Be Intentional About Being Missional

David’s prayer in 1 Chronicles rises out of the return of the Ark, the sign that God was present with His people. David does not treat God as Israel’s private possession. The Lord made the heavens, while all the other gods are worthless idols, so every nation needs to hear that the Lord reigns. The seas, fields, trees, heavens, and earth all join the praise because creation itself belongs to the living God.

God chose Israel to start the fire by showing the nations who He is. The prophets often spoke to Israel, but God also sent Jonah to Nineveh, an evil foreign city. Jonah’s reluctance exposes a problem that still shows up in God’s people: some people seem too far away, too different, too sinful, or simply too uncomfortable to reach. God’s love and forgiveness are not limited by national lines, personal comfort, or the kind of people someone thinks deserve another chance.

Jesus carries that same mission forward. Jesus tells the man freed from demons to return home and declare how much God has done for him, while Jesus also commands His disciples to make disciples of all nations. The locations may be different, but the mission is the same: “Share me.” Some are called to another country, like Jesse going to New Zealand, but every follower of Jesus is called to be missional.

The mission field may be a home, a neighborhood, a workplace, a school, a grocery store, another state, or another country. God may change a person’s mission from year to year, and God may place more than one person in that person’s path. The call is not first about having every answer. The man Jesus healed did not receive years of training before being sent out. He simply told people the good things God had done in his life.

Fear, doubt, the worry of looking crazy, and the feeling of not being ready can keep God’s people quiet. But God’s goodness in a life is already a testimony worth sharing. Romans 10 presses the question: how will people believe if they have never heard? The church’s mission to love Jesus, live Jesus, and share Jesus calls for intentional people who pray for names God brings to mind, show kindness, and walk through the doors God opens.

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Key Takeaways

• 1. Every believer is called to be missional. [48:32] The mission belongs to more than those who travel overseas. A missionary may be sent to a foreign nation, but a missional Christian recognizes that God has already sent every follower into daily relationships. The call to follow Jesus includes the responsibility to let others know who He is. [48:32]
• 2. God’s love reaches beyond comfortable borders. [43:35] Jonah’s resistance reveals how easily comfort can become a boundary around compassion. God sends His people toward those they may misunderstand, fear, or consider undeserving. His mercy does not wait for people to become respectable before it calls them to repentance and life. [43:35]
• 3. A testimony begins with what God did. [56:43] The man freed by Jesus did not need to know every answer before he spoke. Jesus sent him home to declare what God had done for him. A life changed by grace carries a real story, and that story can open a door for someone else to see God’s goodness. [56:43]
• 4. One person can become a mission field. [59:45] God often begins His work by bringing a specific name to mind. That person may be family, a neighbor, a coworker, or someone regularly encountered in ordinary life. Prayer, kindness, honest conversation, and a simple testimony can become the path by which God meets that person. [59:45]
• 5. Intentional faith makes room for gospel moments. [01:04:46] The call to “be intentional about being missional” means refusing to leave witness to accident or convenience. God remains faithful to give the right words at the right time when His people are willing to speak. Readiness grows through daily attention to the people God has placed nearby.
  
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Youtube Chapters

• [00:00] - Welcome
• [37:01] - David’s Prayer of Praise
• [39:05] - The Ark and God’s Presence
• [41:01] - Israel Chosen for the Nations
• [42:46] - Jonah Sent to Nineveh
• [44:37] - Please Don’t Send Me to Africa
• [46:50] - People in Every Nation Need Jesus
• [48:11] - Missionary and Missional
• [49:36] - Jesus Sends the Healed Man Home
• [51:48] - Finding the Mission Field
• [54:31] - What Keeps People from Sharing
• [56:43] - Tell What God Has Done
• [58:29] - Pray for One Person
• [61:44] - How Will They Hear?
• [64:10] - Love Jesus, Live Jesus, Share Jesus

1. “Sing to the Lord, all the earth! Tell of his salvation from day to day.” [37:01]
2. “Declare his glory among the nations, his marvelous works among all the peoples!” [37:01]
3. “For great is the Lord, and greatly to be praised, and he is to be feared above all gods.” [37:01]
4. “For all the gods of the peoples are worthless idols, but the Lord made the heavens.” [37:01]
5. “Splendor and majesty are before him; strength and joy are in his place.” [37:01]
6. “Ascribe to the Lord, O families of the peoples, ascribe to the Lord glory and strength!” [37:01]
7. “Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name; bring an offering and come before him. Worship the Lord in the splendor of holiness.” [37:01]
8. “Tremble before him, all the earth; yes, the world is established; it shall never be moved.” [37:01]
9. “Let the heavens be glad, and let the earth rejoice, and let them say among the nations, ‘The Lord reigns!’” [37:01]
10. “Let the sea roar, and all that fills it; let the field exult, and everything in it!” [37:01]
11. “Then shall the trees of the forest sing for joy before the Lord, for he comes to judge the earth.” [37:01]

1. “The man from whom the demons had gone begged that he might be with him, but Jesus sent him away, saying, ‘Return to your home, and declare how much God has done for you.’” [49:57]
2. “And he went away, proclaiming throughout the whole city how much Jesus had done for him.” [49:57]

1. “For ‘everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’” [01:01:53]
2. “How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching?” [01:01:53]
3. “And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, ‘How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!’” [01:01:53]

1. In 1 Chronicles 16, who is called to hear about God’s salvation and declare His glory: Israel alone, or all the nations and peoples?
2. What parts of creation are pictured as rejoicing and praising the Lord in 1 Chronicles 16:31-33?
3. In Luke 8, what did the man want to do after Jesus freed him, and what did Jesus specifically tell him to do instead? [50:25]
4. What questions does Romans 10 connect together between calling on the Lord, believing, hearing, preaching, and being sent? [01:02:01]

1. What does it mean that David celebrates God’s presence with Israel while also calling all nations to worship Him? How does this keep God’s people from treating Him as their private possession? [41:06]
2. Why might Jesus have sent the healed man back to his home and city rather than allowing him to travel with Jesus? What does that show about the value of sharing faith in familiar places? [50:25]
3. Jonah struggled with the idea of taking God’s message to Nineveh. What kinds of attitudes can make a person decide that someone else is too different, too sinful, or too uncomfortable to reach? [43:35]
4. The healed man was sent out with a simple message about what God had done for him. How can a believer’s personal story help begin a gospel conversation, even when that believer does not know every answer? [56:43]

1. Who is one specific person God may be placing on your heart—a family member, neighbor, coworker, classmate, or regular acquaintance—who needs to hear about Jesus? What is that person’s name? [58:44]
2. What is one clear way God has shown His goodness, help, forgiveness, comfort, or faithfulness in your life? How could you explain that part of your story in a simple and honest way?
3. Which fear most often keeps you quiet about Jesus: not having answers, worrying about looking foolish, doubting yourself, or assuming the other person is not ready? What would trusting God look like in that particular fear? [55:06]
4. Is there a person or group of people you find difficult to care about spiritually because they seem too different from you, far from God, or undeserving of another chance? How does God’s concern for Nineveh challenge that response? [43:48]
5. What could it look like to show intentional kindness to the person God has placed on your heart this week before—or as part of—having a spiritual conversation with them? [01:01:25]
6. What small step could help you be ready when God opens a door: praying daily for someone, inviting them to a meal, asking about their life, sharing your testimony, or asking if you can pray for them? [01:03:49]
7. “Love Jesus, live Jesus, share Jesus” gives a simple picture of a missional life. Which of those three areas needs the most attention in your life right now, and what is one practical step you could take this week? [01:04:10]