Sermon Tone Analysis

Introduction

Matthew

What I just read to you this morning is what many call:

I.

The Great Commission

After His resurrection, Jesus took His disciples to the mount of olives and gave them His final directive, His marching orders.

A marching order is something that a military officer issues as a final command for the troops to follow before they are dismissed or sent off.

The Great Commission is a military marching order and let me submit to you today that it is also the standing order of the church.

The Great Commission is a military marching order and let me submit to you today that it is also the standing order of the church.

The Great Commission is a military marching order and let me submit to you today that it is also the standing order of the church.

Standing order - means it is the military order or ruling that stands or is retained irrespective of changing times or conditions.

The renowned preached H.B. Charles told the story of the ocean liner the SS.

United States:

The SS United States from its construction maintained an uninterrupted schedule of transatlantic passenger service until 1969 and was never used as a troopship.

In 2018, an agreement was reached with a commercial real estate firm, RXR Realty of New York City to explore options for restoring and redeveloping the ocean liner.

RXR had expressed interest in developing an out-of-commission ocean liner as a hotel and event venue at Pier 57 in New York.

This requires that any redevelopment plan preserve the ship's profile and exterior design, and include approximately 25,000 sq ft for an onboard museum.

Image of the SS UNited States here.

The ship is the largest ocean liner constructed entirely in the United States and the fastest ocean liner to cross the Atlantic in either direction.

She was designed by American naval architect William Francis Gibbs and could be converted into a troopship if required by the Navy in time of war.

The SS United States from its construction maintained an uninterrupted schedule of transatlantic passenger service until 1969 and was never used as a troopship.

At some point instead of being a military troop carrier it became a transatlantic luxury ship carrying wealthy patrons.

In 2018, an agreement was reached with a commercial real estate firm, RXR Realty of New York City to explore options for restoring and redeveloping the ocean liner.

RXR had expressed interest in developing an out-of-commission ocean liner as a hotel and event venue at Pier 57 in New York.

This requires that any redevelopment plan preserve the ship's profile and exterior design, and include approximately 25,000 sq ft for an onboard museum.

In giving the Great Commission Jesus designed His church to be a military troop carrier, not a passenger luxury liner.

The church of Christ is a vessel of war not an attractive museum.

In many ways, the church has lost its original mission and has not carried out Jesus’ standing orders.

The main attraction of the church today is the beauty of its buildings, the quality of the music and the number of the attendees.

People nowadays choose their church like they would choose their Chinese restaurant.

If it is full of people, then the service and the food must be good.

In the meantime, the church has lost its mission of obeying the Great Commission of Jesus Christ.

We must remain on mission and obey the Great Commission.

Go therefore, and make disciples of all nations..

What is the most important verb in this sentence?

It is not go, it is “make disciples”!

But Jesus gave it as a present imperative, while you go, “make disciples”.

A disciple is simply a follower.

Disciple = Follower

The key for the church to staying on mission is this:

Faithful Disciples Make Disciples!

This is why our church has embraced ITIM, why I challenge everyone.. why we hold eight weeks of vision school, Ray — and his employer, wow that’s a work day!

It is a sacrifice on a Saturday!

Discipleship is the mission of this church!

Jesus words from is the Great Commission, not the Great Suggestion!

The Great Commission is not the Great Suggestion!

It is our marching order as we are sent

Making disciples is our marching order as we are sent out to the world.

And last I heard it remains to be our standing order - Jesus’ command remains to this day!

next Jesus said baptizing them..

Through baptism a Christian is to be identified with Jesus, His death, burial and resurrection.

We are both carry the marks of Jesus and also live out His resurrection in the newness of resurrected life.

This means that the church are to make disciples and through baptism the church should “mark disciples”.

which means

Baptism “marks” disciples.

I praise God for the seven souls that received the Lord Jesus and were baptized on Easter Sunday...

Verse 20:

“… teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.”

This church will teach the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth.. so help me God.

(sounds like an oath in the court of law)

I am always inspired by the apostle Paul and his parting words to the Ephesian elders, he told them “therefore I testify to you this day that I am innocent of the blood of all, for I did not shrink from declaring to you the whole counsel of God.

Which is the apostle Paul’s way of telling the church “You cannot blame me if you go to hell!”

Brothers and sisters, I may have very limited time in ministry because of my full time secular job and my increasing responsibilities there (hand pointing to the far side), but whenever I stand here to preach, I pledge to proclaim the full counsel of God.

I want to stand before the Lord someday confident, that I no one’s blood is in my hands that while in my tenure here at Crosswind I did not hold back and withhold the truth in place of teaching that which is appealing to itching ears.

I want to stand before the Lord someday knowing that I have told the only the truth no matter how unappealing and boring it may be.

I pledge to teach the Great Commission not the Great Omission.

I will not get tired of teaching the simple truth that God so loved you.. that He sent His only Son to die on the cross for you, so that if you believe in Him you will not perish but have everlasting life - .

Jesus’ offer stands for you even today, I am the way the truth and the life,...

We must obey the Great Commission.

Let me encourage you today that the Great Commission is not a final stand.

The Great Commission is not a Final Stand!

By final stand I mean that it is not an order from a commander in face of defeat.

We know the evil of Nazi Germany and thank God that they lost proving that good triumphs over evil.

But in the persistence of evil, Adolf Hitler when faced with imminent and certainty of defeat, continued to command Germany’s young men (most of what remained were boys) to continue to fight to the end.

To take the final stand, but that was a losing cause, while in his final act of cowardice he took his own life in his bunker.

But Jesus’ marching orders is not a losing cause, He gave it to His church from a position of victory.

While we obey the Great Commission, let us also be fully aware of the great claim that preceded it.

II.

The Great Claim

Matthew

Many armies of the world had fought and died for claims that are much less than this!

This is a powerful claim of authority and it is a claim made by no less than the Lord Jesus Christ.

When someone makes a public and vocal claim, I am the man of my house!

People wonder, if you have to walk around making that claim probably you’re not.

When Jesus, the humble King makes the claim of authority you can believe that it is absolutely true and you can make it your daily reality in whatever daily battle you face in your life.

This is an absolute claim - you see either Jesus is Lord of all or He is not Lord at all!

Jesus’ claim is not just a claim to power, He has the power to do the impossible, He has the power to move mountains in your life.

But Jesus’ claim here is not just a claim to power it is a claim to absolute sovereign authority.

Jesus’ authority has the final word that will overrule all authority in heaven and on earth.

When He said authority in heaven, it means spiritual beings, angels and even fallen angels like Satan are subject to Him and on earth which means all of human government will bow down to the government that will be established someday by King Jesus.. don’t be dismayed..

“All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Me - the Great Claim.

The GREAT COMMISSION RESTS on the GREAT CLAIM!

The church is waging a victorious war!

Lastly, Jesus’ Great Commission is not a command for us to hold the fort.

The Great Commission is not Holding the Fort!

By this I mean that the commander has not left us to be somewhere else while we fight the war, and commanded us to man our battle stations until he returns.

While we obey the Great Commission, let us also embrace the Great Commitment.

III.

The Great Commitment.

Jesus Said in the last part of verse 20..