Hello Everyone,
Hope you all are having a great Friday. I don't know if its cold where you are right now but it's pretty cold here in Texas. Today I want to talk about the Great Commission. I want to talk about it in sections..
First though, here is the whole text:
"Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." -Matthew 28:16-20
(New International Version).
So lets start with the beginning....
1. Remember there are only 11 disciples due to Judas killing himself after Jesus was arrested and going to be tried by Pilate.
2. The disciples went to the mountain Jesus told them to go. Some disciples worshiped Him, others had doubt. What would you do if you had been there?
3. What kind of authority in heaven had been given to Jesus? All of it. Can you imagine having all authority on heaven and on earth?
4. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations: To me, this means go and spread the good news to everyone in the world. You can even go spread the gospel to others in your hometown. Jesus wants everyone to hear the gospel and come to Him.
5. Baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit. What does this apply to, you ask? Well in order to be saved, we have to first hear the word, believe that Jesus is the Son of God, Repent of our sins, Confess that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, then be immersed in the watery grave of baptism for the remission of our sins. You may ask, Lauren, what does baptism have to do with salvation?
Well friend, I'm here to explain the reason that baptism is a part of salvation. Remember in the beginning of Matthew Ch.3 when Jesus came to be baptized by John the Baptist? Well, in verse 15 of Chapter 3, we read this: Jesus replied, "Let it be so now; it is proper for us to do this in all righteousness."
So what did Jesus mean by that? Well when we read further into the text that after Jesus was baptized the Holy Spirit descended in the form of a dove. Do you remember God's response to Jesus' baptism?
In verse 17 we read these words: And a voice from heaven said, "This is my Son, whom I love; with him I am well pleased." So this was God's way of showing that in order to be saved and receive the Holy Spirit, we must be baptized. I know this is a controversial subject among some of my friends but I'm telling you this is what God says in the Bible, not my words. I do believe that this is the only way we can get to heaven and become Christians. I believe in NO other way than the perfect plan God created through Jesus.
(But baptism is for another blog post, but just wanted to put my "two cents in").
6. and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. This means that even after we put Christ on in baptism and receive the Holy Spirit, we need to study the Bible to grow in our relationship with God. Our studying continues after becoming a Christian. When we study, our faith becomes stronger and we are strengthened to overcome any temptation that Satan throws at us. Let me explain something to you before I continue: I am NOT saying that the Christian life is EASY. It's very difficult to live, but we live with the hope that if we are faithful to God and live the Christian life He wants us to live, we will be in Heaven with Him one day for all eternity.
7. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age: What does this mean? Well this last part means that Jesus will be with us as long as we abide in Him. Jesus is alive and with us every day. He is going to always be there for us and even when He comes back to receive those who have remained faithful Christians.
Here's an excerpt from a great book my Grandparents gave to me for my college graduation present. I really enjoy this book! :)
In the book Halley's Bible Handbook, the author describes what he thought about this last phrase of the text: "We cannot understand how One Person can be with millions of billions of persons at the same time. But it is Deity. And Jesus said it in the plainest possible language, "I AM WITH YOU ALL THE TIME". Jesus said that. And Jesus did not use idle words. He did not talk just to hear himself talk. He meant something when he said that, and we believe that, in some real sense, beyond our comprehension, mystic, but real, HE is with each of us all the time. No mater how weak, or humble, or unimportant, HE is our friend, our companion. Invisible, but there. Now, right now. Tonight, while we are asleep. Tomorrow, while we are at work. Next Week. Next year. Shadowing us through life. Walking by our side. Watching with kindly interest every detail of life's pitful struggle, trying so patiently to lead us up to a place of immortal happiness in His Father's home/ This all seems like just a beautiful dream. But it is a FACT, the one fundamental fact of our existence."
-(Halley, Henry. Halley's Bible Handbook. Classic Edition. pgs.444-445).
I couldn't agree more with the author. What do you think?
I hope this has painted a clearer picture for you. When I write all of my blog posts, I am also talking to myself. I'm not perfect. No one is or will ever be except Jesus. May we all strive to live as Jesus lived. Let's pray for one another so that we all may enter into Heaven for all eternity one day.
Have a great weekend!
Until I write again,
Lauren
