Last time we started out by looking at the Great Commission as found in Matthew 28:18-20 and how Jesus starts out by basically telling the disciples not to fear because He is in control. Today we will look at what Jesus says next, “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.” This is the main part of this version of the Great Commission, if it were a meal this would be the steak and potatoes of what Jesus has to say, where what we saw last time was the appetizer and next time we will look at the dessert.
Make Disciples
The first part of what Jesus tells his disciples here is to, “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations.” This is the first part of evangelism and really what many of us think about when we evangelize; the sharing of the Gospel. You see Jesus presents this command to evangelize as a progression, first we are to go and share the Gospel. I could go into a big debate on how some look at “go” as being active or passive, as either intentionally going out to share our faith or just sharing our faith in the day to day; but regardless of how you look at it the outcome is still the same we are to share our faith, that never changes. There are some people that may be more comfortable going out and doing street evangelism, where they approach complete strangers and share the Gospel, these people actively go and make disciples. Other people have a more relational approach and share their faith through their day to day relationships with others, this is more of the passive approach of going; they share as they go about with their normal daily routines. Is one way better than the other, no, if you go with the method of sharing the Gospel that suits your personality you are working towards fulfilling the Great Commission, you just have to remember to above all else share the Gospel.
Baptize
The next thing Jesus commands is that after sharing the Gospel we are to, baptize them. Let me say right now there is nothing magical about baptism and you do not need to be baptized in order to be saved, just look at the thief on the cross. The thing however is with baptism we are making an outward profession of an inward change. In other words through being baptized one is telling the world that they have come to faith in Christ, that they have put their trust in Him as the forgiveness for their sins. You see in the progression once we share the Gospel, if they decide to give their heart to Christ the next step is for them to publicly show their faith. He wants people to be ambassadors out there promoting the Gospel not secret agents hiding in the shadows.
Teach
Jesus finishes off his command with “teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.” In other words discipleship is the next logical step after evangelism. Once we have shared the Gospel and they have come to faith we need to help teach them and help them grow spiritually. I know this is one area I am somewhat passionate about because after I came to faith in Christ it was years before I was really taught what that meant. To neglect teaching would be like telling a child 2 + 2 = 4 and then expect them to perform advanced Calculus; it just is not going to happen, they need to be taught. Our faith is the same way we need to be taught by those more experienced as well as teach those less experienced.
