Praying for a Breakthrough of Power in Global Outreach
Praying for a Breakthrough of Power in Global Outreach
Dear New Covenant family,
I marvel at promises like Habakkuk 2:14: “For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD as the waters cover the sea.”
I look forward to the day when “the Lord GOD will cause righteousness and praise to sprout up before all the nations” (Isa. 60:11).
I resonate with the Moravian missionaries whose heart cry for their marvelous enterprise was:
Our Lord Jesus Christ is the premier missionary: “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost” (Luke 19:10). He is the promised seed of Abraham, through whom all nations on earth will be blessed (Gen. 12:1-3). He is the worthy Lamb whose blood “ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation” (Rev. 5:9).
Notice that Jesus’ mission was first of all for God. The aim of our missionary outreach is God’s glory— “that your ways may be known on earth, your salvation among all nations. May the peoples praise you, O God; may all the peoples praise you” (Psa. 67).
In Isaiah 66:19, God declared that he would send messengers “to the coastlands afar off that have not heard my fame or seen my glory; and they shall declare my glory among the nations.”
The central command of world missions is Isaiah 12:4: “Make known his deeds among the peoples, proclaim that his name is exalted.”
A passion for God’s glory among the nations must grip the heart of any church that wants to be faithful to the gospel. This was what moved the heart of the Great Missionary, our Lord Jesus Christ, who said to His Father at the end of his earthly mission, “I glorified you on earth, having accomplished the work that you gave me to do... I have manifested your name to the people whom you gave me out of the world” (John 17:4, 6).
One does not willingly shed his blood for anything but that which is dear to his heart. Jesus came on that great missionary journey to confirm the promises of God, to magnify the glory of God, and to purchase a people for God. That’s what is dear to his heart.
Jesus has accomplished his mission. All authority in heaven and on earth belongs to him (Matt. 28:18). Satan cannot thwart the worldwide advance of Christ’s gospel (Matt. 24:14). The great war has been won (John 19:30). But there are mop-up operations that still must be undertaken by us (Matt. 28:19-20). There are battles still to be fought. There are nations yet to be reached with the gospel. There are peoples yet to be penetrated by “the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ” (2 Cor. 4:6).
For this ongoing mission, we desperately need power. Like the first disciples, we must gather often in one accord to plead for the promised empowerment of the Holy Spirit, who alone can equip us to be Christ’s witnesses to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8).
The work of New Covenant Bible Church spans the globe. Don’t think of our church’s ministry as limited to our facility on Randall Road or even to the Fox Valley region. We are a part of a worldwide church with a global mission to win for the Lamb the reward of his sufferings. This is why we send gospel workers to rescue unreached peoples from the darkness of gospel ignorance. And when we pledge to them our support, we promise that we will pray for their ongoing empowerment.
We have two opportunities in the coming week to unite in praying for a breakthrough of power in global outreach. Let us seize these opportunities with a zeal for Christ’s glory.
1. This Sunday night, May 22 at 5:00 PM, our Evening Service will feature an informative interview with Bill & Rosa Mary Roop. I have known the Roops for nearly twenty years, and few people have inspired me with their faithful fortitude for the cause of the gospel like Bill & Rosa have. Please join us at the evening service for the opportunity to get to know this couple whose work in North Africa has broken up fallow ground and planted seeds that are now beginning to sprout in a gospel harvest. We will learn from them, pray for them, celebrate the Lord’s Supper with them, and have a good time in the gymnasium afterwards with food and fellowship.
2. Next Wednesday evening, May 25, will be our monthly prayer meeting with a focus on praying for a breakthrough of power in global outreach. We will focus on specific requests from our NCBC global missionaries as we intercede through the evening. The meeting goes from 5:30-8:15 p.m. You may come and go as your work schedule permits, but please rise up, O church of God, and let us pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest!
Rejoicing in the Risen Lord,
Pastor David Sunday
Dear New Covenant family,
I marvel at promises like Habakkuk 2:14: “For the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the LORD as the waters cover the sea.”
I look forward to the day when “the Lord GOD will cause righteousness and praise to sprout up before all the nations” (Isa. 60:11).
I resonate with the Moravian missionaries whose heart cry for their marvelous enterprise was:
To win for the Lamb the reward of his sufferings.
Our Lord Jesus Christ is the premier missionary: “For the Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost” (Luke 19:10). He is the promised seed of Abraham, through whom all nations on earth will be blessed (Gen. 12:1-3). He is the worthy Lamb whose blood “ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation” (Rev. 5:9).
Notice that Jesus’ mission was first of all for God. The aim of our missionary outreach is God’s glory— “that your ways may be known on earth, your salvation among all nations. May the peoples praise you, O God; may all the peoples praise you” (Psa. 67).
In Isaiah 66:19, God declared that he would send messengers “to the coastlands afar off that have not heard my fame or seen my glory; and they shall declare my glory among the nations.”
The central command of world missions is Isaiah 12:4: “Make known his deeds among the peoples, proclaim that his name is exalted.”
A passion for God’s glory among the nations must grip the heart of any church that wants to be faithful to the gospel. This was what moved the heart of the Great Missionary, our Lord Jesus Christ, who said to His Father at the end of his earthly mission, “I glorified you on earth, having accomplished the work that you gave me to do... I have manifested your name to the people whom you gave me out of the world” (John 17:4, 6).
One does not willingly shed his blood for anything but that which is dear to his heart. Jesus came on that great missionary journey to confirm the promises of God, to magnify the glory of God, and to purchase a people for God. That’s what is dear to his heart.
Jesus has accomplished his mission. All authority in heaven and on earth belongs to him (Matt. 28:18). Satan cannot thwart the worldwide advance of Christ’s gospel (Matt. 24:14). The great war has been won (John 19:30). But there are mop-up operations that still must be undertaken by us (Matt. 28:19-20). There are battles still to be fought. There are nations yet to be reached with the gospel. There are peoples yet to be penetrated by “the light of the knowledge of the glory of God in the face of Jesus Christ” (2 Cor. 4:6).
For this ongoing mission, we desperately need power. Like the first disciples, we must gather often in one accord to plead for the promised empowerment of the Holy Spirit, who alone can equip us to be Christ’s witnesses to the ends of the earth (Acts 1:8).
The work of New Covenant Bible Church spans the globe. Don’t think of our church’s ministry as limited to our facility on Randall Road or even to the Fox Valley region. We are a part of a worldwide church with a global mission to win for the Lamb the reward of his sufferings. This is why we send gospel workers to rescue unreached peoples from the darkness of gospel ignorance. And when we pledge to them our support, we promise that we will pray for their ongoing empowerment.
We have two opportunities in the coming week to unite in praying for a breakthrough of power in global outreach. Let us seize these opportunities with a zeal for Christ’s glory.
1. This Sunday night, May 22 at 5:00 PM, our Evening Service will feature an informative interview with Bill & Rosa Mary Roop. I have known the Roops for nearly twenty years, and few people have inspired me with their faithful fortitude for the cause of the gospel like Bill & Rosa have. Please join us at the evening service for the opportunity to get to know this couple whose work in North Africa has broken up fallow ground and planted seeds that are now beginning to sprout in a gospel harvest. We will learn from them, pray for them, celebrate the Lord’s Supper with them, and have a good time in the gymnasium afterwards with food and fellowship.
2. Next Wednesday evening, May 25, will be our monthly prayer meeting with a focus on praying for a breakthrough of power in global outreach. We will focus on specific requests from our NCBC global missionaries as we intercede through the evening. The meeting goes from 5:30-8:15 p.m. You may come and go as your work schedule permits, but please rise up, O church of God, and let us pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest!
Rejoicing in the Risen Lord,
Pastor David Sunday
More in Church Blog
January 17, 2019
A New "Picture" Of RealmDecember 5, 2018
2018 Year End AnnouncementJune 21, 2018
Erica's Testimony on Father's Day