Missionary Work

If we ever expect to change the church, which is needed, how do we intend to do that outside of relationship and without personal sacrifice? James, I applaud individuals like you mention above and see them in no different light that people that make a commitment to serve in desperate lands to bring the Gospel, food, care, and service to those lost and hurting. Everyone is called to be a missionary—I think a very valid question to ask oneself is, “How am I serving God, sacrificing my time and personal comfort for the sake of the kingdom.”
Anonymous comment on the
Searching for the Light on the Path blog post:
Bilateral Living

This is an extension of the discussion taking place in the comments section of my previous blog post (link above). I didn't intend for the previous article to be a conversation on the virtues of attending a church vs a synagogue (vs something else), but that's what it's turned into. It's also turned into a discussion over doing "missionary work".

Missionary work in the Christian church. A novel idea (though not the first time I've heard it). Thanks for the suggestion. -Me

Messianic Movement could use some of that too:) -Gene Shlomovich

I really must ask Gene what he meant by that. Who should do "missionary work" in the Messianic synagogue? I think the answer would be fascinating.

Anyway.

When we make a decision to attend a house of worship, most of the time, we're thinking about what it will do for us and our family. "Will I be fed?" "Do they have a good children's program?" These are some of the questions we ask when we're "church shopping".

But what about what we can give back?

That's usually a secondary concern but one that comes up after we're integrated into the community. Sure, there are plenty of folks who are "pew warmers", but I've found that if there's a job to do and you have the skill set to do it, the job will find you.

At the church I used to attend many years ago, I drove my daughter to a mid-week Bible class and had time to kill. The church was expecting a new Pastor soon and they were trying to make the place all spiffy for him. I noticed that there were a lot of weeds in the lawn out front. It was summer. I had time. Anyone can pull weeds. I started pulling weeds. I remember feeling self-conscious because I hadn't asked anyone's permission. Fortunately, no one got mad and in fact, someone came out on one occasion to thank me.

Later on, I was asked if I'd like to be an usher, which I accepted while still in a state of shock. I was actually getting pretty cozy in that church until my wife told me about "Messianic Judaism".

I think it's important to have a role in your faith community. That's probably one reason why I stopped going to the Reform synagogue. I didn't have a role.

I asked for one. There was a gal who took care of the synagogue's computers and network equipment and, knowing a little bit about that stuff, I asked her if I could help, particularly when she was on vacation. The email I got back was a rather terse "no thanks", so I figured I must have stepped on some toes. Like the church I had left, there were "in groups" and "out groups" in the synagogue, and I was about as much "out" as you could get.

Doing "missionary work" in the church or Messianic synagogue is an intriguing thought, but I can only imagine it would have to be handled with the greatest care:

He and his wife believe that, in addition to attending our local community, they must also continue to be in a church to promote love of Israel among the Christian community. They searched for a church in our area where the Pastor presented an authentic teaching rather than, in this fellow's words, "putting on a dog and pony show."

They've found a church (albeit one about 30 miles away) where the Pastor and congregation love the Jewish people and who view supersessionism as blatant antisemitism. This church sounds like a dream come true.

This guy (I'll call him "Bob") and his wife are retired and, as I mentioned on the other blog post, he has a long history with the UMJC and is an excellent Bible student. Frankly, it's a little embarrassing to be teaching him since he knows so much more than I do. Fortunately, he's gracious about it.

Anyway, he didn't pick the church he and his wife currently attend at random. While he was wrapping up affairs and preparing to retire from his job in another state, his wife was here church shopping. I have no idea how she found the church they currently attend, but the criteria they had for a church was one where the Pastor actually "did his homework", really tried to teach "meat", and had a love for Israel and the Jewish people.

From Bob's description, they hit the jackpot.

So it's not just a matter of connecting with any random church environment. Plenty of churches probably wouldn't have accepted them and what they believe, but this church just attached to them. Bob says an older woman approached him recently and told him she regularly donates to "Jews for Jesus" because she loves the Jewish people. Say what you will about "Jews for Jesus", but this woman is doing her best, and with a giving heart, trying to support the chosen people of God.

But how can this be applied for the rest of us? Sure, you may get lucky and find a church like this in your community, but from reading all of the various comments, I get the feeling such churches are rare. Further, how would you extend Gene's idea in the other direction and provide "missionary work" in the Messianic Jewish synagogue?

Comments?

The road is long and often, we travel in the dark, ignoring the light of the world. Look for the lamp who lights your path or you may become lost in the dark forever.

"A Jew never gives up. We're here to bring Mashiach, we will settle for nothing less." -Harav Yitzchak Ginsburgh