In Your Bible Read This
Isaiah 35
Here Is Your Memory Verse
Yet her profit and her earnings will be set apart for the
Lord; they will not
be stored up or hoarded. Her profits will go to those who live
before the Lord,
for abundant food and fine clothes. Isaiah 23.18.
Afterwards Talk About
This
How many of you are in business? Can you pray and think about
any ways
that the business can be adapted so that it becomes a vehicle for
the gospel?
Something To Do Before
Next Time
Get as many business people together from as many different
churches
as possible. Make a smart presentation with music, drama and
words,
with refreshments, of the need for partnership between business
and missions.
Written Diploma Work
On one page rewrite the theology of kingdom business from
Luke 19
in modern language and with a modern application.
Meditate These Verses
Isaiah 19, 21-25
- Spend
a Minute to Change the World
- Pray For Nigeria - 101,000,000
in 426 ethnic groups
- Businessmen travel
worldwide, 50% Christian, 40% Muslim conflict
- Much oppression and
corruption
-
Be sure to
teach this lesson to others.
-
Always pray
and prepare well adding
-
your own verses and stories to
bring it to life.
We have been looking at some natural and
spiritual ways that an 11th hour worker can enter the end-time
harvest in the Lords vineyard. Here are some more -
New Highways Of Holiness
Did you ever think that trade routes could
be redeemed for God's purposes. Remember how the great religions
of the world including Christianity spread down the ancient Silk
Road from Europe to China. Think about this -
Filipino Man And Woman
Power
One of the biggest exports from the
Philippine Islands is the work of many thousands of Filipinos who
work overseas as maids or sailors and send their wages home to
the family. Often they work in countries closed to the gospel,
like Saudi Arabia. Many Filipinos know the Lord. What if their
churches trained and prayed for the overseas workers to be
missionaries, and used their jobs overseas as a vehicle to
witness for Christ. The world's missionary force could double
overnight with this simple strategy.
Businessman Or
Missionary?
Some of the business people on Air Afrique
and Air India are deeply Christian people, but has anyone ever
told them that they can do the Great Commission at the same time
as making money. And do it as well as most preachers, if not
better because of the money they have and all the people they
meet who never go to a church.
Nigerians In London
Alfred Williams is an evangelist from
Nigeria, but he came to London as a businessman to import ginger
and toys from home. The profits have funded a new outreach in a
bad part of London. The new church is really packed, and there is
no financial pressure. The Lord used a trade route to bless a
city.
Koreans, Chinese And
Lebanese
Korean missionaries go straight to the
Korean owned shops in other countries of the world and work for
Jesus from there. Chinese, Lebanese and Indian Christians are all
over the world. What could happen if their church at home taught
them to be missionaries and to allow pastors to hold services in
their restaurants, shops and hotels.
An Army Waiting For Orders
When we pray for workers we always imagine
a pastor or an evangelist, but how about praying for an army of
business people, or tentmakers like Paul?
Business and missions have been partners
and twin peas in the same pod since the days of the ancient Silk
Road. Remember how the gospel went to Africa and India on British
trading ships. Our business people could easily be involved in
making disciples in all nations. Many have years of cross-cultural
wisdom or the ability to make money at home for new missions work.
-
Three
Kinds Of Business
Miguel Diez has more than 200 small
businesses in his Spanish mission in 31 countries. He
teaches all his leaders how to make money in the land God
sends them to. He very radically says that there are
three kinds of business in this world.
The Normal Business
This exists only to make profit for
the selfish and sometimes sinful purposes of the owners
and shareholders.
The Business Of A Christian
This business has an owner who tithes
a 10% to his church and gives offerings from time to time,
but most of the profits remain in his personal control.
The Kingdom Business
In this business the senior partner is
the Lord. After the needs of the staff are fully met, all
the profits go to advance the gospel or help the poor of
the earth.
A Theology For Kingdom Business
In Luke 19, 11-27, a story that refers to
the Lord Jesus, the servants have instructions until their master
returns. Each servant is given 3 months wages, say 5000 rupees,
and told to, "Put this money to work, buying and selling."
(Amplified) When he returns he wants to know what happened to his
money.
One servant has turned 5000 rupees into 50,000
rupees, a 10 fold increase! What did the King say? Some people
believe that trading is worldly and to be avoided. Some
missionaries have taught this, forgetting that much of their
support comes from businessmen back home in their church.
-
But What Did The King Say?
He said, "Well done, good and
faithful servant!" He said trading was good and to
earn ten times more was a very small matter. He gave the
servant ten cities so he could prosper their economies as
well with his ability. The servant who did nothing with
his money was soundly rebuked and lost everything.
A True Story
In the fifties a missionary to a very poor
West African country encouraged some newly converted traders not
to become pastors but to stay as traders for Jesus, to make money
to help the gospel and provide buildings for the new churches.
Others said believers should not work for gain and almost
everyone rejected his advice. He returned home discouraged. Only
one church remembered what he said and pondered his advice. One
trader in particular decided not to go to Bible school but sold
all he had, and went to Ghana to buy cheap goods to sell.
Years later that man was still a steadfast
believer and had also become the second richest man in all the
nation. Today, while most of the nation is still in poverty,
because of this one mans trading for Jesus the churches in
his district have good buildings, cars, schools and even send
missionaries outside the nation. In old age, the man recently
went to be with the Lord.
Now that you know these things you will be
blessed if you do them. John 13.17.
Taken from the
Joshua Project Unreached Peoples List
these people have no church and as yet
no cell, church or mission has committed themselves
to prayer, adoption or church planting among this people.
Pakistan
|
People Name |
Language |
Population
|
Bagri |
Bagri |
100,000
|
Balmiki |
Panjabi, Western (Balmiki)
|
25,000
|
Bateri |
Bateri |
20,000
|
Deghwari |
Dehwari |
10,000
|
See all of the
lessons |