Daily Bread 2011 - Matthew 28
Daily Bread 2011 – Wednesday February 9th, 2011 Matthew 28:19-20
“18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 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, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
What Does This Mean?
Matthew ends the first Gospel with what is commonly called, “The Great Commission”. Most churches see the Great Commission as their calling card. Importantly now that Jesus has been resurrected from the dead, he commissions the disciples to go and make “disciples of all nations”.
The word disciple means “learner”. In the first century if you were a disciple of someone you were completely devoted to their life and teachings. You spent tons of time with the person and learned by following their example. Jesus has spent three years investing most of his time and energy in his 12 disciples. Only one of them decided to opt out of Jesus leadership development plan.
Jesus conferred upon the disciples His authority and commanded them to go make disciples of all nations. The term is “panta ta ethnes”, which means all “ethnicities” or “people groups”. There were two principal parts of making disciples, “baptizing” and “teaching”. To baptize means to completely immerse, and in this case it is immersion into everything that God is in His three persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
The second part of discipleship is teaching them to do all I have commanded. The first part has to do with “being”, who they are as God’s sons. The second part has to do with how they respond to who they are with how they act and behave.
What Does This Mean For Us?
Sometimes we talk about “church growth”, but Jesus doesn’t tell us to grow the church, he tells us to make disciples. Sometimes in the church we measure the ABC’s, “attendance”, “buildings” and “cash”. But when Jesus measures the church, he measures how many disciples are being made and how close are they to what he looks like and acts.
Importantly if the greatest leader in the world spent 3 years investing in 12 men; who are we to think we can do it with less time or energy. The church would be wise to focus its best energy and resources on discipleship. If we want to change the world we need to use Jesus’ plan, which is one person at a time.
Jesus we want to become your disciples, help us to learn to follow everything you do and then teach someone else to be your disciple. With your help we can reach the world. Amen.
“18 Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 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, 20 and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”
What Does This Mean?
Matthew ends the first Gospel with what is commonly called, “The Great Commission”. Most churches see the Great Commission as their calling card. Importantly now that Jesus has been resurrected from the dead, he commissions the disciples to go and make “disciples of all nations”.
The word disciple means “learner”. In the first century if you were a disciple of someone you were completely devoted to their life and teachings. You spent tons of time with the person and learned by following their example. Jesus has spent three years investing most of his time and energy in his 12 disciples. Only one of them decided to opt out of Jesus leadership development plan.
Jesus conferred upon the disciples His authority and commanded them to go make disciples of all nations. The term is “panta ta ethnes”, which means all “ethnicities” or “people groups”. There were two principal parts of making disciples, “baptizing” and “teaching”. To baptize means to completely immerse, and in this case it is immersion into everything that God is in His three persons: Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
The second part of discipleship is teaching them to do all I have commanded. The first part has to do with “being”, who they are as God’s sons. The second part has to do with how they respond to who they are with how they act and behave.
What Does This Mean For Us?
Sometimes we talk about “church growth”, but Jesus doesn’t tell us to grow the church, he tells us to make disciples. Sometimes in the church we measure the ABC’s, “attendance”, “buildings” and “cash”. But when Jesus measures the church, he measures how many disciples are being made and how close are they to what he looks like and acts.
Importantly if the greatest leader in the world spent 3 years investing in 12 men; who are we to think we can do it with less time or energy. The church would be wise to focus its best energy and resources on discipleship. If we want to change the world we need to use Jesus’ plan, which is one person at a time.
Jesus we want to become your disciples, help us to learn to follow everything you do and then teach someone else to be your disciple. With your help we can reach the world. Amen.
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