So, way back in high school, my mom made me take Latin for my foreign language. I found it utterly annoying to have to study a language that nobody speaks anymore.
How ironic on Sunday to find myself talking about 2 Latin phrases.
Mom...I owe you an apology! Thanks for making me take Latin.
In case you missed it, here's a recap:
Missio Dei
This phrase is sually translated "the mission of God". In fact, I've used it that way before in a sermon. But I recently heard a pastor say that we ought to use that phrase in a different way. Instead of referring to something that God does, it is more about the very nature and character of God
Missio Dei means "the MISSIONING GOD" or "the GOD of MISSION".
We cannot adequately understand God unless we understand God through the paradigm of MISSION.
To fully get the picture though - we should probably define the word "mission". To understand that word, we looked at the parable of the lost sheep. Jesus tells the story about a shepherd who has 100 sheep, but he loses one. The shepherd leaves the 99 and goes in search of the 1. He leaves behind the "found" to go seek out the "lost". Jesus summarizes the parable by saying there is more rejoicing in heaven over one repentant sinner than over 99 who do not need to repent.
This parable is all about the MISSIO DEI. It fleshes out the MISSIONAL heart of God. God is on a mission and that mission is the passionate pursuit of the one who is lost. This parable is right in the middle of the Gospel of Luke. It's almost as if Luke is saying that the very heart of THE gospel is our GOD chasing after the one who has wandered away. That's what God is like. That's what God is all about. That's what God is doing. Then and now.
Now, lets jump ahead to Jesus after his resurrection. Jesus appears to his disciples who are hiding behind locked doors and he says this to them: "As the Father has sent me, I also send you."
I also send you.
He sends us.
To do what? MISSIO DEI
To join God in chasing after the one(s) who have wandered away.
That's what God is like.
That's what God is all about.
That's what God is doing.
That's what we are here to do.
"As the Father has sent me, I also send you."
Most of us owe an apology to our mothers along with an admission that they were completely right. Probably in more than one situation. I sure do.
ReplyDeleteScott, Thanks for some powerful ideas in your sermon. And I liked that Imago Dei, or whatever it was, the image of God idea... that it's in everyone. We just need to take the time to look for it and become aware of it. I think that was the idea. That gives you a whole different focus when relating to others...
ReplyDeleteAndrew