A SENSE OF

A.A Sense of Mission in the Old Testament 1.Caleb had a strong sense of mission What did Caleb say about his physical strength? Josh 14: "Now then, just as the LORD promised, he has kept me alive for forty-five years since the time he said this to Moses, while Israel moved about in the desert. So here I am today, eighty-five years old! 11 I am still as strong today as the day Moses sent me out; I'm just as vigorous to go out to battle now as I was then.

Why do you think God blessed him with such robust health? Num 13: At the end of forty days they returned from exploring the land. 26 They came back to Moses and Aaron and the whole Israelite community at Kadesh in the Desert of Paran. There they reported to them and to the whole assembly and showed them the fruit of the land. 27 They gave Moses this account: "We went into the land to which you sent us, and it does flow with milk and honey! Here is its fruit. 28 But the people who live there are powerful, and the cities are fortified and very large. We even saw descendants of Anak there. 29 The Amalekites live in the Negev; the Hittites, Jebusites and Amorites live in the hill country; and the Canaanites live near the sea and along the Jordan." 30 Then Caleb silenced the people before Moses and said, "We should go up and take possession of the land, for we can certainly do it."

Num 14:24 But because my servant Caleb has a different spirit and follows me wholeheartedly, I will bring him into the land he went to, and his descendants will inherit it. What did Caleb see as his mission? Josh 14:12 Now give me this hill country that the LORD promised me that day. You yourself heard then that the Anakites were there and their cities were large and fortified, but, the LORD helping me, I will drive them out just as he said."

What was Caleb’s real secret? Josh 14:8...I wholly followed the LORD my God Josh 14:14...he wholly followed the LORD God of Israel Could the same thing be said about you? Why or why not?

2.God promises spiritual victory to those who keep their focus on Him. What did Jehoshaphat do when he heard the negative report of invading enemies? 2 Chron 20: And Jehoshaphat feared, and set himself to seek the LORD, and proclaimed a fast throughout all Judah. 4 So Judah gathered together to ask help from the LORD; and from all the cities of Judah they came to seek the LORD. 5 Then Jehoshaphat stood in the assembly of Judah and Jerusalem, in the house of the LORD, before the new court, 6 and said: "O LORD God of our fathers, are You not God in heaven, and do You not rule over all the kingdoms of the nations, and in Your hand is there not power and might, so that no one is able to withstand You?

2 Chron 20: Are You not our God, who drove out the inhabitants of this land before Your people Israel, and gave it to the descendants of Abraham Your friend forever? 8 And they dwell in it, and have built You a sanctuary in it for Your name, saying, 9'If disaster comes upon us--sword, judgment, pestilence, or famine--we will stand before this temple and in Your presence (for Your name is in this temple), and cry out to You in our affliction, and You will hear and save.' 10 "And now, here are the people of Ammon, Moab, and Mount Seir--whom You would not let Israel invade when they came out of the land of Egypt, but they turned from them and did not destroy them--

2 Chron 20: here they are, rewarding us by coming to throw us out of Your possession which You have given us to inherit. 12 O our God, will You not judge them? For we have no power against this great multitude that is coming against us; nor do we know what to do, but our eyes are upon You." 13 Now all Judah, with their little ones, their wives, and their children, stood before the LORD. What can you learn about prayer from his example?

o He lays hold on their covenant-relation to God and interest in him. "Thou that art God in heaven art the God of our fathers (v. 6) and our God, v. 7. Whom should we seek to, whom should we trust to, for relief, but to the God we have chosen and served?" o He set himself to seek the Lord. Those that would seek the Lord so as to find him, and to find favour with him, must set themselves to seek him, must do it with fixedness of thought, with sincerity of intention, and with the utmost vigour and resolution to continue seeking him.

On what did Jehoshaphat choose to focus? 2 Chron 20:12...our eyes are upon You." o He acknowledges the sovereign dominion of the divine Providence, gives to God the glory (v. 6): "Art not thou God in heaven? Is there not in thy hand the power and might which none is able to withstand? Lord, exert it on our behalf. Glorify thy own omnipotence."

What was the outcome of his faith in God? 2 Chron 20:22 As they began to sing and praise, the LORD set ambushes against the men of Ammon and Moab and Mount Seir who were invading Judah, and they were defeated Although God sometimes allows us to suffer, what does He promise to those who are fully committed to Him? 2 Chron 16:9a For the eyes of the LORD range throughout the earth to strengthen those whose hearts are fully committed to him

B.A Sense of Mission in the New Testament Luke 4:43 But he said, "I must preach the good news of the kingdom of God to the other towns also, because that is why I was sent." Luke 19:10 For the Son of Man came to seek and to save what was lost." 1.Jesus remembered His purpose in the midst of all the excitement about His supernatural power and wisdom.

What did the Lord tell His disciples He was going to face ? Matt 20: "We are going up to Jerusalem, and the Son of Man will be betrayed to the chief priests and the teachers of the law. They will condemn him to death 19 and will turn him over to the Gentiles to be mocked and flogged and crucified. On the third day he will be raised to life!"

2.The apostle Paul also knew his mission in life. What was his ultimate goal ? Acts 20:24 However, I consider my life worth nothing to me, if only I may finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given me-the task of testifying to the gospel of God's grace Why was it important for him to have a clear objective ? 2 Cor 11:28b I face daily the pressure of my concern for all the churches.

C. A Sense of Mission in Your Life 1.Every believer has been given the Great Commission Matt 28: Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."

2.We are also called to do our work, family activities, hobbies—everything—with the specific purpose of glorifying Jesus Christ Col 3:17 And whatever you do, whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him. When our mission to glorify the Lord is clear, we cultivate the kind of stamina and perseverance needed for a God-honoring life.