Daily Devotions
Luke
Luke 24:44-53; Acts 1:1-8; Matthew 28:18-20 "THE GREAT COMMISSION"
Day 359 – Luke 24
Text: Luke 24:44-53; Acts 1:1-8; Matthew 28:18-20
THE GREAT COMMISSION
The command of the Lord Jesus Christ to His Disciples to reach the world with the Gospel of salvation was also recorded in the Gospel of Matthew. This was Matthew’s understanding of the Lord’s charge given to His Disciples.
“And Jesus came and spoke to them, saying,
‘All authority has been given to Me
in heaven and on earth.
Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations,
Baptizing them in the Name of the Father
And of the Son and of the Holy Spirit,
Teaching them to observe all things that I have commanded you;
And lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age. Amen.’ “
Matthew 28:18-20
What was only implied in the Commission recorded in the Gospel of Luke is clearly delineated in Matthew’s account of the Great Commission. Whereas, Luke focused on the word “witness” in his Gospel, Matthew sought to focus on the details of the Commission. It was no less than the work of Jesus when He made disciples of His followers!
EMBRACING THE GREAT COMMISSION WITH FULL CONFIDENCE
How should the Disciples take the challenge of the Lord Jesus to be not only His witnesses, but to become “Disciplers” of other people? Jesus wanted them to have every confidence that they were more than able to perform the task that He had given to them.
Confidence may be gained from believing in three important truths.
1. “All Authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth”
Disciples may rely on the Authority that was obviously in Jesus! They had seen just how much authority Jesus wielded in His earthly life and ministry. Jesus exercised authority over the demons. On one occasion, the crowds gasped with astonishment as Jesus exercised that authority.
“Then they were all amazed and spoke among themselves,
saying, ‘What a word this is! For with authority and power
He commands the unclean spirits, and they come out’ “
Luke 4:36
When Jesus healed a paralytic from his illness, He also exercised His authority to forgive His sins. He said,
” ‘But that you may know
that the Son of Man has power (lit. “authority”)
on earth to forgive sins’ –
He said to the man who was paralyzed,
‘I say to you, arise, take up your bed
And go to your house.’ “
Luke 5:24
2. “Go therefore and make Disciples of all the nations…”
Bearing witness was only the first step to winning people to faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. Difficulties and rejection must be expected! On the other hand, there must also be anticipation of some who would believe in the Gospel of the Lord Jesus Christ. These must be discipled!
The Disciples of the Lord Jesus would be in the best position to train and equip others in the doctrines their Teacher had taught them. They had been well and thoroughly taught from the Law of Moses, the Prophets and the Psalms. Even in the last forty days after His resurrection, Jesus had spent much time going over all that He had taught them!
What powerful doctrines Jesus had taught them! They were to climax their teaching of the disciples by baptizing them into the Name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit! They were empowered to use the mighty Name of God Himself in the work of making disciples!
3. “Lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
Jesus had risen from the dead, as He had said! Again and again, the Disciples had seen how Jesus always kept every word that He uttered. Surely, they must have greater confidence in what Jesus promised them at this point of time!
He would be with them! Did He not appear to the two disciples on their way to Emmaus? Did He not appear to Mary as she wept outside the Garden Tomb? His angels had been sent to speak to them! Much more than that, He promised that He would be with them!
What great strength and courage they may draw from this promise! What a precious promise this was! The only thing left for the Disciples was to wait upon the Lord to fully empower them to commence fulfilling the Great Commission.
THE GREAT COMMISSION MUST BE EMPHASISED FROM ONE GENERATION TO ANOTHER
The Apostle Paul wasn’t one of the original disciples. Nevertheless, He bore witness for the Lord most effectively. He too sought to make disciples of those who believed in the Lord Jesus.
One of the most famous of his disciples was a young man called Timothy. In one of the last epistles that he wrote, the apostle gave this solemn charge to his young protege. The words may be a little different from that of the Great Commission given by Jesus, but the sentiments were the same. One generation must pass on the torch to the next generation! Thus will the Great Commission be fulfilled effectively!
“And the things that you have heard from me
among many witnesses, commit these to faithful men
who will be able to teach others also.”
2 Timothy 2:2