Spiritual Warfare and Missions

Jerry Rankin, Ed Stetzer

• Publisher: B&H Books
• Year: 2010
• Print ISBN: 9780805448870
• eBook ISBN: 9781433671753
• Topic: Theology & Religion
• Subtopic: Christian Ministry

The mission of God to "Go, therefore, and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit" (Matthew 28: 19, HCSB) is a major target of spiritual warfare today. In this new book by International Mission Board president Jerry Rankin and
noted missiologist Ed Stetzer, the authors call out Satan's ongoing strategy to convince Christians that the Great Commission is optional. Through deceit, he is eroding the authoritative mandate of Scripture, leading believers to tell themselves that international discipleship is a task better left to denomination
and mission agencies—not the sort of kingdom work that every believer can do.
But for every evil success, Rankin and Stetzer point to where Satan is failing, thus encouraging readers to renew their passion to declare God's glory among the nations. Indeed, by taking up the call to action here, we can be sure that the kingdoms of the world will become the kingdom of the Lord.

CHAPTER 1

GOD’S PURPOSE: TO BE EXALTED AMONG THE NATIONS

I had been traveling for almost eight hours over winding dirt roads, sections of which were more appropriate for an all-terrain vehicle. The rainy season had left the narrow motorway a gully as water from the surrounding hills converged into cascading streams, washing away the gravel and leaving a patchwork of potholes in the occasional sections of deteriorating pavement. Ten-wheel, open-bed trucks, heavily laden with goods being transported to the isolated market towns of the interior, had left deep trenches, which the driver of our lightweight sedan found difficult to navigate.

It was 1982, and I (Jerry) had been in charge of creating a growing network of indigenous partners throughout India to expand mission initiatives in the country. We envisioned volunteer teams and itinerant missionaries making connections for the sake of ministry through humanitarian projects, training church leaders, and facilitating church growth. Contacts with Baptist leaders in other parts of the country had alerted me to a remnant of Baptists in the Khond Hills of the State of Orissa. Subsequent communication with this group resulted in an invitation to come and speak at their annual associational gathering.

I had taken a flight from Calcutta south to Bhubaneswar, a city I had never heard of and could not even pronounce. The remote location and isolated landing strip gave me the impression that I had arrived at my destination, only to be met by my hosts and informed we faced an eight-hour drive to the site of the meeting.

Crammed into the overloaded vehicle with my traveling companions, I had images of riding in Jehu’s chariot as the driver asserted total authority over the roadway and anything that dared to infringe on his right-of-way. Approaching a village, he seemed to accelerate with horn blaring as chickens, goats, and children scattered. The populated communities grew sparse as the road wound higher and higher around barren hills that for generations had been stripped of trees out of necessity for fuel and land for farming.

As we would dip into an occasional valley, the road would be totally enveloped in a jungle canopy of overhanging trees. Monkeys scurried into the underbrush as we rounded a bend, and we found ourselves braking to avoid running into the back end of an elephant ambling leisurely with his mahout perched high on his swaying shoulders.

Three flat tires lengthened the trip as each time the inner tube had to be removed, the puncture found and repaired, and then the tire reinflated through arduous efforts using a malfunctioning hand pump. I began to get a little anxious as the shadows began to lengthen and the security of civilization seemed to be left far behind. A pastor, who was to be my translator, told me about the Kui people with whom we would be meeting.

A generation ago they had never heard the gospel. They were among tribal groups so isolated that they had never been reached with the message of God’s love and salvation until some British missionaries established contact soon after World War II. In fact, these people were so pagan in their syncretistic Hindu and animist beliefs, I was told, that they would sacrifice one of their children and sprinkle his blood on their fields at planting time, believing the gods would give them a favorable harvest.

I began to see half-clothed people with scars and tattoos on their faces and bodies, unlike I had seen elsewhere in my travels throughout India. I have been many places in subsequent years that could be identified as the ends of the earth—remote villages in Mali, West Africa, indigenous Indian enclaves in the Amazon jungles of South America, the desert of southern Algeria, and isolated valleys of the Himalayas in Nepal. I have found myself incredulous to be standing in places like North Korea, Afghanistan, and Iran, but never had I sensed we were reaching beyond the fringes of the Great Commission as I did in penetrating the Khond Hills of India.

Topping a ridge, we suddenly caught sight of a massive crowd milling around an intersection ahead. My initial impression was that there had been a terrible accident, but then I was informed we had finally arrived at our destination and the crowd had come to welcome us. We disembarked from the car and walked the final kilometer to the sight of the annual meeting. We were escorted by a band of men adorned in grass skirts and feathers in their headdresses, dancing to the beat of drums and bamboo flutes. Their tongues trilling in traditional greeting, women lined the side of the road in saris of bright tribal colors of yellow, orange, red, and chartreuse.

More than three thousand people had gathered from every village in the Khond Hills. With their families and village clans, they were camped all across the hillsides surrounding a huge brush arbor. They weren’t very time conscious, waiting for us to arrive to gather and begin the program. They sat on the ground underneath a lacy pattern of sunlight and shadows dancing through the leaves and branches laid across low-hanging poles.

When everyone was settled, the man who seemed to be in charge shouted something, and all the people responded with a shout. Once again the leader shouted, and in antiphonal response the people replied. Not understanding the local dialect, I presumed this was simply a customary way of beginning a public ceremony or perhaps a way of greeting us as the honored guests.

My interpreter nudged me and asked if I knew what they were saying, which, of course, I didn’t. He said, “The leader is shouting, ‘Who is the Lord?’ And all the people are responding, ‘Jesus is Lord.’” As this was repeated several times, goose bumps appeared on my arms, and a chill went up my spine. Here were a people that were not a people, a people who had lived in darkness but had now become the people of God. This is what Paul referred to as he quoted the prophet Hosea in Romans 9:26, “You are not My people, [but] they will be called: Sons of the living God” (Hos. 1:10). These were a people in darkness who had now come to the light as Isaiah prophesied, “Darkness covers the earth, and total darkness the peoples; but the LORD will shine over you. . . . Nations will come to your light” (Isa. 60:2–3).

As I heard the Kui people of the Khond Hills declaring “Jesus is Lord,” I immediately thought of Philippians 2:10–11 and the awesome implications of what I was witnessing. “So that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow . . . and every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” Just as these Kui people, geographically isolated and separated from God, living in spiritual darkness, had now become the people of God, one day all people will recognize Jesus as Lord. God will be glorified by the confession of praise being declared by every tongue, “Jesus is Lord” to the glory of God the Father!

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Everything created in the world should be seen in the context of existing for God's glory.

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God’s ultimate purpose and desire is clear: to be glorified through His redemption of the nations. He alone is worthy of all praise and honor. His purpose is to be known and worshipped and exalted by the nations and peoples of the earth. The culmination of His divine activity in the world is expressed in the book of Revelation: “Our Lord and God, You are worthy to receive glory and honor and power, because You have created all things, and because of Your will they exist and were created” (Rev. 4:11). Everything created in the world should be seen in the context of existing for God’s glory. Every activity and endeavor should be to glorify Him not only in our lives and community but among all peoples, even to the ends of the earth.

Unwinding from the Triumphant Conclusion

The movement and mission from God can be traced through a linguistic thread woven throughout Scripture. The thread began under the rebellious circumstances in Babel and became the platform for God’s mission through Pentecost and His glory in Revelation. By following the linguistic thread, we can better understand our mission with Him and for Him. The thread throughout the biblical record also traces God’s relentless pursuit of a people for His glory. Rewinding God’s story from Revelation 7, a picture of the missionary heart of God is clear. As people gather at the end of the age, we read in Revelation 7:9–10, “After this I looked, and there was a vast multitude from every nation, tribe, people, and language, which no one could number, standing before the throne and before the Lamb. They were robed in white with palm branches in their hands. And they cried out in a loud voice: Salvation belongs to our God, who is seated on the throne, and to the Lamb!” What will that sound like? Will everybody praise in a different language? Our information about the details is limited, but we do know it will be one voice. In unity brought about by God’s presence and kingdom, from distinct people groups, His people will worship in the many languages they spoke during their mortal lives, giving praise to the Lord and glory to the Father.

Perhaps God retains languages in heaven because of their usefulness during the mission to deliver people there. When the Holy Spirit arrived to indwell believers in Acts, we see a picture of the “beginning of the end” in God’s plan. For God’s purposes, the early church was given the supernatural ability to speak in tongues (foreign languages), and thus, they were understood as the gospel was proclaimed at Pentecost. Through the person of the Holy Spirit, God’s purposes were accomplished like no other time in history. When God’s power is manifested, no arguments of man or principality can stand against it.

God’s supernatural power and purpose were at work for the church in perfect harmony. The incredible aftereffect was seen through transformed lives: at least three thousand saved and baptized in Acts 2. God’s ultimate glory is best manifested when people from every tongue, tribe, and nation sing praise to His name. At no other time in history has the power of God been experienced by representatives of the known world in such an intensely multicultural incident. Notice the linguistic thread.

The birth of the Christian movement was multiethnic and multicultural. Our current experience of Christianity in America is painfully monocultural. We can have the knowledge and practice of Christianity perfect. But until there is a clear embrace of the multicultural, multiethnic roots of Christianity, we will miss the greater blessing of God and cover of God’s glory. Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. called the eleven o’clock worship hour on Sunday morning the most racially segregated hour in America. The picture that was bothersome to Dr. King, in light of Pentecost, should be equally appalling to missionary Christians. When God’s supernatural power is evident, no segregation exists. He speaks a singular message to diverse people, and they embrace the true God when hearing of Him in their heart language.

Globalization was at its finest hour at Pentecost. Globalization is commonly used as an economic term. Mainly due to the rapid growth of technology, geography is no longer an obstacle to buying and selling. The result is a more competitive environment. When the world competed for positions of power, God produced global Christians at Pentecost by producing level ground for all people. God was glorified by this amazing, supernatural act of tongues. If only one nation had experienced Pentecost, that one nation could have felt favored. But God favors every tribe equally. There is no one guardian of special faith, knowledge, or mystical experiences. No skin color or people group can elevate themselves over the rest. God is the great gift giver partially because all of us are the blessed receivers of His gift. Luke described the scene in Acts:

There were Jews living in Jerusalem, devout men from every nation under heaven. When this sound occurred, the multitude came together and was confused because each one heard them speaking in his own language. And they were astounded and amazed, saying, “Look, aren’t all these who are speaking Galileans? How is it that we hear, each of us, in our own native language? Parthians, Medes, Elamites; those who live in Mesopotamia, in Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the parts of Libya near Cyrene; visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabs—we hear them speaking in our own languages the magnificent acts of God.” (Acts 2:5–11)

The purpose and desire of our missionary God is demonstrated again through the linguistic thread.

Millions were in Jerusalem for Pentecost. God appointed a gathering place three times a year for His people to “appear before” Him (Deut. 16:16). The Holy City, established by King David, was the place for pilgrims to experience deeper life with God. Small, diverse people groups experienced the power of God through an encounter with Jesus Christ at Pentecost. Priests who witnessed the historic event of the temple veil being torn in two a few months earlier would experience more history. “Suddenly a sound like that of a violent rushing wind came from heaven, and it filled the whole house where they were staying. And tongues, like flames of fire that were divided, appeared to them and rested on each one of them. Then they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in different languages, as the Spirit gave them ability for speech” (Acts 2:2–4). God miraculously reversed what happened at Babel for the moment. Tongues once again appear but in everyone’s heart language. Pilgrims experienced the power of God for the first time. Immediately they became colaborers in the mission of God.

Before Pentecost the mission of God was given exclusively to Israel. Being chosen bore an incredible worldwide mission responsibility to be a light to the nations. In Isaiah, God makes clear the missionary purpose of Israel. God’s people struggled with the mission because of their contempt for people other than their own. “I, the LORD, have called you for a righteous purpose, and I will hold you by your hand. I will keep you, and I make you a covenant for the people and a light to the nations, in order to open blind eyes, to bring out prisoners from the dungeon, and those sitting in darkness from the prison house” (Isa. 42:6–7). God’s promise to Abram, to bless all nations through him, is further fulfilled at Pentecost. No longer is the mission of God through Israel only. No tribe is more called or less called than the other. Christians in Africa have as much responsibility for the mission of God to the nations as Christians in Asia. North American Christians have as much responsibility for the mission of God as do Christians in Europe. We are all called to go to the nations. Why? To live out the missionary heart of God who is telling all Christians, everywhere, to go some place else with the gospel!

Peter rewound the story further by connecting the event with a prediction from Joel the prophet of the pouring out of the Spirit. Miracles seen long ago were demonstrated once again. The miracle of seeing and embracing Jesus among a diverse people with diverse belief systems is undeniable. As told to Joel by God, the sign would be a great outpouring on “all flesh.” The power of God is not limited to Jewish flesh or Gentile flesh. Without the power of the Spirit of God, it would be impossible to engage the diversity of the world and its many languages. Global conversion to Christ does seem impossible. Suddenly we see the only way to touch the diverse nations of the world with the gospel of Jesus is through the power of the Holy Spirit. Everyone had equal access to all of God, instantly. Priests or institutional religious ceremonies were no longer obstacles to a love relationship with God.

Jerusalem was a sacred place to those who sought the God of Abraham. As we trace the linguistic thread throughout the story of God, we see two forces around the Holy City. Until Pentecost the epicenter of life with God was the pilgrimage to the temple and the Holy City. Pilgrims went up to Jerusalem to find and follow God. Centripetal force pulled inward. The nations came up to Jerusalem. Historians estimate more than two million people visited for Pentecost. Much to the disappointment of God, pilgrims would not only abuse the journey, but they would reduce God and their experience with Him to one place. The pilgrimage itself led to moral and spiritual abuses of the commands of God. Pentecost literally released the Christian movement from an inward movement around a geographica...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Endorsements
• Title
• Copyright
• Dedication
• Contents
• Foreword
• Preface
• Chapter 1
• Chapter 2
• Chapter 3
• Chapter 4
• Chapter 5
• Chapter 6
• Chapter 7
• Chapter 8
• Chapter 9
• Chapter 10
• Chapter 11
• Chapter 12
• Notes
• Backmatter