The Great Commission

The Great Commission, Matthew 28:19-20, begins with:

“Go, therefore, and make disciples”.

Whenever we see the word ‘therefore’ we need to ask what it is there for. To find out we need to go to verse 18 - Then Jesus came near and said to them,

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

Because Jesus, our Lord and Savior, has all authority in heaven and on earth; we are to make disciples. He is with us. We have the Holy Spirit. When are we to make disciples? The word ‘go’ can be translated ‘as you are going’. Most of them go somewhere at least a few times a week. And as we are going, we encounter people; people who have never heard about Jesus, people who have heard about Jesus and don’t know him, and people who know Jesus. Every one of these people can be a disciple, a learner. And each and every one of us who know Jesus and walk with him can help them know Christ and grow in their faith.

There was a person who came to the church to check our heating and cooling system to make sure it was in good shape. It was. I asked if he went to church. He told me he wasn’t into religion. One of his reasons was a loving God wouldn’t punish people. I asked him, “If your children were playing with an outlet, would you get onto them?” He said, “Yes.” I said, “I know you would do that because you love them. But would your kids think you were mean for getting on to them?” He said, “Yes.” And he had an expression that showed he hadn’t thought about God that way before. We went onto have a good open conversation about faith. A seed has been planted.

I’m praying God will bring more believers across his path and open the door for us to have future conversations. I pray we have many opportunities for spiritual conversations. That we recognize them and walk in the courage that Jesus gives us to tell our story, talk about what we know, and thus begin to make disciples.

“19 Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. 20 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.”
- Matthew 28:19-20

Grace and Peace,
Brian Frank
Pastor, Noble Avenue Baptist Church