Discipling

Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. And when they saw him they worshiped him, but some doubted. And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 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, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

- Matthew 28:16-20

The resurrected Jesus launched his wider mission to the world in Galilee where he had launched his initial mission. On a mountain he gave the Great Commission as Moses gave the Ten Commandments from Mount Sinai. His universal lordship demands a universal mission.

The Great Commission is the culmination of the theme we see in Matthew’s Gospel: the calling of a people of God far wider than that of the Old Covenant, in which membership was based on race rather than a relationship with God through the Messiah. By making disciples, Jesus calls for personal allegiance to him. Baptizing and teaching are participles dependent on the “make” disciples. They specify what is involved in discipleship.

As his disciples, Jesus calls us to teach others. That does not mean giving a lecture, but it does mean sharing what you know with others who do not know about Jesus in a lunch conversation or during a break while playing pickleball. Consider where you can talk with someone about Jesus this week.

Prayer

Give us grace, O Lord, to answer readily the call of our Savior Jesus Christ and proclaim to all people the Good news of his salvation, that we and the whole world may perceive the glory of his marvelous works; who lives and reigns with you and the Holy Spirit, one God, for ever and ever. Amen.