Our passage today is the last passage from the last chapter of the gospel by Matthew. This passage is usually called “The Great Commission”, when Jesus 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.”
This passage from Matthew is very similar to the last passage of the last chapter of Mark’s gospel. And in Mark’s version, he adds a little detail saying that after Jesus gave these instructions, He was lifted up into heaven. While that ascension of Jesus is indeed a marvelous spectacle (and how we wish we were there to witness it), we want to relish these words of Jesus because they were the LAST words He ever spoke in person, and I encourage you to continue to reflect on these words in the coming days so that you will appreciate how much importance Jesus wanted to place in these words that He left for His disciples, and for you and me and all mankind.
For today, let me invite you to reflect on three aspects of Christ’s Great Commission message.
THANK GOD FOR THOSE WHO ENCOURAGED YOU TO A RENEWED FAITH
First, Jesus instructed His disciples to “go and make disciples of all nations”. And, as we read in the book of Acts, these disciples – after being filled with the Holy Spirit – did exactly what Jesus instructed them to do. Namely, they went to many faraway places and preached the gospel and began the process of making disciples who made disciples who made disciples.
So, my question for you today is this: “Do you remember the people who taught you about God, about His love, and who invited you to follow Jesus as your Lord and Savior?” And do you remember how you responded? And how that response of yours brought you to where you are today, listening to this message?
Now think about this. Where might you be now if those people didn’t come to you when they did? Where might you be now if you hadn’t heard the good news, or that you didn’t hear and respond to the invitation of Jesus to follow Him?
Praise God for those disciples who spread the good news that you and I enjoy today, right? Praise God.
I thank God for my mother who, while I was a young boy and on to high school, would encourage me to join her to attend daily Mass early in the morning before going to school. I thank my high school Jesuit teachers who patiently helped me pore through difficult passages of the bible. I thank my father who himself having accepted Jesus as his personal Lord and savior, wanted me to experience the same joy in knowing Jesus in a personal way, and together with Daisy my wife, they never gave up inviting me until I finally attended my first prayer meeting. I praise and thank those men who never knew me before, but took charge of discipling me, and prayed over me for an outpouring of the Holy Spirit.
If not for them, I’d probably be an arrogant and egotistic self-made man, rich in the world’s goods, but sadly doomed to eternal damnation.
What about you, my dear friend? Whom do you have to thank for? May the Lord bless them, and give them the reward deserving of a good and faithful servant because of their obedience to this calling by Jesus.
Finally, on this point. Remember that now that you are a disciple, you’re commanded to do likewise and make disciples of others. My friend, people need the Lord, just like you did. So, do not let the gospel end with you. Now go, and make disciples of all nations.
“DO YOU KNOW, AND ARE YOU DOING EVERYTHING I COMMANDED YOU?”
Next, Jesus describes in simple terms exactly how His disciples are supposed to go about making disciples. Jesus says, “teach them to obey everything I have commanded you.” For those who follow my monthly posts, you might remember that I had spoken about this passage just last month. I shared how I searched the gospels and made a list of all the commands of Jesus, to get ready to teach and encourage those whom I disciple to obey these commands of Jesus.
What I want to leave as an encouragement to you on this is that if you are struggling with a weakness and are having difficulty obeying anything that the Lord has commanded, take heart my friend. Our God is a God of second chances. And third, and fourth, and seven times seventy times chances. And I hope and pray that you submit yourself to someone who will lovingly disciple you through this struggle. The key is that you be honest with your discipler, and take the steps your discipler instructs you to follow in order to become more and more like Christ in all your ways. I’ve always said that discipleship is like going up on the downside of an escalator. You have to work at it, otherwise, the world, the flesh and the devil will drag you farther and farther from Jesus. My point: you cannot do this alone; you need a discipler. And on this note, in case any of you watching this video does not now have a discipler, please message me personally and I will try to connect you with people who will lovingly walk with you along the pathway of hope.
“ABIDE IN ME AND YOU CAN DO ALL THINGS”
Which brings me to my last point for today. Jesus ends His message with this: “Surely I am with you always.” Here, my friends, is the word of hope. The last promise of Jesus while here on earth. First He commands us and says, “instruct them in the practice of all I have commanded you.” And then He promises us, saying, “I’ll be with you as you do this, day after day after day, right up to the end of the age. I will be with you.”
Two things you must take away from this. First, remember what I said about seeking out a discipler to help you in your journey to holiness? Well, guess what? Whoever that discipler is, or was, you can be sure, Jesus is with him or her, leading you, encouraging you, and instructing you by the power of His Spirit.
Second, should you also yourself now and in the near future find yourself discipling someone else, whether it’s your friend, office mate, a family member, or even a stranger whom God sends your way, be alert and remember that Jesus is just a prayer away. Call on His Holy Spirit to guide you and to empower you in this task. Claim His promise that He will be with you. And remember what Jesus said in John 15:5, “I am the vine; you are the branches. If you remain in me and I in you, you will bear much fruit; apart from me you can do nothing.” That’s the truth, right? But it’s a powerful promise that you can claim.
And you know what, my dear fellow discipler? You probably discovered already that the effort to share the gospel, and to disciple someone is not an easy task. Sometimes we struggle to understand, remember, and obey Scripture ourselves. Or we struggle to say the right things to the person we are discipling. Or maybe we are distracted by life and its anxieties and distractions. And definitely there will be the occasional pushback, opposition, apathy or indifference that can be discouraging to us even as we try our best to bring others to Christ.
And that’s why Jesus leaves us with this beautiful promise. Because when you do claim this promise, and allow Jesus to work through you as you reach out to disciple someone with love and courage, then you can confidently claim, as Paul wrote in Phil 4:13 “I can do all things through Christ who gives me strength.” And indeed, of all the great things that you can do with the strength of Christ, it is this last instruction of Jesus: “Go and make disciples of all nations.” This is the greatest work that most requires strength from Jesus. May Jesus be your strength and your courage, my friend, and may you experience the fruitfulness that comes from Jesus who is with us always.
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