Tag: great commission

June 9th 2024: Peace Choi

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Matthew 28: 16-20. Keep Fulfilling

The Great Commission is one of the most well-known passages in all the Bible. All missional organisations have this passage somewhere. Today, I have two questions: why and how?

Why? Why did Jesus come?
There are three verses in Matthew’s gospel which give us clear answers:
“She will bear a son, and you shall call his name Jesus, for he will save his people from their sins.” (Mattthew 1:21). This is what the Angel of the Lord spoke to Joseph before his wife, Mary, gave birth to a son.
“Go and learn what this means: ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.’ For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.” (Matthew 9:13).
“Even as the Son of Man came not to be served but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.” (Matthew 20:28).

Jesus came to save sinners from their sins, to make us righteous before God. He came to make us right with God. He came to reconcile us to God. The purpose of Jesus’ coming was for you and me. He came for your salvation and for my salvation. He came to save us – not because we deserve it but because God loves us so much. “For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. 7 For one will scarcely die for a righteous person—though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die.” (Romans 5:6-7). We were too powerless to save ourselves; we were ungodly.

We cannot stand before a holy God on our own. We were sinners, we don’t deserve to be saved or loved by God. But God lavished His love upon us through His Son, the Lord Jesus Christ. He came to save everyone who would believe.

How? How to Jesus accomplish the Purpose of His coming?
“Then some of the scribes and Pharisees answered him, saying, “Teacher, we wish to see a sign from you.” 39 But he answered them, “An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. 40 For just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.” (Matthew 12:38-40).

The Scribes and Pharisees wanted to see a sign that Jesus would perform. But Jesus had already performed a miracle, but they wanted a sign from Jesus Himself. He answered, “An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of the prophet Jonah. 40 For just as Jonah was three days and three nights in the belly of the great fish, so will the Son of Man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.” We see clearly here Jesus is referring to His death; the Son of Man will spend 3 days and three nights in the heart of the earth. He delivered His own resurrection.

“And the Pharisees and Sadducees came, and to test him they asked him to show them a sign from heaven. 2 He answered them,[a] “When it is evening, you say, ‘It will be fair weather, for the sky is red.’ 3 And in the morning, ‘It will be stormy today, for the sky is red and threatening.’ You know how to interpret the appearance of the sky, but you cannot interpret the signs of the times. 4 An evil and adulterous generation seeks for a sign, but no sign will be given to it except the sign of Jonah.” So he left them and departed.” (Matthew 16:1-4).

In chapter 15 Jesus did another miracle, feeding thousands of people. But people again wanted a sign – a miracle from heaven. We see that first they wanted a sign from Jesus, then a sign from heaven. The Kingdom of Heaven is the Kingdom of God. The Jewish leaders wanted to see a sign from God Himself. We have a detailed explanation in chapter 12, but not in chapter 16. Why? It has already been explained in chapter 12. Jesus accomplished salvation for you and me through His death and resurrection. Nobody can miss the point Jesus is making. He will save people who believe in Him through His death and resurrection. Jesus did a lot of signs and miracles. The only sign which Jesus would show would be His death and resurrection – which will save people. This is God’s way of salvation for you and me.

In Matthew chapter 4 Jesus was tempted by the devil. In the first temptation Satan declared, ‘If you are the Son of God make these stones into bread.’ But Jesus did not do that. He said no to that temptation because feeding people is important, but bread alone cannot save people. That is why he said no. The second temptation was for Jesus to jump down from the highest point of the temple. He could do it, but he said no. The third temptation was to worship the devil and Jesus said, ‘No way!’ Why? Worshipping Satan was not God’s way to save people from sins. No! No! No! These were not God’s ways.

Jesus prayed at Gethsemane, “My Father, if it be possible, let this cup pass from me; nevertheless, not as I will, but as you will.” (Matthew 26:39b). Jesus accepted. Whilst He was on the Cross many people passed by. Some said, ‘Come down from the cross if you are the Son of God, then we will believe you.’ He did not come down. If He Came down, there would be no salvation. He stayed there because coming down from the Cross was not God’s way of saving you and me. We need to say Hallelujah! His death was not the end of the story. He was raised from the dead, conquering sin and death. The power of death could not hold Him (Matthew 12:16). Romans 4:25 confirms the same truth. We live our Christian life to please and glorify God, that is the purpose of our life.

Our passage of scripture today is Matthew 2816-20. What do you think this passage is all about? It is about taking the message of salvation to the world – to boys and girls, women and men, Korean, Welsh, everyone. What is this all about? It is the application of the salvation achieved only by Jesus’ death and resurrection. That truth should be applied to people individually. It is the work of God, of the Holy Spirit.

Jesus came to save sinners from sin. He achieved this through His death and resurrection. In the Great Commission Jesus sent out His disciples into the world. “As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world.” (John 17:18). This is part of Jesus’ High Priestly Prayer. Why did Jesus send His disciples into the world? For your salvation and my salvation, for His Disciples to deliver, to share and to proclaim the message of salvation to others who needs to be saved. If you don’t have that application yet, come to Jesus and ask for forgiveness of sins, for Him to be your Lord and saviour.

When Jesus called His disciples, He said, “Follow me and I will make you fishers of men.” Jesus gave the Great Commission to His disciples. He speaks to us through His Word. He still speaks to us even today for the application of salvation. We are to proclaim the name of Jesus as the only true name of salvation. He is everything to those who believe in Him.

If we are in Christ, we are the most valuable people to God’s Kingdom. God chose you and called you to apply the salvation which Jesus achieved by His death and resurrection. He does not need us, but He wants to use us, to save people through you and me. If you keep quiet about Jesus Christ, then how can people in this area hear about Jesus? All Christians are most valuable to the Kingdom of God. Jesus wants to proclaim the same message of salvation in the 21st century through you and me. Isn’t it exciting! May all of us be used mightily to fulfil the purpose of Jesus’ coming – until we breathe our last or until He returns with power and glory.

February 19th 2023: Graham John

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To watch this service, click on the link to our YouTube channel: https://youtu.be/UDXRvqUhjAw

Mark 8:1-10 The Feeding of the Four Thousand

This miracle may initially seem like a carbon copy of the miracle of the feeding of the 5,000 recorded in Mark chapter 6, but it is not. There are sufficient differences in the details to make it clear that Mark is talking about a different event. He is not repeating himself.

One important detail is the composition of the crowd; the people who benefitted from the first miracle were predominantly Jews, whereas those who benefitted from this second miracle were predominantly Gentiles. Mark makes this clear by mentioning a few geographical features. Jesus is not in the land of Israel. In chapter 7 we read that left the land of Israel and made His way to Tyre and Sidon. Here, He is still travelling in Gentile lands, lands considered unclean by Jews. In Matthew’s gospel we’re given a parallel account and strong hints that Jesus is still in foreign lands. When Matthew reports the reaction of the crowds to some of the miracles Jesus did there, he says the people glorified the God of Israel. That wouldn’t be said of Jews, they worship the God of Israel anyway. The Gentiles didn’t worship the God of Israel until they met the Lord Jesus. Jesus is still on this extended missionary tour, in Gentile lands north of Israel. Christ’s interest in the Gentiles must have encouraged the first readers of Mark’s gospel. We believe it was written and read first in Rome and the Roman countries.

Compassion and Concern:

The first thing we learn from this passage is the compassion and concern of the Lord Jesus to reach out to Gentiles, to reach out to the non-Jews. Jesus says here, ‘I have compassion on the crowds.’ (Mark 8:2a). He has compassion on the crowds, to reach out to unclean Gentiles, as the Church has stretched out and expanded around the world. Christ commanded the apostles in the Great Commission to make disciples of all the nations. This, of course, extends all the way down to include us – unclean Gentiles of the 21st century.

Jesus is willing to feed both Jews and Gentiles. It reminds us, as Paul puts it, “There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus.” (Galatians 3:28).

As far as salvation goes, the old boundaries, including national boundaries, have been done away with. Both Jews and Gentiles, if they are to be saved, must depend totally on the Lord Jesus Christ, who has mercy on them. Whoever we are today, wherever we come from, whatever our background, we can come to the Lord Jesus today in our spiritual longing. We see Christ’s concern to reach out to sinners. The gospel call is ‘whosoever will.’

The Lord Jesus is still the same today. He has the solution to all our sins. All we need to do is trust in Him, cast ourselves upon Him, and depend totally on that atoning blood that was shed for us at the cross of Calvary.

 Maybe you stand outside of the Kingdom today, maybe you don’t belong to the people of God. You can’t offer Him any previous merits, yet you too may come to the Saviour with a sure and certain hope that He is willing to do for you what He has been doing for two millennia – taking, receiving and welcoming new friends from among the godless Gentiles. Here is the Saviour who goes into the unclean lands, touches them, delivers those oppressed by the devil, feeds the crowds with just a few morsels – just as He did a few chapters earlier, among the Jews, the 5,000.

The invitation of the gospel here has its root in the compassion of the Lord Jesus. His compassion is mentioned most, out of all His feelings. His compassion is mentioned frequently. It’s the foundation of our salvation. We see compassion and concern for the unclean Gentiles.

The contradictions in the faith of the disciples:

In this situation, the disciples feel perplexed. Had they forgotten how, just a few weeks earlier, they fed the 5,000? They were involved in that miracle. So how could the disciples, who had been remarkably used in a similar miracle, be so completely out of depth here? What’s the problem?

May be, we shouldn’t be too hard on these disciples. How many times have we forgotten the mercies of the Lord? How many times have you been like these disciples, contradicting yourself, irregular in your following the Lord Jesus? This is most understood by those who have had lapses in their faith. The Lord reveals Himself to us, answers our prayers, reveals His compassion and love. He is still transforming us. Once we promised Him unfailing allegiance. A month or few weeks pass and we are drawn into trying circumstances, finding ourselves questioning, ‘Is there a God in heaven?’ Or we find ourselves planning and arranging our own deliverance, as if the Lord wasn’t carrying us up, bearing us up. Or we find ourselves anxious about a situation, as if we had no friend in Jesus, as if there was no mercy seat, as if there was no throne of grace to go to. Subconsciously, may be we find ourselves asking, ‘How can God possibly help in this situation?’ In other words, we are just like the disciples.

We are just like the disciples, they are just like us. We’ve let down our God, we have failed to be watchful, we haven’t trusted in His daily care. We’ve allowed doubts to enter in. It’s not just us, we see this in those who crossed the Red Sea. In the desert they start to complain – after a miraculous deliverance. They cry out, as if the Lord hadn’t proved His presence. Even Moses starts to falter later on when they cry out for food. He feels the burden of leadership.

After we’ve already experienced God’s blessings, we soon forget. We fail to allow the beam of light from the past to enlighten the present. People of faith use the deliverance of the past to change the present. David uses past deliverances to fortify his present troubles, “And David said, “The Lord who delivered me from the paw of the lion and from the paw of the bear will deliver me from the hand of this Philistine.” And Saul said to David, “Go, and the Lord be with you!” (1 Samuel 17:37). Faith uses the ammunition of the past in present day challenges. Do you and I rely on the Lord’s deliverances in the past? Or are we unused to trusting in the Lord in this practical, everyday way?

You shouldn’t shun the opportunities that God gives us to prove Him. Think of the widow who threw her last mite. That was an act of faith born of a lifetime of trusting God, seeing how He rewarded those who trusted in Him. The Lord, who noted her service and sacrifice, would reward such faith. She trusted Him in the past and she trusted Him for tomorrow.

As Christ calls us to take His gospel to the dark, pagan world outside, we might feel cry with the apostle Paul, ‘Who is sufficient for these things?’ We feel our inadequacy so often. Our resources are so diminished, yet Christ is in the habit of multiplying our insufficient means again and again and again, like the loaves and the fish. He uses weak, frail disciples to turn the world upside down.

A complementary way of viewing this incident:

Augustine, a great man of God, suggests another way of looking at the words of the disciples, which complements what we’ve already said. He says that the perplexity of the disciples arose not through any unbelief in Christ’s power, but from their doubts as to whether Christ was willing to exercise His power among these idol-worshipping Gentiles. This corresponds with stories in the book of Acts. Years after Christ had ascended, after the day of Pentecost, God had to almost force-march the church into evangelising among the Gentiles. No-one had a vision for the Gentiles. No-one. No-one prayed with a burden for the Gentiles. No-one. Despite the great commission, there are doubts as to whether God could work among the Gentiles, whether He wanted to!

The Saviour will feed these unclean, pagan nations with His words, with His gospel. He will draw them after Himself. He will lead them to belong to a greater community than they presently know – whether they were Jews or whether they were pagan Gentiles. He will lead them to belong to a kingdom that will endure, a kingdom that will never go into exile, a kingdom that will never be improved upon, never replaced – the Kingdom of those who have been washed by the precious blood of Jesus. Sinners were now being renewed by the transforming work of the Spirit of God, submitting to the authority of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Jesus went to the outcasts, the rejects, the despised Canaanites, the Gentiles. We have to follow His example, to further His mission field, to build His Kingdom among the Gentiles. That is our roll. Christ’s compassion is mentioned for our benefit. We hesitate. We hesitate to walk in Christ’s ways. We should remember, when we doubt, our Saviour is full of compassion. He will remember our sins no more. He will supply all your truest needs. No-one has ever found the bottom of His well.

When we are weary, as we often are, we should remember our Lord’s compassion. He knows what it is like to live in a world like ours. He has been here. He has stepped in our shoes, into a world that weighs us down, a world that makes us feel frail and feel our tiredness. He never forgets. We forget often, His grace, his mercies, His compassion, His love. He never forgets His forgetful people. His compassions fail not, they are new every morning. Great is Thy faithfulness.  

June 25th 2017: Ian Middlemist

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Ian-June 2017 John 17: The Highly Priestly Prayer

We are included in this great high priestly prayer of Jesus. We are just like Jesus because of His calling on our lives.

‘And I am no longer on the world, but they are in the world, and I am coming to you. Holy Father, keep them in your name, which you have given me, that they may be one, even as we are one.’ (John 17:4). Jesus was going, but we are staying. Jesus came, the God-man came into the world. The second person of the Trinity entered into this world. He came, but is at home today in heaven. It’s amazing God’s people are still here on earth. The reason for this is that we should be a witness for Jesus Christ in this world. How are Christians to cope in this life? Jesus prayers for them. It is Jesus’ obligation to look after us in this world. This prayer spans all of time. Jesus’ prayers for us today are sufficient to make us stand in this world.

‘They are mot of the world, just as I am not of the world.’ (John 17:16). Just as Jesus is not of this world, so we are not of this world. If you are a Christian, saved by Jesus Christ, you are not of this world. We are different. The Bible defines how we are different. The world has different meanings. The world, also known as the cosmos can mean the universe created by God. It can mean the planet earth itself. If can mean the totality of human existence. Here, in John 17, it means the order of this world, how it thinks in unity against God, alienated from God, opposed to that which is to come – the Kingdom of God. The ruler of this world is the devil, ‘Now is the judgement of this world, now will the ruler of this world be cast out.’ (John 12:31). We should have concern for our neighbours who are living under this dictator’s rule, the devil’s rule. The world is alienated from God, ever since the Fall. The systems of this world are against God.

The world does not want God. But Jesus says we are not of this world. We have been hand-picked out of this world to receive a position in His glorious kingdom. Our whole life is now a compass set towards God. Our direction is set towards God. We will be hated because we have embraced Jesus Christ and the Word of God, ‘I have given them your word, and the world has hated them because they are not of the world, just as I am not of the world.’ (John 17:14). If you have any doubt the world hates God, look at the cross, how Jesus was killed. If you’re a Christian you are not of this world, you make Jesus your delight. He is precious. ‘Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone, a cornerstone chosen and precious, and whoever believes in Him will not be put to shame.’ (1 Peter 2:6).

We will be hated, just as Jesus was despised. You may not want to consider this, but Christians are rejected because we have Christ as our leader. There will be uncomfortable silences when we mention we’re a Christian, or mention the name of Jesus. It is difficult because people don’t want to hear His name. Every time this happens, be encouraged, don’t stop saying His name. Be reassured you are a follower of Jesus Christ.

‘As you sent me into the world, so I have sent them into the world.’ (John 17:18). Just as Christ was sent into the world by His Father, so we are now sent into the world. Jesus did not just appear as an accident, He was sent from heaven. The whole of the Old Testament points to Jesus. He was sent into the world. We know from the words said at His birth He was set apart.

Jesus was sent on a great rescue mission – to achieve our salvation, ‘For God so loved the world, that He gave His only Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have eternal life.’ (John 3:16). Jesus picked us out of the world, He chose us. What a great honour! He washed us. He hung on the cross, He had our names written on His hands. He picked you out to triumph over death and hell. He will work in us that we will defeat sin in His power. In the end He will present us faultless before God. We have been picked out of this world but we are in the world. Some see this as being separated. They see the sinfulness of this world and want to be separated from it. But this denies the truth that there is an inward nature of sin. And what about all the people who need to hear about Jesus? Don’t forget about those around you. Jesus sends us into the world in His power.

Some are happy to compromise with the world. But the church is very different to the world. How can a Christian sing along with songs that are clearly against the church? Or laugh at jokes that are against Christ? They can’t. Psalm 1 reminds us ‘Blessed is the man whom walks not in the counsel of the wicked.’ (Psalm 1:1). We should not compromise. Don’t be ashamed.

‘And for their sake I consecrate myself, that they also may be sanctified in truth.’ (John 17:19). We are set apart. Just as Jesus was consecrated, so are we. We are consecrated and sanctified. To consecrate is to be set apart. Jesus was set apart by God the Father, so He set Himself apart – for death – so He might save us. To be sanctified is to be made holy, joined with Jesus in His consecration. We are set apart for the work of redemption. Jesus is determined to save those He will save. We are involved in the salvation of others too. He delights to use His church to save others by the preaching of the gospel. We can’t save anyone, only Jesus saves. We can’t open blind eyes. That work belongs to Jesus and Jesus alone. But we are called to bring His redemption message. We are:

Hand-picked out of this world;
Citizens of heaven;
Different – we have a heart for God;
Sent into the world.

‘Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptising 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 28:19-20).

We have a great commission. It is for all who believe. All of us are sent in to the world to share the gospel. It is the truth that sets us apart. We are to live holy lives, devoted to Jesus Christ, in the place He has set us. Our holiness is vital to this mission. We are not to be defiled by sin. Not all of us are called to be evangelists or pastors but let us have confidence in Jesus Christ and work where we have been called. We are to serve Christ. Do you realise your calling – the great privilege you have been given? We are ambassadors for Jesus Christ. Christ prayed His followers would have an attitude of mission. Let’s pray He would give us the heart too.