Plant Churches to the Ends of the Earth
Are you a map person? Would your friends and family say you have a good sense of direction? Or that you are likely to get lost? As you sit there in the pew, do you know what direction you are facing? What if I gave you a map – would that help?
That is why at a mall or an airport, when you are trying to find your way and you see one of those maps of the floor plan, what is the first thing you do? You look for that little dot with three words next to it, "You are here." And then, once you have found that, you can find your way.
Brothers and sisters, in Christ Jesus, God has oriented our lives around His purposes. He has given us a map, we might say. Your local church is like the dot that says, "You are here." And yet when you turn the lights off, and you put it under a blacklight, you do not just see one dot. You see thousands, deep in darkness, no access to light. These are unreached peoples and places — no gospel, no Christians, no churches, no glory beacons to shine. In the light, the map says, "You are here." In the dark, it says, "There they are." And that is where all church planting must work toward. That is where we must send and go.
My aim this morning is to strengthen our sense of direction. As you walk out the doors and head back to your homes, you might not know which way is North. But I pray you would have a clearer sense of direction of God’s purposes in the world, what they are, and what we must do about them.
We come to our third and final week of our series called Multiply. For three weeks, we have been considering what the Bible says about church planting. We have considered why we plant churches — for the glory of God. We have considered how we plant churches — through the local church.
And this week, I want us to consider where we plant churches. Not only where the church planting task begins, but where it leads to, and where it ends.
Now we have already considered the need for more church planting here in Singapore. More glory beacons burning bright until this global city shines with the glory of God. Today, I hope to help us see that our task demands church planting among our neighbourhoods and among the nations. We must plant churches to the ends of the earth.
We started with a wide-angle lens. We have been zooming in on our Bibles, and for our final word of this series, I would like to keep zooming in on one verse from the mouth of our Lord. If I had to pick one verse about Jesus’s burden for church planting, I think this is the one I would pick. John Piper calls it the "greatest missionary text in the gospel of John." Years ago, I heard a sermon he preached on this verse, and my life has never been the same. John 10:16 – "And I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd."
Here is our big idea this morning. It is just a simple way to explain the thrust of this verse: Christ’s scattered flock demands missionary church planting.
Christ’s scattered flock demands missionary church planting.
Oh beloved, I pray God would so work among us by His Word today that John 10:16 would never leave us the same. We will consider this text in three truths this morning. Here is our first: Christ has redeemed a flock.
Christ has redeemed a flock
Look with me at that first phrase again. A few words from our Lord that demand our attention: “I have other sheep…” Jesus does not say he “might have” or He “hopes to have.” No, He says, present tense, they are already His. “I have other sheep.”
Beloved, this is the bedrock of all church planting. We have no confidence apart from this. Before any church sends out a Core Team to plant a church or a missionary team to board a plane, Christ has already asserted, "I have other sheep" there.
Jesus can make such a claim in John 10:16 because of what He says immediately before and after it. In John 10:15, He says, “I lay down my life for the sheep.” And in John 10:17, Jesus says, “I lay down my life that I may take it up again.”
At the center of the cross and resurrection is a redeemed flock! A flock that our Lord has because He has laid down His life for them! The payment is not processing. His purchase is not under review. At the cross, Jesus did not say, "It is pending." He said, "It is finished." He did not merely make salvation available; He accomplished salvation for all who would ever believe.
If you are here and you do not know this greatest news, you have nothing to contribute other than your sin. Christ is the Good Shepherd who laid down His life for the sheep.
Now we are going to get to how this is the bedrock for all church planting, missionary and local. But before we get there, you might be wondering: how can Jesus say that He "has sheep" now, in John 10, when the cross and resurrection are still yet to come? It is because this has been God’s plan from the beginning.
We read from Genesis 12 earlier. After Genesis 3, we see the curse is spreading. And yet God’s promise is spreading too. Do you ever get bogged down in the genealogies? One thing that will help is just to keep this in mind: Moses is showing us how the seed of the woman keeps multiplying, how God’s promise of the snake-crusher hasn’t failed.
In Genesis 11:6, Moses writes that they were "one people with one language." And yet the people get glory greedy, building a tower, making a name for themselves. So God confuses their language and scatters them over the face of all the earth. And yet, even through this, God’s promise remains. Meet an old man with a barren wife. And yet, it is through this unlikely couple that God’s promise of an offspring would continue.
Now the Lord said to Abram, “Go from your country and your kindred and your father’s house to the land that I will show you. And I will make of you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing. I will bless those who bless you, and him who dishonours you I will curse, and in you all the families of the earth shall be blessed.”
God blesses Abraham, reversing the curse, so that Abraham would be a blessing. He says through the seed of Abraham all the families of the earth — from every fold — shall be blessed. When the New Testament picks this up, Paul observes in Galatians 3:16 that the promises were made to Abraham and to his offspring, singular, and that offspring is Christ. Christ can say He has other sheep because God has promised that in the true Son of Abraham, all the families of the earth shall be blessed.
As we look ahead to Revelation 5, we see a worldwide flock, redeemed by a worthy Lamb. And they sang a new song, saying, "Worthy are you to take the scroll and to open its seals, for you were slain, and by your blood you ransomed people for God from every tribe and language and people and nation, and you have made them a kingdom and priests to our God, and they shall reign on the earth." Did you notice something in there? "By your blood you ransomed people" — for whom? "For God." There it is, beloved. That is week one of this sermon series, sung in heaven. This is why God has saved us. It is for Him, for His glory!
The glory of God demands nothing less than the global praise of all the nations.
And notice how God’s glory is magnified by the worldwide scope of the redeemed! These are people "from every tribe and language and people and nation, from all the families of the earth." The glory of God demands nothing less than the global praise of all the nations. Do you remember where all those languages came from, back when they were glory greedy at Babel? Well here, in Revelation 5, they are pronounced as redeemed. And in Revelation 7, we see that they are gathered as one flock, around one throne, singing glory to God and to the Lamb. Babel left them scattered and confused, but blood made them a choir.
Only the Lamb is worthy to open this scroll. Only the Lamb could fulfill God’s promise to Abraham. He has all authority in heaven and on earth. And by His blood He has ransomed a people from every tribe and language and people and nation. Christ has redeemed a flock. He declares in John 10:16 what God has decreed from the beginning to the end. Christ can say He has these sheep because He knows this future is certain.
So, what does this have to do with church planting? Oh beloved, this fuels all our confidence in the work. We plant churches because we know Christ’s work is finished. We proclaim redemption; we do not provide it. Christ has a flock. He has redeemed them, and He will acquire His purchase. Church planting is not a sales pitch, hoping somebody out there might buy. Here is how Spurgeon put it: "You have received a search-warrant from the King of kings, and therefore you have a right to enter and search after your Lord’s stolen property."
That search warrant brings us to our second truth: Christ has redeemed a flock, and His flock is scattered. Jesus says, "I have other sheep, that are not of this fold." Now, slow down with me on those words. Do you remember who Jesus is talking to here in John 10? He is in Jerusalem. This is just after He has healed the man born blind. And He is speaking to the Pharisees, the religious leaders of Israel.
His flock is scattered
In John 10:16, Jesus says, “I have other sheep, that are not of this fold. ”
Now, slow down with me on those words, “that are not of this fold”.
Do you remember who Jesus is talking to here in John 10? He is in Jerusalem. This is just after He has healed the man born blind. And He is speaking to the Pharisees, the religious leaders of Israel.
Jesus is standing in the middle of Israel, speaking to the shepherds of Israel, saying, "I have other sheep that are not of this fold." I have sheep among the Gentiles, scattered throughout the nations. And brothers and sisters, I know we come from a lot of backgrounds here, but do you realize who He was talking about? Look around the room! It is us! We are other sheep. Unless you are ethnically Jewish, you are a Gentile, you are from the nations, you are "not of that fold."
So when Jesus said those words in Jerusalem two thousand years ago, He was looking through continents and centuries, even to this little island off the Malacca Strait. He said those words about you. The only reason any of us are in this room today is because somebody, somewhere, obeyed this verse. We were scattered, and somebody went on a search warrant from our Shepherd-King and came after us. Somebody crossed an ocean. Somebody learned a language. Somebody made sacrifices so that the Shepherd’s voice could reach Singapore and reach your ear. We are living proof of John 10:16. But Jesus has more.
He has other sheep who are scattered to the ends of the earth. John records this one chapter later in Caiaphas’s prophecy: Jesus died "to gather into one the children of God who are scattered abroad." These are the other sheep; they are not of the Jewish fold. These are the sheep he has ransomed for God from every tribe and language and people and nation. They are redeemed, and yet, they are scattered.
The Great Commission is not a general command to make as many disciples as we can. The Great Commission is a specific command to "make disciples of all nations."
This is why Jesus said, in the Great Commission, to "make disciples of all nations." And beloved, let us hear our Lord’s command carefully. The Great Commission is not a general command to make as many disciples as we can. The Great Commission is a specific command to "make disciples of all nations." If Jesus had simply said, "Make as many disciples as you can," we could stay right here and keep planting churches in Singapore, because there is a lot of need here, and not worry about church planting anywhere else. But that is not what our Lord said! He said to make disciples "of all nations."
By "nations," He does not mean the geopolitical nation states we would think of at the World Cup today; He means all the ethne — all the ethnolinguistic peoples of the world. Because He has redeemed a flock from every tribe, tongue, and nation, and yet, His flock is scattered! They are in the tribes of Indonesia and East Malaysia. They are in the mountains of Nepal and the villages of India. They are in the horn of Africa and around the Arab gulf. They are in the jungles of the Amazon and dispersed throughout inland China. These are the peoples and places where God’s map says, "There they are." Lost in darkness, like sheep without a shepherd.
Can I put it in terms we all understand? Think about your phone signal. How many bars you have, how much coverage there is. Now think of healthy churches like cell towers of gospel signal, putting out the Word so that the message of salvation is within reach. Some places in the world have strong gospel signal — 5G, full bars — lots of churches being faithful to the Word. Even in these places, there are many non-Christians; there is a lot of work to do. But these non-Christians would know lots of Christians and have access to the gospel without cultural or language barriers preventing it. The Bible belt of America would be an example of this. Some places in the world have signal, but not full coverage, not full bars. There are cultural and language barriers to the gospel, and more people would have more exposure to the gospel if more churches were planted. Singapore would be an example.
But beloved, for many places and thousands of peoples, there is no cell tower within reach. Not weak signal; no signal. Not a single bar. No churches. No Bibles. No Christians. These are gospel dead zones, the darkest places on God’s map. And unless cultural and language barriers are crossed, these 300 million people, representing 3,000 people groups, will be born, live their entire lives, and die without ever having access to the gospel.
Now these people are not spiritually innocent. What can be known about God is plain to them, and yet they have suppressed the truth and rejected God’s glory. So they are without excuse and under God’s wrath — Romans 1. This is what Thota told me on a hillstation in India: that he and his people worship the mountains. And when I told him about the God who made the mountains and who gave His Son for sinners, he said he wanted to keep worshipping the mountains instead.
Roughly 6,000 unreached people die in gospel dead zones every day, entering an eternity of hell. In case you do not feel the urgency of this yet, that is 100 people since this sermon began. While we are gathered here, they are scattered there. They are like sheep without a shepherd.
Beloved, this is where all healthy churches must seek to multiply. Because God deserves glory from all the nations, because Christ has redeemed a flock from tribe and language and people and nation.
We must plant churches to the ends of the earth.
Look back to John 10:16. Hear our Lord’s certain and urgent determination: "And I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also." This is our Lord’s determination and our demand. We must bring our Lord His scattered sheep by planting churches to the ends of the earth.
Now before we go further, let me be clear. This is an urgent task with sobering realities. But can I tell you what drives missionary church planting? It is not guilt! It is not guilt, beloved. It is glory! We must give our lives to this task, planting churches to the ends of the earth, because God must be glorified in all the earth! Guilt might send someone to the mission field, but it cannot keep them there—not through all the afflictions it takes to see a church planted. Only glory can sustain them through that!
Spurgeon said, "If there be any one point in which the church ought to keep its fervor at a white heat, it is concerning missions. If there be anything about which we cannot tolerate lukewarmness, it is the matter of sending the gospel to a dying world." Oh beloved, I pray we would not be lukewarm about the glory of God. I pray God would grant us white-hot fervor for this task. How will He do this? How will Christ bring His sheep? He says it right there: "and they will listen to my voice." It is by His voice—His Word—in our mouths! So He can say with omnipotence, "They will listen to my voice."
Beloved, missionary church planting is not a gamble. Jesus did not die crossing His fingers, hoping for the best. Missionary teams proclaim the Word with the full confidence of Christ’s redemption at the cross. He has sheep, and they will listen! Paul knew this! It is what Jesus told him when he stepped into the unreached land of Corinth (Acts 18:9–10): "Do not be afraid, but go on speaking and do not be silent, for I am with you. I have many in this city who are my people." Even in a gospel dead zone, Christ has sheep, and they will listen!
Adoniram Judson knew this! He preached the Word in Burma for 7 years before he saw his first convert. The sending church back home started to wonder: is this really working? Are there really other sheep there? So Judson wrote to his friend, Luther Rice: "If they ask what prospect of ultimate success is there, tell them, as much as there is an Almighty and faithful God who will perform His promises and no more." He knew they would listen. By the time he died, 31 years after that first baptism, Judson would see 63 Burmese churches planted, roughly 7,000 more baptisms.
How will they call on Him if they have not believed? How will they believe if they have never heard? How will they hear without preaching? And how will they preach unless they are sent? Oh beloved, this is how! Missionary church planting to the ends of the earth! This is how Christ will bring His other sheep! This is His determination and our demand. May His must be our must too.
So this is not just the job of the missionary. No, beloved, remember last week? We plant churches through the local church. That is true for local church planting and missionary church planting; this is the job of the whole church. I must warn us: this is a difficult and dangerous task. These 3,000 peoples scattered to the ends of the earth are the most difficult places in the world to plant churches. There is a reason why they are unreached. All the easy people groups are already taken. Thota from the hill country will tell you he does not want church planting in his village.
We serve a worthy Lamb; He shed His blood to ransom a people for God, and there is no worthier goal than God’s glory.
Last week, we heard of the afflictions that come along with this work. Proclamation comes with persecution. The spread of the gospel and suffering for the gospel go hand in hand. But beloved, we should not weigh risks by the odds of danger, but by the worth of the goal. We serve a worthy Lamb; He shed His blood to ransom a people for God, and there is no worthier goal than God’s glory.
So yes, there is danger in missionary church planting, but there is far greater danger in playing it safe. If Jesus laid down His life to redeem them, we must lay down our lives to bring them home. This does not mean all of us need to get on an airplane. That would be unhelpful, actually; the missionary task requires goers and senders.
Picture missions like a spear. Every good spear needs a razor-sharp tip. That is the missionary team, cutting through barriers to reach the unreached, with the goal from the beginning to plant a church among that people. To establish a glory beacon, to set up a cell tower in a place on the map where there is a dead zone. And yet, good spears are more than sharp tips; good spears support that tip with a solid shaft. That is the church getting behind the missionary team, upholding them in the work. It takes a missionary to advance the gospel to the ends of the earth, and it takes a church to hold the spear.
So, beloved brothers and sisters here at Grace Baptist, this is our work to do together. In a room this size, I pray some of you would go. That is a specific way I have been praying for us as a church: that God would raise up more laborers from our midst to go into the harvest. I have been so encouraged by some recent testimonies of that here in the life of our church, even in the last couple of years. You might be here having never even considered that, and perhaps God is using John 10:16, even today, to get you to start considering it—come talk to me, and we can pray about it together.
In a room this size, I trust most of us should stay. A good spear has more weight in the shaft than at the tip. Just like the work of staying and sending here at Grace Baptist to see a church planted here in Singapore, there is much good work in staying and sending for missionary church planting among the nations. Whether your commitment to the Great Commission puts you at the tip of the spear or all the way at the back of the shaft, this is a call for all of us today to grab hold of it where we are and thrust it ahead.
Send one of our missionaries a word of encouragement on WhatsApp. Use one of your holidays to go visit them. When they come back home, buy them a meal. Show up at prayer meetings and members meetings to hear updates and pray. Give generously and cheerfully and sacrificially to our missions work as a church. Attend Missions Reading Group or Prayer for the Unreached. Help out at the Weekender – host or volunteer!
Remember that the local church is the training ground for missions. So even as you build one another up, you strengthen the whole shaft. That brother or sister you are meeting up to read the Bible with might be a future missionary, for all you know. Wherever you are on the spear, grab hold of it, and thrust it ahead. And as we look ahead to the church plant here in Singapore, keep in mind that we are not just multiplying another church, but we are multiplying another spear—another sending church to partner with in the work of planting churches to the ends of the earth.
One day, Abraham’s blessing will be fully realized. In Christ, the worthy Lamb, people from every tribe, tongue, and nation will be blessed. And the nations will be glad. How will we know when that day has come? How will we know when all church planting will end? Here it is from George Ladd: “I answer, I do not know. God alone knows the definition of terms. I cannot precisely define who ‘all the nations’ are. Only God knows the exact meaning. But I do not need to know. I know only one thing: Christ has not yet returned; therefore the task is not yet done. When it is done, Christ will come. So long as Christ does not return, our work is undone. Let us get busy and complete our mission.”
May our Lord’s must (John 10:16) be our must too. Let us get busy and complete our mission. We must plant churches to the ends of the earth.
One church planting story to close.
Peter Cameron Scott was born in Scotland in 1867. At 12 years old, he and his family emigrated to Philadelphia in America. Peter had a powerful voice and world-class training in opera. He had a promising future of life on the stage. As a young man, Peter had faith in Christ, and yet he knew his life was not aligned with God’s purposes. One day, as he walked up the steps of the opera house, he was struck with conviction that he had been pursuing fame, success, comfort, and idolatry. So he turned around and never went back.
Peter and his brother, John, began praying together about going to plant churches among the unreached. So a few months later, they boarded a ship and set sail to the French Congo in Africa. Shortly after arriving, John contracted malaria and died. With his own hands, Peter dug a grave and buried his brother. A few months later, Peter was also struck with malaria and was sent to London for emergency care. Peter had lost his career, his brother, and his health, but the Lord had spared his life, and he was not sure why. He was weak, discouraged, and searching.
And one day, walking around the tombs of Westminster Abbey, Peter came across the headstone of David Livingstone, the great Scottish missionary to Africa. And engraved on that headstone, he read the words from John 10:16: "I have other sheep who are not of this fold; I must bring them also." Peter knelt to the ground, he prayed, and when he rose, he knew exactly what he must do. Not out of guilt, but because of glory. With fresh conviction, Peter set sail again, returning to Africa on the Eastern Coast in 1895.
Together, with a team of seven others, they preached the gospel, seeking to plant churches stretching from the coast deep into the interior of the continent, where Christ had not been named. They called it the Africa Inland Mission. 130 years later, the Africa Inland Mission has seen hundreds of churches planted, reaching thousands who were previously unreached. Peter Cameron Scott never saw a single church planted; he saw very little fruit. And he died of blackwater fever 14 months after his return. But his life was not wasted. Just like His shepherd, he laid down his life to bring the scattered sheep home.
Oh brothers and sisters, may we plant churches for the glory of God, through the local church, to the ends of the earth. Healthy churches multiply and keep multiplying until our Lord returns, until there is one flock, one shepherd, one great multitude around one glorious throne.
Let’s pray.