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Mark Spence

Mark Spence

Category Archives: Missions

Indictment Against Us

19 Thursday Nov 2015

Posted by Mark Spence in Adoption, Missions

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Indictment

For Cross Church, Sunday, November 6 was important for two reasons.

First, it kicked off the week of prayer for missions.  During the week, we prayed daily with our church family from North Richland Hills Baptist Church for missions partners around the world.

Second, at Cross Church and at churches around the US, it was national orphan day.

At first glance, these two issues are seemingly unrelated.  However, at closer inspection, we can see that the two are crucial issues for the church to address.

They are both important because God has given his people a mandate regarding missions and orphan care.

In Matthew 28:19-20, Jesus commands his disciples to “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.”

It is the responsibility of every believer to take the gospel to the nations. It is not merely the responsibility of the vocational missionary, but of every Christian.

One of the biggest objections to the faith is fate of those people, from all around the world, who have never heard of the gospel.  Scripture is clear.  Those who die apart from Christ, live eternally separately from him.

Questions then arise: what kind of God is this?  How dare he condemn those who never had the chance to believe.

However, I don’t think this problem lays at God’s feet.  That there are people in this world that will never hear the gospel and spend eternity in Hell is not an indictment against God, but against God’s people.

God has given the task to his people.  We must take the gospel to the nations.


In James 1:27, God also gives the responsibility of orphan-care to his people,  “Religion that is pure and undefiled before God, the Father, is this: to visit orphans and widows in their affliction, and to keep oneself unstained from the world.”

Here are some astounding statistics about orphans in the US (click on the image to enlarge it):

Foster Care Statistics

The Hartford Institute for Religious Research pegs the number of Christian (Protestant, Catholic, and Orthodox) churches in the US at approximately 338,000.

Church Relevance puts it at a slightly lower number of 320,000.

As others have famously quipped, if only one to two couples per American church would foster-to-adopt, each orphan in America would have a mom and dad, a family that loves them, and a place to call home.

Again, that there are orphans in this country is not an indictment against God, but against God’s people.


 

Janet and I adopted our oldest son, Parker.  One of the most consistent questions we are asked is about our relationship with Parker’s birthmom.

We love her.

We don’t feel threatened by her.

She can’t and wouldn’t take Parker from us.

She made the most loving decision a person can make.  And because of her, we have the privilege of being Parker’s parents.

If you’ve ever had second thoughts on adoption due to your fears of a birthmom, let me encourage you to watch the powerful video below.

This isn’t Parker’s birthmom, but a young woman who made a tremendous sacrifice of God-given love.


It would be too easy to look to others.  To look to professional missionaries to take the gospel to other nations.  To look to other families to adopt rather than your own.

If you are a follower of Christ, God has given you the responsibility.

Don’t look to the right or to the left.

It is your responsibility.  Live up to it.

Internally Strong, Externally Focused

20 Saturday Sep 2014

Posted by Mark Spence in Campus Planting, Cross Church, Missions

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A few years ago I had the privilege of taking a class on Missional Leadership with Reggie McNeal through my studies at Fuller Seminary.

Not this Reggie McNeal

Not this Reggie McNeal

For the class, we read The Externally Focused Church by two pastor-theologians, Rick Rusaw and Eric Swanson.  In the book, Rusaw and Swanson coined the phrase “externally focused” that defines a church that equips, empowers and encourages church members to be missionaries to their community, particularly through service.

Before going deeper into how a church – and particularlly Cross Church – can be internally strong and externally focused, I would like to take a brief look at other types of churches that maybe aren’t as interested in practicing both internal strength and cultivating an external focus.

This Reggie McNeal

This Reggie McNeal


Internally strong, internally focused

An internally strong and internally focused church is mainly interested in itself.  This is a program heavy church with a full church calendar.  The goal is to keep members busy and to attract new members by offering as many events, ministries, programs, etc. as possible.

A sign that a church is internally focused is that although it may be adding new members every month, the new members join by transfer from other churches.  This type of church may baptize many each year as well but it is likely that the baptisms are of members’ children.  So the church may seem evangelistic due to its new members and baptisms, but in reality, it is not reaching non-Christians outside of the walls of the church campus.

This type of church is more of a Christian country club than it is a church on mission with the gospel of Jesus Christ.


Internally weak, externally focused

An externally focused but internally weak church is outstanding at evangelism.  This type of church attracts a huge crowd at weekend services and consistently witnesses many adults, students and kids come to saving faith in Christ.  The majority of the church’s time and resources are poured into making the worship services as exciting, creative and attractive to the lost as possible. Using a tired cliche, this type of church is a seeker-oriented or seeker-friendly church.

Because the focus is on the worship services, an internally weak church has a huge “back door”.  Meaning that while it sees many new Christians come to faith, it also sees many members looking for a church that offers more depth in discipleship.  The disciple making ministries, such as small groups, are an afterthought of an internally weak church.


Internally weak, externally unfocused

An internally weak and externally unfocused church is an unhealthy church heading towards closing its doors.  The age of the church members tends to be older, with little interest in doing what it takes to reach new people with the gospel.  While the church may have small groups and other discipleship ministries, the small groups have not added new members in recent memory.  Unfortunately, the baptistry is dry with members unable to remember the last time it was used.

The scariest aspect of this type of church is that far too many churches in America are both internally weak and externally unfocused; too many churches in America are more likely to close their doors within the next generation than they are to reach people with the gospel.


Internally strong, externally focused

Externally focused churches encourage members and leaders to become involved in the community. Service, outside the walls of the church campus, encourages members to build relationships with the unchurched.  As relationships are developed through community involvement, hearts will be opened to the gospel. Service allows Christians to be the salt and light that Christ has called them to be.

Church members can discern where to serve through their personal interests and proclivities.  For my family, this means that I coach my boys’ soccer team.  For others, it can mean active engagement in scouting, service organizations like Lions Club, dance troupes, bands, sports at all levels and ages, PTA, biker gangs, gaming (video game)…things…, etc.   The sky is the limit and creativity should be encouraged.

Community engagement and service, when done with intentionality for the gospel, has great potential for the church to the unchurched with good news of Jesus Christ.

An externally focused church will have fewer activities and events.  Some events, such as Fall Festival, may have to be sacrificed in order to free church members towards externally engagement.  Ministries, such as upwards sports, may also have to be given up so that a church member can enlist their children in a local sports league and for parents to help lead the team.

Even though there should be fewer ministries and a cleaner calendar, the church will have to prioritize disciple-making ministries in order to be internally strong.  When someone is lead to Christ through community engagement, there has to be a process in place through the church to help the new Christians to reach spiritual maturity.

In addition to a strong disciple making process, the worship service will have to be engaging, sermons will need to exposit the scriptures faithfully, small groups must be a place for fellowship, community and accountability, the pastors will have to take their responsibility to shepherd the church seriously and the church must have a means to equip church members to share the gospel.  In short, the church must be internally strong in order to fulfill the great commission’s command to reach people with the gospel and disciple them.

It is my desire for Cross Church to become such a church – one that is internally strong and externally focused.

Catching up on Vancouver

29 Tuesday Jul 2014

Posted by Mark Spence in Missions

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Friday was a bit of a crazy day. The team to move townhouses because the hot water was out and SFU accommodations wasn’t sure when the boiler would be fixed. Moving was a bit of an ordeal.

Fri afternoon we spent hours at Costco shopping for the Texas BBQ and then spent the rest of the afternoon preparing the food. The Texas BBQ was targeted at international students at Simon Fraser University (where the main campus of the Point Church is located).

Victor at the BBQ

Victor at the BBQ

Saturday morning was the soccer camp for the little kids and it went well but at lunch a muscle really tightened to the point I could barely walk. Thankfully, Cross Church member, Jake Kuylen and the Point’s interns covered the afternoon practice because I was out of commission.

thug life at the soccer camp

thug life at the soccer camp

Saturday night jake and I went to China town. But sadly, we ate terrible Chinese food.

Church on Sunday morning went well. The equipment that NRHBC/Cross Church purchased is awesome. Brad Jett and his crew did a great job organizing, systematizing and installing the equipment. All their sound equipment is now on wheels. It was a significant investment and should do the church a ton of good.

Sunday night we took the Point’s leadership team out to an appreciation dinner and then to eat ice cream at a place with over 200 flavors including normal flavors like chocolate and unusual flavors like kimchi.

Monday was tourism day as the various groups spread out around the city.

It has been a great week in Vancouver with the Point Church! We are blessed to have come to Vancouver!

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