Title [Youth Ministry Column] Youth and Missions
Contents
1885, when missionaries first set foot on Korean soil. Seven young people called Cambridge 7 in Shanghai, China arrived in China for missionary work. These were the people who listened to the sermons of D L Moody, a famous revivalist at the time, and gave all the privileges and opportunities to the Lord and devoted themselves as missionaries. Moody's sermons were to proclaim the gospel rather than specifically to urge missions, but those who heard the sermons felt a strong missionary mission. They willingly presented their splendid family background and the highest academic background to God's work.
What their devotion process teaches us is that the true history of the gospel is manifested in missionary devotion. But I have one question. Like Cambridge 7, who devoted himself to mission after hearing the preaching of the prodigal son, today's young people are also being called to mission after realizing the gospel.
Currently, Korea has become a missionary powerhouse, sending more than 13,000 missionaries to countries around the world. Although the total number of dispatched missionaries is lower than that of the United States, in terms of the number of newly discovered and dispatched new missionaries, Korea is the world's largest missionary power. However, sometimes we hear the news that the missionaries we sent have done something so shameful that we can't raise our heads in the field.
Another question arises here. The question is, what kind of people are those who have actually received a missionary call? The question is whether these are those who have experienced true conversion and have completely changed their values, longing for the word of God and seeking his kingdom and his impartial first, or are they seeking their own benefit by putting God and missions in place.
The college missions organizations and the youth and college departments of each church that are called to serve young people have a responsibility to contribute to the Korean church, society, and world missions by cultivating solid workers. It is the responsibility to lead this world to the Lord through workers who are born again with the gospel and are armed with the values of the kingdom of God. Although it is a small minority, it is time to look back on the ministry so that there are no missionaries who are engrossed in their limitations and greed and build their own kingdom rather than the kingdom of God.
Now is the time for young ministers to have a sense of duty and dedicate themselves to each other so that our young people can fulfill their roles as the protagonists of world evangelization. This is because missionary work is impossible without the work of the gospel.
Kim Joong-an, president of the Korean Christian Students Association