L6-2Q

The Body of Believers and Mission

May 9, 2015

Sabbath Afternoon

ALL HANDS ON DECK

(What connection do you think the following illustration has with the Bible texts in Wednesday’s section?)

The country of Ethiopia shows up in the Bible more than 30 times. The gospel message was spread in Ethiopia; however, almost 2,000 years later the work of the Christian missionaries in the book of Acts might have seemed unfruitful given the strong presence of Satan worship in the Wallamos tribe in the early 1900s. The Wallamos would celebrate their own “Passover meal” by sacrificing a bull to Satan and placing the blood on their doorpost. Then they would make the entire family eat the raw flesh of the animal. It was because of these demonic practices that a Protestant missionary society in the Sudan sent a group of 26 missionaries to work among the Wallamos people. 

After eight years of diligent work, the missionaries had led a group of 48 native people to Christ. This group started a local church. The team of missionaries worked faithfully; however, their work was cut short when Mussolini invaded Ethiopia on May 9, 1936 and demanded that all the missionaries leave. On April 16, 1937 the missionaries met with the small church for the last time and had Communion. They then rested the work of the church on the small group of believers. As the missionaries climbed into the army trucks they wondered how this group would fare on their own. Deep inside, they believed in the power of God working through the believers, but they couldn’t help being a little bit anxious for this brand-new band of believers.
The invasion of Ethiopia took place before the beginning of World War II, and it would be another seven years before any of the missionaries could return to the church. On July 4, 1943, the missionaries returned to the region hoping to find a few shreds of their gospel work still alive. What they discovered was truly amazing. The story unfolded before them. The Italian soldiers had tried to crush the little church. The leaders were stripped and brutally beaten to the point where they couldn’t even lay on their backs for months. In addition, several members of the small band of believers had been beaten to death. However, the band of believers continued to preach and spread the gospel. When Wandaro, one of the leaders, was beaten by the soldiers for his faith he would preach to the crowds in between the whippings. Another, named Toro, shouted out the main components of the gospel message as he was mercilessly beaten. The conversion of people only grew as those who were beaten and survived continued to preach the gospel to other villages. Working in teams and small groups, they continued the work the missionaries had started. The missionaries soon discovered that the 48 believers they had left had multiplied into 18,000 believers among the surrounding villages.

Key Text: Choose one of the texts from Wednesday’s section of the lesson. Write it here and memorize it this week.

Sunday

HERE’S WHAT I THINK

• A group of youth was working on a service project together. They were washing cars and cleaning them thoroughly, inside and out. No donations were accepted; it was a gift to the community. Unfortunately, a thoughtless comment about someone’s inadequacy at washing cars slipped out. Everyone had been working so well together; however, in one moment it seemed that the mission was gone, the team was split, and what was fun had become a chore. What would you do if you were the leader and had several hours of work left to do? How would you get your team back on track?
• When have you experienced synergy before? (When the whole is better than the value of all the parts.) When have you had a great team success? Describe what happened and show how the team was more effective than any one person’s strengths.
• Log on to www.guidemagazine.org/rtf to post your responses. Be up-front and honest. Say what you think.

Monday

WHAT ARE THEY TRYING TO SAY?

Different people, different opinions. Some of the quotations below represent the views of true kingdom citizens; others may not. Can you tell the difference? How do these statements compare with what God is saying in His Word? After reviewing the texts in the God Says . . . section of the lesson, write a statement that captures your belief. Be prepared to quote yourself at Sabbath School.

“You cannot sink someone else’s end of the boat and still keep your own afloat.”—Charles Brower, U.S. advertising executive.

“We are made for cooperation, like feet, like hands, like eyelids, like the rows of the upper and lower teeth. To act against one another then is contrary to nature, and it is acting against one another to be vexed and turn away.”—Marcus Aurelius, 1st-century Roman emperor and Stoic philosopher.

“Coming together is a beginning; keeping together is progress, working together is success.”—Henry Ford, 20th-century U.S. automobile manufacturer.

“The church is God’s appointed agency for the salvation of men. It was organized for service, and its mission is to carry the gospel to the world. From the beginning it has been God’s plan that through His church shall be reflected to the world His fullness and His sufficiency.”—Ellen G. White, 19th-century inspired writer and church cofounder.

“The key people in the kingdom of heaven will be those who have unlocked their hearts to the needs of others on earth.”—William A. Ward, American college administrator (1921-1994).

Write your own quotation. What I say is . . .

Tuesday

SO WHAT?

While a group were building a church in Sarawak it became clear how all the parts are needed for the whole project to work. For example, during the building project, the early risers would bring bags of cement to be mixed before breakfast. As every new person trickled in to help, more work was accomplished; windows were placed in the walls, lumber was cut, and water was distributed to thirsty workers. Some were encouraging, others were teaching, still others were arguing about what needed to happen right away. The older, more experienced men and women found young people listening to their wisdom. Those who were only young at heart were inspired by the dedication of the youth. It was because all hands were on deck that the goal of the mission prevailed. Not one person could take credit, and not one person entertained the impossible notion that they could have done it alone. So it is with the church—your church.

It is no wonder when Jesus said “You are the salt of the earth” and “You are the light of the world,” He was using the plural form of “you.” In other words, “You—when you all come together with all your mixed-up idiosyncrasies—you have a power greater than one person who seems great.” 

Scan through the verses mentioned in this lesson, and you will see that we were designed to need each other in the same way that the body needs a hand, or a foot, or the eyes. It might be one of the most difficult obstacles to overcome, but the collective work of a church on a mission is the church at its finest. Don’t think for a moment that it will be easy, but know that it is worth it. When we truly embrace this truth as a church, we will have success beyond our wildest dreams. The possibilities are endless.

Wednesday

GOD SAYS . . .

Hebrews 10:23-25 (NIV)
“Let us hold unswervingly to the hope we profess, for he who promised is faithful. And let us consider how we may spur one another on toward love and good deeds, not giving up meeting together, as some are in the habit of doing, but encouraging one another—and all the more as you see the Day approaching.”

Luke 10:1, 2 (NIV)
“After this the Lord appointed seventy-two others and sent them two by two ahead of him to every town and place where he was about to go. He told them, ‘The harvest is plentiful, but the workers are few. Ask the Lord of the harvest, therefore, to send out workers into his harvest field.’”

Romans 12:3-5 (NIV)
“For by the grace given me I say to every one of you: Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment, in accordance with the faith God has distributed to each of you. For just as each of us has one body with many members, and these members do not all have the same function, so in Christ we, though many, form one body, and each member belongs to all the others.”

1 Corinthians 12:12-20 (NIV)
“Just as a body, though one, has many parts, but all its many parts form one body, so it is with Christ. For we were all baptized by one Spirit so as to form one body—whether Jews or Gentiles, slave or free—and we were all given the one Spirit to drink. Even so the body is not made up of one part but of many.
“Now if the foot should say, ‘Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,’ it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. And if the ear should say, ‘Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,’ it would not for that reason stop being part of the body. If the whole body were an eye, where would the sense of hearing be? If the whole body were an ear, where would the sense of smell be? But in fact God has placed the parts in the body, every one of them, just as he wanted them to be. If they were all one part, where would the body be? As it is, there are many parts, but one body.”

1 Corinthians 12:27-30 (NIV)
“Now you are the body of Christ, and each one of you is a part of it. And God has placed in the church first of all apostles, second prophets, third teachers, then miracles, then gifts of healing, of helping, of guidance, and of different kinds of tongues. Are all apostles? Are all prophets? Are all teachers? Do all work miracles? Do all have gifts of healing? Do all speak in tongues? Do all interpret?”

Ephesians 4:14-16 (NIV)
“Then we will no longer be infants, tossed back and forth by the waves, and blown here and there by every wind of teaching and by the cunning and craftiness of people in their deceitful scheming. Instead, speaking the truth in love, we will grow to become in every respect the mature body of him who is the head, that is, Christ. From him the whole body, joined and held together by every supporting ligament, grows and builds itself up in love, as each part does its work.”

Ephesians 2:19-22 (TLB)
“Now you are no longer strangers to God and foreigners to heaven, but you are members of God’s very own family, citizens of God’s country, and you belong in God’s household with every other Christian. “What a foundation you stand on now: the apostles and the prophets; and the cornerstone of the building is Jesus Christ himself! We who believe are carefully joined together with Christ as parts of a beautiful, constantly growing temple for God. And you also are joined with him and with each other by the Spirit, and are part of this dwelling place of God.”

Thursday

WHAT DOES THIS HAVE TO DO WITH ME?

As you read the writings of Paul you can’t help noticing what a team player he is. He is a legend, yet throughout his letters he names people he notices doing the work of God. He learned this from God Himself. If you ever wonder if God notices the little things you do, then be reminded of the promise that “he who began a good work in you will carry it on to completion until the day of Christ Jesus” (Philippians 1:6, NIV). What is so amazing is the way that God sees both our strengths and weaknesses and still believes the best is yet to come for all of us. Don’t miss out on the moments in which you can join the crowd of believers as they work toward heaven’s goal. At times, you might feel like one sheep in a huge flock, but be reminded that the Shepherd knows your name. 

Friday

HOW DOES IT WORK?

The Last Chapter: Put yourself in Paul’s shoes and write a modern-day chapter about your church. Make sure you reread Romans 16 to get a feel for what Paul was doing. Try to sound like Paul—if you can. Use the names of families, pastors, teachers, and elders to reflect the work that is taking place in your area. Paul greeted them, acknowledged their gifts and sacrifices, and simply said “hello.” Write your letter on the lines below or on separate paper: