Our Mission Handbook describes our purpose in the world. We want to know Jesus Christ, first of all. We are determined to pray for the advance of his kingdom. And there is more. We are determined “to share the gospel and ourselves with those who do not know him” (Handbook, ¶12).
We have borrowed this language from the Apostle Paul. It is language that might use some unpacking.
In his first letter to the Thessalonians, Paul describes a deep affection for his friends. “Every time we think of you,” Paul writes, “we thank God for you” (1:2, The Message). “We cared for you the way a mother cares for her children,” he goes on to say (v.7). “We loved you dearly” (v.8). And then we find this: “So deeply do we care for you, that we are determined to share with you not only the gospel of God but also our own selves” (v.8, NRSV).
Paul’s caring makes him determined “to share” (μεταδίδωμι). The word may refer to spiritual sharing of “spiritual” sorts of things (cf. Romans 1:11). It is used more frequently, however, for material sharing (cf. Luke 3:11, Ephesians 4:28, etc.). In this passage, it means both.
Paul is determined to share “the gospel of God,” on the one hand.
“Gospel [εὐαγγέλιον] is a Greek word,” Luther explains. “[It] means a good message, good tidings, good news, a good report, which one sings and tells with rejoicing” (WLS, 1702). “What is the Gospel?” Luther asks. “No better answer can be given than these words of the New Testament: Christ gave his body and shed his blood for us for the forgiveness of sins” (WLS, 1700).
The “gospel of God” is clear and specific news regarding the life and work of Jesus Christ, and the salvation he has won for all people. It is the good news that stands at the very heart of the Christian faith. This, first of all, is the object of Paul’s sharing. It is the very best gift that he can possibly give.
But then Paul goes on: he is determined to share “his own self,” as well.
Here Paul uses ψυχή (psyche), a New Testament word often translated “soul” (KJV). Other translations render the word “life” (NIV), “heart” (Phillips), or “self” (NRSV). It refers to the dynamic center of one’s being. Yet there is nothing ethereal about New Testament ψυχή. It is flesh and blood, mind and emotion, will and fundamental ambition – everything that makes “us,” us. Jesus gives up his ψυχή as a ransom for many – his flesh-and-blood, walking-around life (Mark 10:45). His followers are challenged to surrender their ψυχή, as well – their loyalties and families, their treasures and time (Luke 14:26). The word refers to one’s entire, undivided, multi-layered being.
So Paul envisions sharing the wonderful news of God’s grace in Jesus Christ – then pouring himself out for his friends in Thessalonica, at a deep and intimate level. He “worked night and day” to support himself while among them (2:9). He pleads with them (2:11ff) and prays for them, with earnestness and passion (e.g. 3:10ff). He frets for his friends in Thessalonica, too. “I didn’t want the Tempter getting to you and tearing down everything we had built up together” (3:5, The Message).
There is nothing coldly academic about the Apostle Paul. Paul is a “life on life” missionary. He is more than talk. He walks the walk.
Our Handbook envisions something like this, too.
We are determined to share the good news of salvation in Jesus Christ. We mean “explicit and intentional communication regarding the Person of Jesus Christ, his blessed life and work, and the redemption won for all nations and tribes, peoples and languages through his blood shed at Calvary (Acts 4:12)” (Handbook, ¶218).
We are determined to share our lives, as well. Where there is hurt or need, we aim to pour ourselves out in service. Where there is illness or injury, we will do what we can to heal. We envision mending broken hearts, where we can, healing broken bodies, and standing in solidarity with broken families and neighborhoods. We mean “doing good to all people in the name of Jesus Christ, in order to overcome evil, to heal and to help, and so to make life more like God the Father wants it to be” (Handbook, ¶217).
“Sharing,” I think, is a good word for the challenge we have undertaken. We aim to share all that we’ve got.
Other posts in this Introducing the Mission Handbook series: