📖 Biblical Definition
To send is to dispatch with authority and purpose. The biblical theology of mission is built on it: the Father sends the Son into the world (John 3:17; 17:18); the Son sends the Spirit (John 15:26; 16:7); the Father and Son together send the apostles (John 20:21: "as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you"). Greek apostellō ("send out") is the root of apostle. Sending implies authority behind the messenger, mission ahead of him, and accountability on return. The local church is the New Testament’s sending body (Acts 13:1-3): hands laid on, Spirit-led, men commissioned. Every Christian is sent somewhere, even if it is his own household.
📜 KJV Continual Tense
In KJV: sendeth — ongoing dispatch into mission.
expand to see more
John 20:21: "as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you." The risen Christ’s sending is parallel to the Father’s — both ongoing, both authoritative.
Matthew 5:45: "he maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust." Continuous-aspect common grace — God’s sending of rain is not seasonal but constant.
Mission theology rests on this verb. The Greek apostellō gives us "apostle" — one who is sent. The Father’s sending of the Son is the archetype of every gospel mission.
📜 Webster 1828 Definition
To dispatch; to commission; to direct to go.
expand to see more
To cause to go; to dispatch; to commission with authority; in Scripture especially of divine sending — the Father sending the Son, the Son sending the Spirit, the Spirit sending the apostles into mission.
📖 Key Scripture
John 20:21 — "Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you."
Romans 10:15 — "And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace."
John 3:17 — "For God sent not his Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through him might be saved."
⚠️ Modern Corruption
Casualized into errand-running rather than the authority-laden, mission-bearing dispatch Scripture means.
expand to see more
Modern "sending" is informal — you send a text, send a request, send your regrets. Scripture’s sending carries authority: the sender stands behind the sent. The Father’s sending of the Son carries the Father’s full backing; the Spirit’s sending of the apostles carries the Spirit’s full backing.
Recover the weight: when the church sends a missionary, it is participating in the trinitarian sending — not running an errand.
🔗 Greek & Hebrew Roots
Greek apostellō, pempō.
expand to see more
['Greek', 'G649', 'apostellō', 'to send forth with authority']
['Greek', 'G3992', 'pempō', 'to send, dispatch']
['Hebrew', 'H7971', 'shalach', 'to send']
Usage
"Sending carries the sender’s authority."
"As the Father sent the Son, so the Son sends His own."
"Mission is participation in trinitarian sending."