Text: Matt. 28:16-20
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16 Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. 17 And when they saw him, they worshiped him, but some doubted. 18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 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, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
Today we celebrate the work of our loving God - Father, Son + and Holy Spirit, the diversity of the Godhead and the unity of the Godhead. One God manifest or made known in three persons for the redemption of the world through the working of the Spirit until Christ Jesus returns.
Jesus had named a certain mountain in Galilee to His disciples, where He would meet them after His resurrection, but neither the time of this meeting nor the location of the mountain is known. It had been the Lord’s express command that they assemble there, and after they had received the confirmation of this word by the message of the women on Easter morning, they went to keep the appointment.
When He appeared before them, some of them fell down before Him in glad adoration, but others still were in doubt. They could neither believe the fact of His resurrection nor that it was actually their Lord who here appeared before them.
The speech of Jesus was friendly and intended to take away all apprehension.
His final commission is a wonderful bit of oratory – marching orders if you will. As He stands before them, in His spiritual body, true man as ever during His earthly life, but no longer in humility and weakness: all power in heaven above and on earth beneath is given to Him.
He is the almighty God, with unlimited authority. And since this is true, therefore they, in going forth, in doing the work of their apostolic mission, should make disciples of all nations. The whole earth should be their sphere of activity. And this discipling should be done by two means of grace.
First there is the means of making disciples by baptizing in the name of the Triune God, the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit; into God’s name, as confessing the name which summarizes the entire Christian creed.
The second means of making disciples is that of teaching them to observe closely all things which Jesus has committed to His disciples, to expound or to preach forth to them the counsel of God to their salvation.
Not human notions - but the Word of the Gospel - the inspired Word of God shall be the content of all preaching in the Church of Jesus Christ, no more, no less. And if His commission is carried out in this manner, then His promise also will stand secure, that He will be with us all the days until the end of time.
When this age comes to its close, when He Himself will usher in the new age by the dawn of His Judgment Day, then only will the work of the Church have come to an end.
Kretzmann Popular Commentary of the Bible NT vol. 1 Pg 162
Just a bit of observation that I read which can be also applied to our congregation of Peace and its 60 years of mission and ministry in Waterford.
It is said:
"The longer a church has been in existence, the more its resources go toward its own preservation rather than toward outreach and evangelism. Our tendency is to design ministries that meet our own needs as opposed to the needs of those who have not yet entered the kingdom." - Alan Nelson
If you’ve been here at Peace for some years you know this truth.
It becomes evident real fast that the money needed to maintain this congregation and the basic costs of operation, take a greater portion of what is given than it used to, which leaves the mission and the ministry to those outside our church - who need to still hear the gospel message – unreached.
Sure, we support St. Paul’s in Pontiac for their food pantry, and this is a good and faithful outreach, but what about those in our community, how can we reach them and with what means?
The Great Commission is to
19 “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, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
It is through the sending of the Holy Spirit that the Christian church was founded and begun on the day of Pentecost, that we celebrated last Sunday, and it is through His working that it will continue to grow.
Martin Luther had this to say about the working of the Holy Spirit:
Such great things have the Apostles declared to us, through the Holy Spirit, who descended upon them from heaven, as even the angels would gladly look into. When this Spirit opens our eyes and makes us see what the Gospel is, we shall have an appetite for it and a joy in it, although we cannot behold it with bodily eyes, but must believe that we are partakers and fellow-heirs of the righteousness, truth, salvation, and all the blessings which God has to bestow. For since He has given us His only Son, that highest good, He will also, through Him, give us all good things, riches and treasures, whereof the angels in heaven have all their joy, and of which they are most desirous. All of this is offered to us through the Gospel, and if we believe we shall also have a similar desire for them.
Luther’s exposition of 1 Peter 1:12
God has called us as His body of believers here at Peace and through His work to make disciples, to proclaim Christ and his gospel, to baptize and to teach.
Our VBS outreach is one way you can help and get involved in the mission of this church. Tell a family with children you know. Bring a child of a friend yourself. Serve as a teacher or helper. Put up flyers, spread the news and God, through His Spirit, will bring those to faith in His way and in His time.
Some years ago I was serving at a senior residence in Waterford doing a small service and leading the people in a few hymns, readings, prayers and a message of teaching.
One man came up to me after the service and said,
“Pastor Russ, you’re not a typical Lutheran, are you?” To which I replied … “Well, I believe I am, what do you mean”
“Well, he said, Lutheran’s that I know seem more interested in keeping their faith to themselves but you seem pretty bold in proclaiming Christ.”
After a minute of thought I said,
“The Lutherans I know proclaim Christ and Him crucified. That is what I preach and teach at my church and that is the joy that those whom I serve cling to as well.”
It did give me pause though … Do we have a zeal for the lost? Do we take the gospel to those outside our walls or do we go home to our lives content to just resume our day-to-day existence until the next Sunday comes … whether next week, next month or next year?
Jesus Christ is our righteousness. It is He to whom the Spirit points and gathers those who will believe. Even when we think we fall short in our words and actions the Spirit uses the gospel to achieve His goals.
Our God, Father, Son + and Holy Spirit has seen to your redemption. God has called you by the gospel, given you faith to believe and by the Holy Spirit will keep you in the faith to your reward that awaits all who trust in Christ.
The Spirit of truth proceeds from the Father and the Son, for you!
May the Peace of our Lord Jesus Christ, the Love of God and the Fellowship of the Holy Spirit be and abide with you all now and forever!
In the name of the Father and of the Son + and of the Holy Spirit
Amen
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