Foothills Bible Church

At the heart of every part of the Bible is God's desire to bring people to himself and establish his reign in the world.  In fact, this theme of redemption so permeates the Scriptures that it is too exhaustive to catalogue all the occurrences here.  However, there are several key verses that especially form the foundation for the world-wide missionary effort.  These verses will be listed below, and it is our hope that every missionary, member, and missions candidate will study, memorize, and ponder each of them so that they can understand God's heart for all peoples of the world.

Matthew 9:35-38  Jesus went through all the towns and villages, teaching in their synagogues, preaching the good news of the kingdom and healing every disease and sickness. When he saw the crowds, he had compassion on them, because they were harassed and helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. Then he said to his disciples, "The harvest is plentiful but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field."

People are broken and God is calling us to work on his behalf by introducing people to the true Shepherd and meeting their physical needs.

Matthew 28:18-20  Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.  Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you.  And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."

This verse, known as the Great Commission, is also repeated in similar forms in Mark 16:15-16 and Luke 24:46-47.  Jesus commands his followers to make disciples among peoples of all nations.

Luke 4:17-21 The scroll of the prophet Isaiah was handed to him.  Unrolling it, he found the place where is written: The Spirit of the Lord is on me, because he has anointed me to preach good news to the poor.  He has sent me to proclaim freedom for the prisoners and recovery of sight to the blind, to release the oppressed, to proclaim the year of the Lord's favor... and he began by saying to them, "Today this Scripture is fulfilled in your hearing."

The mission of Jesus was to proclaim the good news, set at liberty those who are oppressed, and to proclaim God's activity in history.

Acts 1:8  But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes upon you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.

The Holy Spirit empowers us to spread God's word throughout the whole world.

Romans 10:13-15 "Everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved." How, then can they call on the one they have not believed in? And how can they believe in the one of whom they have not heard? And how can they hear without someone preaching to them? And how can they preach unless they are sent? As it is written, "How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news!

We must send people who will tell others about the Lord because this is the only way for people to be saved from the coming judgment.

2 Corinthians 5:18-20  All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ, and gave us  the ministry of reconciliation; that God was reconciling the world to himself in Christ, not counting men's sins against them.  And he has committed to us the message of reconciliation.  We are therefore Christ's ambassadors, as though God were making his appeal through us.

God has established a forgiving relationship with us, and as a result, he has given us the job of bringing others into this new relationship with God.

1Timothy 2:3-6 This is good, and pleases God our Savior, who wants all men to be saved and to come to a knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all men - the testimony given in its proper time.

God wants his gospel to go to all peoples because Jesus is the only one who can bring people into a renewed relationship with God.