The Lost §
Missional, evangelical Western churches use the word “unreached” to denote an ethnic people group among whom fewer than two percent of the people profess to follow Christ. The idea is that these are the ἔθνεσιν (ethnesin) of Matthew 24:14.
“And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.”
A good resource for understanding the scope of lostness (unreached peoples) in this world is the Joshua Project.
Observations on Luke 15 §
- God cares about each individual, deeply, and pursues us on an individual level
- When someone is found, God invites the neighbors into the rejoicing (15:6, 15:9)
- Being “found” means repentance (15:7, 15:10)
- The Good Shepherd knows where every sheep is; He is attentive and keeps the count perfectly (15:4)
- The prodigal son’s father embraces him without requiring the son to undergo ritual cleansing, without regard to the fact that this will pass the son’s uncleanness to the Father (15:20)
- The (first) point of these parables are that we are the lost ones; we need repentance
- The secondary point of these parables is that God invites us into the joy of finding (or having found) those who are lost
The Great Commission §
And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
Weekly Goals §
Following §
- Pray for Ws and Ss daily
Fishing §
- Pray for ways to connect with people
- Ask A.H. about church
- Ask J.S. about church