The Great Commission

And Jesus came and spake unto them, saying, All power is given unto me in heaven and in earth. Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world. Amen. 
(Matthew 28:18-20 KJV)				

The Great Commission is a message that many preachers implement into their sermons with the intention of encouraging church members to be bold in their faith; taking what they know about Christ and sharing it with those who aren't familiar with the gospel. While it is good to encourage believers to go out and evangelize, which is what we're all called to do, we must first recognize that we must have our own healthy relationship with Jesus Christ before we are able to reach others. If we are sent out unprepared, we not only set ourselves up for discouragement, but we also risk misrepresenting Christ toward others and can fail to give foundational insight on what we believe and why. I, myself, and many other Christians, struggle with the mindset that once somebody experiences Christ and has received salvation, God now expects us to carry the world on our shoulders and do everything perfectly or just right. While many people today are eager to labor into exhaustion for the sake of pleasing God, this was not His plan when He called us to Himself. So, when it comes to this subject, my goal is to bring readers to a new perspective and approach on how to fulfill this mission in the biblically correct way.

Before picking apart these verses, it's important to mention the importance of understanding the context of what we're reading. Not only so, but it's even more important that we know the intentions behind the messages given; we must understand Christ's heart behind giving this mission to us. Looking into the biblical context, at the beginning of this chapter, Jesus Christ was raised from the dead after being so for three days. After this event, He met His apostles at a mountain in Galilee where He gave this command for them to "Go and teach all nations" (Matt. 28:18). Shortly after, He ascended back into heaven where he sat at the right hand of God in victory over sin and death.

After breaking that down, now it's important to discuss Christ's heart behind this commission. First and foremost, after having His final meal with His disciples, He shares His heart for humanity whilst praying to God the Father before facing the cross. In John 17, Jesus declared:

And this is life eternal, that they might know thee the only true God, and Jesus Christ, whom thou hast sent. Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word; That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me. And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one: I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me. (John 15:3;20-23)

Jesus expresses His desire for humanity in this chapter; not only expressing His love for His apostles, but also for those who would come to believe in Him through them. In these verses, Jesus expresses His desire for all who come to believe in Him; He's wanting all who believe in Him to be united in their faith. Whilst this may cause debate due to all of the division that can be seen today, the problem isn't that people haven't tried to be united; rather, they've tried doing so apart from the one who pieces everything together. Jesus words it as: "that they may be one, even as we are one: I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one..." Unity isn't obtained by trying to convince somebody of your opinion or of your perspective being correct; rather, it's obtained through relationship.

Looking at the division between denominations today and even in the history of Christianity, we've lost sight of God's heart and have allowed the desire for having all the right doctrine to take His place. Upholding the correct doctrine is good; however, not handling it from the right heart automatically makes us wrong. This is exactly why Jesus condemned the religious teachers. They had a form of godliness: they looked holy on the outside; however, their hearts were evil. They made life all about the laws that God had made; however, they excluded God himself from their lives and even twisted His laws to fit their agendas. Our churches today are following right behind the steps of these people that Jesus was angry at; we've become more religious than we have Christian and we've become more politically divided than we have united.

So, in response, the question can arise: "What are we to do about this?". The solution is heeding to what Jesus said: "Abide in me, and I in you. As the branch cannot bear fruit of itself, except it abide in the vine; no more can ye, except ye abide in me. I am the vine, ye are the branches: He that abideth in me, and I in him, the same bringeth forth much fruit: for without me ye can do nothing." When Jesus said for us to Abide in Him," (John 15:4-5). In these verses, Christ not only expresses His desire for us to be close to Him, but He also expresses the great importance of us remaining in fellowship with Him; keeping Him the center of our lives, because apart from relationship with Him, we can't be fruitful and we can't be united in our faith. When we abide in a relationship with Christ, what we ourselves receive from Him we will naturally pour out. Just like, we love God because He first loved us (1 John 4:19).

After considering all that has been said, the great commission can now be seen in the way that it was originally intended; rather than, it being a religious burden. Looking at verse 19, it declares: "Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost:". Contextually, Jesus was telling His apostles to take what all they've learned and experienced concerning the identity and mission of Christ, and for them to share these with all people. While the church may put more emphasis on just leading people to salvation, Jesus actually sent out his apostles not just for sharing salvation; but also, for sending out invitations for people to receive and partake in a father-child relationship with God. After somebody hears the message of the gospel, it is then commanded for those who experience Christ to then get water-baptized because it is the outward expression of an inward change; expressing how one died to their old life and is now raised to new living and born again in Christ.

After we receive Christ and take our first step of obedience towards life with Him of getting baptized, scripture encourages us, that we should not do this new life with Christ alone; rather, we should find a family of believers that can build us up in our faith. Jesus finishes the commission by declaring: "Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you" (Matt. 28:20). This verse can go deep; especially because of the conflict that is seen in churches today. Many churches push the message of people needing to tell others the gospel, and after somebody becomes saved, they bombard them with so many rules that they have to keep, While their intentions may be correct, it can be said that many learn more from doing life with others; rather than, just being told what to do and not to do by somebody behind a pulpit. When "church" is limited to a building; rather than, a group of believers coming together to do life together, it can give people false expectations on how Christian living should look like.

When Jesus called His disciples, He didn't start by giving them a list of rules to follow; rather, He told them to follow Him. In the Greek, with which the New Testament was originally written in, the context of the words "Follow me" means to "come here and walk with me". Jesus didn't invite them into a religion where rules were the foundation; rather, He invited them to learn from Him of what a life with God looks like. A saying that I hold to personally, which I concluded from a man named Lee Malaulau, is that the pressure that comes from holding to religious striving leads to exhaustion, while relationship with God leads to fruitfulness, life, and peace. Religion promotes success through striving, but it leads to burnout; however, a patient relationship with Christ produces natural growth in character development, which makes its way into all areas of our lives.

In conclusion, Jesus never intended on following Him being a burden; rather, a joy. He himself declared that He came to give life and it more abundantly (John 10:10). While this is so, scripture makes it clear too that while relationship with Him is simple, following Him isn't easy. Following Him takes sacrifice, intentionality, and commitment. Christ came and died not only for us to be saved; rather, for us to have an intimate relationship with Him and God the Father personally, and for us to come to a point where we naturally pour out what we receive from Him. How we will come to a place of fulfilling the great commission properly, and even on a daily basis, is by us seeking after God with our whole hearts; allowing Him to make us like Christ through the transformation of how we think and how we relate to Him, so that we can express Him to those around us in action. If relationship becomes our priority, then our faith will naturally become fruitful.