Dr. Bob Roberts Jr., the founder of GlocalNet, a ministry dedicated to mobilizing the church to bring about transformation in the public square, co-founder of the Multi-Faith Neighbors Network, an organization committed to promoting religious freedom through intentional cross-cultural relationships.
He shared this message at the Beyond Us Conference.
Bob went to Baylor and seminary on his way to being a missionary only to be rejected by the mission board because of his wife’s health. They tried 3 times to go overseas, but never got accepted.
Leighton Ford was mentoring Bob and speaking on global evangelism which was discouraging because that is what Bob wanted to be doing. On the ride home, the Holy Spirit came uninvited and asked him to start thinking about missions differently and posed this question to him:
“What if the Church was the missionary.”
What if we mobilized everyone to be missionaries rather than a select few?!
The Holy Spirit empowers, equips, and guides us to fulfill the Great Commission.
The first church planters in the New Testament were businessmen!
God uses everybody to advance His Kingdom!
We have all we need to complete the Great Commission! It’s just a matter of obedience and our willingness.
Going Through the Front Door (Like Paul Did)
80% of Bob’s time is with non-Christians.
Northwood Church helped start 200 churches. Glocal has helped plant another 200 churches.
“And pray for us, too, that God may open a door for our message, so that we may proclaim the mystery of Christ, for which I am in chains. Pray that I may proclaim it clearly, as I should. Be wise in the way you act toward outsiders; make the most of every opportunity. Let your conversation be always full of grace, seasoned with salt, so that you may know how to answer everyone.” – Colossians 4:3-6 NIV
“After his suffering, he presented himself to them and gave many convincing proofs that he was alive. He appeared to them over a period of forty days and spoke about the kingdom of God.” – Acts 1:3 NIV
We travel with Kingdom authority!
Gates were entries and access and wisdom.
The Kingdom of God can be summarized with “Shalom” which means the “flourishing of all things”
Getting people to pray the sinners prayer doesn’t change the city. If it did,
How many baptisms is not the measure but is the city being renewed by new followers of Jesus is the measure.
Matthew 5-7 is the manifesto of the Kingdom of God.
Matthew 6-25 includes parables that illustrates the Kingdom of God.
After the message of the Kingdom comes the Great Commission.
The Gospel makes a difference!
Colossians 1:15-20 is about the fullness of God which is the Kingdom of God.
The Church needs to live out in its community what the Gospel looks like.
No one wants you there if you only do evangelism and missions. What are we doing to serve people and to bring value to people.
We don’t have to take over a culture, we just have to be salt and light in the culture.
We don’t want Christian nationalism. We want Holy Spirit presence.
We keep trying to turn missionaries into business people. Why don’t we turn business people into missionaries.
We go in the power of the Holy Spirit.
Just ask Him to fill us with His Spirit and then believe it.
Spiritual gifts are necessary to live out the ministry of Jesus.
Just because we have seen people use spiritual gifts improperly that doesn’t mean they are not real.
We go in every dimension.
“On one occasion, while he was eating with them, he gave them this command: “Do not leave Jerusalem, but wait for the gift my Father promised, which you have heard me speak about. For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.” Then they gathered around him and asked him, “Lord, are you at this time going to restore the kingdom to Israel?” He said to them: “It is not for you to know the times or dates the Father has set by his own authority. But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth.”” – Acts 1:4-8 NIV
All of the apostles go to the ends of the earth.
We need to do missions at home and abroad.
Don’t try to fix everything at home first and then going globally. Try to bring healing here AND there!
Going overseas can inspire work at home.
Mobilize your church into the dominions where they work in civil society, business, economics, medicine, agriculture, and so on.
Don’t do missions to people but with people.
Too often we want non-Christians to accept Christ, but we don’t want to be their friends.
When you go through the front door, you don’t have to hide who you are.
- Go in Prayer
- Go in Twos
- Go in Community
Glocal.net churches start churches, works with the inner city, and chooses a hard place around the world.
Don’t become the biggest church, instead church the city.
Bring value to people and love people and share with people, and they will open their hearts.
You can disagree and respect someone without vilifying them. See people as created in the image of God.
Bob’s Ministries:
Glocal (glocal.net) mobilizes the church to engage in the public square.
K->D->S->C->
Kingdom of God -> Disciple -> Society -> Church
We promote human flourishing globally by engaging the whole of society through people-to-people engagement.
What if we learned from the global church how to do missions?
Global Faith Forum (globalfaithforum.com) – Building a culture of kindness for the common good.
Offices in D.C. are 3-4 min walk to the White House
Apolitical to stay relevant regardless of who is President
Building a culture of kindness for the common good
Multi-Faith Relationships Change Everything (mfnn.org)
Great Resources:
- The Cost of Discipleship by Dietrich Bonhoeffer
- The Unshakable Kingdom and the Unchanging Person by E. Stanley Jones
- The Divine Conspiracy by Dallas Willard
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