Obedience has a Price Tag

"I will not offer burnt offerings to the Lord my God that cost me nothing." 2 Samuel 24:24b

David was told by the prophet Gad to build an altar to the Lord on the threshing floor belonging to a man named Araunah.  His call, his marching orders, were clear...do this thing. 

So, David went to Araunah and told him the purpose behind his visit:  "To buy the threshing floor from you, in order to build an altar to the Lord, that the plague may be averted from the people." 2 Samuel 24:21

Well, Araunah was a good Israelite. His king had come to him in need of something. His response was like ours would have been: "Take it...all that you need or want!! Free of charge; it is my pleasure, my king!"

However, David...the KING...does not respond in the manner which I anticipated. "No, but I will buy it from you for a price. I will not offer burnt offerings to the Lord my God that cost me nothing." 2 Samuel 24:24

How does this passage relate to short-term missions?

"I will not offer burnt offerings to the Lord my God that cost me nothing."

If you believe that God has commanded you to do something...if your "call", your marching order, is clear...then do it. Go in obedience.

However, do not expect that in the completion of your task, you will incur no costs. The God who required the ultimate sacrifice from His own Son surely expects a little from us, don't you think?

First, humble yourself.  Did David send a messenger to Araunah to tell him what the king needed? No. He personally went.  If the King of Israel can make a personal appearance before his potential benefactor, so can we.  A letter requesting support should only serve as a reminder to a previously held conversation. Go to people, tell them why you are going, tell them where you are going, tell them what you hope the end result will be.

If you hand me a support letter without asking me to sit down and give you an opportunity to tell me about your trip, I will throw it away. End of story. If you cannot sacrifice your time and humble yourself to ask face-to-face, you are not fit for the mission field...short- or long-term.

Second, be prepared for an outpouring of gifts. David asked to buy the threshing floor. Araunah offered to give him the threshing floor, the oxen, and the threshing sledges and oxen yokes to use as wood! And, on top of that, he offered his blessing upon David: "May The Lord accept you." 2 Samuel 24:23

Now, this doesn't mean that everyone you ask will give. However, some will. And some will give beyond what you could imagine. Ask them all to pray for you.  Ask them to pray that your calling is clear and that you are obeying God completely.

Lastly, be willing to work. It would have been so easy...and so understandable...for David to simply respond with a grateful, "Thank you." However, he knew that obedience requires sacrifice. 

"I will not offer burnt offerings to the Lord my God that cost me nothing."

Offer to work for people who you ask for support.  Babysit, do yard work, clean their house, go grocery shopping for them. I would be willing to guarantee that their "payment" will be greater proportionally than your sacrifice of time or labor.  I do not believe that God desires for us to depend wholly on the benevolence of others to accomplish the good works He has prepared in advance for us to do. 

How does the story end? David buys the threshing floor and oxen, builds an altar and sacrifices to the Lord, who hears David's plea and the plague on the land is averted. In other words, David obeyed and God moved. Don't you want to experience that? 

I hope our family has the opportunity to join many in the fulfillment of their marching orders. 

We need to grow up

My church is an extremely missions-minded church.  In fact, that is one of the primary reasons why Trey and I decided to join this particular fellowship of believers.  We want our children to grow up with the Great Commission being lived out before them, not simply taught.

However, over the past few weeks, I have heard several people complain that there is too much of a missions-emphasis from the pulpit.  

"He preaches too much about missions."  "We aren't all called to be missionaries."  "I don't know about you, but I'm supposed to stay right here in my Jerusalem."

To be honest, I have begun struggling with a question about a "calling" to the mission field...why don't I have one??  Why am I not considered one of the elite followers?  Why am I not called to ministry or to missions?  Am I not good enough for God's all-star team?

The truth is:  I have been called.  

In Acts 1:8, Jesus says, "...you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth."  (emphasis mine) Christ-followers, from the very beginning of their walk, are all called to the mission field for the glory of God.  That will definitely look differently in each of our lives, but, make no mistake, we must all be prepared to go.  In fact, Rupert Leary says, "Plan to go, but be willing to stay."

So...if that is the case, why do we get angry at preachers who focus on missions?  Why do we get irritated when the Great Commission is emphasized "too much"?  Why do the vast majority of us believe that we are called to hang out in "Jerusalem" and only the really good ones are bound for the ends of the earth?

"When discipleship is healthy, sending is easy."

Ouch.

When I heard Leary say this, it all came full circle.  The Church is failing in her discipleship ministry.  Therefore, her sending is weakened. 

Jesus said, "Follow me, and I will make you become fishers of men." (Mark 1:17)  He went to the marina, sought out His men and invited them to spend three years in life-on-life ministry with Him in order to prepare them for His purpose...to get His story to the ends of the earth.  Now, the entire earth wasn't even populated at that time, so obviously 12 men weren't going to finish the job.  But, they were to reproduce their lives to the next generation, and that generation would reproduce to the next, and so on.

Discipleship is not a Bible study, a book club or an accountability group.  Discipleship is guiding someone from spiritual infancy to spiritual maturity so that they can reproduce.  We are spiritual babies.  Okay...before you get all high and mighty about being saved as a toddler and a member of your church for the past 30+ years...being a Christian for your entire life does not mean that you are spiritually mature and reproducing.  It might just mean that you are spiritually fat.  Have you ever been discipled?  My heart breaks when I bring this topic up among my generation of believers.  We don't have a clue.  We have been lost in the shuffle of over-programming, worship-style wars, and denominational power struggles.  Our enemy is shrewd.  I wish every pastor would put a hard stop to every single program in the church until a true discipleship program was established and effective.  Imagine.  The last time that happened, the world was changed.

Why does the emphasis on "going" elicit such irritation and angst?  Because we can't.  We don't know how.  But, saying "I can't. Please help me," hurts our pride.  It's easier to whine and say, "You can't make me."  We need to grow up.