THE PERILS OF
MISSIONARY
SERVICEBy E. L. Bynum "Of the Jews five times received I forty stripes
save one. Thrice was I beaten with rods, once was
I stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a
day I have been in the deep; In journeyings often,
in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils
by mine own countrymen, in perils by the heathen,
in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness,
in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren;
In weariness and painfulness, in watchings often, in
hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and
nakedness. Beside those things that are without,
that which cometh upon me daily, the care of all
the churches." II Corinthians 11:24-28Many perils threaten [21st] Century missionary
service. Communist domination and influence has
made missionary service in many countries difficult
and in others impossible. A revival among some
pagan religions has made them strong opponents
of true Christianity. Ecumenicalism has proven to
be an enemy of scriptural missions. A rising tide of
nationalism in all parts of the world has caused
emerging nations to distrust missionaries from the
western world. In some nations this has resulted in
a nationalized Church, whose affiliation with the
anti-missionary World Council of Churches has re-
sulted in Bible believing missionaries being expelled.
Unfortunately these difficulties have resulted in a
pessimistic attitude, on the part of some, toward
foreign missions. Some speak of phasing out foreign
missions, while other speak of concentrating on the
home field. Missionary candidates have become
discouraged and sought other fields of service. Un-
less we understand the situation, the devil will surely
use the difficulties to discourage us from doing the
will of God. There are many open doors to mission-
ary service, and golden opportunities await those
who will heed the call of God.The Roman World of Paul's Day From a human standpoint, the world of Paul's day
seemed an impossible field to be evangelized. The
known civilized world was ruled by Roman power,
but it was anything but a calm, peaceful place to
do missionary work. "The empire at that time con-
tained 120 million inhabitants. It extended from
the Euphrates on the east to the Atlantic on the
west, and from the deserts of Africa on the south
to the Danube and Rhine on the north. Fully 100
different nations were included in this vast domi-
nion, each speaking its own language and wor-
shipping its own gods . . . Though tolerant of all
religious beliefs in every nation they conquered, the
Romans persecuted the Christians. This was due
to the fact that they alone refused to offer sacrifice
to the gods of the empire. They absented them-
selves from the games and feasts and were accus-
tomed to hold their meetings at night. Soon they
came to be regarded enemies of the state and were
persecuted by even the best rulers . . ."(1)
Roman military might had succeeded in subduing
the many nations that now made up the provinces
of the Roman empire, but there existed in most if
not all of these former nations strong segments
plotting rebellion. Rebellion was crushed in bloody
wars. A case in point was the Jewish rebellion
which resulted in the destruction of Jerusalem in
70 A.D. Many other similar internal conflicts
troubled the Empire during the First Century. It
was into this cross current of intrigue, revolution
and immorality that the first missionaries plunged.
Humanly speaking, there was no hope of success,
but the Book of Acts reveals the marvelous success
achieved by these missionary pioneers. These suc-
cesses were not achieved without personal sacrifice
and suffering, as our text clearly reveals. Neither
were they achieved without the leadership and
power of God."It is easy to see how much misery followed in
the train of Rome's advancing greatness. Cruel suf-
fering was a characteristic feature of the close of the
Republic. Slave wars, civil wars, wars of conquest,
had left their disastrous results behind them. No
country recovers rapidly from the effects of a war
which has been conducted within its frontier; and
there was no district of the Empire which had not
been the scene of some recent campaign . . . To
take the case of Asia Minor. (Where Paul labored
during his first missionary journey). It had been
plundered and ravaged by successive generals . . .
It would be a delusion to imagine that, when the
world was reduced under one sceptre, any real
principle of unity held its different parts together.
The emperor was deified, because men were enslav-
ed. There was no true peace when Augustus closed
the Temple of Janus. The Empire was the only
order of external government, with a chaos both
of opinions and morals within . . . It is true that a
remarkable religious toleration was produced by
this state of things: and it is probable
that for some short time Christianity itself shared
the advantage of it. But still the temper of the
times was essential both cruel and profane; and the
Apostles were exposed to its bitter persecution."(2)
The Perils Paul Faced Paul and Barnabas were called by the Holy Spirit
and sent forth by the Holy Spirit and the Church at
Antioch. In these early journeys of Paul we find
some of the perils of missionary service. Strange
as it may seem, 1900 years later, these are some
of the same perils faced by God's missionaries today.I. The Perils of Demonic Opposition On the island of Cyprus in the city of Paphos,
they met with demonic opposition in the person
of a sorcerer by the name of Elymas (Acts 13:6-12).
He was a false prophet, a magician and a "child
of the devil". His determined opposition to the
Word and work of God had to be dealt with, if
mission work was to succeed in that region of the
world.One of the perils of the [21st] Century missions, is
the resurgence of demonism, satanism, witchcraft
and sorcery, in the world today. We may laugh
at witchcraft, but it is no laughing matter for the
missionary in Africa, Central and South America,
Haiti, New Guinea, Indonesia and many other parts
of the world. As the cloud of spiritual ignorance
continues to darken our own country, we are seeing
an increasing number of people turning to the oc-
cult. Make no mistake about it, witchcraft is an en-
emy of Christianity, and God's people must be willing
to stand against it in any form it may be found.
It was here at Paphos, that Venus the goddess of
love was born of the foam of the sea. The city had
become the center of the "deification of lust", where
every licentious sin imaginable was committed in
the name of religion. For in the Grecian-Roman
world, "love" was lowered to the awful level of
"lust". In much of the world this is so today. Yet
in this center of iniquity, Sergius Paulus, Roman
Proconsul, became a believer.II. The Peril of Doctrinal Error Paul and Barnabas returned from their first mis-
sionary journey, and reported the wonderful bles-
sings of God to the Church at Antioch (Acts 14:26-
28). Their rejoicing was short lived, because of
false doctrine being taught at Antioch (Acts 15:1-5).
Certain Judaziers came from Jerusalem and taught
that both Jew and Gentile must be circumcised and
keep the law of Moses to be saved. This was a
mixing of law and grace. This was in effect teach-
ing that the Gentiles must become Jews to be saved.
This would mean that Paul's Gentile converts and
churches were unscriptural, and that his mission
work was in vain.
This was perhaps the hardest trial that Paul
faced in his ministry. The temptation to compro-
mise for the sake of unity, must have been very
strong. However, Paul did not yield an inch, but
withstood their false doctrine. He led a delegation
from Antioch to Jerusalem, to see what the apostles
and their elders had to say about this matter. Acts
15 gives us the record of Paul's victory in opposing
this false misleading doctrine.
Doctrinal error is one of the perils of missionary
service today. Missionaries have been known to
compromise doctrine for the sake of unity on the
foreign field. When professing Christians are a
very small minority, it is a temptation to work with
groups whose doctrinal teaching is unsound. On the
other hand, missionaries have labored hard on the
foreign field to adhere to the truth, only to return
home to see that churches have changed their doc-
trinal stand and moral standards. This is heart-
breaking to the missionary.III. The Peril of Deserting Helpers When they landed at Perga on the Southern shore
of Asia Minor (now Turkey), John Mark departed
from them and returned to Jerusalem (Acts 13:13).
We do not know what excuse he gave. He could
have sneezed twice and thus decided that the coun-
try was not an healthy place to live. He may have
had an ingrown toenail or he may have been home
sick for mother's cooking. News of his ageing par-
ents may have hastened his return. (Many have
never considered the truth revealed in Luke 14:25-
33). "But it is more likely that the cause of his
withdrawal was dismay at the dangers upon which
they were about to enter. These were such as
might well strike terror even in resolute hearts.
Behind Perga rose the snow-clad peaks of the Tau-
rus mountains, which had to be penetrated through
narrow passes, where crazy bridges spanned the
rushing torrents, and the castles of robbers who
watched for passing travelers to pounce upon, were
hidden in positions so inaccessible that even the
Roman arms had not been able to exterminate
them."(3) This may have been the "perils of
water" and "perils of robbers" that Paul refers to
in our text.
Whatever his reasons, Paul did not accept them,
for he refused to take John Mark on the second
missionary journey, which resulted in Paul and
Barnabas going their separate ways. Years later
Paul commends Mark in II Tim. 4:11, so he must
have changed.
Departing, deserting helpers, present a problem
in [21st] Century mission work. The high turnover
in missionary personnel is a definite hindrance to
missions. It discourages those who remain on the
field, for they are pleading for workers. It discour-
ages the supporting churches, as they see sacred
mission money wasted. Some desert the field for
various reasons. Lack of ability, stability and stick-
ability discourage some. Others find strange cul-
tures, unhealthy living conditions and physical hard-
ships too much to bear. Lack of support, lack of
results and lack of dedication puts some to packing.
(Judson, pioneer missionary to Burma, labored 6
years before he made his first convert.) Others
fail, because churches at home are not praying for
them. Many do not last, because they have no
Divine call from God. This may have been Mark's
problem since nothing is mentioned of his receiving
a call from God.
Missionary candidates must be recruited by theo-
logical reasons and not by psychological reasons.
They must be prepared for hardship and not led to
look upon missions as a romantic adventure. We
dare not try to convince men to stay on the field
whom God has not called. Neither should we dis-
courage those whom God has called.IV. The Peril of Division Over Personalities As Paul and Barnabas prepared to leave on their
second tour of missionary service, a serious dispute
arose over whether John Mark should go along with
them. Barnabas desired to take his nephew along,
but Paul was unyielding in his opposition. The con-
tention was so great, that it resulted in Paul and
Barnabas going their separate ways. Perhaps this
was God's way in getting two missionary teams on
the field instead of one. They parted never to work
together again. However we do not believe that
either one of them remained bitter over this exper-
ience. Later on Paul mentions both Barnabas and
Mark with honor in his writings.
This is not an uncommon type experience in the
Lord's work. Personalities sometimes clash to the
extent that some cannot work together. However,
it is sad when parties become bitter over such issues
and try to ruin those who disagree with them. It is
a mistake to try to force people to work together
who obviously cannot get along. Most sharp dis-
agreements between fundamental believers, seem to
arise over personality problems, rather than doc-
trine. Many times the devil uses this to seek to
destroy the Lord's work at home and abroad.V. The Peril of Being Denounced In almost every place Paul went, the greatest
By His Own Countrymen
opposition that he faced was by the Jews, his own
countrymen (II Cor. 11:26). The Jews led in the
opposition at Paphos, Antioch in Pisidia, Iconium,
Derbe and Lystra. It was the Jews who caused
Paul to be stoned in Lystra (Acts 14:19). Yet,
these people had the same Bible that Paul used, and
they spoke of the same Old Testament characters.
Imagine how confusing this must have been to the
Gentiles in these cities.
One of the greatest hindrances to modern day
mission work is the American people. The Amer-
ican TOURIST with his big bankroll, his boorish
manners, his immodest dress (shorts and mini-
skirts), and his drunken habits, make a formidable
obstacle to missions. Many American SERVICE-
MEN with their drunken ways, leaving a trail of ille-
gitimate babies behind them, have done untold harm
to missions. American MOVIES, shown round the
world by theaters and television, with their heavy
emphasis on sex and violence, present our nation
in the worst possible light. The people on the mis-
sion field think of America as being a Christian
nation. They identify the missionary with these im-
pressions made by some of these worst elements in
our society, and thus close their ears to the gospel
message.Perhaps the greatest threat to foreign missions is
American RELIGION. The World Council of Churches
is working to halt biblical missions around the world.
Most of its influence, power and money comes from
the United States. It was their teaching and influ-
ence in the Congo (now Zaire), that cause a nation-
al church to be formed which is affiliated with the
World Council of Churches. The law, as it stands
in Congo now, prohibits anyone who is not a mem-
ber of the "Church of Christ in Zaire" from preach-
ing, giving religious teaching, or holding public serv-
ices. Our missionaries left the country, rather than
join such a church. Modernistic religion, with its
social gospel and its socialistic teaching is an op-
ponent of all scriptural mission work. Recently,
two of our Independent Baptist Indian preachers
in Chiapas, Mexico, were severely beaten and barely
escaped with their lives. Why? Because Presby-
terian taught natives resented what our Baptist
preachers were teaching on baptism.
False cults and unsound missionaries, sent and
financed from America, are doing untold harm to
the mission field. Recently I visited the scene
where religious fanatics mobbed a missionary sent
out from our church. Armed with machetes, guns,
clubs and rocks, they screamed "long live Mary
the mother of God." God delivered the missionary,
but the threat of physical peril is a constant danger
on many mission fields.VI. The Peril of Dismissal From The Country This was a constant peril in Paul's missionary
work. During the early part of his ministry, he had
to leave Damascus at night (Acts 9:20-25). He was
"expelled" from Antioch in Pisidia (Acts 13:50), and
he had to flee from Iconium or be stoned (Acts
14:5,6). He was stoned and left for dead at Lystra
(Acts 14:19). Yet, he returned to some of these
places and preached later on (Acts 14:21). These
experiences seem rather common in Paul's mis-
sionary work. When he was expelled from a city or
country, he did not return to Antioch and report
that the mission doors were closed. He did not sit
down and wait to hear from the home churches
before undertaking further work. Neither did he
go back to his home country and seek an easy pas-
torate. When a new door was opened by the Lord,
he did not have to return to Antioch and his other
supporting Churches and explain to them why he
was changing fields. When one door closed, he
looked for another door that was open, because he
saw every lost soul as a mission field.VII. The Peril of Being Directed During Paul's second missionary journey, he had
To A New Field
to face the prospects of entering into Europe, which
was a new and strange field. Europe was not Paul's
choice, but it was God's direction that lead him
there. At this time, Paul was "forbidden" by "the
Holy Ghost to preach the word in Asia[.]" Then
when Paul planned "to go into Bithynia...the
Spirit suffered them not." Just how the Spirit
revealed that these doors were closed to Paul, we
are not told. It may have been by direct revela-
tion, or by an inward Spirit direction. It could have
been revealed by the borders of these countries
being closed to Paul. God can open doors and He
can close doors. Nevertheless, the night vision at
Troas settled the matter for Paul. The Macedonian
call, "Come over into Macedonia, and help us," was
recognized as a call from God, for Paul and his
companions immediately departed for Greece (Acts
16:6-11).
We might well consider what might have hap-
pened if God had sent Paul to the east into India
and China, instead of Europe. The east could have
just as well been Christian, and we of the west
could have been heathen pagans bowing down to
wood and stone as our ancestors did before the
arrival of Christianity. If first Century missionary
work had been conducted as much 20th Century
mission work is being done, we would all be heathen
pagans. Thank God there were no denominational
headquarters to bind and hinder the missionaries.
Denominational Church Conventions were unknown
and unformed, therefore they did not exist to be
"the holy spirit" for the missionaries. There was
harmony between the churches and the missionaries,
and the missionaries were free to follow the leader-
ship of the Holy Spirit.
Philippi became the sight of Paul's first mission-
ary labors in Europe. After early success in the
conversion of Lydia, Paul and Silas soon were pris-
oners in the jail at Philippi. From a human stand-
point, it looked as if they were at the end of the
road. But even the jail proved to be a fruitful place
for revival and soul winning. We must remember
things are not always as they seem. Sometimes
God may be working in unusual ways to bring us
into His will. Temporary defeat and disaster does
not always mean what it seems.
The [21st] Century finds us living in the midst of a
changing world. Some missionaries have been dis-
missed (expelled) from certain countries. Some
have found closed doors and have been directed by
the Holy Spirit to new fields of service. However,
why all the gloom and pessimism in certain circles,
about the future of foreign missions? The time has
come for us to quit talking about the closed fields,
and to START TALKING ABOUT THE OPEN
FIELDS.
The Indians and the old time buffalo hunters, when
seeking buffalo, would place one ear down against
the ground. In this manner they could hear the
noise made by herds of buffalo, even though they
might be miles away. Even so, we need to get
down on our knees, put one ear to the ground and
the other one turned to heaven. In this manner we
can hear the news of changing events in the world
and with the other, we can listen for heaven's direc-
tions in the fast changing missionary world. This
is not a new method, but going back to the first
Century methods of Paul. THE TRAGEDY OF THE
HOUR, IS NOT THE CLOSED MISSION FIELDS,
BUT THE TRAGEDY AND SHAME IS THE OPEN
FIELDS THAT WE ARE NOT ENTERING.
In Paul's day, the Roman Empire controlled all
of the then known civilized world. As far as we
know, Paul never went beyond the bounds of the
Roman Empire. This task was undertaken by others
at a later date. We may safely say that the fields
of missionary service open to Paul, were all to be
found within the bounds of the Roman Empire. The
total population of the Roman Empire was between
54 million and 120 million, according to various esti-
mates. Today, the population of Latin America
alone, is about 300 million people. This includes
Mexico, Central America, South America and the
Caribbean Islands. Latin America is from 2 to 6
times as large a field as the Roman Empire was
in the days of Paul. Most of this field is now open
to the preaching of the Gospel.
Why do we major on the closed doors and minor
on the open doors? Less than 10 years ago, Indo-
nesia was controlled by the Communists, and thus
was not a likely place to do mission work. In 1966
the Communist Party was outlawed. It is an open
field. Where are the workers for this needy field?
We know of only one Independent Baptist Mission-
ary preparing to go to Indonesia. Not all the changes
on the fields of the World are bad. Here is a field
that God has opened in the last few years. The
population of Indonesia is over 120 million people,
and this is at least as large as the Roman Empire
in Paul's day.
The time has come for God's people to wake up
to their responsibility. It is time for churches to
pray for workers to go into these unevangelized
fields. We expect our missionaries to be dedicated
and sacrificial in their labors. But we will never
do the job until churches and Christians at home are
as dedicated to the task, as the missionary who goes
to the regions beyond.* * * * * (1) The New Teachers' and Pupils' Cyclopaedia.
Page 2444.
(2) The Life And Epistles of St. Paul, by Conybeare
and Howson.
(3) The Life of St. Paul, by James Stalker.TRACT # A-316 ORDER FROM: TABERNACLE BAPTIST CHURCH
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