Fourteen: A New Mission
When you trusted in jesus…
Have you ever had a life goal, pursuit or dream? Maybe it’s a long and happy marriage or a successful career. For others, it might be finding fame, playing professional sports or traveling the world. Still, for others, the mission is to simply enjoy each moment of life to the fullest (YOLO.) No matter what your life’s goals might be, we all have a deep need to engage in something long-lasting that brings meaning and purpose—something that gives us direction for making decisions, prioritizing our time and charting a course for our life. This lifelong quest for purpose has many names, but we will simply call it your mission. A clear and meaningful mission is one of the most important things you can have in life, as it keeps you focused, grounded and able to endure temporary hardship for a much greater future reward. When you trusted in Jesus, you received a New Mission.
This new mission does not necessarily replace all aspects of your current one, but it definitely takes priority. After Jesus was raised from the dead, before He ascended into heaven, He shared this mission with His closest followers—a mission that has been passed on to all Jesus followers throughout history. The mission, also known as “The Great Commission,” is a call to make disciples of Jesus in every corner of the earth. This phrase, “to make disciples,” might be new to you, but it just means helping others to live like Jesus did, to be reflections of His life and teachings. This process of making disciples begins with sharing the truth of the salvation in Jesus. It also means helping new believers live out the new life and reality that has been described in this booklet (and so much more). The hope and prayer is that each person you help disciple would live their life with Jesus’s love, wisdom, grace, truth, forgiveness, mercy, patience, peace, passion, sacrifice, and everything else we know about Him and how He lived.
To understand just how profound this mission is and its impact, imagine what the world would be like if everyone lived like Jesus did. Or what if just you and those around you truly lived like Jesus on a regular basis? What would be the impact on your family, friends and local community? Jesus not only calls us to become His disciples, those that reflect Him, but also to engage in a mission to transform the world by helping others do the same. Through His supernatural support, we are called to help create a world filled with people who reflect the nature of Jesus in every motive, word and deed. As you help to make disciples, you will also get the chance to encourage these new believers to engage in this mission as well, exponentially multiplying its transformational power. This is your New Mission from God, to change the world, by making more followers of Jesus!