A Missionary To Whom?

The following scripture relates to the time after Jesus had been crucified and, 3 days later, resurrected. He met with his remaining disciples and gave them their final, earthly instructions before he ascended into the clouds. We read:

“Then the eleven disciples went away into Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had appointed for them. When they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some doubted. And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying, All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore, and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, Teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the age.” A-men.
Matthew 28:16-20 NKJV

Today, based on the underlined, Verse 19, almost all popular churches support a vast foreign missions operation to nearly all remote parts of the earth. No one seems to question this effort, and to speak against it is almost considered heresy. Should anyone question their actions, they immediately point you to Matthew 28:19, and proceed to explain how they are simply following Christ’s words, commonly called the “Great Commission.” A small amount of mission effort is directed within America. However, the major portion is directed overseas to “non-Christian,” heathen countries.

Such was not always the case. Until the mid 1800’s, few churches had such “missionary efforts.” In the following two paragraphs are the reproduced portion of a minute book from a Primitive Baptist Church in Pike County, Missouri. Primitive Baptist churches were, also, known as “Hardshell Baptist.” I suppose this name had a derogatory connotation relating to their stubbornness in not going along with “progressive ideas.”

From the minutes of a meeting in January, 1840, we read:

“The committee appointed by Bethlehem Church at their December meeting, 1839, to take into consideration the state of the church and to report to the next meeting after due deliberations and prayerful investigation of the matter, we have concluded to present the following preamble and resolution for consideration, to-wit:

Whereas it is with deep regret and heartful sorrow we have witnessed the giant strides that are being made by the various religious denominations in the world to introduce into the church innovations, which are calculated to alarm the true followers of the meek and lowly Jesus, inasmuch as they are not authorized by Holy Writ as a church appendage, they come to us in the shape of societies by the following names, to-wit: Temperance, Missionary, Tract, Sunday School, Abolition and various others out of which we have no hesitation believing will grow materials calculated in their nature to sap the foundation of our civil as well as religious liberty, for as money appears to be the prop by which are all upheld in proof of which we would refer you to the constant and repeated calls on the liberality of the people for money as though the arm of God had become impotent and that the great Jehovah had not the power to effect his purposes without the aid of poor mortal man, and his filthy lucre. It is argued that the money is necessary for the purpose of aiding our Lord and Savior in the spread of His gospel. Brethren is there any enlightened Christian that has experienced the love or power of God, that believes that Jesus Christ needs the assistance of mortal man in that way, we believe that God’s work is carried on and will be carried on by His own omnipotence and power, and we believe that those large drafts of money which are drawn from the people in many cases in a fraudulent manner are not actually used for the purpose which we are told that it is used for but that it is a great portion of it placed in a situation that eventually it will become the engine by which our religious liberties will be shaken from one end of Christendom to the other. Brethren we had fondly hoped and prayed that our beloved Salt River Association would have steered clear of the Baals of modern times, but are sorry to say that they are among us as witnessed at the last association, for at that meeting it was plain to be seen that a decided preference was given to the preachers who came from associations publicly declared by their minutes to have gone fully into all these societies . . . . . .”

We reprinted this document to illustrate the controversy existing over 150 years ago, concerning the introduction of missionary efforts into the existing churches. The opposition, while causing splits in many churches, has finally dissolved away, leaving today a huge effort toward forcing our altruistic nature upon any foreign people that will allow us ashore. Since we always come bearing food, medicine and other “offerings,” the native governments usually allow missionaries access to their land.

Guided by their askewed interpretation of Matthew 28:19, these “missionary organizations” sometimes go to “nations” whose inhabitants hardly qualify as a colony. More likely a mere group that has managed to shove the same type chicken bone through their nose!

Many times these “missionaries” have been imprisoned, killed or worse. There exists the anecdote about a U.S. church contacting the tribal chief where it’s missionaries had been sent. When asked “How did you like the people we sent to you?” the chief replied: “They were delicious — send us some more!”

With the advent of television, some enterprising preachers have created a cottage industry out of plying on the good and caring nature of their viewers. They always show scenes of hundreds of native children who, we are told, will starve within a few weeks if they don’t receive your help — monetary, naturally. Some non-church organizations have gotten into this “industry.” A few years ago one used an obese ex-movie star to plead for your help. This even became the brunt of TV comedy when everyone, after observing this lady’s size, determined that she might have been getting to the food before the “starving children!”

While many are sincere in their efforts to help the plight of less-fortunate people in the world, we must question the purpose of a few. TV has provided a fertile ground for them to show people (usually little children) suffering from some malady, such as: starvation, thirst and need of clean water and the need of shoes and clothes. The latest has to do with the need of mosquito netting to prevent the children from dying of malaria.

We should examine some common denominators showing up here: It is always children they parade before us on TV. They are usually in Africa. With rare exception, are any “starving children” in America shown — its always “over there.”

Why, you may ask, don’t they appeal for funds to help needy children in our own country? The answer is simple. If they “operated” here, we could watch them — some of us could actually go and see if a new well was being drilled — if this missionary was actually putting new shoes on some child or handing them bowls of mush.

We could easily observe where the money they plead for is being spent. But, by doing everything “over there,” there’s little if any accountability for the millions of dollars they acquire.

The common anchor point of all these efforts is, again, Matthew 28:19. How dare you question what they are doing? Maybe its time someone did!

In Matthew 28:19, Jesus was giving final instructions to his remaining disciples before his ascension into the clouds. Yes, it is written “go into all the nations.” However, we need to examine the word “nation” and “nations.” These two words appear in both the Old and New Testament 485 times, and, in every case, they were referring to groups of people living within the confines of the geographic areas where God’s people, the Children of Israel, were concerned.

Another pivotal word in our study is “sheep.” The writers of the Old Testament and in Jesus’s own words in the New Testament, used the term “sheep” to relate to God’s people, the tribes of Israel. Anyone who has ever been around sheep will agree that, while a lovable, gentle and peaceful animal, they are, also, one of the easiest misled animals God ever created. If affected by an outside environment, their reactions will seldom be in their best interests. Such it was with the children of Israel. It was only natural that Jesus would use “sheep” in his parables about Israel.

We read first in the Old Testament:

“My people hath been lost sheep: their shepherds have caused them to go astray, they have turned them away on the mountains: they have gone from mountain to hill, they have forgotten their restingplace. All that found them have devoured them: and their adversaries said, We offend not, because they have sinned against the Lord, the hope of their fathers.”
Jeremiah 50:6-7

Here, the Israelites are referred to as “sheep” and the writer goes on to show what happens to them when they go astray — they are devoured by their adversaries who, will then, offer the excuse: “Hey, these dumb sheep wondered into our domain and we simply had them for lunch — after all, isn’t that the purpose of wolves?”

“These twelve Jesus sent forth, and commanded them, saying, go not into the way of the Gentiles, and into any city of the Samaritans enter ye not: But go rather to the lost sheep of the house of Israel. And as ye go, preach, saying, The kingdom of heaven is at hand.”
Matthew 10:5-7

This is what missionary work is all about! At that time the 10 northern tribes of Israel were dispersed into several northern, non-Israelite “nations.” The disciples were being instructed to seek out the Israelites and reveal to them who they were. Like the sheep mentioned in Jeremiah, they had “forgotten their restingplace.”

The Canaanite woman who approached Jesus was seeking help for her daughter. His disciples wanted to send her away. Jesus’s first response was:

“But he answered and said, I am not sent but unto the lost sheep of the house of Israel.”
Matthew 15:24

She continued to plead and finally Jesus, seeing her sincerity, granted her request and she went away, her daughter made whole.

This short passage of scripture reveals, again, who Jesus was seeking to rescue. It, also, shows that his only interest in the Canaanite woman was in helping her physical needs. Her appeal was only for help for her daughter, not salvation. Not being an Israelite, she had never been under the law and had nothing from which to be “saved.”

Most people when, they find an injured dog, feel sorry for it. They will either try to “put it out of it’s suffering” or, if practical, seek veterinary help for it. They try only to provide for it’s physical needs. They don’t try to get it to except Jesus as it’s personal savior. To ask why may sound strange, but the dog isn’t under the law and has nothing from which to be saved!

If you haven’t read the article “For Whom Was the Bible Written?”, you should. We tried to explain the difference between the pre-Adamic creation of people and the Adamic creation. In the first creation, God created the pre-Adamic races. He was pleased, blessed them and sent them forth to fill the earth. However, the Adamic race was God’s creation of his own people. God had great plans for Adam to live forever in paradise, doing his pleasure. We learned how Adam sinned, when he violated God’s law. He lost his “live forever” status and fell under the law, which continues on today. At the time of Jacob, God’s people, the Adamic race became the Israelite people — same people — just a name change!

The pre-Adamic races were important to God — enough for him to bless them and disperse them over a large area. It is safe to assume they migrated in groups to different areas, agreeable to their physical and cultural needs. Through the years they developed different customs and religious practices — many strange to us. A study of each of these cultures reveals that each seemed to have their own unique way of recognizing a supreme creator.

God apparently-left them free to set up their own system of worshiping him or what they perceived him to be.

But modern missionaries just could not leave them be. They had to bring Jesus to them. They had to bring our “modern” medicine to them. These well meaning, but misguided people failed on both counts.

1. These heathen people, the pre-Adamic races, were never under the law. Jesus did not die for their salvation.

2. They, many times, had little disease, until our “healthy” missionaries brought diseases to them. As it has turned out, some of our better alternative medical cures were found being used by these tribes such as the American Indians.

Sure, feed them; give things to them; even educate them and they’ll accept Jesus or whoever else you offer them. They will learn the necessary rituals: light candles, ring bells, wear bright colored vestments, etc. Universally, the culture of their native heritage was to worship the god, spirits or whatever they thought provided for them in the form of: rain, sunshine, food such as animals to hunt and crops to harvest.

Congratulations — Missionary, as their new provider, you have replaced their old god, and become their new God. This condition will exist as long as he provides more and better than their old god did. Stop providing and soon they will revert back to their old god.

Just as the Chimpanzee learns to pile up boxes to reach the banana, these natives have learned to do what makes the missionaries feel warm and fuzzy. They know that warm and fuzzy people provide for them. They really like their “new” god!

While missionaries are “saving” these poor savages, their government and industrial interests have, most likely, been harvesting what ever natural resource in which their land might be rich. The latter will always support missionaries who keep the natives happy, while they plunder their resources, which the natives didn’t even know they had in the first place!

Christian Israelites should not feel hatred, condemnation or superiority toward any of the pre-Adamic races. God, for his own purposes, created them, was pleased with them and blessed them. He was then content to let them settle into their own geographic areas and develop their own culture and religious expressions. He loved them and was content to let them live in their own ways — why can’t we treat them the same? Why must we try to improve on what God has done?

Whether or not God has a place for them in the Kingdom, we simply don’t know. How about some of our animal friends such as dogs and horses? Don’t you imagine Roy Rogers, should he inhabit the future Kingdom on earth, would enjoying having Trigger and Bullet there, also?

But, you say, aren’t we supposed to follow Matthew 28:19 and go into all nations? The answer is a qualified yes, but why would Jesus now change his mind after all of his previous indications was to go only unto the “lost sheep of Israel?” Could this verse have been written with the full knowledge of all of Jesus’s former instructions, concerning going only to the “lost sheep of Israel?” Since this pivotal verse was written to the remaining apostles, who were fully-aware of what Jesus meant, these last directions were stated with the knowledge that they would know what to do in “all the nations.”

Since the lost tribes of Israel (who were never really lost) were continually spreading into more foreign lands, this final instruction from Jesus to his disciples, present and future, was to go into these nations and seek out the “lost sheep of Israel” and instruct them as to who they were and upon their repentance, baptize them into the Kingdom of God.

This was done, both then and through the ages. It continues to be done today in the nations where the true Israelites reside. The majority of these lost sheep are now found in America and are being sought by a few active ministries and web sites such as this one.

Instead of missionary efforts abroad in heathen lands, missionary efforts should be concentrated where Jesus directed them — in the proper nations where the lost sheep of Israel reside.
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— Everett Moore