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jambo · #5 (**permalink**) 06-24-2008, 05:03 PM

I think pastors and missionaries are the same thing and I also think that pastors and missionaries are not the same thing.

I know people go on the missionfield and are involved in all sorts of roles. Some may be tentmakers, some may be engaged as doctors/nurses/teachers etc, others may be involved with street children, social relief etc but the end in mind is to make disciples of all nations. This can only be done through the church and with the enabling of the Holy Spirit.

If I can be bold I would go as far as saying that if you are not engaged in making disciples then it is not missionary work you are involved in. Missionary work equates to church planting or church development. The two are very closely linked as first of all the church needs to be planted and secondly it needs to be nurtured. These are the two basic stages in the great commission to make disciples of all nations. Preaching (evangelism), teaching (discipling) and baptising (church growth).

Evangelism leads to conversions; conversions lead to new churches; new churches nurture new believers who become disciples. (or new Christians join existing churches and are discipled) As the people grow in the grace and knowledge of God the church is developed and new people who were new converts now become disciple makers themselves.

Strategy of missions now is to have a team rather than loan singles or couples. Within the team one may be an evangelist, a pastor or even an evangelist/pastor. There may be a different focus but there is a big overlap and appropriate gifts are used accordingly.

Traditionally one thinks of darkest Africa but this is a misnomer. Think of Europe the continent of the Reformation yet church growth in Africa, South America, Asia is by far exceeding that of Europe. Indeed I know of missionaries from Latin America working as church planters in Spain. I know of far eastern Christians working in the UK. Are the cities of Africa any darker than the inner cities of America or the UK? I know there are those in Islamic countries, communist countries etc without scriptures and far from any evangelical witness. Although we must seek to meet those needs, we also need to realise there are many unreached people not too far from where we live.

I wonder where the term "missionary" actually came from? It is not a biblical term. The church was founded on the apostles and prophets, with Christ being the corner stone (Eph 2.20) Apostles and prophets are no more but there are evangelists, pastors and teachers (Eph 4.11). I don't suppose the NT church distinguished betwen those working in Jerusalem and Judea as evangelists, pastors and teachers and those working in Samaria and to the ends of the earth as missionaries. They considered everyone in seeking to fulfil the great commission as evangelists, pastors and teachers. Perhaps then, so should we.