Who is a Missionary?
My goal in this article is to set forth a biblical definition of missions, the purpose for which we send missionaries, that which missionaries do—the missionary-mission.
In the first article of this series, I defined missions and explained how the gospel of God and the obedience of faith function in this definition. Continuing our series on building a biblical missiology, this article deals with the question: who is a missionary? Taking our lead from Romans 1:1-5, I define missionary as follows:
A missionary is a servant of Christ, a messenger called and set apart for the gospel among the nations.
Paul introduces himself in the opening verses of Romans, referring to himself as a servant, called to be an apostle, and set apart for the gospel of God (Rom 1:1). Although missionaries are unlike Paul in his apostolic authority, his self-description as a servant of Christ, called to be a messenger, and set apart for the gospel is helpful for our understanding of the missionary.
A servant of Christ
Paul refers to himself as a servant or slave of Christ Jesus. When Paul uses the word slave, he is not referring to a condition of humiliating, hopeless slavery but to joyful, faithful obedience to the Master. We should understand ourselves in the same vein; after all, we are bought at great cost and he is our gracious, loving Lord. Paul writes of Christ’s ownership of us in his first letter to the church at Corinth. In 1 Corinthians 6:20, his point is that, because Christ is our Master, we owe him our obedience—an idea directly related to the missionary-mission—and in 7:23, he asserts that our ultimate servitude is to God, not man. While this servant status is true of all believers, missionaries must be models of devotion to our Lord.
Called to be a messenger of the gospel
Whereas Paul’s apostolic status is unique, his calling and work as a gospel messenger continues through missionaries. Paul was called to be an apostle to the Gentiles. The Greek term we transliterate as apostle refers to an official messenger or envoy. In the Bible, the word apostle is used most often for the twelve disciples and Paul. But in 2 Corinthians 2:28, we see a notable exception. There, the Greek term for apostle is used concerning Titus and his colleagues. In this verse, most English Bible translations use the term messengers instead of apostles, preferring to call Titus and his colleagues messengers of the church rather than apostles of the church.
Many avoid calling missionaries apostles to prevent association with the apostolic authority of The Twelve and Paul. Instead, we use the term missionary, derived from Latin, to refer to these official messengers.[1] The critical point for our understanding is that missionaries are servants of God, called to be sent out from the churches as messengers for the gospel of God.
How are people called to missions? The means of individual calling vary greatly; some seem rather mundane, while others are more exotic. Most missionaries speak of a persistent drive to take the gospel to the nations. Some characterize their call as the logical result of reading God’s Word. Others express their calling as hearing from God even through a vision. The means of calling has little to do with the missionary’s depth of conviction or power in ministry. Some missionaries with exciting stories of how God spoke to them have failed, and many missionaries with a plain, ordinary sense of call have been used mightily by our Lord. Experience shows that effective missionary calling is enduring and absorbing. These missionaries have a calling that carries them through setbacks and delays and often grows to overwhelm their thoughts and prayers. In any case, the true missionary call is always in keeping with Scripture to work defined by Scripture in ways founded on Scripture.
Set apart for the gospel among the nations
The church at Antioch set apart Paul and Barnabas for their missionary calling (Acts 13:2). In like manner, missionaries today are to be set apart for the gospel among the nations. Being called and set apart does not mean that missionaries are a higher class of people or better believers. When we recognize a missionary’s call and set them apart for the gospel, we protect missions from the flattening effect of asserting that everyone is a missionary. Reducing missions and missionary to a common denominator obliterates the distinctive biblical notion that we should set apart gospel messengers for the sake of Christ among the nations. When churches set missionaries apart, we devote them to a unique work. For this to happen we must be the worshipping church, teaching about missions, and releasing those called to it. Churches release missionaries to take the gospel to the nations—to where Christ has not been named.
Summary
A missionary is a servant of Christ, a messenger called and set apart for the gospel among the nations—a believer who is conformed, compelled, confirmed, competent, and committed.
Missionaries are conformed to Christ. Missionaries manifest holiness and godly character (Rom 12:2). Conformity to Christ is a work of transformation that comes about by renewal of the mind. These two words, transformed and renewal, are passive, indicating that this is the Spirit’s work. Therefore, we look for those servants conformed to Christ by his Spirit.
Missionaries are compelled to service. Missionaries express a deep and abiding drive to missionary service (Rom 15:18-21). Paul indicates that his missionary call was a persistent, compelling call. Sometimes, we feel a rush of emotions toward missionary service, that’s not bad, but a calling from the Lord will persist and grow past a fleeting feeling and in the face of adversity.
Missionaries are confirmed by the body. Missionaries are involved in and affirmed by the local church (Acts 13:1-3). The Spirit called Barnabas and Saul and confirmed their calling through the church. Notice that the church was in worship and fasting when the Lord spoke. Their attention was upward when the Spirit instructed the church, through their missionaries, to move outward. We cannot be the sending church if we are not the worshipping, listening church. The missionaries we set apart should have the church’s confidence and confirmation.
Missionaries are competent for the work. Missionaries gain the necessary character, education, and experience for missions (Tim 4:13-15). The New Testament instructs that the man of God hold fast to the trustworthy word he was taught, be able to teach, give sound instruction, and to rebuke those who contradict it (1Tim 3:2; 2Tim 2:24; Titus 1:9). Elders must be those who patiently endure evil, correcting opponents with gentleness aimed at repentance and knowledge of the truth (2Tim 2:24-26). These things must be true of those who plant churches and select and train elders on the mission field. Some would-be missionaries rush to the mission field unprepared for the task—with passion exceeding knowledge. As Paul urged Timothy, missionaries should devote themselves to nourishing their gifts, and immerse themselves in study and practice so that they may be fully prepared for the missionary task (1 Tim 4:13-16).
Finally, missionaries are committed to the work. Missionaries have a desire and willingness to follow (2Tim 2). Missionaries must be able to work and work hard. Paul instructed Timothy to look for those who can teach and are undistracted by other pursuits. Look for those, he wrote, who are ready to please those in authority over them, ready to strive according to the rules as hard workers worthy of their reward. They must be approved for and unashamed of the work to rightly handl the word of truth. In summation, they should be honorable, set apart as holy and useful to the Master, ready for every good work, not quarrelsome but kind to everyone.
These characteristics should describe our missionaries. They should be men and women dedicated to the missionary task, loyal to their team, and responsive to the leadership set over them. These verses indicate that a strong commitment to righteous work is necessary for a servant of the Lord, and the same must be true of our missionaries.
[1] For more on the etymology of these terms, see J.D. Payne, Apostolic Imagination: Recovering a Biblical Vision for the Church’s Mission Today, Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2022.