God’s Mission: Sent with Peace and Power for Forgiveness
God’s Mission: Sermon Series by Han Chung - Guest Speaker from Forest Community Church
John 20:19-23 – On the evening of that day, the first day of the week, the doors being locked where the disciples were for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said to them, “Peace be with you.” When he had said this, he showed them his hands and his side. Then the disciples were glad when they saw the Lord. Jesus said to them again, “Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you.” And when he had said this, he breathed on them and said to them, “Receive the Holy Spirit. If you forgive the sins of any, they are forgiven them; if you withhold forgiveness from any, it is withheld.”
Reaching the end of our sermon series, we’ve reflected on our purpose in life. Instead of looking to the world, we must acknowledge our own rebellion and sin. We should look upward in faith to the God who sees and knows our struggles, who came down in human form, became sin itself on our behalf so that we could be cleansed and have a relationship with Him. Through His life and death, Jesus bore the full brunt of sin and shame, embracing it as the moment of His greatest glory, endured God’s judgment and suffered the full weight of wrath so that we could be restored. This is the good news.
This raises a key question: how will the news reach others? Jesus paid the full cost of our propitiation, but who will pay for the propagation of the good news? Here we encounter the “last mile problem,” which states that the most expensive and difficult aspect of delivery is the final mile from the distribution center (us, the church) to the final destination (the world).
We are sent as His spirit-formed community proclaiming and embodying His cross and resurrection offering forgiveness and new life to a world condemned, yet deeply loved by the Father.
However, believers by themselves without Jesus can still be ruled by flesh and be paralyzed by fear like the disciples following Jesus’s death on the cross. They stayed together, but were controlled by their fear of the world and kept themselves locked in. Jesus does not leave us in that state. To those who believe, Jesus promises to be with us. As the name Immanuel implies, Jesus promises to be with us, that we may experience peace and joy not through our external circumstances, but in inward change.
As God sends the Son, the Son sends the Holy Spirit and the church empowered to convict the world. Our mission is God’s mission. The world’s greatest problem is separation from God and the greatest need is forgiveness by God and forgiveness of others through God. The solution is faith in the death and resurrection of Jesus. John 3:16 perfectly encapsulates it for us: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.” This is the good news that we share – not only through our words, but through our lives. As Toby put it, we are part of the “family business” of cultivating life through Christ, carrying the message of His love and grace through the final mile.
Reflection Questions:
What was your main takeaway from this week’s message?
Does your life reflect God’s mission as your purpose or as a side-quest?
Where do you see the need for reconciliation and forgiveness in relationships?
