3 Nephi 18

(December 1, 2013)
The Christ-centered approach to missionary work is much different than what I think we envision in our weaker moments.  Christ in this chapter sets out the pattern for missionary work.  (1) All we are to do is to hold up Christ as an example to the world.  We are to tell of Him, and model our lives after His to the best of our ability.  Both halves (telling and imitating) are necessary.  (2) We are to continually minister to those around us, regardless of whether we might believe they are beyond hope/help.  Christ gives us no authority to declare anyone beyond His infinite Atonement.  We are to pray for them, serve them, and minister to them.  Perhaps they will be saved, and perhaps not.  But our responsibilities remain the same.

I think a great deal of our reluctance to perform missionary work is a result of our attempts to perform that work in a manner contrary to this pattern.  We place the burden for success or failure on ourselves – we think if we come up with the perfect argument or the right logic, we can somehow “save” those we try to teach.  Then, if we fail, we feel as though we have failed forever and placed those we are attempting to bless beyond the reach of Christ.  Of course, nothing could be further from the truth.

Missionary work is difficult to the extent that we remove Christ from the process.  If we simply try to model His life for those around us, serve them, open our mouths to tell them of Him (not of us, but of Him), and then rely on the Lord to work upon them, there is no pressure on us other than to serve and bless those around us.  Missionary work, then, becomes easy.