The law of accelerating returns is based on the idea that with ever increasing sophistication of technology, change will continue to happen faster and faster, and more comprehensively. I have certainly experienced this in my lifetime of now 35 years, not just in the realm of technology, but also in the makeup of society here in Germany. There is no doubt that, aided by ever advancing transportation and communication technology, more people are on the move on our planet than ever before in human history. Once, you would have had to commit to life as a missionary abroad to serve people of different nations. Today, the nations can be found in almost every local neighborhood, school, university, and indeed, our local churches.
Since its inception, the Church of God of Prophecy has always had a heart for the nations. We have always striven to be a global church, and, given the fact that we minister in more than 130 different nations, we have been successful at that. One only needs to visit the “Mission Encounter” during our biannual International Assembly to realize that we are truly a movement operating at a global level. However, while this may be true at the global level, one might reasonably argue what this means for each individual personally, especially on a daily basis. How can each person have an impact on the nations while working for the kingdom of God locally?
Several passages in the Old Testament clearly convey that it has been God’s plan from the beginning for all nations to be blessed by Him. In Isaiah 49:6 (NIV), God has this to say about a mysterious servant that would be used mightily by God: “It is too small a thing for you to be my servant to restore the tribes of Jacob and bring back those of Israel I have kept. I will also make you a light for the Gentiles, that my salvation may reach to the ends of the earth.” From the beginning of God’s mission to restore a fallen humanity to Himself, it has always been His goal that salvation would be global, and His light would shine among all. Many other examples in the Old Testament could be listed here (e.g., Genesis 12:3; 1 Kings 8:41–43, Malachi 1:11), but it is clear that God has the salvation of all people on His heart, no matter their ethnic or cultural background.
As a Pentecostal movement, we have often looked to the events in Acts 2 when considering ministry to the nations. The original outpouring of the Spirit during the Pentecost festivities in Jerusalem gives a great example of how God gathers people from different nations and languages together in one place to give them his life-giving Spirit. At the time the disciples were filled with the Holy Spirit and spoke in tongues, the Bible tells us that “there were staying in Jerusalem God-fearing Jews from every nation under heaven. When they heard this sound, a crowd came together in bewilderment, because each one heard their own language being spoken. Utterly amazed, they asked: ‘Aren’t all these who are speaking Galileans? Then how is it that each of us hears them in our native language?’” (Acts 2:5–8 NIV). At this point, the Jews had been scattered to “every nation under heaven”—so much so, that they shared a multitude of different mother tongues between them, no doubt due to the fact that though they were all Jews, they were still natives of different nations. But God, wanting all of them to receive the knowledge of the way to salvation, graciously gives them one shared language: the language of the Spirit. Through the Spirit’s working, all of them can say, “We hear them declaring the wonders of God in our own tongues!” (v. 11).
However, God’s grace went further still. Not too long after these events, Peter preaches a sermon to the household of Cornelius, a Gentile, and therefore someone with whom Peter should not have associated according to the customs of the times. Still, “[w]hile Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit came on all who heard the message. The circumcised believers who had come with Peter were astonished that the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out even on Gentiles. For they heard them speaking in tongues and praising God” (Acts 10:44–46). God was truly willing to pour out his Spirit on all flesh, giving all people everywhere the possibility of a shared language of praise to honor our Lord.
Clearly God wants to reach people from all nations, and he challenges us to do so right where we are. How might we bring this about? To successfully reach the nations locally will require us to find one shared global language of the Spirit. It would be natural to think of Spirit baptism and the prophetic message of tongues as the means, but I believe that there are other “languages” that are also spoken globally.
My wife and I have been privileged to be leading a home group study for several years now, one which is comprised of people from different nations who all reside in Germany. We have structured our home group around three different elements, which could also be called three global languages.
First, we gather around the table. It is no coincidence that one of the visions of the world to come is that of the great wedding banquet, and one of our sacraments is a meal of remembrance. All around the world, people gather around the table. Why not make room at that table, either in your home or your local church, for someone from a different nation?
Second, we gather around God’s Word. All over the world, people are hungry for a word from the Lord. Through His Spirit, the Lord has given us His written Word, the Bible. In our home group, we prioritize reading the Word together, learning from each other, and growing together. Why not gather believers from different nations together to enjoy multiple viewpoints on our shared Scriptures?
Third, we gather around His presence. This is not to mean that the Lord is not present in the other activities. Rather, this means that we take a special time in prayer to focus all our attention on the presence of His Holy Spirit. This is the time where we communicate with God, but where we might also receive a prophetic word from Him, for ourselves or for others. All around the world, people are in need of a God who is not silent and absent, but One who truly speaks into their situations. Why not enjoy the presence of God and minister to people who are from a different place of origin than you? Maybe, you can even allow them minister to you! We are called to be a blessing to one another!
The mixing of different cultures is a reality in many areas around the globe—be they from different nations, or different tribes, or different language groups. We are all called, communally and individually, to present ourselves worthy of the sacrifice that Christ made on the cross. The four creatures and twenty-four elders in the book of Revelation sing to the Lamb: “You are worthy to take the scroll and to open its seals, because you were slain, and with your blood you purchased for God persons from every tribe and language and people and nation. You have made them to be a kingdom and priests to serve our God, and they will reign on the earth” (Revelation 5:9–10). God has purchased each one of us with a price. Let’s walk worthy of the high price that was paid for us and strive to become His kingdom of priests from every tribe, language, and nation already in the here and now. However, this will require every individual to make a conscious decision to train ourselves in the virtue of open-mindedness. If we strive for the ideal of being one local-global body, we might need to get comfortable with things in our churches looking different from what we are accustomed to. In open-mindedness, we are called to walk the golden mean—the “happy medium”—knowing that at both extremes of excess and defect of this virtue lurks a vice. In defect, we might fall prey to the vice of closedness, thinking that our own way is supreme and that all other ways must be inferior. If this vice takes hold of us, we will not succeed in being a local-global church. In excess, lack of discernment is the vice lying in wait for us. Just because something is cultural, does not mean that it is good or acceptable before God. Therefore, all of us will have to submit our individual cultures continually to the culture of His kingdom. If we do this in the right Spirit, we will have the privilege of becoming this local-global church, having one shared spiritual language, already in the here and now.
