— by J.D. Greear

In the last on our series with JD Greear, we hear a call to the mission field, not as international missionaries in the traditional sense, but to loving people and sharing the gospel in word and deed in our workplaces. JD explains that entrepreneurs are fitted with unique skills and placements intentionally by a God who has a specific mission for them. It is an important mission, rife with excitement and hope, where entrepreneurs get to partner with God in his beautiful and perfect plan. 

God intends for your life and your talents to be a part of the greatest cause on Earth and the greatest mission that any human being, man or woman, has ever engaged in. If you're a follower of Jesus, you have to ask, how can my faith driven entrepreneurial exploits, how can they serve the great commission? Here's the truth: that calling to leverage your life for the great commission and for the mission of God that was included in the call to follow Jesus. When Jesus called people to himself in Matthew 4:19, he said, “Follow me and I will make you fishers of men,” which means when you accept Jesus, you accepted the call to mission. 

What if [believers in the marketplace] understood that God had given them this open door business in the 10-40 Window as a place where they could, in addition to doing their business with excellence, also be disciple-making disciples? You would increase the mission force in the least reached part of the world without spending another dime. We hear a lot of talk today about a lack of funds and getting missionaries to do some of these places. But I'm telling you, they're already there. They're called business people. 

The point is, God has given some of you a key, and that key can literally unlock the nations. In Proverbs 22, wise King Solomon said, “Do you see somebody skilled in their work? I tell you, they will serve before kings.” So here's my question. Like I said, we hear a lot today about the need for more missionaries, the need for more funding. And that's true. But what if God was behind this lack of funding as his way to remobilize and reengage a group of Christians in the workplace that have always been the tip of the gospel spear? That's always been his strategy. What if he was returning us to the Book of Acts when merchants, carpenters, fishermen and entrepreneurs without seminary degrees or formal religious training turn the world upside down? 

We also know that in today's culture, more and more people, even in the Western world, have to be reached outside of the church that we're living in, a culture where more and more people identify as none on a religious survey. These are not the kinds of people that just make their way to church services and hear the gospel. I have a friend who lives outside of London and he pointed me to a study where 70 percent of British people say they have no plans of ever stepping foot inside a church. It's not that they're mad at the church. It's just a different world. If we're depending on simply better sermons and better music and better guest services to reach people, we're going to have awesome services for people who are never going to be there to experience them. We don't want to see the future of Christianity as increasingly fewer and flashier megachurches keep competing for larger pieces of a rapidly shrinking pie. We're going to need to grow the pie. And the way that we grow the pie is by equipping people to take the gospel into the workplace. 

It's about equipping you to put your “yes” on the table so that God can use you in the place that he has equipped you for. It's all part of his plan. You are especially designed by him with a purpose in his kingdom. Our prayer has been and is that you will step up and use those things according to the purposes for which God gave them to you. 

More articles by J.D. Greear

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[ Photo by Mario Gogh on Unsplash ]