Park Cities Presbyterian Church (PCA)

Remember the Nations

Published May 1, 2012 in Witness

In my own little world
It hardly ever rains,
I’ve never gone hungry,
I’ve always felt safe,
In my own little world,
Population Me.

This verse from a Matthew West song convicts me of how small my world can get at times. PCPC received a blessing in hosting Dr. Michael Oh on January 22 for our Remember the Nations Conference. Sunday morning and evening, Michael enlarged our vision and broadened our minds to the things of this world that concern our Lord and what it looks like to put His Kingdom first.

Michael challenged us to ask:
• Does my life have impact for His Kingdom, or is my life so hidden, so inconspicuous that it does not even bother Satan?
• Do I know anything of what it means to suffer for Christ?
• Am I bothered by the fact that 2.5 billion people have little or no exposure to the gospel?
• Lord, in light of the gospel, what would you have me do individually and as a member of the church?

Why isn’t it easy?

Michael Oh asked us to pray that Yu Darvish, the new Texas Ranger pitcher from Japan, become a Christian. What a witness to Christ Darvish could be to the largest unreached nation in the world. The Japanese people worship eight million gods, but so very few worship the One, True God. I can be involved in missions in Japan right here, right now, by praying diligently for a high profile sports figure to influence his countrymen for Christ.

Michael challenged us to be ready for suffering that comes from being in this world, being of the flesh, and belonging to Christ. As Christians, we miss the whole meaning of Christian faith by seeking to avoid suffering, seeking to be comfortable, seeking to live pain-free. God did not only allow suffering to exist, He ordained it so that Christ could suffer to display His amazing love for us. How can I complain about my little suffering in comparison to what Christ endured on my behalf?

Our suffering is not just for our own sanctification; it is preparation for the proclamation of both the difficulty of life in a fallen world and of God’s grace that sustains and ultimately rescues us in it. 

Let your money flow like blood

At the evening service, Michael challenged us to be a nobody for Christ. Americans are raised to be somebody—to do well in school, go to a good college, get a good job that pays a good salary, buy a good house and a good car, and then provide opportunities for our child to be a somebody. Christians very often have all those goals plus go to church on Sundays and Bible study during the week.

Is this why Christ came to this earth? If Christ’s goal was to be physically, emotionally, and spiritually comfortable, He would have never left His Father’s side. Could He be asking more of me? Do I dream of Christ’s name being exalted and adored rather than the pursuit of the American Dream?

Michael challenged us to give a tithe or more to the church and a tithe or more to the unreached. It is hard in our capitalistic, consumer-focused world to give sacrificially, but Michael gave us some unforgettable statistics: If you earn just $2,500 a year, you are in the richest 15% of this world. At $25,000 a year, you are in the richest 10%. At $50,000 a year, you are in the richest 1%.

Oh thinks we value money too little, not too much. Money is like blood—it is meant to flow through the body to cleanse, bless, support, and give life. To receive money from God and then to give it back to Him causes us to be doubly blessed. We die when blood does not flow, so give sacrificially and generously to the whole body of Christ around the world.

Give your life away

Your life is not your own, either. Being a missionary means doing what God has gifted you to do where there are few or no Christians; therefore, you can be a missionary anywhere. Oh challenged young people in our congregation to prayerfully consider giving a tithe or more of their lives–that’s six years out of 80. Give the best 6 years—young, strong, and healthy ones. Take your God-given skills and talents and use them as you would in America in the mission field. I am compelled to pray that my son would be used by the Lord in missions and that I would encourage him to be mission-minded.

Oh reminded us how brief our life is,  and that the measure of our lives is the glory that Christ receives through us globally and eternally. Our lives are not about us nor the unsaved; they are about God. He is globally, cosmically, worthy of all praise and glory.

I am expecting the Lord to do big things as a result of Remember The Nations. Pray boldly that we might learn, pray, go, send, welcome, mobilize as individuals and the church. Go to www.pcpcmissions.org to explore all ways God could use you to advance the gospel in Dallas and the world.

“But He died for all
that those who live
should no longer live for themselves
but for Him who died for them
and was raised again”

(2 Corinthians 5:15).

                                                                                                                                   —Christy Gehlbach