Read: John 8:25-30
“They’re not going to catch us. We’re on a mission from God.”
That line, spoken by Elwood Blues (Dan Aykroyd), forms one of the recurring gags of the 1980 film The Blues Brothers. In case you’ve never seen it, the movie opens with Elwood and his brother Jake (played by the late John Belushi) discovering that the children’s orphanage they grew up in owes $5000 in property taxes. Unless the penguins (sorry, the nuns) who run the orphanage can raise the money in a matter of days, they will be forced to close their doors forever.
Though Elwood and Jake both have a slightly checkered past, neither of them can stand to see that happen. After attending a church service, the brothers have an epiphany: they can raise the money for the orphanage themselves by reuniting their old band! Believing this to be their Divine purpose, Elwood and Jake commit themselves to doing whatever it takes to save the orphanage.
The rest of the movie catalogues their exploits in trying to get the band back together. Along the way they run into trouble with everyone from the Police to the Illinois Nazis (I hate Illinois Nazis!). No matter what obstacles they face, however, the brothers have the assurance that everything is going to work out. After all, they’re on a mission from God. What could possibly go wrong?
As God’s people, we are literally on a mission from God. The mission we have been given is one of great importance. We’ve been deployed out in this world to bear witness to Christ and His Kingdom. We’ve been called to tell others about the salvation only He can offer. The stakes could not be higher. We’re not just on a life or death mission, we’re on an eternal life or eternal death mission.
With that in mind, we need to be sure that we are giving everything we can to our calling. It has to drive our very lives. So, what does it mean for us to be “on mission”? How can we be sure we’re completing the task God has put before us?
No offense to the Blues Brothers, but if there’s anyone who can teach us about being on mission, it’s Jesus. From the moment of His birth, He had one goal in mind. His entire life centered around His mission. Every single thing He did was designed to bring Him closer to the cross. It was His main mission, His only objective. John’s gospel makes this truth abundantly clear:
John 2:1-4: “On the third day a wedding took place at Cana in Galilee. Jesus’ mother was there, and Jesus and His disciples had also been invited to the wedding. When the wine was gone, Jesus’ mother said to Him, ‘They have no more wine.’’ ‘Dear woman, why do you involve me?’ Jesus replied. ‘My time has not yet come.’”
John 7:6-8: “Therefore Jesus told them, ‘The right time for me has not yet come; for you any time is right. The world cannot hate you, but it hates me because I testify that what it does is evil. You go to the Feast. I am not yet going up to this Feast because for me the right time has not yet come.’”
Jesus knew what God had for Him to do. He knew exactly what He was here to do. That mission defined and dominated His life. Everything He did looked forward to “the right time” – the cross – the moment when He would ultimately fulfill His mission and accomplish His task.
How did Jesus maintain such focus? How did He stay on mission? Certainly, the fact that He was God in the flesh had something to do with it. Jesus had a supernatural knowledge none of us will ever possess. Still, I think there were some practical things He did to help keep Himself centered on the mission. Take another look at John 8:28-29:
“…I do nothing on my own but speak just what the Father has taught me. The One who sent me is with me; He has not left me alone, for I always do what pleases Him.”
In my mind, this passage helps us identify two things Jesus did that helped Him stay focused. First of all, Jesus claimed to speak the Father’s words. That means He was listening for what the Father had to say. He kept Himself in tune with God was saying and doing. Secondly, Jesus said that He always did that which was pleasing to the Father. He sought to worship God in everything He did. The very posture of His heart was focused on listening to and worshipping God at all times.
If we’re going to be effective in our mission, I think we have to do the same things. We must tune our hearts to hear from God. When we hear, we must be relentlessly responsive, doing whatever our Father tells us to do. More than that, we must keep a posture of worship at all times, continually praising the One who sent us out. No matter what we do, no matter where we are, our highest goal should be to give Him glory and praise. After all, we’re on a mission from God. If He’s not our primary focus, then how will we ever know what our mission really is?
Questions to Consider:
How do you hear from God? What practices help you to best listen?
Read Psalm 46:10. How can you “be still” before God today?