This is the second post in our series, “Renewing the Commitment to China’s Unreached People Groups.” Be sure to read the first post to learn more about praying for the many people groups in China who have not yet heard the gospel.
Two years ago, I experienced one of the highlights of my life: hiking to Mount Everest’s South Base Camp in the Himalayas. While reaching the base camp was a significant achievement, it wasn’t the best part of the journey. The real joy came from the experiences along the way—visiting remote villages, engaging face-to-face with unreached people groups (UPGs), and hearing personal stories from fellow travelers. The finish line was not simply reaching base camp; it was about the relationships built and the opportunity to share the good news with those I met along the journey. This experience got me thinking: as missionaries, what is our finish line in the Great Commission?
Defining the Finish Line of the Great Commission
Paul provides insight into this question in Romans 15:19: “by the power of signs and wonders, by the power of the Spirit of God—so that from Jerusalem and all the way around to Illyricum I have fulfilled the ministry of the gospel of Christ.”
Paul fulfilled the ministry of the gospel in these places by preaching, evangelizing the Gentiles, discipling new believers, establishing churches, appointing elders, and developing leaders. Essentially, Paul’s approach, as outlined in his letter to the Romans, encapsulates what it means to fulfill the Great Commission and cross the finish line.
In Romans 1:5, Paul writes that he received grace and apostleship through Christ to bring about the obedience of faith for the sake of his name among all the nations. In Romans 16:26, he reiterates that his mission was to bring about the obedience of faith. Even though Paul wasn’t done—he still desired to go to Spain to preach the gospel and sought the Roman Christians’ help—his focus was clear:
And thus I make it my ambition to preach the gospel, not where Christ has already been named, lest I build on someone else’s foundation (Romans 15:20).
The finish line of the Great Commission is not merely evangelism or church planting; it is to bring about the obedience of faith among all peoples, resulting in healthy, biblical, local churches that display the glory of Christ in their communities and beyond.
Moving Beyond Mobilization and Evangelism
In my previous article, we established that Jesus’ command is clear: his disciples are to make disciples of all nations, not just some. If we take the Great Commission seriously, we must go beyond mobilizing people, advocating for and engaging with unreached people groups, and evangelizing. While these actions are essential, they should not be our end goal. We cannot be content with merely some individuals in unreached groups hearing the gospel.
Revelation 7:9–10 provides a vision of the ultimate finish line:
After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, and crying out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!”
Jesus is worthy of praise from every ethne, and this includes all unreached people groups, such as the diverse Tibetan peoples. There are more than 50 distinct Tibetan people groups, each with unique languages and cultures, totaling more than seven million individuals. The vast majority reside in the Himalayas and areas surrounding the Tibetan plateau, which places them primarily in China with significant populations in Nepal and India. The largest unreached Tibetan groups—Kham, Central, and Amdo—account for five million of these people.
Most Tibetans will live their entire lives without hearing the good news of Jesus. There are several reasons for this: few Christians exist within their communities, Tibetan Buddhism is deeply ingrained in their culture, and they are geographically isolated from most Christians. Additionally, the challenges of language barriers, cultural differences, and restricted access to their regions make reaching them even more difficult.
The Need for a New Finish Line
Given these challenges, we must ask: if we can’t be satisfied with just a few Tibetans hearing the gospel, what should our goal be? The biblical mandate set before us by Jesus is to make disciples, baptize them, and teach them to obey all that he commanded. Paul’s life exemplifies this process: when disciples were made among the Gentiles, he planted churches. These churches, though not ever perfect, were the bride of Christ and served as beacons of the gospel in deeply secular cities like Athens, Rome, Philippi, and Colossae.
Engagement and evangelism are crucial, but they are not the finish line of the Great Commission. As we deepen our commitment to the unreached people groups in China, we must not only go, send, pray, and give; we must also plant healthy churches and develop mature disciples who can lead these churches. Only then can the gospel continue to spread in places that are inaccessible to outsiders and even to near-culture Chinese Christians.
The Call to Persevere
Paul’s words to Timothy capture the attitude of perseverance that we need:
I have fought the good fight, I have finished the race, I have kept the faith (2 Timothy 4:7).
We cannot stop at mobilization, prayer, or even evangelism. Jesus is worthy of praise from a great multitude of all tribes, peoples, languages, and nations. We must cross the finish line of the Great Commission knowing that it is only by the work of the Holy Spirit in the power of Christ that we can bring about the obedience of faith among all peoples, resulting in healthy, biblical local churches that display the glory of Christ in their communities and beyond.
In December, we will dedicate time to praying specifically for these unreached ethne. As we embark on this journey together, let us remember that the greatest problem facing these people groups is their lost condition. They are in desperate need of the salvation that only Jesus can provide.
Will you join us in praying for the unreached peoples in China? Together, let us commit to being part of God’s mission to make disciples of all nations, so that we can say that through Christ we have brought about the obedience of faith among people groups in China, resulting in healthy, biblical, local churches that display the glory of Christ in their communities and beyond.
Image credit: Daniele Salutari via UnSplash.
Will Rusher
Will Rusher (pseudonym) and his family have been living and serving in East Asia since 2006. He currently oversees ministries to the unreached people groups in East Asia.View Full Bio
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