle people who have little or no access to the message of Christ. the globe. There is staggering human suffering, as well as inequity and The disunity and division in the Body of Christ is mindinjustice on this globe. We cannot be at ease or satisfied. boggling. There are thousands of Christian denominations, We cannot rest until the kingdoms of this world have and one cannot excuse or accept so great disunity. But if become the Kingdom of our Lord and of His Christ. one looks beyond the diversity in worship, liturgy, ordina• Everyone, everywhere has the need and capacity for a tion, and even theology, one finds great encouragement in personal relationship with God. the global church that confesses Jesus Christ as Lord. • Everyone, everywhere experiences the brokenness, Ours is also a global mission. The command of Jesus guilt and alienation that results from sin. is “to make disciples of all nations.” The global mission • Everyone, everywhere feels the yearning for a knowlof the church is to be fulfilled without the triumphalism edge and oneness with God. or the coercion which has been practiced through • Everyone, everywhere is cherished and treasured by the centuries. And it is to be fulfilled in the spirit of the Creator. dialogue and mutual respect for other religions, as well • Everyone, everywhere is a person for whom Christ as diverse cultures. died. f! But make no mistake about it; our mission is global. We seek to make known the presence of Christ where that By CBF Coordinator Daniel Vestal C O O P E R AT I V E B A P T I S T F E L L O W S H I P
www.cbfonline.org