Day 18 // The Sending God

For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life (John 3:16).

Reflections

This familiar verse is packed with powerful truths. Don’t let the depth of this well-known passage escape you. God’s love for the world resulted in a profound action of sacrifice. He gave. The God of the universe sent his Son to become the Savior of mankind. In this very act, God presented himself as a missionary God — One who sends his Son into a completely cross-cultural setting to live among us and become one of us that we might have peace with God. The Creator God provides a template for us in his act of sending Jesus. He demonstrates that it must be done, that no price is too big, no pain too great, no people so unreachable and no actions too radical to see the world made right with God. We know and serve a sending God.

Challenge

Stepping into unfamiliar terrain is scary, especially in the realm of relationships and reaching lost people. It is easier to do what we know. It is less stressful to stay in our lane. Yet, we are to live by faith, not by sight. The more we stretch ourselves, the more God’s grace is poured into us to flow through us. Considering God’s radical action, are you are stretching yourself enough, especially in the discipline of sending? What is keeping you from engaging more fully in seeing the lost peoples of the world come to know Jesus?

Prayer

Father in heaven, I am deeply humbled by your sacrifice. Your radical love has transformed my life — your ongoing grace overwhelms me again and again. Thank you, Lord! May your boundless love so capture my soul, imagination and will that I will reflect your sending nature as I live my life here on earth. Please help me become conformed to the image of your Son, who was not only sent but determined to send others that the world may know the gospel. In Jesus’ name I pray. Amen.