Mission on Our Doorsteps: A Biblical Perspective on Immigration Matthew Soerens

1. Mission on Our Doorsteps: A Biblical Perspective on Immigration Matthew Soerens US Director of Church Mobilization, World Relief Liz Dong Midwest Regional Mobilizer, Evangelical Immigration Table

2. A Missional Opportunity @MatthewSoerens 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

3. A Missional Opportunity @MatthewSoerens 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)

4. A Missional Opportunity @MatthewSoerens A Missional Opportunity • 86% 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

5. A (Missed) Missional Opportunity @MatthewSoerens A Missional Opportunity • But many churches are missing this missional opportunity • While 86% of Protestant pastors in the US say that Christians “have a responsibility to care sacrificially for refugees and other foreigners,” only 8% say their churches are actively involved in serving refugees locally (LifeWay Research, February 2016)

6. A (Missed) Missional Opportunity @MatthewSoerens A Missional Opportunity • 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 • 42% of evangelicals say that the arrival of recent immigrants represents an “opportunity to introduce them to Jesus Christ” (LifeWay Research, 2015)

7. A (Missed) Missional Opportunity @MatthewSoerens 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)

8. A (Missed) Missional Opportunity @MatthewSoerens 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

9. A Biblical Blind Spot @MatthewSoerens 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 primarilyinfluenced 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)

10. A Biblical Blind Spot @MatthewSoerens • 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)

11. A Biblical Blind Spot @MatthewSoerens 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)

12. A Biblical Blind Spot @MatthewSoerens 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)

13. A Biblical Blind Spot @MatthewSoerens • 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)

14. A Biblical Blind Spot @MatthewSoerens • Christians are Called to Submit to the Law • Most immigrants in the US have legal status • But about 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?'

15. A Biblical Blind Spot @MatthewSoerens • 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

16. The Facts about Immigration @MatthewSoerens 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

17. The Facts about Immigration @MatthewSoerens Who Are 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) • About 70% of all immigrants in the U.S. have valid legal status, primarily either as naturalized U.S. citizens, Lawful Permanent Residents, or recently-arrived Refugees • 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)

18. The Facts about Immigration @MatthewSoerens Who Are Immigrants in Michigan? • Michigan is home to 610,000+ immigrants, about 6% of the state’s population • Of those, an estimated 97,000 are undocumented • 40,000 are from Mexico • 7,000 are from India • 5,000 are from Guatemala • In the past year, 2,900 refugees have been resettled to Michigan • 505 Syrian refugees have been resettled in the last 5 years • Foreign-born Share of Population in Lansing: 8.1%, or appox 9,300

19. The Facts about Immigration @MatthewSoerens Who Are Refugees? • Under U.S. and international law, a refugee is “a person who is… • outside his or her country of nationality or last habitual residence and • is unable or unwilling to return to that country because of persecution or a well-founded fear of persecution on account of • race, • religion, • nationality, • membership in a particular social group, or • political opinion.” • Globally, there are 21.3 million refugees, plus about 40 million more who are internally displaced

20. The Facts about Immigration @MatthewSoerens U.S. Refugee Resettlement Program • U.S. Resettlement Program was formalized by 1980 Refugee Act • U.S. has resettled 3 million refugees since 1975 • Annual high of 207,116 refugees were resettled in 1980 • Last year, about 70,000 refugees were resettled • Refugees undergo thorough background checks before being admitted, have legal status upon their entry, and are eligible for certain public benefits for which most other immigrants are ineligible • The U.S. State Department partners with 9 “voluntary agencies” to help resettle refugees, including World Relief • Resettlement agencies help to provide initial housing, find employment, and provide cultural adjustment, working in partnership with volunteers and local churches

21. The Facts about Immigration @MatthewSoerens 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 • 1 in 4 Ghanaian Immigrants is Undocumented • 1 in 6 South Korean, Pakistani, or Nigerian Immigrants is Undocumented • 1 in 7 Indian Immigrants is Undocumented • 1 in 8 Chinese Immigrants is Undocumented • 1 in 10 Filipino Immigrants is Undocumented • 1 in 12 Vietnamese Immigrants is Undocumented • 1 in 14 European, Canadian and Oceanian Immigrants is Undocumented

22. The Facts about Immigration @MatthewSoerens What Are Some Common Myths and Misunderstandings about Immigration? • Myth: Immigrants today are different than those of past generations who came the legal way • Facts: 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

23. The Facts about Immigration @MatthewSoerens • Myth: Immigrants are a drain on the economy • 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

24. The Facts about Immigration @MatthewSoerens • Undocumented immigrants contribute economically as: • Workers (typically in jobs that complement those done by US citizens) • Consumers • Taxpayers • Undocumented immigrants pay local and state taxes which, in Michigan alone, amounted (in 2010) to: • $85 million in sales/excise taxes • $26 million in personal income taxes • $15 million 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

25. The Facts about Immigration @MatthewSoerens • Myth: Immigrants are Criminals • Facts: • 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 • There has never been a terrorist attack perpetrated in the U.S. by any of the more than 3 million individuals admitted as refugees

26. A Christian Response @MatthewSoerens How Should I Respond? • Prayer • Listening • Empowering Churches Abroad • Advocacy • Service • Evangelism

27. A Christian Response @MatthewSoerens 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)

28. A Christian Response @MatthewSoerens Listening • “I Was a Stranger…” Challenge • For 40 consecutive days, commit to reading one Scripture passage per day about God’s heart for immigrants. • Full info at www.EvangelicalImmigrationTable.com/iwasastranger

29. A Christian Response @MatthewSoerens Listening • Full info at www.TheStrangerFilm.org

30. A Christian Response @MatthewSoerens The trailer to The Stranger is available at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=utmiJUmW8oI • Full info at www.TheStrangerFilm.org

31. A Christian Response @MatthewSoerens • Discipleship: Helping Others Listen to God’s Word • 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

32. A Christian Response @MatthewSoerens • Additional Discipleship Ideas • 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”

33. A Christian Response @MatthewSoerens Empowering Churches Abroad • Churches in the U.S. can come alongside local churches in the Middle East, Africa, Latin America, and Asia, empowering them to both meet immediate needs of those who have fled persecution and to holistically address the root causes of migration such as poverty and conflict • Beyond the U.S., World Relief lives out its mission to empower the local church to serve the most vulnerable by partnering churches here with church-based ministries abroad

34. A Christian Response @MatthewSoerens This Hana & Saeed video can be viewed online or downloaded at https://vimeo.com/166561758

35. A Christian Response @MatthewSoerens 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)

36. A Christian Response @MatthewSoerens • In the past several months, Congress has considered proposals to partially or entirely shut down the U.S. refugee resettlement program • The Evangelical Immigration Table has urged Congress to continue to welcome carefully-vetted refugees into the United States • These proposals could dramatically limit the ability of local churches to minister • They could particularly harm persecuted Christians, as more refugees admitted in the past decade have been Christians than of any other religion • Restricting access to those of other religions both conflicts with our values of religious liberty and limits our ability to benefit from an evangelistic opportunity

37. A Christian Response @MatthewSoerens • 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, October 2015)

38. A Christian Response @MatthewSoerens • 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

39. A Christian Response @MatthewSoerens Selected Signatories Max Lucado, Author Jo Anne Lyon, Wesleyan Church Russell Moore, Southern Baptist Convention Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission Luis Palau, Luis Palau Association John Perkins, CCDA/Perkins Foundation David Jeffrey, The Salvation Army Samuel Rodriguez, National Hispanic Christian Leadership Conference Philip Ryken, Wheaton College Mat Staver, Liberty Counsel Rich Stearns, World Vision Ed Stetzer, LifeWay Research Joseph Stowell, Cornerstone University John Stumbo, Christian & Missionary Alliance Steve Timmermans, Christian Reformed Church N.A. Gary Walter, Evangelical Covenant Church George Wood, Assemblies of God 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 Ronnie Floyd, Southern Baptist Convention Bill Hamel, Evangelical Free Church of America Shirley Hoogstra, Council of Christian Colleges & Universities Alec Hill, InterVarsity Christian Fellowship Bill Hybels, Willow Creek Community Church Jim Liske, Prison Fellowship

40. A Christian Response @MatthewSoerens Practical Ways to Advocate • 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

41. A Christian Response @MatthewSoerens • 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

42. A Christian Response @MatthewSoerens • 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

43. A Christian Response @MatthewSoerens • Service • Other needs in immigrant communities • English language instruction • Help with cultural adjustment • Affordable housing • Youth programs

44. A Christian Response @MatthewSoerens • 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

45. Further Resources @MatthewSoerens Books • “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

46. Book Recommendations @MatthewSoerens

47. www.worldrelief.org www.evangelicalimmigrationtable.com Matthew Soerens Email: msoerens@wr.org Facebook: Matthew Soerens Twitter: @MatthewSoerens Liz Dong Email: ldong@wr.org Twitter: @gnodzil