The Great Commission (For This Generation)

Matthew 28:16-20: "Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. 17 When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. 18 Then Jesus came to them and said: He has given me all authority in heaven and on earth.19 Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 and teaching them to obey all that I have. I ordered it, and surely I will be with you always, until the end of time.

In the Bible we find this important commandment that calls us to action, as Christians, as missionaries, and as heirs to the priesthood. Most of the time we still don't want anything to do with fulfilling that call, and eventually we come to the point where we completely discard it. The Greek word poreuesthe is used and means to go, but beyond that it is a call to action. We were not created to sit back and watch others do the work for us. That command and call to action is the essence that must permeate throughout our lives. It is not a burden, but an immense privilege that we have been granted to enter into ministry with God to reach the world. When we ignore it, we are essentially proclaiming that the gospel is useless, because when there is quality in something, we share it. Last week, Justin Bieber released his new album, "Justice." Someone shared it with me and I listened to it, and I was able to enjoy it. Someone thought that album was worth sharing because they enjoyed it themselves. Do we enjoy the gospel enough to share it with the world, or do we regard it as a waste of our time, mere myths that have been hammered into our heads since the beginning of time?

The gospel is alive and well and still has the same power and authority that it had 2000 years ago. Jesus is still healing, renewing and restoring the lives of young and old. I met a young man who was active in the church and participated in every ministry opportunity. As he got older, he got over it little by little. He began to distance himself from his faith, and his family from his church, which was supposed to nurture and love him, only pushed him away. He stopped attending church altogether and began to find pleasure in other things. He was able to fill the faith gap with hobbies and work. I was able to chat with him and we became friends. I slowly began to plant that seed of Jesus in his heart through genuine friendship, and the beauty of Jesus is that He doesn't really need me in the equation. The seed germinates on its own, but it is a privilege for me to participate in that process. Often times, evangelism ultimately produces more transformation in the missionary than in the one being reached. A few weeks after my first interaction with this young man, he returned to church and participated in worship. For him to return to church was not the only purpose, he wanted him to experience Jesus in a personal way. I kept building on that friendship and began to guide him as a guitarist. He today he is a worship leader in his church and he is the lead writer of a worship project. There are many young men like him who have drifted away and need someone to encourage them to return to the fold. Young people who don't want to know anything about church, religion, God. They have given up their faith and desperately need something to meet that need. Are you going to respond to that great commission or will you let your parents take care of it?

Serve: A visit, a conversation, an adoration, a smile, a hug, a minute; ONE THING YOU DO can change someone's life.