Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. And when they saw him they worshiped him, but some doubted. And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 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 28:16-20 ESV
The Creation Mandate: Genesis 1
And God blessed them. And God said to them, “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over the fish of the sea and over the birds of the heavens and over every living thing that moves on the earth.”
– Genesis 1:28 ESV
The New Creation Mandate: Matthew 28
Now the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain to which Jesus had directed them. And when they saw him, they worshiped him, but some doubted.
– Matthew 28:16-17 ESV
We are not fully formed before we follow; following is how we are formed.
And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 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 ESV
1. Go: “Go therefore…”
‘Get moving!’
2. Make: “…and make disciples of all nations…”
To make disciples is slow, relational, sustained; not a program, not a tract – a relationship oriented around Jesus commands (over a lifetime).
3. Baptize: “…baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit…”
Baptism is not a symbol – it is God’s agent of initiation.
Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God.
– John 3:5 ESV
We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.
– Romans 6:4 ESV
4. Teach: “…teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.”
Christ’s life, death, resurrection, and his fulfillment of the Old Testament. Repentance, baptism, and receiving the Spirit.
5. Behold: “And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”
Christ with us is the fuel for active commissioned life.