A Kingdom Embassy

During the last few months I have pointed out that the earliest Christ-followers were not called “Christians.” Those first Christians simply referred to their faith in Jesus as “The Way.” Paul “asked him for letters to the synagogues in Damascus, so that if he found any there who belonged to the Way, whether men or women, he might take them as prisoners to Jerusalem” (Acts 9:2). “I admit that I worship the God of our ancestors as a follower of the Way, which they call a sect (Acts 24:14; see also 24:22). We think of being a Christian as a matter of believing certain things (and being able to say what we believe with the right of words), of praying the right prayers, of performing the right religious rituals. For so many today Christian faith is primarily a matter of avoiding hell. But that bears little or no resemblance to the vital, dynamic experience and lifestyle of the earliest Jesus followers. Referring to their faith journey as “The Way” meant that, for them, Christian faith was a matter of following in the footsteps of Jesus in very practical ways. Jesus came to teach and model a whole new way of living; to follow Jesus meant to live by his example in every area of life. When Jesus gave his commission he clarified the command to “make disciples,” to reproduce apprentices in every nation. “Go and make disciples of all nations . . . teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you” (Matthew 28:19-20).

That’s why Paul’s instructions to the churches included admonitions about work. Being witnesses when around other Christ-followers was not sufficient for a claim to be a part of “The Way.” Those who follow in the Way of Jesus have a specific responsibility to provide evidence for the claims of Christ in very difficult circumstances, including those found in a challenging workplace. “[Workers], obey your earthly masters with respect and fear, and with sincerity of heart, just as you would obey Christ. Obey them not only to win their favor when their eye is on you, but as slaves of Christ, doing the will of God from your heart. Serve wholeheartedly, as if you were serving the Lord, not people, because you know that the Lord will reward each one for whatever good they do, whether they are slave or free” (Ephesians 6:5-8). And again, “[Workers], obey your earthly masters in everything; and do it, not only when their eye is on you and to curry their favor, but with sincerity of heart and reverence for the Lord. Whatever you do, work at it with all your heart, as working for the Lord, not for human masters, since you know that you will receive an inheritance from the Lord as a reward. It is the Lord Christ you are serving” (Colossians 3:22-24). We work for Christ. “It is the Lord Christ you are serving.”

As you know, Paul referred to himself and to all Jesus-followers as “ambassadors.” “We are therefore Christ’s ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us” (2 Corinthians 5:20; see also Ephesians 6:20). An ambassador is “an accredited diplomat sent by a country as its official representative to a foreign country,” an official royal representative sent on an official mission. One of the first things an ambassador does is to establish an “embassy,” a “headquarters” from which the mission can be conducted. An “embassy,” is “a diplomatic mission, a group of people from one organization being represented in another; an ambassador and his/her entourage.”  In the Kingdom of God, the embassy is simply the local church. As ambassadors on a mission, our mission headquarters is the local church. Unfortunately, some local churches function more as “enclaves” than as “embassies.” An “enclave” is “a country or district surrounded by the territory of another country, an isolated territory; to isolate or enclose.” The purpose of an enclave is to create a protective barrier from the outside world. The purpose of an “embassy” is to effectively represent the King in the outside world. The church as an “embassy” is designed for mission. And the mission is simply this: Your Kingdom come, your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven. It is a “go and disciples” strategy, not a “come and see” strategy. The local church is not an end in itself; it is a means to an end, the end being the mission. The local church is an instrument being used by God to express the nature of the Kingdom and to extend the influence of the Kingdom in the world.

If we are Kingdom ambassadors serving together in a Kingdom embassy, it is essential that we see we are on mission 24/7 everywhere God sends us. A church enclave focuses on gathering for prayer and worship in a safe place, but does not see the need to be equipped for the mission in the world. Every Jesus follower is on mission with Jesus in the world every day and in every way. The purpose of pastoral leaders is to “equip the saints to do the work of the ministry.” The work of the embassy is the work carried out by all its citizens outside of the embassy. God is on a mission; Jesus was sent to carry out that mission; Jesus has passed that mission on to us. We share that mission in our neighborhoods, at school, on the job, in social organizations, in government, in education, in the arts, in science . . . in every nook and cranny of our world.

Are you willing to accept your mission? Are you willing to travel on the Way with Jesus? Remember: its transformed people that transform the world.