God does not see things as man sees them. I believe that there is no limitation in the area of finances when it comes to His kingdom. If God did not spare His own Son…the mostly costly gift that could be given, how much more would it not deter Him to send an American cross culturally even though it may cost more than a native Christian being sent?
People who use this argument see finances as limited rather than limitless. We should do the later (support many more worthy native missionaries with Western money) and have not forgotten the former (send Western missionaries with Western money). We can do both.
Giving up completely on the practice of sending American missionaries is not the answer. It limits our Almighty God who does not see as man sees and who is not limited to funding an army of native believers, as well as an army of cross cultural South Koreans, an army of cross cultural Brazilians, an army of cross cultural Singaporeans, and an army of cross cultural Americans all working together to make Christ known where He has not been known before.
Being a native believer does not mean that you will be accepted by the people you are sent to more than a Westerner will. It also does not preclude you from wasting finances and being corrupt. It can not guarantee you a militant evangelistic vision that goes to the streets to compel people to believe in Jesus and receive the Good News of his Kingdom coming.
It does not mean that you will rise above your cultural values that clash with Kingdom values to do what God is calling you to do despite the backlash from your countrymen. You may struggle with seeing ministry through your own cultural lenses and remain unaware that you are doing more harm than good by continuing ministry this way. These issues can be problems that any Christian/minister faces whether they are Western or not.
Cost effectiveness cannot and should not be the sole determining factor of whether or not one type of missionary is supported over the other. I believe it is much better to know those you send and support, to have a relationship with them, to ensure that they are being accountable for their lives and ministries, that they are raising up leaders, and ultimately, that they are bearing good fruit for the Kingdom of God.
If you know some native believers are are worthy of support, by all means, support them. If you know, love, and trust some Americans who are worthy of support, then again, by all means support them. But don’t limit your decision to support or not to support based on a perception of “cost effectiveness.”
If the same standard was applied to American churches, many would conclude that they are not worthy of their support either. Take the average American church’s budget (what it costs to operate the church) and you will find that usually 50% of that money is used for salaries and benefits.
Again you could take the annual budget and divide it by the number of baptisms each year in order to the determine the effectiveness of the ministry. Of course, we know this is an unfair standard.
There are many more factors, most of which will not be known this side of heaven, which determine whether someone’s work is gold, silver, and precious stones or if it is wood, hay, or stubble.
