EVERY CHRISTIAN is CALLED to play a CRUCIAL ROLE in JESUS' GREAT COMMISSION - A "GOD AT WORK IN THE WORLD" series (Part 1)

Jesus’ Great Commission: Who is it directed to? Does it apply to me?

Welcome to a new LIFE ON MISSION series on GOD AT WORK IN THE WORLD. We’re so happy you have joined us in journeying with Jesus, living on mission, & responding to the Good Shepherd’s call and invitation in the Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20).

18And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

First things first: Who is Jesus talking to? And, do the words of Jesus apply to you and me?

These are two common questions in response to hearing Jesus’ commands recorded in the final verses of the book of Matthew, just before He ascended into heaven to sit at the right hand of the throne of God in glory.

Who is Jesus talking to?

Jesus was talking to His followers, His disciples. If we pledge our allegiance to Jesus, then we have become His disciples. We are like apprentices learning under the Master of masters. As Jesus’ disciples, we are to live by our Teacher’s words. Thus, Jesus’ words to His 1st century disciples are of utmost importance and relevance to us, Christ’s disciples in the 21st century. So, who is Jesus talking to? If you are a follower of Jesus, then He is talking to you.

Do the words of Jesus apply to you and me?

Yes. We Christians, Christ’s followers and ambassadors to the world, are all included in Jesus’ commands. This is not a call for certain people like “missionaries,” or a responsibility for others who feel especially “called,” this is Jesus’ invitation to His Bride, to every member of the Body of Christ.

Why is it that we can so quickly disregard Christ’s invitation to play an active role in His beautiful plan of redemption across the world?

It can be easy to take Jesus’ words and assume someone else will take up the call to respond. We turn Christ’s commands to us into what we think are His commands for the passionate Bible-loving young guy or for the multi-lingual faithful girl who’s parents were missionaries or for that family that has been preparing to go to the nations for years. “It’s for those people, not for me.” With one argument or another, we can reason away the role the Lord is inviting us to play in spreading His Good News to all nations. It can be easy to believe that as long as we play our part in our local sphere of influence, we’re exempt from having to share the Gospel or support Kingdom advancement efforts elsewhere. It can be difficult to let go of what’s normal and comfortable, especially when the Jesus’ Great Commission seems to be an obviously uncomfortable invitation.

While we may not all be called to pack our things and go to a nation like India—though some will be—we are all called to play our part in fulfilling Jesus’ Great Commission.

What else did Jesus say about our role as His witnesses to the world?

In the first chapter of Acts, we find something else Jesus said to His followers before He ascended:

“You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth.” - Acts 1:8

Jesus also clearly stated in Matthew 24:14:

“This gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.”

That is some holy insight from the Lord! When will Jesus come again? Only our Father in heaven knows. But what do we know must happen first, according to the Son of God? The “gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.”

What else?

We know from Revelation 7:9-10, that a great multitude of saved souls from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, will stand before King Jesus in heaven, as John testified:

9 After this I looked, and behold, a great multitude that no one could number, from every nation, from all tribes and peoples and languages, standing before the throne and before the Lamb, clothed in white robes, with palm branches in their hands, 10 and crying out with a loud voice, “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb!”

O Lord our God, inspire us to play our set apart role in making Your name and fame known to the nations.

I hope we can more clearly see: the Great Commission is for every follower of Jesus. Since all authority in heaven and on earth has been given to Jesus our Lord and King, as His ambassadors and as the Body of Christ, we are togo and make disciples of all nations; we baptize them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit; we teach them to observe all that Jesus has commanded us; and we keep our eyes on Jesus, who is with us always, working in and through us to do what pleases Him. This is the goal set by the Lord for all Christians, not just for missionaries.

So now what?

This may ruffle some feathers. This may confront established beliefs and ideas about the role we are to play in God’s plan of redemption. It might even interrupt some expertly devised career, savings, investment, and retirement plans. I can relate from personal experience.

Should you start exploring flights to reach the unreached in Morocco or Bangladesh?

If God wills, then for some of us, maybe, but for many of us, maybe not.

Could there be more than one way to make disciple-making across the nations come to fruition?

Yes! More to come on this in our next post, scheduled for Monday, April 21, the day after Resurrection Day.

If you were blessed or positively challenged by this, feel free to leave a comment or share it with a friend.

May the Lord bless you and inspire you to prayerfully consider what role the Lord is inviting you to play in His Great Commission. My encouragement to you, spend some undistracted time in the Lord’s presence. Don’t shy away from silence. Come ready, anticipating that our Good Shepherd is ready and willing to speak to His beloved sheep. Remember His words in John 10:3-4

“…The sheep hear his voice, and he calls his own sheep by name and leads them out. 4 When he has brought out all his own, he goes before them, and the sheep follow him, for they know his voice.”

Jesus continued in verses 14-16:

14 I am the good shepherd. I know my own and my own know me, 15 just as the Father knows me and I know the Father; and I lay down my life for the sheep. 16 And I have other sheep that are not of this fold. I must bring them also, and they will listen to my voice. So there will be one flock, one shepherd.

Our Good Shepherd says His sheep know His voice and listen to Him. By faith, bring a pen and notebook along as you pause, listen, record, and respond to the voice of your Good Shepherd. Remember, you’re not alone, as Jesus said in Matthew 28:20: “…behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”