The following is
a guest blog written by hospice chaplain Paul Bricker
One of the most
famous passages in the Bible is the Great Commission found in Matthew
28:16-20. I want to share a few thoughts
about it, passage by passage.
It begins with verses
16-17:“But the eleven disciples proceeded to Galilee, to the mountain which
Jesus had designated. And when they saw
Him, they worshiped Him, but some were doubtful.”[1]
This passage shows
the two types of Christians that should do the Great Commission. The first are Christians who worship
Jesus. This is what one would
expect. Christians who worship Jesus
should share the Gospel with others.
However, there is another type of Christian who should obey the Great
Commission. The second type of Christians
who should obey the Great Commission are those Christians who doubt. The Scripture clearly shows that the apostles
who are given the Great Commission consist of those who worship the Lord Jesus
and those who doubt. The eleven were
like this even though they had spent three years with Jesus and seen Him do
mighty acts. They saw Him crucified and
they now see Him raised from the dead. Still some doubted. They were acting like “Gomer Pyle”
Christians: “G-o-l-l-y, we are at this
mountain that Jesus told us to come to. G-o-l-l-y, I wonder if this is really
Jesus in front of us…”
What this means
is that every Christian should share the Gospel. All of us are either worshippers of Jesus or
doubters of Jesus or some kind of combination of the two. The Lord Jesus
commands us to “pray at all times and faint not” (Luke 18:1). This is the same teaching. We are either praying or fainting or some
combination of the two. The Lord Jesus
is like a mother bird. The baby birds
might not enjoy leaving the nest. The
mother bird “encourages” them to fly.
The Lord Jesus is “encouraging” his disciples to share the gospel.
What this means
is, no matter how tranquil one’s heart is, or how pressing life’s concerns are,
or how sorrowful one is, or how sick one is, one needs to share the Gospel. At one point I was house-bound with Lyme
disease. I could not get out to share
the Gospel. What I did was pray that God
would have the right telemarketer to call.
When they called, I answered the phone by saying: “I have been waiting for your phone call
because I want to share with you what Jesus has done for me.” I spoke with people all over the United
States. I had prayer with people who
would share their burdens with me. I did
not feel like doing it, but I did it.
Verse18 explains: “And after Jesus came up, he spoke to them
saying: ‘All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth’….”
This is the
Great Assurance. We battle personal
powers, economic powers, political powers, spiritual powers. In spite of these powers against us, we have
a Savior who has all power. When we are
facing powers that look like they are going to do us in, we have a Savior who
has all power. This is a great
assurance.
Verse 19a
commands: “Therefore, as you go, make
disciples of all nations…”
Here we find the
Great Commission. The commandment is to
make disciples of all nations. The
commandment is not simply “Go.” This is
not to say that missionaries are not to go.
What this passage is stating is that “As you go in life, you are to be
making disciples….” When you go to the dentist
(try that with four hands in your mouth—I do), when you go grocery shopping (it
is okay to buy groceries for the single mother who is ahead of you in line),
when ….
When I went for
my first mortgage, the broker asked me:
“Do you have any judgments against you?”
I looked him straight in the eye and quoted Romans 8:1: “There is therefore now no condemnation for
those who are in Christ Jesus.” When I
have talked to financial planners, they have asked me: “Have you planned for your future?” I have answered him by quoting John
3:16: “For God in this manner loved the
world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believes in Him should
not perish but have eternal life.” Then
I looked the financial planner in the eye and I asked: “Have you planned your future?”
Verses 19b-20a
say: “baptizing them in the name of the
Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I
have commanded you.”
Here we find two
participial phrases which describe how to make a disciple of the Lord
Jesus. The first is “baptizing them in
the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.” I do not have extended classes before the
baptism. Teaching classes are included
under the second participial phrase: “teaching
them to observe all that I have commanded you.” However, I do explain the
basics. I explain Romans 10:9-10 with a person who wants to become a Christian.
I ask: “Can you confess with your lips: ‘Jesus is Lord’? Do you believe in your
heart that God raised Jesus from the dead?” I also share that baptism is a
sacrament which does not save you, but is a sign of being cleansed from sin:
“You are being baptized because you have been cleansed from your sins.”
Moreover, I share that they are being baptized not in the names (plural) of the Father, Son and Holy
Spirit, but in the name (singular) of
the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. This is who God is. God is Father and Son and
Holy Spirit, three Persons in one being. I share: “You have become a Christian. You need to show to the whole world that you
belong to Christ. Come Sunday and share
with the whole world that you belong to Christ and invite your friends and be
baptized.” Baptize them as soon as
possible. Do not teach them that
Christianity is a “sit down” religion.
It is an action religion. It is a
use-your-spiritual-gift religion.
The second
participial phrase is: “teaching them to
observe all that I have commanded you.”
This is very specific. Teach a
new believer what Jesus has commanded the apostles. Many Protestants have a
canon within a canon. They think that
the real teaching is in the letters of the New Testament. Often times Protestants hurry up and read the
Gospels and Acts so that one can start reading the real teaching--the letters. In this passage we find that we should teach
new believers the commandments that Jesus gave to the disciples. Make a list of Jesus’ commandments and study
them.
Verse 20b concludes: “And lo, I am with you always, even to the
end of the ages.”
This is the
Great Assurance #2. The Lord Jesus is
with us and meets with us when we share the gospel. Earlier I shared how the
Great Commission is given to those Christians who worship the Lord and for
those Christians who doubt the Lord.
Often I am full of doubt. I have
a troubled heart. I am fainting and not
praying. I am often that “Gomer Pyle
Christian.” I have little internal consolation.
I do not worry one bit about such a condition. I go and share the Gospel anyway. When I share the Gospel under such lack of
internal consolation, something happens.
I fellowship with Jesus. I go to
share the Gospel and this part of the passage comes alive to me. I experience His presence. I experience “I am with you always, even to
the end of the ages.”
Now go share the
Gospel.
No comments:
Post a Comment