Everything begins and ends with the glory of God! It is the great motivation for our engagement in world evangelization, local witness, fellowship, and even in the daily activities of life.

The covenant God made with Abraham demonstrated His desire to bless all nations and initiated humanity’s redemption on a global scale. The fullness of this covenant would ultimately come in the form of Jesus, the Son of God.

One of the major themes of the Bible is that God blesses His people to accomplish His purpose of redeeming the nations. Scripture develops this theme in key moments such as the Exodus, the rescue of Daniel, and Solomon’s dedication of the Temple.

The Psalms and Prophets stir our hearts and minds to see God glorified among the peoples of the Earth, many of whom are considered unreached. One-third of the Psalms in the Old Testament speak positively of the nations of the world and emphasize God’s kingship over them.

When Jesus revealed Himself to be the Messiah, He did so in a context that had strong nationalistic ideas about who the Messiah ought to be and what he ought to do. Jesus combatted these misunderstandings throughout His life to show that He wasn’t a national savior, but the Savior of the world.

Jesus stripped away the cultural biases of His disciples to prepare them for the global task that awaited them. His ministry among the Gentiles shows us how we are to shape our interactions with those who do not know Him. Like Jesus, we are called to be embracing, proactive, and compassionate.

God’s heart for the nations was on full display during the first days of the Early Church when people from regions spanning over 2,000 miles were gathered at Pentecost. The work and influence of the Holy Spirit empowered the disciples to be Jesus’ cross-cultural witnesses in spite of persecution.

God invites us to take part in His mission to make disciples of all nations. We are a sent people, called and commissioned by God to carry out His plan of making disciples of the nations, so that they may give glory to His name. Our participation in the mission of God flows from our intimacy with Him.