Jan 29

Written by: Dan Cartwright
1/29/2010 7:27 AM 

A pastor friend in Hawaii recently posted on Facebook this emphatic statement:  "Make no bones about, the purpose of the church is EVANGELISM." (Emphasis his.)

 

When I read that, various 'purpose' and 'vision' statements that I've found in the pages of church web pages came to mind. It is with a certain sadness that I confess that most were not nearly as Gospel centric as Pastor Derrick's Facebook statement, however they did reflect a certain level of marketing savvy, with their slick visual presentations, catchy slogans, and often omitted actual scripture passages, that after all might turn off seekers.

 

So that I don't appear judgmental (too late?), let me say that it was the contrast between the clear statement of my pastor friend and the content of church web pages that came to mind, not a desire to intentionally find fault with either the pastor's statement or the content of church web pages. That contrast begs the question: "What should be the 'vision' of the church? Is there a single vision that evangelical churches, without exception, should share?

 

Perhaps there is:

 

After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice, "Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!" - Revelation 7:9-10

 

In my former career as a combat soldier, we might have called that passage of Scripture 'the commander's intent' - the overarching goal of our mission on the ground. I don't remember exactly when 'The Commander's Intent' became a mandatory articulated statement in combat orders, but it's inclusion in those orders helped us maintain our mission focus. We could always turn to it when the situation of the ground might have caused us to wander off on in a direction that, while doing the enemy harm, would have detracted from our primary purpose.

 

Our passage from Revelation reflects the Commander of the Universe's intent - to have a people for Himself - rescued out of the mass of fallen humanity, so that one day they would gather around His throne, giving Him the honor due His Name!

 

And for a reason only God knows, He has chosen flawed, imperfect humans as the primary means of spreading the perfect Gospel message. This is indeed the greatest privilege ever bestowed on mankind and yes - the purpose of the church!

 

Thanks for the reminder, Pastor Derrick!