Untitled Sermon

Pastor Mark Hardy

May 21, 2017

The Great Commission

Introduction:

John G. Paton, a missionary to the South Sea Islands, often lived in danger as he worked among the hostile aborigines who had never heard the gospel. At one time three witch doctors, claiming to have the power to cause death, publicly declared their intentions to kill Paton with their sorcery before the next Sunday. To carry out their threat, they said they needed some food he had partially eaten. Unafraid, Paton took a bite out of three plums and gave them to the men who were plotting his death.

On Sunday, the missionary entered the village with a smile on his face and a spring in his step. The people looked at each other in amazement, thinking it couldn’t possibly be Paton. Their “sacred men” admitted that they had tried by all their incantations to kill him. When asked why they had failed, they replied that the missionary was a sacred man like themselves, but that his God was stronger than theirs. From then on Paton’s influence grew, and soon he had the joy of leading some of the villagers to the Lord.

John Paton, along with thousands of other missionaries throughout church history, left the comforts of their home to travel to foreign lands and often risked or gave their lives for one reason—to obey the Great Commission. This is what we will be looking at this morning. Turn in your Bible to .

In we see three aspects of the Great Commission that Jesus has given to every Christian.

The first aspect is:

I. Jesus’ Lofty Claim

A. Look at v. 18: Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.”

1. This specific occasion took place on a mountain in Galilee where Jesus spoke to more than just His eleven disciples. It is believed that this gathering is described in when the risen Christ “…appeared to more than five hundred brethren at one time.”

2. Here we see that before Jesus actually calls believers to the mission He wants us to do, He tells us on whose authority we are to do it. It is on His authority that we are to go to people, whether in our culture and other cultures, and tell them the only correct view of who God is.

3. This authority was “given” to Jesus by the Father (; ; ; ; ) and is clear proof of His deity. Since Jesus triumphed gloriously in His death and resurrection over sin, Satan, death and hell, says, “For this reason also, God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee will bow, of those who are in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and that every tongue will confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

4. This is another way of saying that Jesus had “All authority. . . in heaven and on earth.” He sovereignly rules and reigns over everything!

5. Absolutely nothing is outside His sovereign will or can thwart His sovereign purposes (). John Piper said it well, “The authority and supremacy of Jesus over every other religion and culture and society and over all gods is the basis of world missions.”

B. Mankind’s greatest need is for forgiveness and restored relationship with the Creator God through faith in Jesus Christ.

1. The whole world lies in the hopeless state of sin and guilt before a perfectly holy God (), but motivated by love God provided a remedy in the Person of His Son, Jesus Christ—God Himself in human flesh.

2. As our Substitute on the cross, the sinless Christ took upon Himself the holy wrath of God the Father against sin and paid in full the penalty for sin that we deserved (). Jesus is the only way of salvation.

3. Jesus said in , “I am the way, and the truth, and the life; no one comes to the Father but through Me.” And Peter declared in , “And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved.”

4. This is why Paul proclaimed in , “For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek.”

5. The gospel of Jesus Christ is the greatest news in the world! But it is because Jesus has “all authority” as the sovereign Lord of all that we can be hopeful that God will do what only He can do, whether it is to send workers into the harvest field or to save any sinners at all.

6. It is because Jesus has “all authority” that we can be hopeful that His great mission of world evangelization is unstoppable and cannot fail, and no human heart is beyond His power to break, for nothing is too difficult for the Lord (; ).

7. This is why Jesus proclaimed in , “…I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.”

Matthew 16:18 NASB95

“I also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.

8. This brings us to the second aspect of the Great Commission, which is:

II. Jesus’ Last Command

A. Look at vv. 19-20, “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you…” (Stop there)

1. These verses describe what is known as the “Great Commission.” This is so important to God that He repeated it 5 different times, in 5 different ways, in 5 different books of the New Testament.

2. Not only here in , but Jesus said in:

· , “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation.”

· , “Thus it is written, that the Christ would suffer and rise again from the dead the third day, and that repentance for forgiveness of sins would be proclaimed in His name to all the nations, beginning from Jerusalem.”

· , “…as the Father has sent Me, I also send you.”

· And , “But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you; and you shall by My witnesses both in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and even to the remotest part of the earth.”

3. Although there are four imperatives or commands in : “go,” “make disciples,” “baptizing,” and “teaching,” the central command is to “make disciples.” This means both to lead people to saving faith in Jesus Christ and to help them spiritually grow toward maturity in Christ.

4. This is why our mission statement here at FBC is “To make and mature Christlike disciples.”

5. And notice that the scope of Jesus’ command is to “…make disciples of all the nations.” The word “nations” means ethnic groupings.

6. The great task of every Christian is to participate in the spread the good news of Jesus Christ to all the people groups of the world. Christianity is for the entire world.

7. Jesus said in , “The field is the world…” And in He states, “For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.”

8. And in we see where Jesus “…purchased for God with [His] blood men from every tribe and tongue and people and nation.”

9. Throughout Scripture from Genesis to Revelation, from creation to consummation, God has revealed Himself as a missionary God, who does everything for His glory. And nothing glorifies Himself more than the salvation and transformation of sinful men into God-worshiping children of God ().

10. As Sandy sang earlier, “People need the Lord.” But do we truly believe that those without Christ will one day “perish” in a literal and eternal lake of fire (; )?

11. George Whitfield, the famous English evangelist, used to speak with tears in his eyes of “the torment of burning like a livid coal, not for an instant or for a day, but for millions and millions of ages, at the end of which souls will realize that they are no closer to the end than when they first began, and they will never, ever be delivered from that place.”

B. If we truly do, then participating with Jesus in His great mission of world evangelization will be seen as not only a privilege, but also a responsibility.

1. God could have written the gospel in the sky for all to see or chosen His holy angels to spread it. But instead, He chose to use us!

2. Jesus prayed to His Father in , “As You sent Me into the world, I also have sent them into the world.” And Peter declared in , “But you are a chosen race, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, a people for God’s own possession, so that you may proclaim the excellencies of Him who has called you out of darkness into His marvelous light.” ()

3. As Christians, God left us here on earth to be “ambassadors for Christ” (). The living, all-authoritative Lord of the universe has commanded us to go to every nation, every people, and every religion and call them to repent and believe in Jesus for the forgiveness of sins and the inheritance of eternal life with the one true God.

4. But is Jesus’ last command our first concern? Is His priority our priority? It should be!

C. Now if we are commanded to “make disciples of all the nations,” the other three commands—“go,” “baptizing,” and “teaching,” are the essential elements of this disciple-making process.

1. The first essential element is to “Go,” which literally means “as you are going.” The Great Commission begins with evangelism—sharing the life-saving, life-transforming gospel of Jesus Christ with unbelievers.

2. We are to take the initiative to share our faith with unbelievers where we live, work or play as we are going through life. Peter says in to “…always be ready to give a defense to everyone who asks you a reason for the hope that is in you, with meekness and fear” (NKJV).

3. Only the Holy Spirit can save people (), but our responsibility is to faithfully share the gospel with others and leave the results to God.

D. But evangelism here does not end with the conversion of the unbeliever. The second essential element is “…baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit.”

1. The word “baptizing” here means to be immersed in water, and refers to water baptism, which is known as “believer’s baptism.”

2. Baptism is the outward expression that I belong to Jesus Christ. It is the outward symbol of the inward reality of our saving faith in Him; the publicly declaration of our identification with Jesus in His death, burial and resurrection.

3. Notice that believers are baptized in the “…name of the Father, and the Son and the Holy Spirit.” One name, three Persons—this is the fullest and richest statement possible of the comprehensive union that we have with the Triune God.

4. Water baptism for a new believer in the early church was the first step of obedience to God. This is why an “unbaptized believer” was virtually non-existent; as soon as someone received Jesus Christ as their Savior and Lord they were baptized.

E. The third essential element is seen in v. 20, “…teaching them to observe all that I commanded you…”

1. The phrase “all that I commanded you” is a clear reference to the Word of God. In our Christian lives we all start off as “new believers” or “baby Christians,” but we are not to stay there.

2. God intends that we be continually growing toward maturity in the lifelong sanctification process of becoming more and more like Jesus Christ (; ; ). But the only way this happens is as the Spirit of God uses the Word of God in our lives.

3. The Word of God is to be taught because it is essential to spiritual growth. Jesus said in , “…man shall not live by bread alone, but on every word that proceeds out of the mouth of God.”

4. says, “Like newborn babies, long for the pure milk of the word, so that by it you may grow in respect to salvation.” states, “But grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.”

5. And tells us, “All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness; so that the man of God may be adequate, equipped for every good work.”

6. Teaching people God’s Word is absolutely vital, because no one can live out what they don’t know. But having a mere “head knowledge” of God’s Word is not enough!

7. Notice again that Jesus says, “…teaching them to observe all that I commanded you…” To “observe” here means to obey, comply with or conform to.

8. As says, “But prove yourselves doers of the word, and not merely hearers who delude themselves.”

9. The whole intent of the Word of God is to change and transform our lives to become more and more like Jesus Christ. If it fails to do that due to lack of obedience, then we are not growing and remaining spiritually immature.

10. The chief of a former cannibalistic tribe in New Heb-ri-des sat peacefully reading the Bible, when he was interrupted by a French trader. “Bah,” he said in French. “Why are you reading the Bible? I suppose the missionaries have got hold of you, you poor fool. Throw it away! The Bible never did anyone any good.”

The chief calmly replied, “If it were not for this Bible, you’d be in my kettle by now!”

11. As believers, we need to diligently study God’s Word to know it (), but to truly grow spiritually we must “observe” all that we know—obey it and put it into practice, in total dependence on the Lord. Otherwise, it does us no good!

12.The third aspect of the Great Commission is:

III. Jesus’ Lasting Companionship

A. Look at the end of v. 20: …and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.

1. Jesus didn’t leave us here alone to try to pull off the staggering worldwide task of making disciples in our own strength and resources. When He says, “I am with you always” He is promising to us His permanent presence or lasting companionship.

2. Whenever God wants to encourage His people He tells them that He is “with them.” God said to Joshua in , “…Just as I have been with Moses, I will be with you; I will not fail you or forsake you.”

3. The author of Hebrews quotes this verse in , “…for He Himself has said, “I WILL NEVER DESERT YOU, NOR WILL I EVER FORSAKE YOU.”

4. In God declares, “Do not fear, for I am with you; Do not anxiously look about you, for I am your God. I will strengthen you, surely I will help you, surely I will uphold you with My righteous right hand.”

5. Therefore, we can say with Paul in that even though “all deserted me. . . . the Lord stood by me and gave me strength...” Be encouraged by the fact that Jesus is “…with you always!”

B. For how long? Look again what He says, “…even to the end of the age,” which literally means all the days until the completion or consummation of the age.

1. This is a reference to the Second Coming of Jesus Christ (, ). Jesus promises the comfort of His lasting companionship with us until the day He finally returns.

2. This in itself proves that the Great Commission was not given merely to His eleven disciples, for they all died within one generation. The Great Commission is just as applicable and binding on the church today as it was when Jesus first gave it!

3. What a privilege and responsibility we have as believers to participate in the greatest cause and movement in human history—the advancement of God’s kingdom and the building of Christ’s church “…from every tribe and tongue and people and nation” (; ) until He returns.

C. But if that’s so, then why do so few Christians participate in the Great Commission?

1. In his book Key to the Missionary Problem, Andrew Murray puts his finger on the central problem when he says, “As we seek to find out why, with such millions of Christians, the real army of God that is fighting the hosts of darkness is so small, the only answer is—lack of heart. The enthusiasm of the kingdom is missing. And that is because there is so little enthusiasm for the King.”

2. Our “enthusiasm for the King” has everything to do with the Great Commandment, which is loving God supremely and loving others sacrificially. Therefore, when our love for the Lord is cold and weak, our love for the lost is also cold and weak.

3. Since these two are inseparable, it can be accurately stated that our love of God is most clearly seen by how well we love the lost. The Great Commandment is the well-spring or heart passion out of which flows the Great Commission.

4. Let me ask you: what does your commitment to world missions say about your love for the Lord? Christian leader and Pastor A.T. Pierson said it well, “The vitality of a church may be measured by its interest in the evangelization of the world.

Conclusion:

In closing, here are four practical ways to participate in world missions:

1. First, pray. Pray that God will give you a supernatural love for the lost. Pray regularly for our missionaries: Alan and Sandy White with Goodseed, and Shuji Kondo in Japan. And pray for the spread of the gospel throughout the world.

2. Second, learn. Learn about world missions by reading a biography of a missionary or other book on missions. Sign up for the Perspectives Course on the World Christian Movement, which gives Biblical, historical, cultural and strategic perspectives on the world missions.

3. Third, go. Go somewhere on a short-term mission’s trip. Be open to God calling you to long-term missions.

4. Fourth, give. Give sacrificially to world missions. Have a loose change jar for missions and let it remind you to pray as you give.

Since there is nothing on earth more important or significant to give our lives to than the Great Commission, may we all be faithful to participate in God’s priority! For this life will soon be past, only what’s done for Christ will last!