I needed a pocket-sized book today for chaperoning my kid’s field trip, and this small volume from my church’s library was just the ticket. Concise yet emphatic, this book studies out seven missional truths from 1Timothy 2:1-8, supporting each with further examples from the Word.

At the risk of giving the whole book away, let me share the following seven truths, each of which takes up its own chapter:

1) Universal Prayer, v.1-2;
2) The Unity of God, v.3;
3) The Universal Love and Concern of God, v.4;
4) The Unique Mediatorship of Jesus Christ, v.5;
5) The Universality of Christ’s Atonement, v.6;
6) Universal Proclamation of the Gospel, v.7; and
7) Human Instrumentality, 7-8.

G. Christian Weiss was the Director of Missions at Back to the Bible Broadcast when his organization published this book, and I really enjoyed how he broke this passage down and worked out his lessons from the text. While each and every believer is responsible for proclaiming the Gospel to the Lost, he notes, there still exists a specific role for missionaries sent into the larger world to do the same. How refreshing to read this support of the missionary’s role!

The concept of “everyone’s a missionary” is misguided and it belittles the office. I’m sure I’ve written it before, but it reminds of that comment from Jack in The Incredibles: “If everyone’s special, then no one is special.” I feel the same way about missionaries. The word literally means “one who is sent,” and this is a special office for those within our churches whom the Holy Spirit is calling, not every child brightening the corner where he is.

One line from this book’s introduction stuck out to me, as it describes the source of the missionary’s commitment to the work. This line hit me especially because it comes in the context of an unfair sentiment, that missionaries are somehow second-class citizens among all the other ministers of the Gospel. How untrue that is!

A somewhat common attitude among Christians is that although missionaries are sincere, zealous, even heroic people, they are not necessarily or generally capable Bible scholars….That which actually makes Christian men and women become genuine missionaries is their arrival at certain unshakable convictions from the Bible regarding God’s world plan and our Christian responsibility toward the world according to that plan. These convictions drive them to the mission field in the first place and keep them on the field year after year in faithful, selfless service. The mere spirit of adventure or philanthropy is not sufficient to do this. But an understanding of the teachings of the Scriptures and the sound conviction of its demands on us will not allow the missionary to do otherwise. (8)

Two other lines jumped out at me, and I don’t think either requires commentary:

Theology in action is the only worthwhile kind (13)

[Deuteronomy 6:4, 13-14] emphasizes that there is one God and one God only. Therefore, love Him; there is no other God to love. Serve Him; there is no other sovereign master. Worship Him; there is no other God to worship. Trust Him; there is no other God to help you. (20)

This was an excellent little book for me to read today, a challenge to my own thinking about missions and the source of the missionary burden. If I ever preach through 1Timothy again, I hope I can do this passage as much justice as Weiss has done here.

©2021 E.T.