ONLY vs. Primary and Secondary: The Key to the Missionary Motivation Problem

Bob Sjogren

In 1900, Andrew Murray tackled the key question to the missionary problem as to why there were so few missionaries. In his report to the ecumenical missionary conference held in New York in April, he thought the answer was simple; it was the Lordship of Jesus Christ. Though I totally agree, I think there is much more to it than simply a Lordship question. I believe it is in how we, the church, view the cross.

When I speak to audiences I try to communicate this by asking the following question. “Why did Jesus primarily die on the cross?” When I ask that question, there is always a curious look. They are concerned about one word, primarily. “Primarily…” (I can almost hear their thinking.) “Primarily? What do you mean primarily? He died for our sins—that’s the only reason He came.”

Why Christ Died

It is at this point that I begin to help them see that Christ died for more than simply getting us to heaven. I begin this journey by looking at a few verses in the first chapter of Colossians:

For in him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether on earth or in heaven, making peace by the blood of his cross. (Colossians 1:19–20 ESV, emphasis mine)

I was teaching this to a young professionals group, and when one of them read this text, I said, “Wait, what did it say He reconciled?”

The young entrepreneur answered, “all things.”

“Things?” I said astonishingly. “That should say people. Christ reconciled people. What version do you have?”

He quickly checked his phone. “This is the ESV.”

“Anybody got another version?”

“Yeah, I’ve got the NASB,” the dentist said.

“What does it say?”

“Um, ‘all things’ as well,” he said with a look of query on his face.

“Anybody else got another version?”

The young professionals found that version after version said, “all things.” They caught on I wasn’t surprised; rather I was trying to emphasize the text. So I helped them see the significance of it.

“Name things on the earth.”

Words came out like “trees, mountains, birds, grass, flowers, clouds, insects, animals …” The list went on and on.

“Why would Christ need to reconcile those?” I let the words hang. Eventually they had no answer. They were dumbfounded—and they also knew I was going somewhere.

“Turn to Genesis chapter 3,” I said. “When Eve and Adam ate from the fruit, there were four curses. First, the snake would crawl. Secondly, women would have pain in childbirth. Thirdly, the men would have hard labor. And what was the fourth?” More hesitation. I decided not to stall any longer. “Look at verse 17.”

“Cursed is the ground,” the woman in marketing said.

“Right, the ground that we now see, the trees that we now see, the animals that we now see, the flowers that we now see, are in a state of being cursed. They do not as brilliantly radiate the glory of God as they used to. This means that what Adam and Eve saw before they tasted the fruit is not what we see now. It was far more glorious then.”

I wanted to drive home the point. “Turn to Romans chapter 8 and hear what Paul has to say about this.” Their fingers flew on their cell phones and they read the following:

For the creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God. For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. (Romans 8:19–23 ESV, emphasis mine)

They had never seen the words “futility” and “bondage to corruption” and “groaning”—and it was creation that was doing it. Creation knows that something is wrong. Creation knows it is in a cursed state.

“Yes, Christ died for our sins, but He also died to reconcile all things on earth. The word ‘reconcile’ from the Greek can be accurately translated as, ‘bring back a former state of harmony.’ Things on earth are not in harmony. There is decay. There is destruction. And because our bodies are made out of the dust of the earth, our bodies are decaying. We get old. Muscles don’t work like they used to. There are aches and pains.” (Being in their twenties, they were clueless to what I was talking about. They still thought they’d live forever!) “Creation knows this because creation knew what state it was in before the fall. It knows the change that has taken place. That’s why it is groaning.”

Then I helped them see the rest of Colossians 1:20. Christ did not only come to reconcile things on earth, but He also came to reconcile all things in heaven. All things in heaven means stars, asteroids, other planets, other solar systems, galaxies—in fact, the entire universe.

Here’s the point: when we get the new heavens and the new earth (Revelation 21:1), our bodies won’t wear out. The grass will be greener. The flowers will be more beautiful—radiating God’s glory in a more magnificent way. And the new Heaven will perfectly reflect God’s glory the way it was originally designed to do so. There won’t be any more black holes. Nor will there be stars that are dying. (Both, I believe, are a reflection of the curse.) Everything on earth and in the universe will be restored back to its original state because of what Christ did on the cross. The curse will be broken.

Which is Primary?

Okay, so now we see that Christ came to take away our sin, reconcile things on earth and reconcile things in heaven. We now have three reasons why He came to die. With this knowledge, we need to ask two key questions. First, is there anything else He died for? And secondly, which one is primary? Paul gives us another reason why Christ came. It is found in Romans:

For I tell you that Christ became a servant to the circumcised to show God’s truthfulness, in order to confirm the promises given to the patriarchs, and in order that the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy. (Romans 15:8–9 ESV)

The words, “in order that” means there’s a purpose clause coming. In other words, Paul is trying to tell us why Christ came. Note what Paul does not say. He does not say, “in order that the Gentiles might not go to hell.” Now he could have said that, and it would have been a perfect place to say it. But he doesn’t. Why? Christianity is not primarily about avoiding hell—though you’d never know from many of the Sunday morning services here in the U.S. What does Paul say? “… In order that the Gentiles might glorify God for his mercy.”

You and I are saved for a purpose; that we might bring God glory. That was our original purpose (Isaiah 43:6–7). It is still our purpose today. We are here to glorify God. But our sin keeps us from doing that. Christ came to take away our sin so that we could be restored (reconciled) back to that original purpose—glorifying God.

So, now we know that Christ died for our sins, for all things on earth, for all things in heaven, and for the glory of God. Now we have four reasons why Christ died. Is there anything else, and if so, which one is primary?

John Piper’s excellent book, Fifty Reasons Why Christ Came to Die, gives us forty-nine other reasons. But in all of those, we still have to ask the question, “Which one is primary? That answer can be found in hearing the words of Jesus. After all, He’s the one who died. His key words that give us an answer are found in John chapter 12. Here, Jesus is one day away from going to the cross. He knew it was imminent. He also knew it was going to be painful. And in this passage, we find a rare glimpse of Him opening us His heart to His disciples. He says to them,

Now is my soul troubled. And what shall I say? “Father, save me from this hour? But for this purpose I have come to this hour.” (John 12:27 ESV)

He’s basically saying, “I don’t want to do this guys. But I have to. It’s the very reason that I came.”

Now the very next word is verse 28 speaks volumes for those who know what they are looking for. That next word is “Father.” What does it tell you? It tells you that He is done talking to His disciples and is now addressing His heavenly Father. Now, keep in mind the context.

He is about to die one of the worst deaths any human can endure. Not death because of three nails, but death due to muscles becoming paralyzed and then a slow suffocation. It is one of the worst deaths any human can endure; that is why it was internationally banned. This death is imminent, and He is about to address His heavenly Father. Here is the key question: Do you think He is going to talk to His heavenly Father about the primary reason He is going to the cross or a secondary reason? Just about every audience I speak to says, “Primary,” and I would agree. I hope you do as well.

With that in mind, note what He does not say. He does not say, “Father, save these kind wonderful worthy people from hell, they don’t deserve it.” In fact, He doesn’t even mention us in His answer.

“What? I thought it was all about us,” you may be thinking. Well, no, I’m sorry, it’s not. And that’s the greatest message we need to hear. What does the text say? “Father, glorify your name” (John 12:28 ESV). This tells us that the glory of God was first and foremost on His mind when He went to the cross.

Think about this, and think about it hard. When each crack of the whip split the skin on His back wide open, He was primarily thinking of His Father’s glory. When the thorns of His crown were forced on His head pouring forth blood, it was primarily for His Father’s glory. When the final nail went into His feet causing excruciating pain, it was primarily for His Father’s glory. No wonder He could say about the very ones killing Him, “Father, forgive them for they know not what they are doing.” He knew in saying this that it would glorify His Father.

Christ died primarily to glorify His Father. Under the “umbrella” of glory, is you, me, the Muslims, the Buddhists, the Hindus—all of humanity, but also the all things on earth and all things in heaven. They, too, need to be restored back to their original state and purpose—but they are secondary. This is why Luke penned these words:

Repent therefore, and turn back, that your sins may be blotted out, that times of refreshing may come from the presence of the Lord, and that he may send the Christ appointed for you, Jesus, whom heaven must receive until the time for restoring all the things about which God spoke by the mouth of his holy prophets long ago. (Acts 3:19–21 ESV)

Did you catch those words in italics? Jesus is restoring all things. The Greek word for “restore” is defined as, “restoration of the perfect state.” Jesus came to this earth to restore everything back to the way it was before the fall—humanity and all things. He wanted God’s glory to perfectly reflect the Creator who made all things.

Cat and Dog Theology

So, how does this deal with “the key to the missionary problem,” as Andrew Murray talked about over one hundred years ago? The answer is simple. If you think that Christ died only for our sins, you’ve got one type of Christianity. If you think that Christ died primarily for the glory of God and secondarily for everything else, you’ve got a second type of Christianity.

Personally, I call these two different Christianities, Cat and Dog Theology. It is based on a very simple joke about the differences between a Cat and a Dog. A dog says, “You pet me, you feed me, you shelter me, you love me, you must be God.” A cat says, “You pet me, you feed me, you shelter me, you love me, I must be God.”

That joke characterizes most of Christianity today. There are those in the church who think, “I live for God.” And there are those in the church who think, “God lives for me.” How does a Cat believer come to the conclusion that God lives for them? It is simple. Since their view of the cross is about Christ dying only for their sins, here is how they think:

“Okay now, let’s think through this realistically. Jesus left the Father’s glory for me. He suffered for me. He died for me. He’s gone back to heaven to build a mansion for me. He’s up there interceding for me. And he’s coming back a second time for me. Gee,” ponders the Cat, “I wonder who God lives for? He must live for me. And if God lives for me, and Ephesians 5:1 says I’m supposed to imitate God, that means I should live for me too! But now I get it! He wants me to do it in a Christian context. I’m not supposed to do drugs, or drink or smoke, or do all those bad things. I’m supposed to go to church, help out in a Sunday school—the good things for me. And if I do these things, God will bless me! I do it for the blessings.”

A Dog shakes his head in disbelief. He responds by saying, “No Cat, you’ve got it all wrong. Jesus left the Father’s glory to glorify the Father. He suffered to glorify His Father. He died to glorify His Father. He’s gone back to heaven to build us mansions to glorify His Father. He’s up there interceding to glorify His Father. And He’s coming back a second time to glorify His Father. God lives to glorify His name. And since Ephesians 5:1 says we’re to imitate God, then we, too, should live to glorify God.”

Now there are many differences between Cat Christians and Dog Christians. But let’s get to the root issue when it comes to taking God’s glory to the nations. A Cat looks at the cross and thinks, “Wow, Jesus suffered for me. And since there won’t be any suffering in heaven, He must not want that for me here on this earth—He did it all for me. Thank you, Jesus. You don’t want me to suffer!”

As a result, Cats avoid suffering at all costs. And if a Cat hears a general challenge to go to the nations, it doesn’t even register on their radar screen. Why? Because Jesus loves them, He died for them. He would never want them to suffer. And going to the nations definitely means suffering, so there’s no way it could ever be God’s will for them. It must be for someone else. They won’t waste a minute thinking about it.

Taking a risky step in “Lordship” for a Cat means maybe helping out with a Sunday School or helping in the Men or Women’s Bible study. But going overseas is not even an option. Hence, for a Cat, it’s not really about Lordship. Going to the nations is simply totally out of the question. And they think this way because they thought that Jesus died only for their sins.

A Dog looks at the cross and sees something completely different. A Dog thinks, “Wow, Jesus suffered to reveal His Father’s glory. Because He did that, He’s left me an example. I should be willing to suffer for the Father’s glory as well.” Whereas Cats avoid suffering, Dogs are willing to embrace it. So when a Dog hears about the need for laborers to go to the nations, they think, “Wow, this would be tough, and I might suffer. But I need to pray about it because this is the example that Jesus left for me to follow.” Dogs think this way because they believe that Christ died primarily for the Father’s glory, secondarily for them and the things on earth and in heaven. ONLY versus Primary and Secondary, differentiating between these two can change your entire understanding of Christianity—in fact, your entire purpose on earth.

Key to the Missionary Motivation Problem

Now, let’s be honest. Most churches around the globe preach a gospel that says that Christ died for our sins—implying only for our sins. There’s no secondary to even be considered. And this self-centered Christianity can be found in our greetings, our music, our announcements and our sermons. And that limited view of the cross is like a silent cancer killing our churches.

The key to the missionary motivation problem is not so much because of a lack of Lordship, it is because most of the church views the cross incorrectly. The majority of Christians think Jesus died only for them. Take another look at why Christ came to the earth. Realize that it wasn’t only for us. Discover that it was primarily for the glory of His Father. When we start preaching this message, we’ll see more laborers. 

Bob Sjogren is the president of UnveilinGLORY and the author of multiple books on this topic. He speaks at churches and mobilizes the body of Christ and homeschoolers to God’s heart for the nations. Cat and Dog Theology is found in book form and DVD form for small groups on Amazon. Bob’s email address is 1jealousGod@gmail.com.