Not Welcomed Here

“He who has found his life shall lose it, and he who has lost his life for My sake shall find it.” Matthew 10:39, NASB.

God had called them from the other side of the planet to bring the Gospel to the Muslims while they worked in a multi-national firm. Michael and Cindy* actively sought to be part of reaching the 12 million Muslim people living throughout their host country. They knew they needed partners, so they went to the local church. Most of the believers are ethnically Chinese or Indian.

The church was large and had multi-racial leadership. They seemed vibrant and concerned about reaching their community. After the morning worship service one week, Michael had an opportunity to talk privately with the pastor. With enthusiasm born of God’s calling, Michael shared his heart for reaching the Muslims with the Gospel. The pastor listened for a while, and then interrupted Michael.

He said, “Anyone interested in that type of ministry will not be at our church for long.”

Michael was stunned by the pastor’s blunt response, but he later learned that many churches held the same position when it came to sharing the Gospel with Muslims. The church is trapped in the bondage of fear.

The message seems to be, “If you want to risk trouble to share the Gospel with the Muslims, that’s your business, but don’t drag us down with you.” Even if the Muslims wanted to come to church, in many cases they would not be welcomed.

In fairness to the church, they are not wrong in assuming that taking the Gospel to the Muslims will be costly. The question is, if the church is unwilling to bear the cost, then who will sacrifice so that the Muslims may hear the Good News?

*Names changed for security reasons.

Pray that:

God will tear down the strongholds of fear, prejudice and pride that are keeping the church from sharing the Gospel with Muslims.

The church will have an increased burden for the lost that will result in bold, expectant witnessing.

The church will develop a greater appreciation for who their Muslim neighbors are as a people group and gain wisdom in how to present the Gospel to touch their deepest needs.

Pacific Rim is a region of the International Mission Board, SBC.