He could not help it because he loved the people so much. Eventually, he gave up his own life in order to save everyone. His name is Jesus Christ. This was his incarnation.
This is what ministry should be. Some scholars call it incarnational ministry. We give up what we know and love. We give up some rights and privileges. We may even give up part of our identity or subsume the identity of another culture. All in order that more people might come to know God.
John Stott writes this, "mission involves... renouncing privilege, safety, comfort and aloofness, as we actually enter other people’s worlds, as he entered ours; humbling ourselves to become servants, as he did..."
Paul puts it this way in 1 Corinthians 9:19-23, "To the Jews I became as a Jew, in order to win Jews... To those outside the law I became as one outside the law... that I might win those outside the law. To the weak I became weak, that I might win the weak. I have become all things to all people, that by all means I might save some. I do it all for the sake of the gospel..."
Mission is not simply going somewhere and doing something. Mission is being with someone. Sometimes being present is the best present we can give. Sometimes to share the gospel, we simply share our lives.
No support raising is needed, and you get very flexible time commitments. If after reading this you feel motivated to start being a missionary (in this non-traditional sense), write in the comments or send me a message. I'd be very happy to talk to you more and give you some practical tips.
