I've been thinking lately about my Mission. The big picture is that my mission is the same as that of every other believer- to Love God, and to make Him known. Which now that I think of it, is similar to the mission statement of The Navigators- a Christian discipleship organization that was instrumental in my father's life at the Coast Guard Academy and in my own in the Corps of Cadets at Texas A&M University. The Navigators phrase it slightly differently:
"To know Christ, make him known, and help others do the same."
That's a good mission statement. Concise, and to the point. But sometimes God gives us specific missions. I'm thinking of Paul in Caesarea, under house arrest in the governor's palace, perhaps the nicest place to live in the entire region. Acts 21 tells us how Paul had been seen in the temple in Jerusalem and a riot was then incited against him by the religious Jews. He had been seized by the mob and was in the process of being beaten to death when he was rescued by Roman soldiers and taken to Caesarea, the seat of government.
This resonates with me. I remember the time in Azerbaijan when the crowd at the Metro station where we were inviting people to church suddenly turned ugly. I was assaulted by several guards from the nearby Iranian embassy. They were kidnapping me-- dragging me towards their embassy a block away when an important policeman came and rescued me. It was probably the most frightening moment of my life. I personally was quite happy to make my escape, as offered by the policeman. But I find it quite fascinating that upon his own rescue, Paul asks instead to speak to the crowd. Paul used his rescue as a government sanctioned opportunity to preach Jesus. (During the Inquisition, the Church started ordering that heretic's tongues be torn out before being burned at the stake, because too many heretics were preaching to the crowd at their execution.)
Paul addresses the crowd in Acts 22, gives his personal testimony, and again the crowd grows violent and calls for his death. The Roman soldiers prudently haul him off to the barracks to let their commander decided what to do with him. Their commander sets him in front of the Sanhedrin, the high religious counsel the next day, where he causes an uproar yet again, with the words of his testimony. For his safety as a Roman citizen, the commander sends him in the middle of the night to Governor Felix in Caesarea, in the company of two hundred soldiers, seventy horsemen, and two hundred spearmen. This is a 75 mile trip on today's roads. Who here thinks Paul was chatty on this epic road trip, talking about Jesus the whole way? I do. I think the man was so in love with Jesus that he just couldn't help himself.
In Caesarea, Paul finds himself under house arrest in the royal palace. He couldn't leave, but he had the run of the place and his friends were allowed to be with him and minister to him. During this time, he testified before Governor Felix and the Jewish religious leaders, and after that the governor and his wife would frequently call for him to speak with them privately about Jesus. After two years of this, Governor Felix was replaced by Governor Festus, who invited King Agrippa and Queen Bernice to also come and hear Paul speak of The Way in front of the entire royal court. The trial comes to a crescendo as Paul makes his closing remarks. We pick up the story in Acts 26:19, quoting from The Message:
"What could I do, King Agrippa? I couldn't just walk away from a vision like that! I became an obedient believer on the spot. I started preaching this life-change-- this radical turn to God and everything it meant in everyday life-- right there in Damascus, went on to Jerusalem and the surrounding countryside, and from there to the whole world.
"It's because of this 'whole world' dimension that the Jews grabbed me in the Temple that day and tried to kill me. They want to keep God for themselves. But God has stood by me, just as he promised, and I'm standing here saying what I've been saying to anyone, whether king or child, who will listen. And everything I'm saying is completely in line with what the prophets and Moses said would happen: One, the Messiah must die; two, raised from the dead, he would be the first rays of God's daylight shining on people far and near, people both godless and God-fearing."
That was too much for Festus. He interrupted with a shout: "Paul, you're crazy! You've read too many books, spent too much time staring off into space! Get a grip on yourself, get back in the real world!"
But Paul stood his ground. "With all respect, Festus, Your Honor, I'm not crazy. I'm both accurate and sane in what I'm saying. The King knows what I'm talking about. I'm sure nothing of what I've said sounds crazy to him. He's known about it for a long time. You must realize this wasn't done behind the scenes. You believe the prophets, don't you King Agrippa? Don't answer that-- I know you believe."
But Agrippa did answer: "Keep this up much longer, and you'll make a Christian out of me!"
Paul, still in chains, said, "That's what I'm praying for, whether now or later, and not only you but everyone listening today, to become like me- except of course for this prison jewelry!"
[dramatically holds chains in the air]
The king and the governor, along with Bernice and their advisors, got up and went to the next room to talk over what they had heard. They quickly agreed on Pau's innocence, saying, "There's nothing in this man deserving prison, let alone death."
Agrippa told Festus, "He could be set free right now if he hadn't requested hearing before Caesar."
You see, God had Paul on a mission. To be His personal representative at the royal court in Caesarea. This mission had a definite starting point, and a definite ending point-- his trial before King Agrippa and Governor Festus. My guess is that God didn't tell him he would be there for two years, only that he was there on assignment. I think God told him SOMETHING about going to Rome, otherwise why appeal to Caesar when the lower courts are about to release him? I think Paul had a sense of mission. He was in the God's service as a royal ambassador, and acted accordingly.
I too, am on a royal mission. I am to be husband and father and small business owner and writer and church member in this place-- the South Carolina Low Country. This is my mission. But like Paul's mission in Caesarea, my mission here has a definite time limit. There will come a day, unknown to me, when my mission in THIS place is ended, and God will move me somewhere else. This is a NICE place-- much like the governor's palace. Interesting people, good food, beautiful surroundings-- but it's temporary. In missionary school, they taught us not to fall in love with a white picket fence. The American dream. We needed to hold things lightly, because this place-- this world, in fact-- is temporary.
My college buddy Jim Goldsmith passed away this past week. We were on the Fish Drill Team at Texas A&M together in the fall of 1987. We reconnected on Facebook and used to chat on Facebook Messenger while I was in the hospital getting my Stem Cell Transplant, and he was in the hospital getting treatment for Melanoma and Pancreatic Cancer. He knew the end was coming, so he threw himself a going away party in October. I was too sick to attend, but my son and I got to see him in January and have breakfast together.
Jim was on a mission. To glorify God. As husband, father, lawyer, small business owner, and cancer warrior. His whole being percolated with love for God, and I have never seen someone post so many scripture passages on Facebook. His wife wrote an amazing tribute that I shared on my Facebook page. He completed his mission with honor, and God brought him safely home.
I want to be like Jim when I grow up. To complete my mission with honor, and then go quietly home.
If you enjoy my writing, check out my book "101 God Thoughts: A spiritual journey from Covid to Cancer", available on Amazon.
Really enjoy reading Pete’s love of God and his desire to share it with others.