The familiar passage of Matthew 28:16 – 20 reveals Jesus’ mandate to His church known as the Great Commission— to evangelize unbelievers with the Gospel, and, to disciple every follower of the Lord Jesus to live according to the truth and purpose of the Gospel.
Why preach a message such as this? Over the last two plus decades within Southern Baptist life, leadership from both state convention levels and the North American Mission Board have placed an intentional emphasis upon planting and developing new churches. As a result of this emphasis, three separate research studies have revealed the following fact: churches that are less than ten years old are baptizing more than three times the number of people than are churches which have been established for more than ten years.
Consequently, a shift of mindset seemingly has developed among some of our ranks within local Southern Baptist churches concerning evangelism and church planting. It almost appears that we have embraced the mindset that the work of church planting and evangelism is restricted to those of a younger generation who are ambitious and driven enough to pursue starting new churches. On the other hand, more established churches seemingly give the appearance to either be content to attempt to hold onto what we have through various ministry programs, or, we find ourselves struggling just to survive and keep the doors open. However, such thinking needs to change with regard to the priority and purpose of evangelism and discipleship.
Listen, whether we belong to a newer, contemporary church plant, or whether we are associated with an older, more established church setting, the work of evangelism and disciple making is to be pursued as one of the foundational priorities of the Bride of Christ! Church, we are here in this community for the purpose of declaring and demonstrating the life-changing truth and power of the Gospel of Jesus Christ! There is no substitute for obedience to this mandate given by the Lord Jesus Christ that as we are living out this life of faith, we are to make disciples of all people groups!
It is we who are saved who must move forward in obedience to the Lordship of Jesus with the truth and the beauty of the Gospel…
personally and intentionally, sharing the message of the Gospel in the power of prayer and the Holy Spirit, and motivated by the Lord’s agape love;
by investing our lives in the lives of those who are caught in the grip of unbelief, and enslaved by their spiritual lostness, for the sake of becoming, and making, “friends for eternity!” To purpose before the Lord Jesus to live out this life of faith as “disciple winners” as we seek to reach and grow people with the Gospel of Jesus Christ;
and finally, in a manner that is continuous, contagious, and compelling! (cf. 2 Corinthians 2:14 – 17).
Beloved, in obedience to the Lord’s mandate of the Great Commission, we must demonstrate the connection between the Gospel which we proclaim and the life which the Gospel enables us to live. We are called by our Master to be, and to make, “Friends for Eternity.”
We are going to study this passage and subject of the Great Commission by examining two distinct, but related, aspects. This week we will consider the mandate of the Great Commission (vv.18 – 20), through which we shall seek to better understand the basis for fulfilling the Lord’s command. Then, next week, we shall examine the second part of this message. The focus of the next segment will be upon some motives for the Great Commission.
As we begin to reflect upon the meaning of the mandate of the Great Commission, I would like to share some things from the heart regarding this vital subject. The Great Commission is Jesus’ mandate for each of His followers to personally testify to the life-changing truth and power of the Gospel in a culture of spiritual lostness. Beloved, this is Christ’s mandate to His Church until He comes again! This command has not diminished in its authority, nor in its priority, since Jesus first spoke these words. This mandate has not been changed nor amended from the councils of heaven even one iota. Therefore, the Church— and on an even more personal note, every professing Christian— must be obedient to this divine mandate and purpose as given by the Lord Jesus. This Great Commission— along with the Great Commandment— is at the very heart of who we are, and what our purpose is, as the family of God.
We must, and we can, carry out the Great Commission with at least three things in mind. First of all, we are commanded to fulfill this mandate by the statement of Jesus’ authority (vv.16 – 18). In Jesus there is a sovereign authority and power, a matchless freedom and liberty. There is no one who can dethrone the King of Glory, the One who is Lord over all (cf. Colossians 1:15 – 18). There is no spiritual power or principality that is capable of reversing His eternal triumph over sin, death, and Satan, which was accomplished through His crucifixion and bodily resurrection. This truth is affirmed as well in the passages of Colossians 2:13 – 15 and Philippians 2:5 – 11. Before you go any farther with this article, take a few moments to carefully read each of these passages.
Jesus’ disciples had been with Him for over three years. They certainly had not forgotten the awesome displays of power with which He had performed those marvelous miracles of healing the sick, giving sight to the blind, revealing His authority over demons, and even resurrecting the dead! So, why, then, did Jesus make this statement regarding His authority?
Look at v.17, and its last phrase— “but some doubted.” Jesus wanted His disciples to know unequivocally and confidently that as they carried out the Great Commission, they could lean on Jesus moment by moment and day by day knowing there is no authority equal to, much less greater than, His authority! Let us recall Jesus’ words to the Apostle John as he began to experience the vision he recorded through the last book of the Bible. In Revelation 1:17b – 18, Jesus said to John, “Do not be afraid; I am the First and the Last. I am He who lives, and was dead, and behold, I am alive forevermore. Amen. And I have the keys of Hades and of Death.”
Those early disciples were entrusted with the task of carrying out Christ’s commission not out of their own abilities, not out of the strength of their own personalities, nor even out of their own determination. Instead, they were empowered with the authority of the Lord Jesus Himself to go and declare this Good News! By the authority of Christ, they were empowered to move forward in declaring and demonstrating the life-changing truth of the Gospel, and, to withstand all adversity and opposition from the enemy! And so are we!
As followers of Jesus today, we are empowered with that same divine authority to continue the Great Commission of our Lord and Savior! Moment by moment, opportunity after opportunity, and day by day, as we strive to build friendships of eternal value we can lean on Jesus and rest in His divine authority with full confidence! This truth resonates within the text of 2 Corinthians 5:18 – 20, where the Apostle Paul wrote, 18) “Now all things are of God, who has reconciled us to Himself through Jesus Christ, and has given us the ministry of reconciliation, 19) that is, that God was in Christ reconciling the world to Himself, not imputing their trespasses to them, and has committed to us the word of reconciliation. 20) Now then, we are ambassadors for Christ, as though God were pleading through us: we implore you on Christ’s behalf, be reconciled to God.”
Let us appropriate the truth and light of God’s Word, and the whole armor of God provided to us by His amazing grace, and stand on the statement of Jesus’ authority, and purpose within our hearts to do whatever it takes to reach and grow people with the Gospel of Jesus Christ! May we purpose within our hearts to do whatever it takes to demonstrate the connection between the Gospel we proclaim and the life which the Gospel enables us to live, knowing that we can do so based upon the statement of Jesus’ authority!
Beloved, in obedience to the Lord’s mandate of the Great Commission, we must demonstrate the connection between the Gospel which we proclaim and the life which the Gospel enables us to live. We are called by our Master to be, and to make, “Friends for Eternity.”
Second, we must, and we can, carry out the Great Commission according to the scope of Jesus’ assignment (vv.19 – 20a). The work of evangelism and discipleship go hand in hand. We simply must not allow ourselves to think that these two aspects of the Great Commission may be separated from one another. Having the privilege of pointing another person to Christ plays a significant part in forming that bond of everlasting friendship, but, there is more involved in this commission from Christ. We are to disciple one another as fellow believers, and doing so requires us to invest our lives in each other. We must move forward with the message of the Gospel with the perspective that we are “disciple winners” for Christ!
Consider the meaning of the first phrase of v.19, “Go therefore.” This word conveys two distinct applications of “go:”
a) it focuses on the truth that we are always on the move as we fulfill the routines and responsibilities of everyday life, and
b) it involves believers going out from our homes and families and all with which we are familiar and comfortable in order to go to other peoples, other nations, other cultures for the sole purpose of sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
The phrase, “make disciples,” is rooted in a term which speaks of introducing people to Jesus and the truths of His Gospel, because they do not know Him and have not yet trusted Him for His offer of salvation from sin. The word for “baptizing” serves as a declaration of a new standing with God, a new way of life, a new identity, and a new purpose in Christ. It is a public confession that declares, “Jesus has given me a brand new life. I am not who I used to be.” Then, the word, “teaching,” specifically depicts instructing those who become followers of Christ into a deeper knowledge and fuller understanding of the relationship they have with God in Christ. This is related to our ongoing spiritual maturity and sanctification in this life of faith.
The late Dr. Roy Fish served as a Professor of Evangelism at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary for well over three decades. I had the privilege of studying under that man in a class on the subject of “Evangelism and Discipleship.” Dr. Fish made a statement one day during class that gripped my heart, my mind, my soul. Its impact has remained with me since that day in the spring of 1989. He said, “You are one step ahead of someone else in living the Christ life. Therefore, you owe it to someone to show him\her how to walk a closer walk with the Lord, to lead him\her in achieving a more meaningful relationship with the Lord Jesus so that person, in turn, will be able to do with others what you have done with him\her.” I am convinced that statement encapsulates the very essence of what it means to fulfill the Great Commission of our Lord. Who are you willing to walk alongside of in this life of faith as a “Friend for Eternity?”
Waylon Moore was a pastor who invested much of his ministry within the state of Florida. In the early 1980s, he published a book called, Multiplying Disciples: How to Multiply Your Life. He believed that the process of discipling other believers is nothing less than the investment of one’s life; the “laying down of our own lives for the brethren.” Throughout his pastoral ministry, he taught his people that three things are at the core of discipleship multiplication: 1) interceding with God for another disciple; 2) helping that individual grow to his \ her full potential in Christ; and 3), being available to that individual on a consistent basis. Moore declared in his book that the local church is responsible for producing spiritual multipliers who are capable of building other laborers for the Lord’s harvest. We must be faithful to this task. As a result, Moore exclaimed that, “When the church exhales disciples, it inhales converts” (pp.5, 7).
What might happen if just 10 Christians from this church family would fulfill the scope of Jesus’ assignment beginning today for the next decade? And doing so on the scale of an 18-month period to lead someone to Christ, and then disciple them in the foundations of the Christian life? Look at the following scale:
18 mths \ 1.5 yr— 10 + 10 = 20
36 mths \ 3 yrs— 20 + 20 = 40
54 mths \ 4.5 yrs— 40 + 40 = 80
72 mths \ 6 yrs— 80 + 80 = 160
90 mths \ 7.5 yrs— 160 + 160 = 320
108 mths \ 9 yrs— 320 + 320 = 640
126 mths \ 10.5 yrs— 640 + 640 = 1,280
These projections show the reality of “compound spiritual interest” in making disciples! [Adapted from The Master Plan of Evangelism, by Robert Coleman]. I realize that there are a number of factors that impact evangelism and discipleship. However, this chart still shows the effectiveness of Jesus’ own plan of evangelism and discipleship not only for those disciples of the first century but for us today in the 21st century. Luke 1:37 ought to encourage our hearts in this endeavor, reminding us, “For with God nothing will be impossible.”
May we purpose within our hearts to do whatever it takes to demonstrate the connection between the Gospel we proclaim and the life which the Gospel enables us to live, understanding the scope of Jesus’ assignment to take His Gospel to the nations of this world!
Beloved, in obedience to the Lord’s mandate of the Great Commission, we must demonstrate the connection between the Gospel which we proclaim and the life which the Gospel enables us to live. We are called by our Master to be, and to make, “Friends for Eternity.”
Lastly, we can carry out the Great Commission with the satisfaction of Jesus’ assurance (v.20b). As Christians, we desperately need to remember these words of Jesus—the One who is our Savior, our Redeemer, our Lord, our Life— “and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age. Amen.” In essence, Jesus declared through this statement that He is literally with us “all the days; moment by moment.”
What are some of the most effective weapons in Satan’s arsenal used to hinder us as Christians from sharing “the old, old story?” Perhaps…
a lack of confidence to share the Gospel, and our own stories of faith, in the right manner?
unfounded fears of “what someone might think” should you ask a person about his\her soul?
peer pressures to conform to the deception that “faith and religion are a personal matter?”
unconfessed sin Satan uses to plague us with guilt and shame?
strongholds of sin, pride, and idolatry in our lives which hinder us from being effective ambassadors of the Gospel?
Such things have been used by the enemy of God to intimidate us as the heirs of God and joint-heirs of Jesus, to make us hesitant and fearful to speak boldly and confidently about the life-changing power of the Holy Lamb of God! Church, are we not tired of being plagued by our “sin of the desert?” That is, of knowing where the water is, but not telling anyone else?
You and I can continue with confidence this mandate from Jesus which was given over twenty-one centuries ago to those first disciples. God has made every provision for those who belong to Him to be…
Ø unafraid of, and in, this work, because we are His ambassadors;
Ø urgent in this work, because we realize that it is an eternal matter;
Ø and unhindered in this work, because we are empowered with the Holy Spirit to declare God’s message of reconciliation.
And how are we to do this? Acts 1:8 provides us with the answer— “But you shall receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall be witnesses to Me in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” May we purpose within our hearts to do whatever it takes to demonstrate the connection between the Gospel we proclaim and the life which the Gospel enables us to live, and move forward with the Gospel based upon the satisfaction of Jesus’ assurance that He is with us moment by moment!
Beloved, in obedience to the Lord’s mandate of the Great Commission, we must demonstrate the connection between the Gospel which we proclaim and the life which the Gospel enables us to live. We are called by our Master to be, and to make, “Friends for Eternity.”
I am already looking forward to sharing the second portion of this message with you next week. Until then, may each of us remain… “Anchored to His Faithfulness.”