Mission on Our Doorsteps:A Biblical Perspective on Immigration

A Missional Opportunity

•Jesus commands us to make disciples of all nations

(Matthew 28:19 NIV)

•God is at work through migration in multiple directions•Many immigrants are already strong believers, who become agents

of mission within their own ethnic communities and beyond

•Others arrive with a nominal faith or from entirely unreached

people groups and are much more open to the gospel than they

might be in their home country• There are more unreached people groups present in the United States

(361) than in any other country except for India and China

A Missional Opportunity

A Missional Opportunity

•The movements of peoples are part of God’s sovereign plan

to draw people to Himself•From one man [God] made every nation of men, that they should

inhabit the whole earth; and he determined the times set for them

and the exact places where they should live. God did this so that

men would seek him and perhaps reach out for him and find him.

(Acts 17:26-27 NIV 1984)

A Missional Opportunity

A Missional Opportunity86% of the immigrant population in North America are likely to

either be Christians or become Christians. That’s far above the

national average…The immigrant population actually presents the

greatest hope for Christian renewal in North America… We

shouldn’t see this as something that threatens us. We should see

this as a wonderful opportunity.

- Dr. Timothy Tennent

Missiologist & President, Asbury Theological Seminary

A Missional Opportunity

A Missional OpportunityFor the first time in American history this

immigration wave is touching not just the coast

and not just the major cities, but much smaller

areas as well… Right here in the United States,

right in our own towns, we’ve never faced such a

Great Commission responsibility. We have never

faced such a Great Commission opportunity.

- Dr. Albert Mohler

President, Southern Baptist Theological Seminary

A Missional Opportunity

A Missional Opportunity• But many churches are missing this missional opportunity

• Most churches in the US do not have any sort of ministry or ministry partnership focused on immigrants (LifeWay Research, November 2014)

• Why? Perhaps because evangelical Christians tend to view immigrants negatively• 57% of evangelical Christians (and 69% of white evangelicals) believe

that the arrival of recent immigrants to the U.S. represents• A drain on economic resources,• A threat to law and order,• A threat to the safety of citizens, and/or• A threat to traditional American customs and culture

• Only 42% of evangelicals say that the arrival of recent immigrants represents an “opportunity to introduce them to Jesus Christ” (LifeWay Research, 2015)

A (Missed) Missional Opportunity

A Missional Opportunity

• “The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few”

(Matthew 9:37 ESV)• Fully 60% of those from non-Christian religious traditions in

North America—most of whom are immigrants—say they do not

know any Christians (

Center for the Study of Global Christianity, Gordon-Conwell Seminary

, 2013)

A (Missed) Missional Opportunity

A Missional Opportunity

Something is missionally malignant whenever we are

willing to make great sacrifices to travel the

world to reach a people group but are not willing

to walk across the street.

- Dr. J.D. Payne

Missiologist, Author, and Pastor, Brook Hills Church

A (Missed) Missional Opportunity

A Biblical Blind Spot

A Biblical Blind Spot

• By their own admission, most Christians do not think

about immigration from a biblical perspective• Just 12% of evangelical Christians say that their

views on immigration are primarily influenced by the Bible (LifeWay Research, 2015)

• Why? Perhaps because just 21% of evangelical Christians have ever heard a message at their church about reaching out to immigrants (

LifeWay Research, 2015)

But That’s Not because the Bible is Silent on the Topic• Ger, the Hebrew word closest to “immigrant” in English, appears 92

times in the Old Testament

• Fundamentally, God’s people are called to love and seek justice for

immigrants because we are to follow God’s example

• The Lord your God is the God of all gods and Lord of all lords,

the great, mighty, and awesome God who doesn’t play favorites

and doesn’t take bribes. He enacts justice for orphans and

widows, and he loves immigrants, giving them food and

clothing. That means you must also love immigrants

(Deuteronomy 10:17-19 CEB)

A Biblical Blind Spot

God recognizes immigrants as uniquely vulnerable to injustice, alongside the fatherless and the widow

• The Lord watches over the foreigner and sustains the fatherless and the

widow (Psalm 146:9 NIV)

• Thus says the Lord of hosts: “Execute true justice, Show mercy and

compassion… Do not oppress the widow or the fatherless, the alien or

the poor” (Zechariah 7:9-10 NKJV)

• Thus says the Lord: Do justice and righteousness… And do no wrong or

violence to the resident alien, the fatherless, and the widow, nor shed

innocent blood in this place (Jeremiah 22:3 ESV)

A Biblical Blind Spot

God commands His people to remember their own immigrant history

• You must not oppress foreigners. You know what it’s like to

be a foreigner, for you yourselves were once foreigners in

the land of Egypt (Exodus 23:9 NLT)

• When a stranger resides with you in your land, you shall not

do him wrong. The stranger who resides with you shall be to

you as the native among you, and you shall love him as

yourself, for you were aliens in the land of Egypt (Leviticus

19:33-34 NASB)

A Biblical Blind Spot

Christians are called to hospitality (philoxenia, literally,

the love of strangers)•Practice hospitality (Romans 12:13 NIV)

•Therefore an overseer must be above reproach, the husband of

one wife, sober-minded, self-controlled, respectable, hospitable,

able to teach… (1 Timothy 3:2 ESV)

•Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for by so doing

some people have shown hospitality to angels without knowing it

(Hebrews 13:2 NIV)

A Biblical Blind Spot

Christians are Called to Submit to the Law•Most immigrants in the US have legal status

•But 30% of immigrants are present unlawfully, so we also need to wrestle with

passages that speak to how Christians should relate to the law

•Let everyone be subject to the governing authorities, for there is no authority

except that which God has established. The authorities that exist have been

established by God (Romans 13:1 NIV)

•For the US citizen, there is no conflict between welcoming immigrants and following

the law

•Were laws to change, and ministry to be made illegal, Scripture makes clear that

there are certain instances where “we must obey God rather than men” (Acts 5:29

ESV)

• Rick Warren: The church must always show compassion…A good Samaritan

doesn't stop and ask the injured person. 'Are you legal or illegal?'

A Biblical Blind Spot

Christians are Called to Submit to the Law• Christians here unlawfully need to wrestle before God with their situation

•Many came out of desperation to provide for their families

• if anyone does not provide for his relatives, and especially for members

of his household, he has denied the faith and is worse than an

unbeliever (1 Timothy 5:8 ESV)

•Most undocumented immigrants within the Church are eager to get right with

the law, but current law does not allow for this reconciliation

•Our current immigration system—where laws are selectively ignored—mocks

the ideal of the rule of law; we can all advocate for a more functional system

that restores the rule of law

A Biblical Blind Spot

Immigrants Are an Integral Part of the Church• Biblically, there is one Church— one Body… one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all (Ephesians 4:4-6 NIV)

• Each part of the Body is interdependent on each other part, so no part can say to another part that it is unneeded (1 Corinthian 12:14-25)

• Immigrant congregations represent the fastest growing segment of evangelical churches in the U.S. (Center for the Study of Global Christianity, Gordon-Conwell Seminary)

• About 25% of evangelical Christians in the U.S. are non-white, many of them immigrants or their children, up from 19% in 2007 (Pew Research Center, 2015)

•If one part [of the Church] suffers, every part suffers with it (1 Corinthians 12:26 NIV)

A Biblical Blind Spot

A Note on Sources and Fact-Checking•Charles Spurgeon: A lie will go round the world while truth is pulling its boots on.

•Not everything shared in an email or even reported by television or radio is

accurate

•We need to be careful not to spread misinformation about immigrants, especially

in ways that disparage their character, lest we be guilty of slander (Leviticus

19:16)

•Many misconceptions about immigrants are produced and spread by groups

opposed not just to illegal immigration but to most legal migration as well,

because they are driven by a population control ideology

•See

• WORLD Magazine, “Friend or Foe,” March 9, 2013

• Human Life Review, “Hijacking Immigration?,” October 28, 2012

The Facts about Immigration

Who Are Undocumented Immigrants?

•There are about 40 million immigrants currently living in the U.S.,

representing about 13% of the total US population (U.S. Census Bureau, 2010 Census)

• There are likely between 11.3 million and 11.5 million

undocumented immigrants living in the US (Pew Research Center, 2014,

and U.S. Department of Homeland Security, 2013, respectively)

• About 70% of all immigrants in the U.S. have valid legal status,

primarily either as naturalized U.S. citizens or Lawful Permanent

Residents

The Facts about Immigration

Who Are Undocumented Immigrants?•Between 40% and 50% of undocumented immigrants entered

lawfully, with a non-immigrant visa, but then overstayed; the rest

crossed a border illegally

•Most come from Latin America, but there are also millions of

undocumented Asians, Europeans, and Canadians•2 in 9 Korean Immigrants is Undocumented

•1 in 6 Filipino, Chinese, or Vietnamese Immigrants is Undocumented

•1 in 7 Indian Immigrants is Undocumented

The Facts about Immigration

What Are Some Common Myths and Misunderstandings about Immigration?

•Myth: Immigrants today are different than those of past generations who

came the legal way•Fact: Our federal immigration laws have changed dramatically, such that there is

presently no line to get into to migrate legally for many would-be immigrants• Prior to 1882, there was no illegal immigration because there was no federal immigration law

• Even through Ellis Island—from 1892 to 1924—98% of immigrants were admitted and there

was no requirement of a visa

•Now, lawful immigration is tightly limited by law and usually possible only for:•Close relatives of US citizens or Lawful Permanent Residents (sometimes with long backlogs)

•Limited numbers of highly-educated employer-sponsored immigrants (but only 5,000 employer-

sponsored visas annually can possibly go to those not “highly-skilled”)

•A fraction of one percent of the world’s refugees, fleeing persecution (not fleeing poverty)

•Winners of an online lottery (odds about 1 in 300), but only for certain countries

The Facts about Immigration

The Facts about Immigration

•Myth: Immigrants are a drain on the economyThe Facts•Immigration has a positive impact on the American economy as a whole and on most individual Americans

• 96% of economists surveyed by the Wall Street Journal said that illegal immigration, in particular, had “been beneficial to the economy”

•Immigration also has a net positive impact on our fiscal health• Immigrants do bring costs, but their fiscal contributions are

greater than their costs• The American Enterprise Institute reports that, on average,

foreign-born adults pay $7,826 in taxes while their families receive $4,422 per year in governmental benefits in a given year

The Facts about Immigration

The Facts•Immigrants contribute economically as:

• Workers (typically in jobs that complement those done by US citizens)• Consumers (immigrants are about 13% of the US population)• Taxpayers

• Undocumented immigrants pay local and state taxes which amount to:• $7.1 billion in sales/excise taxes• $1.2 billion in local/state personal income taxes• $3.6 billion in property taxes

• 75% of undocumented immigrants also pay federal payroll taxes, according to Social Security Administration’s Chief Actuary

• They contribute as much as $15 billion annually to Social Security, though ineligible for benefits

• Many undocumented immigrants also file federal income tax returns with an Individual Taxpayer Identification Number

•Myth: Immigrants are not integrating into our society•Fact: While immigrants are not monolithic, most immigrants bring strong values and integrate into our communities

•As compared to native-born US citizens, Hispanic immigrants are:•More likely to attend church on a weekly basis•More likely to be pro-life•More likely to have traditional views of marriage

•Immigrants tend to have a very strong work ethic, with labor participation rates amongst undocumented adult males of 96%

•As has been the case with immigrants throughout U.S. history, immigrants are striving to learn English: by the second-generation, 88% of Hispanic immigrants are fluent

The Facts about Immigration

•Myth: Immigrants are Criminals•Fact: Most immigrants are present lawfully in the U.S and have not been convicted of a crime

•Even for those who are undocumented, unlawful presence is a civil, not a criminal offense• Unlawful entry is a misdemeanor criminal offense, but relatively few immigrants have been convicted of this offense

• While the number of undocumented immigrants tripled from 1990 to 2013, FBI data shows that violent crime decreased by 48% and property crime decreased by 41%

•1.6% of immigrant males ages 18-39 are incarcerated, compared to 3.3% of native-born U.S. citizens

• U.S. cities along the Mexico border have lower crime rates than the national average

The Facts about Immigration

How Should I Respond?

•Prayer

•Listening

•Education

•Advocacy

•Service

•Evangelism

A Christian Response

How Should I Respond? Prayer

• Pray without ceasing (1 Thessalonians 5:17 ESV)

• The harvest is plentiful, but the laborers are few. Therefore

pray earnestly to the Lord of the harvest to send out laborers

into his harvest (Luke 10:2 ESV)

• First of all, then, I urge that supplications, prayers,

intercessions, and thanksgivings be made for all people, for

kings and all who are in high positions, that we may lead a

peaceful and quiet life, godly and dignified in every way (1

Timothy 2:1-2 ESV)

A Christian Response

How Should I Respond? Listening

“I Was a Stranger…” ChallengeFor 40 consecutive days, commit to reading one Scripture passage per day about God’s heart for immigrants.

Full info at www.EvangelicalImmigrationTable.com/iwasastranger

A Christian Response

How Should I Respond? Listening

Full info at www.TheStrangerFilm.org

A Christian Response

How Should I Respond? Education

• Disciple others toward a biblical view toward immigrants• Preach on the story of an immigrant in Scripture

• Only 21% of evangelical Christians say they have ever been encouraged by

their local church to reach out to immigrants in their community

• And only 12% say their views on immigrants and immigration are primarily

influenced by the Bible

• But 68% say they would like to hear a sermon focused on how biblical

principles and examples can be applied to immigration

• Preaching Resources are available at

www.EvangelicalImmigrationTable.com/Preach

• Videos of prominent pastors’ sermons on immigration

• Sermon Illustrations, Quotations, and Statistics

• Sample Sermon Outlines

A Christian Response

How Should I Respond? Education

Additional Discipleship Ideas•Challenge your congregation to take the “I Was

a Stranger” Challenge

• Focus on a distinctly biblical response to

immigration in an Adult Education class or in

small groups (Download curriculum at

www.EvangelicalImmigrationTable.com, under

“Additional Resources”)

• Schedule a screening of The Stranger

• Write a blog on this topic

• Use social media to point to biblical

perspectives on immigrants and immigration

A Christian Response

How Should I Respond? Advocacy•There are plenty of important ways that we should love our neighbors on an interpersonal level—that’s most of the missional work we do

•But when systemic injustice is at the root of a problem, loving our neighbors means advocacy as well

On the one hand, we are called to play the Good Samaritan on life's roadside, but that will be only an initial act. One day we must come to see that the whole Jericho Road must be transformed so that men and women will not be constantly beaten and robbed as they make their journey on life's highway. True compassion is more than flinging a coin to a beggar. It comes to see that an edifice which produces beggars needs restructuring.

-Martin Luther King, Jr., April 1967

A Christian Response

• Many evangelical leaders advocate immigration reforms that would:• Make it harder to immigrate unlawfully• Make it easier to immigrate lawfully

• To meet needs of U.S. labor market and economy• To keep families together• Continue to provide refuge to those fleeing persecution

• Allow the undocumented to come forward, pay a fine for having violated the law, and earn permanent legal status and/or eventual citizenship over the course of several years

• These sort of reforms are supported by:• Most evangelical Christians (LifeWay Research Poll, March 2015)• Most evangelical pastors (LifeWay Reseach Poll, November 2014)• Most Republicans, Democrats, and Independents (Pew Research Center, June

2015)

A Christian Response

The Evangelical Statement of Principles for Immigration Reform

As evangelical Christian leaders, we call for a bipartisan solution on immigration that: •Respects the God-given dignity of every person •Protects the unity of the immediate family •Respects the rule of law •Guarantees secure national borders •Ensures fairness to taxpayers •Establishes a path toward legal status and/or citizenship for those who qualify and who wish to become permanent residents

www.EvangelicalImmigrationTable.com

A Christian Response

Daniel Akin, Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary

Leith Anderson, National Association of Evangelicals

Mark Bailey, Dallas Theological Seminary

Noel Castellanos, Christian Community Development Association

Matt Chandler, Acts 29 Network

Jim Daly, Focus on the Family

David Dockery, Trinity Evangelical Divinity School

Eugenio Duarte, Church of the Nazarene

Tony Evans, Oak Cliff Fellowship (Dallas, TX)

Ronnie Floyd, Southern Baptist Convention

Bill Hamel, Evangelical Free Church of America

Alec Hill, InterVarsity Christian Fellowship

Bill Hybels, Willow Creek Community Church

Richard Land, Southern Evangelical Seminary

Jim Liske, Prison Fellowship

Max Lucado, Author

Jo Anne Lyon, Wesleyan Church

Russell Moore, Southern Baptist Convention Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission

Steve Moore, Missio Nexus

Luis Palau, Luis Palau Association

Paige Patterson, Southwestern Baptist Seminary

John Perkins, CCDA/Perkins Foundation

William Roberts, The Salvation Army

Samuel Rodriguez, National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference

Philip Ryken, Wheaton College

Gabriel Salguero, National Latino Evangelical Coalition

Mat Staver, Liberty University/Liberty Counsel

Rich Stearns, World Vision

Ed Stetzer, LifeWay Research

Joseph Stowell, Cornerstone University

John Stumbo, Christian & Missionary Alliance

Gary Walter, Evangelical Covenant Church

George Wood, Assemblies of God

Signatories

A Christian Response

How Should I Respond? Advocacy

• Sign the Evangelical Statement of Principles for Immigration

Reform (www.evangelicalimmigrationtable.com/sign-the-

principles)

• Set up a meeting with your Member of Congress or his or

her staff

• Write a letter to your Representative and/or Senators

• Write an Op-Ed or a Letter to the Editor of the local

newspaper

A Christian Response

How Should I Respond?

Service•One of the biggest needs in immigrant communities is for affordable,

authorized immigration legal services

•Churches and other non-profit organizations can, with adequate

training and technical support, become authorized to give immigration

legal advice (even without an attorney on staff) through the Board of

Immigration Appeals recognition program

•The Immigration Alliance (www.theimmigrationalliance.org) is seeking

to launch 1,000 church-based legal services sites

A Christian Response

How Should I Respond?

Service•Refugee Resettlement provides a unique opportunity for churches

to welcome individuals who have fled persecution

•Refugees are resettled through “voluntary agencies” that partner

with the federal and state governments, as well as with local

churches, community organizations, and individual volunteers

•World Relief (www.worldrelief.org) is an evangelical organization

which serves as a refugee resettlement agency, with resettlement

programs in various parts of the U.S.

A Christian Response

How Should I Respond?

Evangelism•As we befriend, serve, and advocate with immigrants, we have the

opportunity to share the gospel, the good news of a transformative

relationship with Jesus Christ

•We can look to immigrant pastors and leaders for guidance and

leadership in sharing the gospel in cross-cultural contexts

A Christian Response

Books•Welcoming the Stranger: Justice, Compassion and Truth in the Immigration Debate (InterVarsity Press, 2009), by Matthew Soerens and Jenny Yang

•Christians at the Border: Immigration, the Church, and the Bible (Baker Academic, 2008, 2013), by Daniel Carroll Rodas

•Strangers Next Door: Immigration, Migration and Mission (InterVarsity Press, 2012), by J.D. Payne

•Immigration: Tough Questions, Direct Answers (InterVarsity Press, 2014), by Dale Hanson Bourke

Further Resources

Books

Further Resources

“The Church Leader’s Guide to Immigration”

• Provides a biblical/theological foundation for ministering to immigrants

• Debunks misconceptions about immigrants

• Includes guidance on legal issues related to immigrant ministry

• Available as a free download or printed-to-order under “Additional Resources” at www.EvangelicalImmigrationTable.com

For access to a template version of this presentation and for many other resources,

please visit

www.EvangelicalImmigrationTable.com