loaKATTEE. — Cremer, Lex. «.r. irem/jj. : Wendt, Teaehirm ofJesiu. iL 1^4 5. W. J. HESDEB50X.
MISSIONS.— 1. Thf prophetic background.— The^ missionary spirit and aims of Christianity have their beginnings in the history, literature, and character of the Jewish people. The OT, especi- ally in the portions which express the ideals and spirit of prophecy, is full of principles and promises which find their fulfilment in the world-wide mission of Christianity (Horton, The Bible as a Missionary Book). The proselytizing energy of the .Jews in the last cent. B.C. and in the time of our Lord ('Ye compass sea and land to make one proselyte,' Mt 23") is a partial outcome of ideas and instincts which were long inherent in the race. These wide and lofty prophetic aims had to struggle against particulari<t tendencies, which made the Jews one of the most narrow and excln.sive of the
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MISSIONS
races of mankind. It is one of the paradoxes of liistorj', that the missionary propaganda -which aimed at the conversion and blessing of the world, sprang from a people whose predominant character- istics were pride in racial privileges, expectation of national greatness, and contempt for all who were not of the seed of Abraham. But the missionary activities and aims of Christianity cannot be rightly understood apart from the gradual development of niissionaiy ideas which took place in the course of Jewirsh history. The words applied to John the Baptist in relation to Christ miglit be applied to the Jewish race, ' Behold, I send my messenger before thy face, which shall prepare thy way before thee' (Mk 1-). These germinal missionary concep- tions and movements found their end and fulfil- ment in the Person and work of Jesus Christ, and in the work which He originated. He absorbed and enlarged them, giving them such definiteness and fulness that they appear to be derived entirely from Him ; for the spirit, aims, and motives of missions are distinctively Christian, and Chris- tianity is essentially a missionary religion.
2. The missionary character of our Lord. — He regarded Himself as a missionary. At the begin- ning of His work in Galilee He applied to Himself the words of Isaiah (61'), ' The spirit of the Lord God is upon me, because he hath anointed me to preach the gospel to the poor, he hath sent me to heal the brokenhearted,' etc. (Lk 4i»- 1^). He fre- quently describes Himself as one 'who was sent,' as when He says, ' he that receiveth me, receiveth him that sent me ' [tov dwoaTeiXavTa. fie, Mt lO*') ; ' as the living Father hath sent me' (airidTeikev /me, Jn 6") ; ' the Father Avhich hath sent me ' (6 Trefj-xj/as yue, Jn 6^*). The references to His being ' sent ' are most frequent in John.
It may be remarked that the verb i^oo-TiP.Xs/v is applied to Jesus 17 times in Jn. and 10 times in the Synoptics, while tzu-tuv is applied to Him 25 times in Jn., but onlj-once in the Svnoptics. The distinction between the two verbs is slight. In most cases in the Gospels !7!'u.t=;v applies to the sender and a.roirTi?J.B,> to the person sent (cf. ' Neither is he that is sent (iToc-ToAo?) greater than he that sent (T=M.-4/a»-«) him,' Jn 1316); but the distinction is not always followed (cf. ' As thou hast sent (iT-VrE/Aot?) me into the world, even so have I also sent (ama-zii/.m) them into the world ' (Jn 17i8>. Wilke and Grimm distinguish TiuTnv as the general term, which may imply accompaniment (as when the sender is God), while ccTurTi/J.in includes a reference to equipment, and suggests official or authoritative sending). But the frequency with which both words are applied to Jesus in the Gospels (at least 53 times in all) is an emphatic indication of the missionary character of His work. (Under this heading it is not necessary to discuss the distinctive aims and character of His mission. See artt. Kingdom of God, Eternal Life, Salvation).
3. In the call and training of the disciples the missionary idea is also strongly emphasized. They were to be ' fishers of men ' (Mk 1" i| Mt 4i9). Jesus ordained them that ' they might be with him, and that he might send them forth to preach ' {Ktipvacxeiv , Mk 3"). The training was not only educative but practical. After a period of private intercourse He sent the Twelve forth two by two, as heralds to proclaim {Kr,pv<Tff€iv) that 'the kingdom of heaven (or of God) was at hand ' (Mk 6' It Mt lO^-^ || Lk 93). There is recorded by Lk. (10'-''') another mission of Seventy, also sent forth two and two, who were to go with the same message to every city and place to which He Himself was about to come. From the words ' also others ' ([/cat] ir^povs, Lk 10') it IS probably to be understood that the Twelve were not included in this mission. In both missions of the disciples, the work they had to do was evan- gelistic m relation to the people, and educative in relation to themselves. There may have been other missions which have not been recorded, for Mk uses the suggestive phrase, ' He began to send them forth two by two ' (6') ; but the influence of such work on the training of the disciples, especially in giving them a firm grasp of the gospel they had to