Sacred Rhythms: Part 4 | The Rhythm of Mission | Pastor Ray Burgos Jr.

The sermon focuses on the concept of "The Rhythm of Mission" as the culminating message in a series called Sacred Rhythms. Pastor Ray begins by addressing misconceptions about Halloween and emphasizing that October 31st is not a day owned by the devil but a time to celebrate the biblical harvest and the abundant mission work God is calling His church to participate in. The church does not celebrate Halloween; instead, it hosts an event called Lightfest to celebrate Jesus and engage the community with worship, prayer, and prophetic ministry.

The core of the message centers around Matthew 28:16-20—the Great Commission—where Jesus commands His followers to "go and make disciples of all nations," baptizing and teaching them. Pastor Ray explains that mission is not a mere activity or program but a lifestyle and rhythm integrated into every believer’s life. Mission flows from the heart of God, who is Himself a missionary God, and it requires intentionality, sacrifice, and a willingness to step out of comfort zones.

The sermon revisits the previous rhythms of rest, discipline, and relationships, explaining how these foundational rhythms support and prepare believers for the rhythm of mission. Mission involves four key verbs from the Great Commission: Go, Make Disciples, Baptize, and Teach. Each verb represents a movement and rhythm in the process of living missionally.

- Go means actively stepping into others’ worlds, engaging culture without compromising values, and forming genuine relationships.

- Make disciples is a relational, ongoing journey of bringing others into the life of Christ, not a program or a one-time event.

- Baptize symbolizes public identification with Christ’s death, burial, and resurrection, marking a crucial step in the disciple’s journey and identity.

- Teach involves instructing and guiding new disciples to observe Jesus’ commands, building maturity and endurance in faith.

Pastor Ray warns against isolation and complacency in the church, urging believers to get off the sidelines and actively participate in God’s global mission. The mission is cyclical and ongoing; it requires perseverance and trust in Jesus’ promise to be with His followers “to the end of the age.” The sermon closes by encouraging the congregation to embrace their individual assignments as part of a larger, global movement of the kingdom.

 Highlights  

-Clarification: Pumpkin is a fruit, Halloween does not belong to the devil, and October 31st is a day to celebrate harvest in a biblical context.  

-Introduction of Lightfest—a church event on October 31st to celebrate Jesus with worship and community instead of Halloween.  

-Reading and introduction of the Great Commission (Matthew 28:16-20) as the foundation for the rhythm of mission.  

-Recap of previous rhythms: rest, discipline, and relationships; highlighting their importance in preparing for mission.  

-Explanation of the four verbs of mission: Go, Make Disciples, Baptize, Teach, each representing a movement in the rhythm of mission.  

-Baptism as a public declaration of faith and identification with Christ’s death and resurrection.  

-The disciple-making process is cyclical—mission is ongoing and requires continual participation, not a one-time event.  

 Key Insights  

-Harvest is plentiful but workers are few: The pumpkin symbolizes the biblical harvest, emphasizing the abundant mission field and the urgent need for workers to engage in God’s mission. The problem is not the harvest but the lack of willing laborers, challenging believers to rise to the call.  

-No such thing as a “clean Halloween”: Attempting to combine Halloween with Christian themes is incompatible; instead, the church offers an alternative event (*Lightfest*) that focuses fully on Jesus, reinforcing the importance of uncompromised faith expressions.  

-Mission is divine sending, not optional: Mission is the "divine activity of sending intermediaries," whether supernatural or human, to do God’s will. Saying "send me" means surrendering personal desires and preferences to God’s sovereign plan, acknowledging the discomfort and sacrifice involved in true mission.  

-The resurrection as the start of a global movement: Jesus’ resurrection inaugurates a worldwide kingdom movement, not just a historical event but the foundation for ongoing mission. This counters views of Jesus as myth or legend and calls believers to active participation in this unstoppable movement.  

-Faith is mandatory, not optional, and isolation undermines mission: The modern generation’s tendency toward isolation and skepticism is a barrier to mission. True faith involves community and public engagement, not private, isolated spirituality, because mission requires relational connectivity and cultural engagement.  

-Four verbs of mission define a rhythmic process: The Great Commission’s verbs—Go, Make Disciples, Baptize, Teach—are cyclical and rhythmic actions, not one-off tasks. Mission is a lifestyle built on intentional movements of engagement, formation, identity, and instruction.  

-Going and making disciples shakes spiritual strongholds: The devil is indifferent to prayer, worship, or church attendance alone; what disrupts spiritual darkness is active obedience to Christ’s command to go and make disciples, moving faith from private experience to public witness.  

The sermon challenges the church to break free from comfort, complacency, and cultural conformity, embracing mission as an ongoing rhythmic lifestyle marked by movement, sacrifice, and community. It calls every believer to join the global kingdom movement empowered by the presence of Jesus, who promises to be with His followers continuously.