Zambia Hunt

Those who lead must first learn to follow. We are to humbly submit to those placed over us, as they stand in place of God himself, under Scripture. Far too often, our conflicts on the field stem not from principle or theological conviction but from our unwillingness to submit to those God sovereignly placed over us as an authority. This may be a fellow worker, a long-standing missionary team member, or the local brother whose ministry and gifts place him in the lead. We are not to assume the highest position simply because we left our country at great sacrifice to travel and live in a foreign culture. One bane of missions is the arrogance that can accompany the most academically qualified or those with greater experience. Knowledge puffs up, and missionaries would do well to remember that and make intentional choices daily to put themselves low and last. We are nothing; our achievements are not our own but merely gifts bestowed by our gracious Lord, so who am I to assume that I am greater, better, or more pleasing than my brother? 

Genuinely, the refusal to submit to the authorities around me is a refusal to submit to the God who placed those persons in my life. We are indeed nothing; everything we have through intellect, knowledge, and positions was given to us in stewardship and is not our own at the end of the day. We belong to another, and we serve at His pleasure. Who are we to forbid others to “curse” if God has instructed them to do so? (See David, fleeing from Absalom).

We cannot only acknowledge God’s sovereignty in theory but we are also called to live out the implications of this doctrine in our everyday lives—day in and day out. This gives us courage when threatened and steadfastness when tempted to throw in the towel and quit.

Our faith in the accomplishment of the task of planting and nurturing a church into a healthy reproducing fellowship of Christians must be rooted solidly in the person and nature of Jesus Christ. He is the source of missions, the foundation upon which the church is founded, the cornerstone from which the church is built in a straight line of Scripture, the owner of the church, the One who purchased the church with His blood! Who are we to determine that we have a different or better plan? How can we doubt that He is incapable of doing in and for His church what He has determined in eternity past? Our task is to believe in the revealed will of Christ and in His power to do in and for His church what He proclaims.

You and I are expendable in the work. God is pleased to use us for His glory but never thinks He needs us. He is supremely sufficient to build His church against which the gates of hell will not prevail. His means for the planting and building His church is the proclamation of Scriptures, through which the Holy Spirit will breathe life into dead bones! When we pass off the scene, Jesus Christ will still be on His throne and building His church through which He will be glorified for all eternity. Never make yourself the hinge upon which the ministry turns. Never make yourself indispensable to the ministry. There is only one person in the church who is essential – that is Jesus Himself. 

Our vision for what God wants to do in Africa should be as big as God Himself. Christ has commissioned us to proclaim Him and the salvation He offers to every ‘ethne’ and his commission is not subject to the restrictions of time, place, government, or our weakness and inability. God is calling out a people for His name, and he will do that from every nation, tongue, and people in Africa. The reality of what Christ is doing should motivate us to expect Him to accomplish that through us. Each of us is doing our part, using our gifts, and pressing on in Jesus’ name!