What Does It Mean To "Live Sent"?

In John 20, after the resurrection and near the end of Jesus's earthly ministry, he spoke to his disciples and said, "Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you."

If we are to faithfully live out the Christian life, this is one of the most important verses to understand, because it deals with identity.

We are to live as sent people. The Father sends the Son. The Son sends the Spirit. And Christ sends us, indwelt by the Spirit.

So what does it mean to live as sent people?

Simply put, it means each and every Christian has a mission. No one is sent anywhere without a purpose. We send people to the store for us, that they might pick something up. We send our kids to school, that they might receive an education. We send out church planters, that they might plant a church. And so on.

If we are sent by Jesus, then that means we have been given a purpose by Jesus. Looking at the life of Jesus, and the lives/writings of the apostles, we can deduce what it means to "live sent." While there are many, for the sake of space I'll list at least two things that it means.

1) To live sent means that we are about the Father's will.

Jesus said in John 6:38, "For I came down from heaven, not to do mine own will, but the will of him that sent me."

If Jesus was sent by the Father and was about the Father's will, we too must be about the Father's will. 

We know from Scripture that:

• The Father's will is the exaltation of His glory...
• The Father's will is the exaltation of His glory seen chiefly in the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ for the salvation of sinners...
• The Father's will is the exaltation of His glory seen chiefly in the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ for the salvation of sinners to the praise of His glorious grace.
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This means that as Christians, we are to live God-glorifying lives. (Whatever you do, whether you eat or drink, do it all to the glory of God). Second, we are to live God-glorifying lives by making much of Christ by living holy lives, and proclaiming the gospel. And third, we are to live God-glorifying lives by finding our highest joy and highest satisfaction in all that God is for us in Christ.

2) To live sent means that we live intentionally.

Paul said in Ephesians 5, "walk[ing], not as unwise but as wise, making the best use of the time, because the days are evil." We must redeem the time, and work the works of day, for the night is coming (John 9). If Christ has called you out of this world for salvation, and then sent you back into the world to tell others of this great news, then that means you and I must orient our lives around this identity of being sent. And that doesn't happen by accident. To live intentionally for the sake of the gospel means we steward our time, our money, our possessions, and everything else, so that those things serve as means to advance the gospel.

• Do you steward your time to devote yourself to prayer? To meeting with others for discipleship? For interacting with lost people?
• Do you steward your money to give a portion back to the local church, in a glad and generous heart, that the ministries of the church might continue on here in Standish?
• Do your possessions control you and dictate your happiness, or are they your servants? Mere means to find higher joy in Christ?
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Ask the Lord to show you today how you can live more intentionally as a sent person.

One last food for thought: If there is a sending nature in trinitarian relations, then surely there must be a sending culture in the church of the triune God.

Blessings, church family.

~ Pastor Alexander