“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 28:18-20
Thus far, we have concentrated on both the doctrine and the culture of the church, noting that the gospel taught and believed leads to the gospel lived and experienced. We have learned that the gospel is attractive to those outside the community of believers, for it offers a safe place where “sinners find themselves wonderfully forgiven and freed” (pg.73). Yet, many of our churches are facing a pressing question why are we not seeing more salvations? Some may even be asking, why have we not seen any salvations?
Throughout the book of Acts we read moments where the gospel is preached and many come to saving faith in our Lord Jesus. In Acts 2, Peter preaches and calls the Jews to repentance, leading several thousand to come to Christ. In Acts 8, Philip heralds the message of Jesus to the Samaritans, with both men and women finding salvation. Later in Acts 8, Philip witnesses to the Ethiopian, who is captivated by the gospel and instantly wants to belong to Jesus and proclaims his belief through baptism. From Acts 9 onward, the Apostle Paul becomes the voice of the Gospel message, leading many to Jesus –Lydia, the wealthy woman of Philippi (Acts 16:15), the Philippian jailor (Acts 16:33), the Corinthians (Acts 18:8) and the Ephesians (Acts 19:1-10).
What strikes me about these glorious moments of conversion is the multi-ethnic and multi-cultural nature of the salvations. We have Jews, Samaritans, Ethiopians, Philippians, Corinthians, and Ephesians. Furthermore, these salvations did not rely on one method or one preacher. Peter preached to the masses. Philip to the crowd and to the individual. Paul reaching one by one, who then in turn shared the good news of Jesus to their communities. With all this variety and difference, there is however core unity throughout the gospel is preached. Not in fancy church buildings, but in homes, communities and throughout the world.
A faithful church not only “holds the gospel up for everyone to see” (pg.75), but it also goes out into the world and preaches the good news with passion. To ask the question, “why are we not seeing salvations?” Is to ask a question about our faithfulness to the Great Commission. Let us delve into this commission, line by line!
GO THEREFORE AND MAKE DISCIPLES OF ALL NATIONS
Prior to these words, Jesus came to His disciples and stated, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me” (Matt 28:18). Like a parent saying “I am your father/mother, so do as I say,” an emphasis is being placed on what is about to be said. In other words, we should give special attention to what comes in the next verse. The command is given “go therefore and make disciples of all nations” (Matt 28:19), and the command should be obeyed.
Go and Make are not passive they are action words. The disciples have followed Jesus, they have been taught His message, and now they are called to action. To Go suggests movement, to leave one place and move to another. Just as Peter, Philip and Paul left familiarity, so the family of God is to regularly be found moving from the safe confines of the church into the world. This movement should not be a surprise! Jesus, in His high priestly prayer said, “As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world” (John 17:18).
How will our communities know about the message that “signifies good, merry, glad and joyful news, that makes a man’s heart glad and makes him sing, dance and leap for joy”[1] if nobody goes out of the church and into the world to tell them? The danger of experiencing the beauty of Christ in the new and better community of the church is that we can grow comfortable. Jesus did not command us to gather and remain, he called us to gather regularly and go regularly.
Yet we are not simply to go, living our lives and minding our own business. We are to make disciples. Throughout my time serving as a pastor, I have heard countless people state “I witness by being an example.” Where do you find this in Scripture? When does Jesus say, “go and be good people so that someone might ask you a question?” Think about it for a moment, how are disciples made? They are made when they are convicted over their sin, answering the call to follow Jesus, laying all before Him. Can they do all this by you simply being a nice person? Don’t hear me wrong, we don’t save Christ, through the power of the Spirit does the work of salvation. However, Jesus has stated, with all authority, that we are to be used by the Spirit in the process of making disciples.
Let me ask you this, when was the last time you shared the beauty of Christ and salvation in His name with someone? I am not asking when you had a good conversation with your neighbor or when you reacted differently from work colleagues rather, when was the last time you actioned “making disciples”? Dare I even ask the question about all nations? You see, we can have a gospel doctrine, even a gospel culture, but we will not see gospel salvations if we do not go and make!
In writing this, there is always a danger that you, the reader, will feel a sense of guilt and jump to action to absolve that guilt. My intention is not to guilt trip, but to fan the flame, to stir in your heart pity for the lost, exemplified by Jesus on the cross. We have a wonderful message – dead men can live, wretched and dirty sinners can be gloriously cleaned, sorrow can turn to joy, fear can turn to peace and the rejected of this world can be adopted by the Heavenly Father. Friends, let us not “go and make” out of guilt, let us “go and make” because we have experienced the wonderful gospel of Jesus and we cannot, will not, and should not hold it to ourselves.
BAPTIZING THEM IN THE NAME OF THE FATHER, AND OF THE SON AND OF THE HOLY SPIRIT
Whether we realize it or not, we all belong to a tribe, even multiple tribes. I am reminded of the Twilight film saga are you team Edward or team Jacob? Consider a couple of everyday situations – Dogs or cats? Pepsi or Coke? How we view ‘church’ is no different. Baptist? Nondenominational? Pentecostal? Presbyterian?
The Great Commission is not to call lost people to a tribe of our own making, but to salvation in Jesus. There is no team portrayed or multiple options to choose from. Once received, the Gospel is to be expressed through baptism, a baptism that declares the unified Triune God of Father, Son, and Spirit. It is the Father that loved the world in sending His Son. It is the Son that took our sin and bore the wrath of God, paying the ultimate price for our salvation. It is the Spirit that convicts the heart and soul, leading sinners to Jesus. Without each member of the Triune God, the Gospel is ‘less’ than the perfection that it is. There is no Father tribe, Son tribe, or Spirit tribe. There is only the believer in Christ, declared through baptism in the Triune God.
Let us not lose sight of the task we have been commissioned to undertake by focusing too much on our version of how the church is to be organized. It is not our gospel doctrine that leads to our gospel culture. Rather, it is gospel doctrine seen in gospel culture that leads to the gospel obedience of baptism in the name of the Triune God. Don’t add extra-biblical strings to the Great Commission they will lead to a distorted portrayal of the beauty of Christ.
TEACHING THEM TO OBSERVE ALL THAT I HAVE COMMANDED YOU
Yes, you are right to teach you first must know. Our church culture will often focus on digging deeper into gospel doctrine. There is nothing wrong with this, if the motive is to be better equipped for the ministry of the Great Commission. Knowing more for the sake of knowing more is not gospel culture. Knowing more so that you can share more is gospel culture.
Notice when the teaching occurs after the disciple making. We do not impose our gospel culture onto the worlds rather we invite the world to believe in the gospel and then experience a new community, one that strives to honor God and live in a manner pleasing to Him. The order is crucial, for the gospel is of grace, not of legalism. It is by grace we are saved, and it is by grace we live in observance of God’s desire for the church. The beauty of the Gospel is that imperfect people are presented to God as perfectly righteous through faith in Jesus. Rather than proclaiming religious observance to obtain a prize, let us preach the Gospel and teach obedience to the ways of God as our loving response of receiving the prize.
BEHOLD I AM WITH YOU ALWAYS, TO THE END OF THE AGE
Satan hates that the Gospel is good news. He detests when hearts and souls are transformed. He fumes when he sees the church portray the beauty of Christ. He is angered by the church’s counter-cultural community, and he spits rage when the believer honors the Great Commission. How Satan views the church is enough for even the most passionate follower of Jesus to shudder in fear, so much so that we are tempted to retreat to the safety of our church and leave the going of the Great Commission to someone else.
Jesus knew that this would be the case, and so He gives us this comfort, “behold I am with you always, to the end of the age” (Matt 28:20). Jesus will not leave us stranded not now, not ever. And when the end of the age comes, we will stand with Him in victory as the new heaven and new earth is ushered in. Friends, we do not retreat we march forward in the knowledge that Satan has already lost. Not convinced? Consider the words of Jesus as he prays before the Father “I do not ask that you take them out of the world, but that you keep them from the evil one” (John 17:15).
Who keeps us from the evil one? The creator God, the all-powerful Spirit, and the victorious King Jesus. Gospel doctrine reminds us that victory is ours, gospel culture celebrates this victory, and the gospel commission marches us into this world under the protection of Jesus, declaring to all – follow Jesus, for there is no other name by which man can be saved!
Do you want to see salvations and see the church expand in all its beauty? Then it is as simple as: Gospel Doctrine + Gospel Culture + Gospel Commission = Revival! Simple? Yes. Hard? Of course. Worth it? Absolutely.
[1] William Tyndale, A Pathway into the Holy Scripture (Cambridge: The University Press, 1948) p.8.