Obedience and Love

Introduction

It seems that for the entirety of my life I have heard a constant drumbeat of the world telling Christians what the church is supposed to be. I have heard the world tell me how Christians should interact with the world. I have heard unregenerate and unbelieving people tell me how the Gospel of Jesus Christ is supposed to be shared. Do any of these sound familiar:

Never talk about religion and politics in polite company or at the dinner table.

Don’t be a bible thumper!

Not everyone believes what you do so keep it to yourself.

Religion has no place in politics.

“I like your Christ, I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.”

All religion leads to the same place, just be nice to people.

There’s no hate like Christian love.

We’re all familiar with a few of these, and likely a plethora of other one-liners meant to silence Christians. Make no mistake, these pithy bits of worldly wisdom are not meant to maintain polite society, they are meant to silence the message of Christ by convincing the people of Christ to be quiet, sit down, and let the world conduct its worldly business of sin.

Unfortunately, these lies are even spread by confessing believers; the very people who have been anointed to Christ’s priesthood. That priesthood of believers of which each of us who believe and trust in Jesus Christ is a member. We have perpetuated a lie to try to get along in society. If we haven’t merely uttered these words; we have deferred to them. We have submitted and succumbed to them. We regularly hear people, especially those seeking votes, say, “my faith is a very private thing; it’s not for me to tell others what to believe.” Watch out for that. A “private faith” that doesn’t allow its adherents to speak publicly about it is not the Christian faith.

In addition, we have heard preachers, those called to minister to the people of God by the authoritative proclamation of His Word, go even further.

It’s a been a few years now but the pastor of one of the largest churches in the country, which happens to be right here in the KC metro, wrote an article extolling the virtue of his church people doing nice things for schools and with school children without talking about their faith. His argument was that children will see the faith of these people in action and no talk of Christ was necessary. We know that love for one another is not only a fruit of the spirit, it is a command from Christ himself. There is another command though, one that isn’t so easily masked by doing what we have determined to be good deeds and therefore “loving.”

In my adult life, it seems that “love” is the favorite word of apostates and unbelievers and for good reason. Christ called us to “love” and if we are to actually follow Christ, we must therefore be “loving” and the world is here to tell us how “love” is defined. We hear phrases like “love wins” and “love is love.” We are told that “love” requires us to affirm, accept, and tolerate whatever anyone wants to do, as long as what they want to do is acceptable to the mob at the given moment and as long as what they want to do is NOT to follow any other command of God, especially the one we’re going to be talking about today.

God designed his redemptive plan to include his children behaving very differently from the mantras of “live and let live” and “very private faith” would allow. In one of his final earthly preparations of the church, Christ gave the church a mission.

Prayer

Most gracious and Holy father, your plan for the world is a marvelous one. We thank you for including us in it and we beg of you Lord to give us the understanding of your word necessary to do the work you have designed us for. We know your love is beyond any worldly definition. We seek to be obedient to your word and to show the world true love. Open our eyes and our ears this morning to take in your Son’s charge. Transform our approach to the world this morning, Father. In Jesus’ name, Amen.

Background

If you would turn in your bibles to the 28th chapter of Matthew, we’re going to be working through the last 4 verses of that book today and next Sunday. If you don’t have a bible with you, you should be able to find one under the seat in front of you.

Matthew’s Gospel is focused on the authority of Jesus and his fulfillment of prophecy as the Messiah. He wrote to Jewish Christians to bolster their belief that Jesus is the Messiah by showcasing His fulfillment of prophecy. We can see in this summation of his book that he draws a straight line from the resurrection to Christ’s commissioning of His disciples to spread the Gospel.

Before we dive into these final words in Matthew’s Gospel, let’s review what has led up to this point in the history of the church. To do that, we have to go back to Genesis 3, so get comfortable.

Beginning with the fall of Adam, human beings have been placing themselves above God, defining love however they wished, and doing whatever felt good for themselves. Put very plainly, mankind has been sinning against God.

In His wonderful mercy, God showed Grace to Adam and the entire world with His promise of redemption. He carved out of the world a people for himself. From that people He would bring the redeemer.

Just 10 days ago we celebrated the birth of the Christ, the promised redeemer. While there were those who marvelled at the birth of the King of kings and who worshiped Him; the world did its thing and sought to kill him. You know, Christmas is thought to be the biggest holiday on the Christian’s calendar. The world tells us that and so many of us go along with it. Celebrating the birth of Christ is a good thing. It is a wonderous thing. It, perhaps, is the most accessible time of the year for Christians to spread the gospel message. But, if all we have is the birth of Christ, we are in a lot of trouble. The birth is a miracle to be sure but without Jesus’ willing sacrifice we would be no better off for it. The climax of the incarnation, the very point of it, is our need to be washed clean from the sin we have stained ourselves with. The only way we can be washed clean is by the sacrifice and the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

The world needs a savior. God has provided that savior. He has laid out the means by which the world should come to know Him and He has given us the awesome responsibility of participating in His plan.

Which brings us to our focus for today: Jesus’ commission to all who would dare to call themselves ‘Christian’.

(Mt 27:29-66) Christ has been brutally beaten and crucified — hung on a cross with thorn pressed into his head, nails driven through his hands and feet. A spear has plunged into His side, His body taken from the cross, carried from Calvary, and placed in a tomb; a stone and guards securing the passage.

On the third day, four devout women attempt to anoint Jesus’ body. As they arrive at the tomb an angel appears to them saying he has risen. The angel shows them the empty tomb and explains Christ will meet them in Galilee. On their way back to the other disciples, Christ appears to them and tells them to tell “his brethren” to go to Galilee, and they’ll see him there.

His Brethren! His closest had abandoned Him; in chapter 26 of Matthew’s Gospel we are told they FLED from him when he was arrested in the garden. Peter denied Him three times.

Take note: all believers are his brethren (cf. Mt 12:49-50; 25:40). If his closest followers had turned away, we can be sure others did as well.

Brethren - Brothers/Sisters - Family

None of this was a surprise to our Lord. He told them they would fall away and that Peter would deny him. This is a keen reminder of God’s providence; of his mighty hand at work in all things throughout the history of the world. It’s a perfect example of His grace bestowed upon undeserving souls. All believers are His brothers and therefore heirs with Him.

So the women have seen Christ resurrected and He’s instructed them to tell the others where to meet up with him.

This brings us to today’s text.

🟪Matthew 28:16-20

Matthew 28:16–20 NASB95

16 But the eleven disciples proceeded to Galilee, to the mountain which Jesus had designated. 17 When they saw Him, they worshiped Him; but some were doubtful. 18 And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. (Da 7:13f) 19 “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

Worship (v17a)

proskyneō (prahs - key - Now) - Bowed down - prostrated themselves - the two words here pros (prahs) and kyneo (keyNow) - toward kissing - the image is of a dog licking its masters hand; It’s fawning, total adoration.

How often do we see people do this with celebrities and others not worthy of worship?

Who Worshipped?

Mt 28:16 (Cf. 1 Cor 15:16, Luke 24:33)

Here, Matthew tells us the 11 disciples went to the mountain (of course Judas is gone now). There were generally others with the Jesus and the 12 throughout Jesus’ ministry and Paul explains (1 Cor 15:16) that Christ appeared to 500 at once. It is here that it is believed His appearance to so many happened.

Who is Worthy of Worship?

After Jesus was baptized, the Spirit led him to the wilderness where he fasted and endured 40 days of testing. Matthew 4 describes to us 3 times that Satan tried to tempt Jesus to sin. The evil one’s final attempt involved Satan taking him to the top of a very high mountain and showing him the kingdoms of the world telling Jesus all of it would be his if he would fall down and worship satan. Christ’s response?

Matthew 4:10 NASB95

10 Then Jesus said to him, “Go, Satan! For it is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and serve Him only.’ ”

Christ is quoting Deut 6 and Deut 10 here, which is exactly what He did to rebuke Satan at each attempt to trick Jesus into sinning. He quoted sacred Scripture.

In your bibles, you’ll see the quote either in quotations, or as the NASB does in all small-caps. It is very common for Christ, the prophets and the New Testament writers to quote just a sentence or two from scripture. It is important to remember that when they do this we read the entirety of the context of their quote. The context matters and says so much more than what they are quoting and that is the purpose of the quote, to 1) say precisely what they say in the quote and 2) to draw attention to all of what the quote means.

Accepted

When Jesus walked on water, his disciples in their “boat worshiped him, saying, “You are certainly God’s Son!”” Matthew 14:33

Matthew 14:33 NASB95

33 And those who were in the boat worshiped Him, saying, “You are certainly God’s Son!”

Christ is God. This is directly tied to His Authority as well. How can one believe that Jesus is the Son of God yet not believe that He and the Father are one? Surely, if He’s the Son of God and SINLESS, he would not accept the worship of any creature unless HE IS GOD!!!

Doubt (v17b, 18a)

distazō - waver - in two, divided in mind, hesitate

Hesitation

The only other place this word is used is when Peter lost faith when walking on the water to Jesus. Matthew 14:31 “Jesus immediately reached out his hand and took hold of him, saying to him, “O you of little faith, why did you doubt?””

And Jesus came … to them. Christ is not right next to them. He’s some distance away in order for Matthew to mention that “Jesus came to them”. They see what they think is Christ and some hesitate. We know these ‘doubters’ didn’t immediately worship, but did they do anything that we haven’t done ourselves? The apostles went there at Jesus’ precise direction. They’ve all seen Jesus since the resurrection, and already had their strong doubts satisfied (Thomas - John 20:25) but that doesn’t mean none of them doubted here.

The others likely heard Jesus was going to meet them here or at least something going to happen. Considering all of Jesus’ life — His public ministry — His reputation — it’s not hard to imagine they would expect something miraculous. But, would they have expected to see Jesus?

When I was a little boy, about 3, I hadn’t seen my mom in several months. She came to pick me and my brothers up for the weekend, or maybe the day (I don’t remember now). Someone from inside of my dad’s house told me my mom was outside and as any little boy would do, I bolted for the door and started running down the long gravel drive because she was parked near the road. I got about 20 feet away and like you see in the cartoons where the character tries to use his feet as brakes, I couldn’t stop fast enough. I don’t know what it was — I didn’t recognize my mom or I couldn’t believe she was there. I still remember the dark green floral shirt, her big 80s perm, her giant transition lens glasses. I hadn’t seen her for quite a while and then she was there. I was told she would be there that day. I was told she was, in fact, there. I saw her and that memory is etched into my mind. But, I doubted, I hesitated. It took her speaking to me — hearing her voice — for me to believe my own eyes.

Honesty

Priests and guards had spread a ridiculous story that the disciples had stolen Jesus’ body.

Matthew 28:11–15 NASB95

11 Now while they were on their way, some of the guard came into the city and reported to the chief priests all that had happened. 12 And when they had assembled with the elders and consulted together, they gave a large sum of money to the soldiers, 13 and said, “You are to say, ‘His disciples came by night and stole Him away while we were asleep.’ 14 “And if this should come to the governor’s ears, we will win him over and keep you out of trouble.” 15 And they took the money and did as they had been instructed; and this story was widely spread among the Jews, and is to this day.

If the guard was asleep, how do they know what happened to Jesus’ body? Jerusalem wasn’t a backwater town. There were people everywhere. Where did they take the body? Wouldn’t someone had seen them with the body?

Why record doubt if you’re trying to convince everyone of Christ’s resurrection?

Once convinced by evidence, they were firm — even unto death. Why would so many die for a lie?

Of the Apostles — those who were accused of stealing Jesus’ body — only John died a natural death.

All Authority (v18b)

pas exousia (ex - oo - see - ah) - all power and ability; the right to exercise authority or rule over everything

Proclaimed. v18b, Mt 26:64🟪

In answering the high priests questioning of Jesus being the Christ, the Son of God:

Matthew 26:64 NASB95

64 Jesus said to him, “You have said it yourself; nevertheless I tell you, hereafter you will see the Son of Man sitting at the right hand of Power, and coming on the clouds of heaven.”

Again, Jesus is quoting scripture. The scriptures he is quoting are Psalm 110 and Daniel 7. He proclaiming His Authority with scripture. He is also proclaiming His fulfillment of prophecy.

Proven.

So Christ has proclaimed his authority. He also proved His Authority by His miracles.

By His Miracles

Mark 1:23–27 NASB95

23 Just then there was a man in their synagogue with an unclean spirit; and he cried out, 24 saying, “What business do we have with each other, Jesus of Nazareth? Have You come to destroy us? I know who You are—the Holy One of God!” 25 And Jesus rebuked him, saying, “Be quiet, and come out of him!” 26 Throwing him into convulsions, the unclean spirit cried out with a loud voice and came out of him. 27 They were all amazed, so that they debated among themselves, saying, “What is this? A new teaching with authority! He commands even the unclean spirits, and they obey Him.”

This miracle also highlights a proclamation of Christ’s Authority. Satan and his emissaries are keenly aware who Christ is. Cf. Luke 8:26-39

By the Resurrection

Christ’s Authority has not only been proven by His miracles but by His own Resurrection.

Mt 28:1-10; Mk 16:1-8; Lk 24:1-12; John 20:1-18

say something about how the 4 accounts are not verbatim being proof of the Resurrection rather than contradictions

Given.

Our Lord’s authority was proclaimed by Him and proven by His own miracles and resurrection. It was also given to Him by the Father.

Matthew 11:27 NASB95

27 “All things have been handed over to Me by My Father; and no one knows the Son except the Father; nor does anyone know the Father except the Son, and anyone to whom the Son wills to reveal Him.

Cf. Luke 10:22; John 3:35; 5:19-29;

In Heaven and On Earth

All Authority isn’t ALL if it doesn’t mean Christ has authority here and in heaven.

Let’s remember John’s testimony of his revelation. Looking at Revelation chapter 5.

Revelation 5:11–14 NASB95

11 Then I looked, and I heard the voice of many angels around the throne and the living creatures and the elders; and the number of them was myriads of myriads, and thousands of thousands, 12 saying with a loud voice, “Worthy is the Lamb that was slain to receive power and riches and wisdom and might and honor and glory and blessing.” 13 And every created thing which is in heaven and on the earth and under the earth and on the sea, and all things in them, I heard saying, “To Him who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb, be blessing and honor and glory and dominion forever and ever.” 14 And the four living creatures kept saying, “Amen.” And the elders fell down and worshiped.

Therefore (v19a)

GO - the context here is best described as “when you have gone.” “Going” means not just missionary work in far-flung lands. Yes, some are given the Spiritual Gift of missionary service but we don’t all receive the same spiritual gifts. Our church supports a few missionaries that have this gift. The “Going” here though applies to all believers, not just missionaries.

This “when you have gone” or “as you are going,” — it’s the past, the present, the future. It’s always as you are going about your life. It’s when you’re at work, at the grocery store, the Chiefs game, in your house with your kids, grandkids, friends, nieces, nephews, brothers, sisters, grandma, grandpa, mom, dad, whoever.

THEREFORE - what is it there for? — What did our Lord declare to those on this mountain 2000 years ago and to us at Flack Church today?

All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.

Because of His authority, given by God and proven by His resurrection, we are to GO.

This not a request, it is not an offer, it is not an invitation, it is not optional. It is a command given by the very God of the Universe, by the Lamb who willingly laid down his life to be the sin offering for our iniquity, who was raised by the Holy Spirit.

Make Disciples (v19b)

Well, we know we have to GO because Christ, with ALL AUTHORITY, has told us to do so.

And what are we doing while we are going?

mathēteuō - (mah they - Tee ooh Oh) - to make a disciple

We’re to be making disciples. What is a disciple?

disciple - lat discipulus - (1) a pupil; (2) one who believes and practices the teaching of another.

This is an imperative. It is an ongoing, consistent and intentional action.

Jesus demonstrated, through his own disciples what this looks like. He called his disciples. He trained his disciples. He sent out his disciples to disciple others. The scriptures are full of examples of what it means to be a Disciple of God.

Moses taught the nation of Israel as a whole but discipled Joshua.

Elijah discipled Elisha

Naomi discipled Ruth

Isaiah had his disciples

John the Baptizer had disciples.

Paul had disciples - Timothy, Titus, Luke, et. al.

These were not discipled directly by Jesus.

Luke ended up writing more of the New Testament than Paul!

Jesus, the best Disciple maker of all time

Mark 1:17 NASB95

And Jesus said to them, “Follow Me, and I will make you become fishers of men.”

Luke 14:27 NASB95

“Whoever does not carry his own cross and come after Me cannot be My disciple.

John 8:31 NASB95

So Jesus was saying to those Jews who had believed Him, “If you continue in My word, then you are truly disciples of Mine;

Christ, the prophets, the Apostles, and the early church have given us the example. Christ called people to repentance and then he taught them and taught them and taught them. The prophets took people under their wing and closely ministered to them. The Apostles proclaimed the gospel, started churches at home and during their travels, and wrote down the message. They all loved and prayed for their disciples, for those entrusted to their care, for those they were teaching.

Something very important to note: not once did Christ, the prophets, the apostles, or the early church tell people to recite a certain prayer to save them. They didn’t tell people to say a sinner’s prayer or to “invite” Jesus “into their hearts” or ask him to be their Lord.

Jesus Christ is your Lord, whether you ask him to be so or not.

They didn’t just invite them to hang out with them once a week if they could fit it into their hectic schedules. They weren’t looking for mere converts. Christ didn’t command us here to “Make Converts”. He commanded us to “Make Disciples.

God has always, before the incarnation and since, commanded people to Repent of their sin and Believe; to submit to His authority. The prophets and the apostles did the same.

This Disciple Making is not a one-time-per-person thing. It is ongoing and it is intentional. Jesus had his disciples following him around for three years. Jesus loved His disciples. He taught them constantly. He reproved (that means reprimand, strongly correct) them constantly. He restored them constantly. He approached this Disciple Making in a repetitive, never giving up, always teaching manner.

🟧Out of His love for them, Jesus toiled over the souls of His Disciples. Take a moment to turn in your Bibles to John 17. Here, in the 17th chapter of John’s Gospel, we find what is likely labeled in your Bibles as “The High Priestly Prayer” or “The Great Intercessory Prayer.” “High Priestly” because Jesus is our High Priest. “Intercessory” because Jesus is praying for others.

This is just before Jesus takes the 11 to the Garden of Gethsemane and He is arrested. Let’s focus our attention to verses 18 and 20.

John 17:18 NASB95

18 “As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world.

John 17:20 NASB95

20 “I do not ask on behalf of these alone, but for those also who believe in Me through their word;

Through the entirety of this prayer we can see that Christ is praying for His Disciples and here we can see clearly that He is also praying for each one of us. He prayed for us 2,000 years ago and He is praying for us today.

Read this chapter this week during your quiet time with God. It only takes a few moments to read over it. This is pure love, my friends. The Savior of the world prayed for His Disciples, those with Him that evening, those who believe in Him today, and all those who will believe in Him in the days to come.

If you’re struggling with how to pray, the Word of God is the best place to start. If you’re struggling with how to get started in this “making disciples” business, John 17 is a great prayer to get you going.

Conclusion

I’m sure you have heard the mantra “What would Jesus do?” I call it a mantra because I’ve heard it uttered like a mantra more than I’ve heard the question actually answered. It’s not a bad saying at all and when genuine is a great call to remind us to conform ourselves to be more like Jesus. Let’s answer the question though;

“What would Jesus do?” — Scripture tells us what Jesus did —

He called people to repentance.

Those who repented, He taught, reproved, and restored.

He loved those people.

He prayed for those people.

That’s what He did before - and after - His selfless sacrifice on the cross; he made Disciples of God!

And He has called on us to do the same! The God of the Universe. The Only God. He has commanded every one to repent and follow Him. He has commanded those who do follow Him to be his workmen; calling others to repentance, spreading the gospel and making Disciples.

How can we not be obedient to Him who saves us from the justice of punishment for our sins.

Out of love for Him who loved us first, died for us, took our punishment, defeated death, and gave us this Great Commission. Out of love for Jesus, we must be obedient to Him.

In love, God sent His son to the world.

In love, His son took on the sins of all those who believe in Him.

Because of His authority over creation, He conquered death.

In love, He bestowed that authority on His church - every single believer - to Make Disciples.

Prayer

Our Lord, Our Just God and Our Gracious Redeemer. Thank you for this time together. May your Word be etched onto our hearts. Give us Father a zeal for your plan of redemption. Break our hearts for those who do not know you. Strengthen us to show your pure love to all of those made in your image by sharing with them the Gospel of your Son Jesus. Help us to put away the world’s wisdom and to look to you for how you want us to do your work. Make obedience to you our daily bread. Lord, bring those who scoff at your word into submission to it, for your Glory. We pray in the precious and Holy name of Jesus, Amen.