A Lutheran does 40 Days of Purpose

I love the distinctions that Warren makes between ministry to the Body of Christ and mission to the world. Our purpose is to do both.

I take a different approach to the content of our mission to bring people to a relationship with Jesus. I heard a Lutheran theologian articulate this, her name is Kelly Fryer. This is what she said. We have a message that Jesus transformed our lives. Because of what God has done in giving us love through the ministry, crucifixion, and resurrection of Jesus, the world has been turned upside down. We are no longer slaves of sin, the devil or death. Our identity comes from being a child of God, your identity is a child of God, claim this identity and know a freedom and power that nothing in this world can take away from you.

All of us have had experiences with evangelist that made us very uncomfortable. We are not called to be like them, we are called to be ourselves, people whose lives are changed and want to share that truth with others. Like the woman at the well, we have met Jesus who offers us springs of living water. We know where that water flows from and we are on a mission to share that with others.

One of the neat things about being a Lutheran is that we have two words that are very helpful, they are both/and. They work this way. Yes, there are a lot of religious experiences offered in the world. Yes, we respect the religious beliefs of others. We have BOTH respect for all people as children of God and how God may be working with them, AND we know that God has acted decisively for all time in Jesus Christ. God has given this gift of grace to save for a life of selfless sacrifice for the sake of the world which God in ministry and mission as Jesus’ disciples. God will use our work, where we are and as we are to build the Kingdom that the world has rejected but that everyone longs for with all its being. We are boldly humble.

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