February 8, 2026
LINK TO SERMON ON YOUTUBE
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TEXT: Matthew 9:35-38
TOPIC: Mission
SERMON SUMMARY:
Seeing the City with the Eyes of Christ
Yesterday, I officiated a graveside service for a family I suspected were not believers. It gave me an opportunity to present the gospel—because that's our human vocation. When God created Adam, it was to know God and make God known. We're all called to share the gospel, not just missionaries or clergy.
Today is World Mission Sunday, a day to fulfill the Great Commission. Jesus didn't send disciples to make mere converts, but to make disciples. The New Testament was written for disciples and about discipleship.
Our gospel tells us that when Jesus saw the crowds, he had compassion—a visceral, gut-level emotion. This wasn't polite concern but costly love. He saw people without a shepherd. Mission begins when the compassion of Christ shapes how we see people.
Jesus said something startling: "The harvest is plentiful." The problem isn't the harvest—it's the laborers. We live in LA, a global city. People here are spiritually searching, deeply wounded, and profoundly hungry for meaning and belonging. As Augustine said, "Our hearts are restless until they rest in thee."
Every other Wednesday, I set up a table at Glendale Community College with a sign: "Free Prayer." Students, professors, and administrators regularly approach—sometimes there's even a line. I'm just making myself available. People don't care what you know; they want to know that you care.
Mission is God's work before it's ours. The Father sends the Son, the Son sends the church, and the Spirit equips us. We don't bring God to the world—God is already at work, inviting us to join Him.
Jesus doesn't immediately say "go." He first says "pray." Before mission becomes movement, it becomes intercession. And often, those who pray for laborers discover they themselves are the answer.
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A: This isn't about being mean or divisive—it's about biblical accuracy and understanding our mission. According to John 1, Jesus "came to his own, but his own did not receive him. But to those who did, he gave them the right to become children of God." We become God's children through faith and baptism, adopted into His family. Until then, biblically speaking, people are like orphans searching for their Father without knowing it. This understanding actually gives us greater incentive for mission—we're not all already in God's family, which is why sharing the gospel matters. Seeing people as image-bearers loved by God but not yet adopted into His family helps us approach them with compassion and urgency, longing for them to come home.
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A: Mission doesn't start with programs, strategies, or clever techniques. It begins with encounter—with seeing people the way Jesus saw them. When Jesus looked at the crowds, he felt visceral compassion, moved at the deepest level. He saw them as harassed, helpless, like sheep without a shepherd. The theologian Karl Rahner said, "The Christian of the future will be a mystic or will not exist at all"—meaning we must encounter the living God who breaks our hearts open to the world. When we see people through Christ's eyes of compassion rather than as problems, labels, or statistics, mission becomes natural. We're moved to act not out of duty but out of love.
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A: Mission isn't about abandoning home—it's about seeing home with new eyes. You don't have to cross the ocean; you can cross the street. The harvest is plentiful right where you are—in your neighborhood, workplace, or school. I'm not specially trained to set up that prayer table at the community college; I'm just making myself available. Start by praying that God would help you see one person this week as Jesus sees them—not as a stranger or problem, but as a beloved image-bearer. Offer yourself in simple ways. The church exists for the benefit of those who are not its members. Mission is lived out in shelters, sanctuaries, classrooms, clinics, and hospital rooms. Wherever you find yourself, that is your mission field.
Prayer
Good and gracious God, we thank You for not leaving us alone and stranded, but for coming and saving us. Open our eyes to see the city, our neighborhoods, and the people around us the way Jesus saw the crowds—with compassion, not with fear or fatigue. Move our hearts as You moved the heart of Christ. Help us to pray for laborers in the harvest and to recognize that we ourselves may be the answer to those prayers. Send us out, Lord, and equip us with Your Spirit to be missionaries right where we are—across the street, in our schools, at our jobs, in our communities. Give us the courage to make ourselves available, to plant seeds, to water what others have planted, and to trust You for the harvest. May we partner with You to welcome, shape, and send disciples into the world, bringing Your love to orphans searching for their Father. Be our glory now and always. Amen.
The Rev. Astor Yelangueuzian, our guest preacher today, is Rector of St. David’s Anglican Church in Burbank.
For over a century, the congregation of St. Luke’s has followed Jesus Christ through ancient forms of worship and spiritual growth presented in a contemporary style. St. Luke’s celebrated its 100th anniversary in 2024. The original stone building, made of stones from the local mountains, still stands on Foothill Blvd in La Crescenta—though the Anglican congregation has moved to a new building just a few blocks away near downtown Montrose. Retaining its biblically faithful foundation and liturgically rich worship service through the move, this long-standing Los Angeles church also carries on a tradition of warm welcome for newcomers. St. Luke’s is part of the Diocese of Western Anglicans, Anglican Church in North America, and the Global Anglican Communion. We invite you to join us online or in person this Sunday!
