10. The Story That Sends Ordinary People

What if the greatest obstacle to the Great Commission is not a lack of Christians?

What if it is the belief that only a few Christians are qualified to participate?

Many believers assume mission belongs to pastors, missionaries, evangelists, and specially trained leaders. They believe they can support the mission. Pray for the mission. Give to the mission. But actually participate in the mission? That must be someone else’s calling.

Then we come to the story of Jesus sending the seventy-two.

Jesus did not send only the Twelve. He chose seventy-two ordinary disciples and sent them ahead of Him into the towns and villages He was preparing to visit. They were not famous. They were not professional religious leaders. They had not completed years of theological education. They did not have church buildings, ministry budgets, or sophisticated programs.

They had Jesus’ authority. They had Jesus’ instructions. And they were willing to obey.

“The harvest is indeed plentiful, but the laborers are few. Pray therefore to the Lord of the harvest, that he may send out laborers into his harvest.” — Luke 10:2, WEB

Then Jesus answered their prayer in a surprising way. He sent them.

The people praying for laborers became the laborers.

That is still one of the most important lessons every disciple must understand. When we pray for God to reach our city, He may send us. When we pray for our neighbors, He may ask us to knock on their doors. When we pray for the lost, He may ask us to begin a spiritual conversation. When we pray for more disciple-makers, He may ask us to train the believers already sitting in our churches.

Prayer is not an alternative to obedience. Prayer prepares us for obedience.

Sent as Ordinary People

Jesus sent the seventy-two in pairs. They went into unfamiliar places. They depended on God’s provision. They looked for receptive households. They stayed where they were welcomed. They healed the sick. They announced that the Kingdom of God had come near.

This was not a ministry reserved for a spiritual elite. Jesus was demonstrating that ordinary disciples could participate in extraordinary mission. He was multiplying the number of people who could represent Him.

Instead of doing all the ministry Himself, Jesus trained others, gave them responsibility, and sent them out. This is how movements begin. Movements do not begin when one gifted person does everything. They begin when ordinary believers discover that they can obey Jesus too.

From Spectators to Participants

For generations, many churches have unintentionally communicated a different message.

Come and listen. Come and watch. Come and support the people who are doing the ministry.

But Jesus said: Go. Pray. Enter. Heal. Proclaim. Make disciples.

Mission was never meant to become a spectator activity. The Great Commission belongs to every follower of Jesus. Not everyone will preach to thousands. Not everyone will cross an ocean. Not everyone will lead a large organization.

But every believer can pray for the lost. Every believer can share a Bible story. Every believer can ask spiritual questions. Every believer can look for a Person of Peace. Every believer can help someone obey Jesus. Every believer can teach another disciple to do the same.

The Joy of Being Sent

The seventy-two returned with joy. They were amazed that God had worked through them.

Perhaps some believers have never experienced that kind of joy because no one has ever trusted them enough to send them. They have attended church for years. They have listened to hundreds of sermons. They have completed classes and Bible studies. But no one has looked at them and said:

“Jesus can use you.” “You can share the gospel.” “You can make disciples.” “You can help start a group.” “You can train someone else.” “You are part of the mission.”

Training Must Lead to Obedience

We should never lower the importance of training. Jesus prepared His disciples before He sent them. But training must eventually lead to obedience. A disciple who is always learning but never going has missed the purpose of the training.

We do not train believers merely to know more. We train them to obey more. We do not measure success only by how many people attend our meetings. We must also ask how many people are being sent.

How many believers are sharing the gospel? How many are making disciples? How many are starting groups? How many are training others to do the same?

The Laborers Are Already Here

The harvest is still plentiful. The laborers are still too few. But perhaps the laborers are already sitting in our churches. Perhaps they are simply waiting for someone to equip them, believe in them, and send them.

Jesus did not build His mission around professionals doing ministry for everyone else. He mobilized ordinary disciples. And He is still doing it today.

The question is not whether ordinary believers can participate in the mission. Jesus already answered that.

The question is: Will we equip them, trust them, and send them?

Watch the movement grow in real time → internationalafricanmobilization.com