Great Commission

Today we got to hear about Jesus’ final words to his disciples, known as the Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20).

¹⁸Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ¹⁹Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in ^"the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."

Additionally verses 16 and 17 stood out and made an impression on me.

¹⁶Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. ¹⁷When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted.

Jesus' closest followers, his 11 disciples...doubted. These men were common, normal guys, just like you and me. And did Jesus condemn and go off on them? No, quite the opposite. He immediately gave them the Great Commission. I don’t know about you, but this gives me great comfort. I have personally seen God work in my life and in others' lives and yet I too still doubt him at times. For example - I worry about finances too much, fail to talk with him regarding important decisions, and parent my girls without checking with how he would like me to handle diffucult situations.

Now back to the "Great Commission" verses. This is one of my favorite verses in the Bible and has really driven me and my life. From my experiences, when I apply this verse to my life, I am most selfless, most joyful, and most filled by Gods spirit.

1) It starts with Christ’s Authority and ends with Christ's Presence. Not only does God have absolute and comprehensive authority, he is a personal and loving God. These are still true today and set the foundation for his commission.

2) The main theme of the verses is “making disciples”. Go, baptize, and teach are participles (remember english class?) for making disciples.

3) Christ wants disciples not converts.

Its the concept of multiplication vs addition. If one evangelistic person converts 2 people to have a saving relationship with God daily, after 15 years, he or she would have converted ~11,000 people to know Jesus…Wow!! But if 1 person leads and disciples 2 people to know Jesus the first year, and the next year those 3 people lead and disciple 2 more people to know Jesus, after 15 years if the trend would continue over 3 million disciples would have a personal relationship with Jesus.

4) Measurement of a disciple is not in how much of the bible you know but how much of the bible you live out.

5) The Great commission should be a Christian’s passion; it should be the center of who we are. All but one of the disciples was martyred for Christ sake because they were totally sold out for Jesus and His Commission. Are you, am I??