Travis L. Moore
I remember the first time I saw one of those “you are now entering the mission field” signs hanging above the exit door of a church foyer. It was a cool reminder of what Christianity was all about: spreading the gospel message in my community. This notion is embraced here at Bethany Place with our “make disciples who make disciples” creed. Of course, Christians are commanded to share the message of good news in Matthew 18 when Jesus says to “go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit…”
There are vivid memories rolling around in my brain of watching Sunday afternoon football games with my mom. This was a staple activity that was pretty much locked in each Sunday from September to January. For those of you who know me, that does not come as a surprise; in fact, that tradition has been passed to my own family. That’s my “Sunday afternoon compartment.” Each weekday, starting at 8:30am, I log into my company’s Microsoft Teams interface and focus on managing educational programs in various school districts across Virginia. That’s my “work from home compartment.” On Sunday mornings I am Bethany Place leading Sunday School discussions and focusing on Gene’s words during service. That’s my “Sunday morning church compartment.” I have lots of compartments: yardwork, spending time with my wife and kids, watching whatever basketball is on television, hunting, and knocking out jigsaw puzzles are just a few of them. Although I generally have a lot going on, different compartments of my life rarely mix. Football time is football time, and not for thinking about working from home. Game nights are for hanging out with my family, and not for thinking about doing yardwork (and so on).
Someone wiser than me once explained this mindset using lasagna and spaghetti. Some folks (like me) live life as if it were lasagna, which contains separate layers of meat, cheese, sauce, and noodles. Others live life as if it were spaghetti, which contains intertwined meat, cheese, sauce, and noodles. There are no compartments there! It may be a strange analogy, but it made sense to me.
While there are some benefits to this approach, one major drawback is that Christian living is full of compartments that flow freely into each other. I think that is why that “you are now entering the mission field” sign impacted my the way that it did. Prior to processing those words, the great commission, at least for me, belonged in the “mission trip” compartment. The truth is, that should be a part of every compartment that we devote time and energy to. It does not take a deep understanding of theology to understand that it’s just as important to spread the gospel message at Wal-Mart as it is on an international mission trip.
Obviously, the good news of Christ’s redemption for our sins is the cornerstone of the gospel message and should be shared as much as possible (despite whatever compartment you are current in). Recently, I began giving some thought to the importance of incorporating this message of God’s grace into weekly Sunday School lessons.
If you are interested in seeing this play out, feel free to stop by on Sunday mornings! The NextGen class is discussion-based in nature, and the gospel message always seems to make an appearance. We just wrapped up the Book of Daniel. Prior to that, we discussed the life of Paul. Daniel lived, worshipped, and wrote about 500 years before Jesus walked the earth; Paul lived, worshipped, and wrote after Jesus’s death. Both, however, point to Jesus’s return and for salvation for all who believe. Breaching the good news topic is important not just to any unbelievers who may be visiting, but for those regularly attending members.
For those reading this that lead a small group on Sunday mornings, I challenge you to make the gospel message a part of every lesson delivered in your class. I still tend to compartmentalize my daily tasks and activities, but am striving to be sure that spreading the good news is part of all of them. Perhaps that aforementioned church foyer sign should read “you are always in the mission field.”