Orders and Duty

Introduction

So, when we arrived on Friday night, we took a look at what it really means to be created in the image of God, the Imago Dei, where we figured out that image can be described as the Natural, Political, and Moral aspects of God’s character. Basically, we broke that down to understand that we have free will of choice, a desire and duty to care for the created ecosystem, and we were created upright, there was no sin in our original identity. We also briefly discussed the ongoing need of intimate fellowship with God in the Imago. Dei.

Yesterday, Major Tom spoke on the Human Condition; sin and salvation. Even in our sin, separated from God, we maintained free will, we were still responsible for the ecosystem, and we traded our righteousness for sin. Our sin skewed the image! Yes, God made a way, and is making a way, for it to be corrected. For those saved in Christ Jesus, the Father only sees the perfect image of His Son, and our image is in a state of constant healing through the the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. We are being refined; being made righteous! We are like a distorted image that is being made clear through the faith in Jesus and regenration by the Holy Spirit. Friends, that is the 7th, 8th, 9th and 10th doctrines of The Salvation Army.

Today brings us to the question of “what now”? We understand what being created in God’s Image means, we understand that sin really skewed some things, but that God has, and is, making a way. So what do we do? Let’s start with today’s scripture!

Scripture

Matthew 28:16–20 NLT

Then the eleven disciples left for Galilee, going to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. When they saw him, they worshiped him—but some of them doubted! Jesus came and told his disciples, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”

Historical Context

So this section of scripture finds the disciples having been through the crucifixion and resurrection of Jesus. I don’t know about you, but I can only imagine the emotional roller coaster that they had gone through; the sorrow and fear that they must have felt. They had been with Him for so long and had seen such miracles. They had proclaimed Him the Son of God! They vowed in Matthew 26:35 that they would never disown Him. But only 21 verses later, eit is recorded in history that they desert Him and fled. All but Peter, that is, who lingered only to deny Him 3 times at the end of the same chapter. Consider the shame!

Then, the most powerful person the earth has ever known was put to death. Though they deserted Him, He was their friend; their Lord. The sorrow and dismay they must have felt. A rollor coaster of emotion indeed!

And now, the women have discovered Him resurrected and have shared with the disciples that Jesus wants them to gather in Galilee. You know they had to be skeptical! But when they arrive, there He is, and as would be proper “they worshipped Him, but some doubted”! Then Jesus assures them of His authority!

His Authority

To really understand this moment a bit better, I think we should take a quick look at the beginning of His ministry. Luke 4 finds Jesus in Nazareth where he reads from the scroll of the prophet Isaiah, saying that Luke 4:18-21 ““The Spirit of the Lord is upon me, for he has anointed me to bring Good News to the poor. He has sent me to proclaim that captives will be released, that the blind will see, that the oppressed will be set free, and that the time of the Lord’s favor has come.” He rolled up the scroll, handed it back to the attendant, and sat down. All eyes in the synagogue looked at him intently. Then he began to speak to them. “The Scripture you’ve just heard has been fulfilled this very day!””

What we can gather from this Luke account is that in Jesus, the ethical rule of God has come near. These people have been subjected to pain and suffering, unfair treatment, unreasonable taxation that led to hunger and hardship. They have been yearning for a savior to come for a long time. It is speculated that 400 years passed between the propeht Malachi and John the Baptist, and they had been crying out well before Malachi.

These silent years must have seemed maddening. We were created for fellowship with, and allegiance to, a good God who not only provides for our needs, but offers flourishment of life. But in consequence of our disobedience, we lost everything that was good, and became totally depraved. We have been looking at our doctrines some this weekend; that’s doctrine 5!

Now, in Jesus, this good and ethical rule has come near again. In Jesus, there is flourishment of life again, freedom from oppression again, and healing for the sick! Now, in Matthew 27 and 28, He has made atonement for our sins, and has conquered the grave securing our future.

Friends, this is important stuff. You might recall in the book of Ruth where Boaz came to her rescue as a kinsman-redeemer. First there was someone more closely related, so Boaz had to approach him to see of his willingness, but in the end, Boaz became the kinsman-redeemer; he became her salvation.

There are four requirements that must be met to be a kinsman-redeemer. 1. You have to be kin. 2. You have to be willing. 3. You have to be able to pay the price. 4. You have to pay it in full!

A father can only leavethat which he possesses as an inheritance. For those coming after Adam, that inheritance was sin and total depravity. So the entire human race was in trouble with no one able to redee. It isn’t like Adam had a uncle or cousin. But even in our state of total depravity, God made a way because Jesus was not born from an earthly father, was He! No, His inheritance was not sin and depravity. His was righteousness, and He never let it go. Through His mother, Mary, He is certainly kin, isn’t He! He expressed His willingness in the Garden of Gethsemane when He said,” not my will but your”. And He paid the debt in full when He went to the cross an innocent man. So, in Jesus, we have our kinsman-redeemer, and just as He expresses in Matthew 28, He has absolute authority over our lives.

Therefore Go

Now I love how verse 19 begins with “Therefore”, because it is a transitional adverb of absolute consequence. It has power, is absolute, and requires something. There is no opportunity to question it. Jesus is literally saying that ‘as a result of my authority over your life, you will now…go and make disciples’.

Friends, it drives me crazy when followers of Christ Jesus consider their calling to be optional, or open for interpretation. And make no mistake, every single one of us is called. I am not saying we are all called to specificity. We each have to hit our knees and ask God to open doors that He wants us to enter through, and to close doors that He wants closed. We confirm with one another that we would make good officers, or good ministers, good corps sergeant majors, etc… That’s not exactly what I am talking about here. I am talking about investing in the lives of others, teaching them about the ways of God.

There are so many people who think that they can follow Christ without belonging to a body of believers, without engaging in their community, without making people a priority. The Great Commission doesn’t call for us to just ensure that we get to heaven. Jesus took care of that, and the Holy Spirit continues the effort. Yes, of course we have responsibility for ourselves, but of equal responsibility is to do like Christ did when He read from the scroll of Isaiahc, only we reference Him. Our responsibility is to share that in the person of Jesus, the ethical rule of God has come near. Ours is to testify firsthand to its goodness, and to share that His goodness is for anyone and everyone, unreserved”.

Friends, if we are not doing that, if we are not modeling righteous devotion to God everywhere we go and in all of our pursuits, then we are failing in our response to His ‘therefore’!

There are a lot of people who will try to drill down onto you some specifics of the Great Commission on your life and how it should look, but I promise you this is it. The gifts that God has given you will open doors of opportunity to fulfill the ‘therefore’, but no matter what it looks like, it calls for regular testimony and righteous living for all to see. That is what His ‘therefore’ is all about.

Imago Dei

So, when we talk about John Wesley’s understanding of the Imago Dei, how do we tie that to living out the Great Commission in our lives? The free will that we exercise is devotion; faith paired with obedience. We pray in open spaces. We refrain from immorality. We do not take advantage of others because they, too, were created in His image. We do not consider using women for are own earthly desires because they too were created in His image. You see where we’re going here?

Considering the political aspect of the Imago Dei, we care for the ecosystem in which we belong. That means we don’t throw trash out the window. We treat the natural order with kindness and consideration. We speak up for our friends living on the fringes of society with no voice that others will hear. We vote and work to protect God’s creation.

These are our responsibilities as Christ’s representatives. We testify to His goodness often, and we teach righteousness through modeling it in every aspect of our lives. And when our flesh is weak, we continue the effort in the power of the Holy Spirit!

We must nor forget that the Imago Dei calls for regular communion with God. Friends, I’m not talking juice and crackers. I am talking about relationship. I am talking about prayer and Christian meditation. I am talking about driving alone down the road and having casual, unplanned conversations with God.

Altar Call

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