What is a “Great Commission” pastor?

Great Commission pastors are heroes. 

They are dedicated to their local congregation and community but also have a kingdom mindset for advancing the desire of Jesus outside of their church, outside of their community and even outside of their nation. There is a local and global focus that Great Commission pastors are able to steward at the same time.

Naturally a pastor is a shepherd who is burdened for his local congregation. He wants them to be healthy and for his congregation to grow. Up from pastors we have denominations or church networks of different types. They may have their own corporate aims for growth and vitality.

All understandable.

I believe Great Commission pastors are some of the unsung heroes of missions. It takes vision and deep trust in God to release those into the hands of the Lord for His global work.

Pastors as Missions Gatekeepers 

In order for OM to train Africans to go to the unreached we need the pastors of the candidates to be willing to release their members. This can present a great difficulty for pastors.

How do you release your best and brightest to leave to a far away field? How could you bear to encourage that? Where are the benefits for you as a pastor in growing your church or even just maintaining it if you release those who are outstanding in your midst? 

Even IF you did release one of your leaders or members there can be the desire to “brand” the work to keep it under the church or denomination’s name. If the “brand” or the “name” is not involved in the endeavor, the interest to allow someone to be sent can drastically go down.

This isn’t just a stumbling block for the African Church… It’s a concern even in churches in America and other countries.

Going Beyond “Judea”

Many of us know the verse in  Matthew 28:19,

““Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit,” NASB

This is just going into our “own world” around us and preaching the Gospel right? If we look at Acts 1:8  we get a more detailed picture:

“But ye shall receive power, when the Holy Ghost is come upon you: and ye shall be my witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judaea and Samaria, and unto the uttermost part of the earth.” ESV

So…

Judea 

Samaria

To uttermost part of the earth 

Yes our local “world” or Judea is included but so are the ends of the earth.

I believe Great Commission pastors are one of the major keys to finishing the task of reaching the unreached. When people feel free to answer the call to go to dark places because their kingdom-minded pastors can release and encourage them in the call, it would open the door to MANY more missionaries on the field.

And the earth is still in DESPERATE need for more missionaries especially to the least and unreached places globally. Is God moving around the world? YES! However, there is no move of God so large right now that has ended the need for a strong missionary work force. Amazing stories here or there hasn’t canceled out the need to obey… to the uttermost parts of the earth.

Sowing Human Capital 

If we use the example of giving… we know we are all supposed to give to the Lord. This includes time but also money. Imagine someone or a family struggling. They know they should give but the human tendency would be to keep the few dollars they have in the family. There’s rent. Food needs to be put on the table. Bills need to be paid.

We live in an upside down kingdom.

If you lose your life you will save it.

If you become the least you will become the greatest.

If you give, it shall be given back to you.

All counter-intuitive things but that’s how the kingdom works.

In the same way, it can be counter-intuitive to give human resources or human capital towards the Lord’s work in the nations. Aren’t there needs here locally? Can’t the person just stay around here and do a little evangelism in the community? 

Yes, but we can never out-give God whether financially or with human resources. God doesn’t have to choose whether a small family should eat or if they should give. He can MORE than provide financial needs when we give. He can more than replace any human capital that is released to work in the field of the Lord. 

God’s Kingdom Agenda

God’s heart is to build the Church in general. This includes local congregations, winning the lost in local communities but also adding TO the Church the lost and forgotten in the nations. In MANY places no one is seeking them out and they have little to no access to the Gospel. It’s all important and vital to God. Yes, Gospel “deserts” still exist even as we feast in the Lord. The local church many times is the portal through which people go to the nations. It is worthy of praise every time a pastor says yes to release someone to the Lord for the least reached. I believe the Lord will not leave such pastors with nothing. When people are released… watch the Lord bring more people and connections than the pastor could have imagined!

When we trust the Lord whether with money or people…. it’s a win-win. Someone has to say yes. Everyone can’t be occupied and stay behind. When those people say “yes”, may God raise up more pastors to lay hands on those people. Even more so may the Lord release His burden to pastors who will then cheerlead people to go out to finish the task unto the return of the Lord.