As good Americans, I find the great commission to be a great stumbling block for Christians. It seems like Christ's call for us to preach his gospel has become some sort of reserved option for the bold and ministry driven people and not for every Christian. Some sort of hierarchy has formed over the years (probably due to the way the Catholic church began functioning in the early middle ages), and the call of the gospel has been left up to those bold enough to make a career out of evangelism and preaching. Where I see problems is that it seems rather obvious that Christ's command in Matthew 28:19-20 was not some sort of career option for those who "feel called" to go into missions; rather Jesus simply said "go" without providing a list of conditions for employment.
I hear all the time from friends and other people that as American Christians, we should go into a career and be a light and a witness in whatever we do. This sounds nice, but I don't know but maybe one or two people that have actually pulled this off. The overwhelming majority of people with this mindset are what I call "back-row baptists," for they are always in church, always giving money and saying nice things, but never once sharing their faith with anyone. I'm definitely not saying that these people are evil or wrong in their lifestyle, but it seems that something huge is missing. From my studies in the New Testament, the gospel is always first, regardless of circumstances; the apostles understood that salvation was the only thing that had any weight in light of eternity, and the other things they did in life simply weren't valuable in comparison to the gospel.
What I suggest is a refocus, a reworking of how we see people in the world. When we see people as souls traveling either towards heaven or hell, it tends to make a difference. When we view the world through the lens of the gospel, we no longer worry about our careers or possessions, for all of that becomes secondary compared to our true purpose. I am not, however, saying that everyone should be full-time missionaries, but what I am saying is that we should switch our mindset from "I'll get a career and hopefully spread the gospel when I'm not working," to "I MUST spread the gospel wherever I am, working, eating, vacationing, whatever..." For some people, like myself, the gospel is a career, and I cannot see myself doing anything else and being satisfied. I want to either be teaching the gospel, or teaching others to teach the gospel, but either way the gospel has to be the centerpiece. I fear living a life where God becomes 4th or 5th on my to-do list, like so many people sitting in church today. I don't think that everyone should see things my way, rather I suggest that the focus the church currently has should shift to making new believers instead of shuffling around the believers we already have.
