This is the best sermon that I have ever heard on the sermon text that I touched upon this morning:
I saw this at T4G and it left a profound impact upon me then that reverberates even to that which is called today. You would do well to watch and heed this message.
Our undertaking to India really appeared to me, on its commencement, to be somewhat like a few men, who were deliberating about the importance of penetrating into a deep mine, which had never before been explored. We had no one to guide us; and while we were thus deliberating, Carey, as it were, said, ‘Well I will go down if you will hold the rope.” But, before he went down, he, as it seemed to me, took an oath from each of us at the mouth of the pit to this effect, that while we lived we should never let go the rope. You understand me. There was great responsibility attached to us who began the business. -Andrew Fuller
With there still being a good number of unreached people groups (deep mines, as Fuller referenced) we still need both people to “go down” and people to “hold the rope”.
It is worth noting that what Fuller had in mind when he said “hold the rope” was not a casual sort of making sure that the rope did not break but a solemn responsibility to provide as much assistant to this mission that he could. Fuller went all throughout England raising funds to help Carey and this mission to India.
The cooperative program is wonderful and it is a helpful way for churches to band together to “hold the rope” for foreign missions. But I am convinced that what is needed is much more than simply cutting a “tithe” to the cooperative program every Sunday. I believe Fuller would have agreed with a missionary named Jason who said:
“…there will continue to be millions and millions of people who do not hear as long as we continue to use spare time and spare money to reach them. Those are two radically different questions. ‘What can we spare?’ and ‘What will it take?’” (quoted by David Platt in Radical, 129)
Can I be honest with you? That question scares me and rocks me to the core. Throwing my spare change at missions means that I don’t really have to make a ton of sacrifices. But asking “what will it take” means that I have to ask questions about whether this book, this game, this meal, this _____, is actually purchasing food that does not perish or if it is simply making me comfortably numb.
What would happen if all the churches of the SBC began asking “what will it take” rather than “what can we spare”? What would happen if we’d spend less money on expensive buildings, programs, maintenance, salaries, etc. and instead through all of our money towards enjoying God and extending His glory? How different would our church look? How different would the world look?
As Piper has said, “you have three possibilities in world missions. You can be a goer, a sender, or disobedient.”
OR 
I am excited that I have gotten an advance reading copy of David Platt’s new book Radical Together. In the second chapter he says something is a helpful assistant to his previous book Radical:
“…I must tell you something: you will never be radical enough. No matter what you do, even if you sell all of your possessions and move to the most dangerous country in the world for ministry’s sake, you cannot do enough to be accepted before God. And the beauty of the gospel is that you don’t have to. God so love you that, despite your hopeless state of sin, he sent his Son—God in the flesh—to live the life you could not live. Jesus alone has kept the commands of God. He alone has been faithful enough, generous enough, and compassionate enough. Indeed, he alone has been radical enough.”
Only Jesus is Radical Enough. Great word!
This book is coming out in April, pre-order it now for under $10
The 2010 messengers of the Southern Baptist Convention voted on moving towards a Great Commission Resurgence. I happily voted for the GCR because I am passionate about seeing the gospel spread to the nations. (Although, I am certain that my passion should/could increase all the more).
As excited as I am to see a Great Commission Resurgence I wonder if maybe we should call it something else—or perhaps change it’s emphasis. Biblically, I see something else motivating Paul’s mission—and honestly something that undergirds Jesus’ Great Commission.
I am beginning to study Romans (and am anxiously awaiting my first day of class with Dr. Schreiner to go through this letter). Today, I began by studying the first 7 verses. Notice verse 5:
[5] through whom we have received grace and apostleship to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the nations, (Romans 1:5 ESV)
Paul is saying that he has gracious received his apostleship (in other words his salvation and calling to ministry were by grace). The purpose of this gift—or the purpose of Paul’s ministry—is to bring about the obedience of faith. This is either saying the obedience that springs from faith or the obedience that is faith. Either way, notice the purpose; “for the sake of his name among all the nations”. What is the motivation for missions? That Jesus may be praised.
To this end Dr. Schreiner quotes John Stott:
“the highest of missionary motives is neither obedience to the Great Commission (important as that is), nor love for sinners who are alienated and perishing (strong as that incentive is, especially when we contemplate the wrath of God, verse 18), but rather zeal—burning and passionate zeal—for the glory of Jesus Christ.”
So perhaps what we need prior to a Great Commission Resurgence is a Great Commandment Resurgence. If worship (passionate love for God) is the fuel of missions, a Great Commission Resurgence without a prior Great Commandment Resurgence will be like a souped-up car that doesn’t have any fuel. It looks nice, it has potential, and might win the acclaim of on-lookers but it won’t get you to the grocery store. As I look at many of the great missionaries of the past, and even those today (like David Platt) what inspires them is a deep love for Christ and an abiding belief that Jesus deserves the praise of the nations. The missionary heart lives these sentiments of John Piper:
But worship is also the fuel of missions. Passion for God in worship precedes the offer of God in preaching. You can’t commend what you don’t cherish. Missionaries will never call out, “Let the nations be glad!” who cannot say from the heart, “I rejoice in the Lord...I will be glad and exult in thee, I will sing praise to thy name, O Most High” (Ps 104:34, 9:2). Missions begins and ends in worship.
(Piper, Let the Nations be Glad)
So while we are encouraging our churches to be actively involved in mission we had better be equally intentional about providing them fuel.
Our church is going through David Platt’s excellent book Radical in our small groups. The first chapter is centered around Luke 14:25-33, which reads:
I've struggled more times than once with this passage. What really gives me trouble is the finality and broadness of Jesus’ statement: “cannot be my disciple”.[25] Now great crowds accompanied him, and he turned and said to them, [26] “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple. [27] Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple. [28] For which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it? [29] Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him, [30] saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish.’ [31] Or what king, going out to encounter another king in war, will not sit down first and deliberate whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand? [32] And if not, while the other is yet a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks for terms of peace. [33] So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple. (Luke 14:25-33 ESV)
I have a hard time buying that. In Luke 14 he is talking to the multitude. His audience isn’t believers. His audience is those that are mostly following but still reserved about following this new teacher. So, Jesus isn’t telling a crowd of uncommitted followers how to reach level 2. He is telling those on the fringe to count the cost before following Him.
But this doesn’t help me.
What if I’m struggling with the idolatry of putting my family first instead of Jesus? Does this make me an unbeliever? What if I’m finding my cross a little too heavy to bear? Am I now on the fast track to hell? What if I have yet to renounce everything?
Honestly, these questions feel more like the Law than the gospel. It makes me feel like I have to love my wife less, sell a watch or something, and maybe get the Ebola virus and then I’ll be worthy to follow Jesus. But that’s not what Jesus is saying here. Is it?
That is why I find these words of Piper helpful:
On the basis of who he was and what he accomplished, Jesus made his demands. The demands cannot be separated from his person and work. The obedience he demands is the fruit of his redeeming work and the display of his personal glory. That is why he came—to create a people who glorify his gracious reign by bearing the fruit of his kingdom.
When he said, ‘The Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost’, he was speaking about Zacchaeus who had just been so transformed that he gave half his possessions to the poor. In other words, the Son of Man came to save people from their suicidal love affair with possessions (and every other idol) and to lead them into a kind of impossible obedience that displays the infinite worth of Jesus. (Piper, What Jesus Demands from the World, p23)
In other words you need Jesus in order to follow Jesus. Just because it is Jesus making the demands it doesn’t mean that we are able to obey without the work of His Spirit. So as I am confronted with texts like Luke 14 I have to ask myself a few questions.
First, is my heart one that is progressively growing in this type of obedience? Is there evidence of the Spirit rescuing me from a suicidal love affair with possessions?
Secondly, when I discover that I’m not renouncing everything what do I do? Do I start looking to myself to rescue me from myself, or do I turn and look to Jesus?
Thirdly, am I following Jesus—and doing so in an increasing measure? Or am I just making my own “Jesus” that is following me? Because so long as my weak faith is laying hold of a strong Christ I know that nothing can snatch me out of his hand. But if my weak faith is laying hold of a weak self I don’t have much hope.
Author: David Platt
Pages: 240pgs
Publisher: Multnomah
Price: 9.99
Genre: Christian Living/Missions
Quick Summary:
If you are unfamiliar with David Platt that will probably change soon. At least it should. He is extremely passionate about the gospel and about missions. This book is a challenge that encompasses both. At the end you will be encouraged to take a “one-year journey in authentic discipleship”.
This really is not a call to “radical” Christianity. This is a call to actually follow Jesus. This isn’t radical Christianity it is living out the Christian life as if Jesus actually has more worth than our security, money, personal comforts, and even family.
The book is jam packed with real stories of real people doing the things that Platt points out in this book. Throughout he discusses missions, the glory of God, poverty, and our response to these calls upon our life.
What I Liked:
It is well written, it is gospel-driven, and obvious that Platt is passionate about spreading the glory of God to the nations. This book and the ministry of David Platt is being used as a much needed wake up call to comfortable Christians like myself. I was given this book at the Baptist21 event during the SBC Annual Meeting, read it on the plane ride home, and have been praying about how to live out the truths presented in this book. It has opened my eyes even further to things that I was already passionate about. This book really spurred me on to ask—“what are you going to do about it”.
What I Disliked:
A well-written “caution” is provided by Kevin DeYoung here. I agree with most of what DeYoung says but I think his cautions can also lead to complacency. I think Platt’s response to DeYoung is wonderful. Essentially I think that at times Platt can overstate his case and oversimplify the solution. But I think that perhaps DeYoung may be going too far the other way. The problem will come when people add to Platt’s message or DeYoung’s message.
All in all the only thing I disliked is that this book caused me to cut my cable television.
Should You Buy It?
Absolutely. But I will warn you. God will kick you in the pants if you really listen to this book. Not because Platt is a radical but because he is stubbornly biblical and will not allow us to settle for the American Dream against the Biblical Reality. I’m pretty confident that God will use this book in your life. Buy it for under 10 bucks.
Rating: 5 out of 5 stars
David Platt 20/20 2010 from Southeastern Seminary on Vimeo.
