Envision: The Great Commission

Opening illustration: When Jesus spoke these words directly to His disciples, and indirectly to us, He was giving the church her marching orders. He was telling exactly what He expected us to do in His physical absence. The disciples took the Lord’s command seriously. They went into the world and shared the Gospel of Jesus and thousands upon thousands were saved by the grace of God. Their message was so powerful and their witness so effective that their critics accused them of “turning the world upside down”, Acts 17:6.

That was then, and this is now! What was given as The Great Commission has turned into what some have labeled The Great Omission. When something is “omitted”, it is “left out, undone, neglected.” Instead of taking the Gospel to the ends of the earth as the Lord commanded, the modern church won’t even take the Gospel to the end of the street. Consider the following: 95% of all Christians have never won a soul to Christ. 80% of all Christians do not consistently witness for Christ. Less than 2% are involved in the ministry of evangelism. 71% do not give toward the financing of ‘The Great Commission.’

These statistics are sad because they reveal the true state of the modern church. We are satisfied to be saved, but we are not motivated to see others come to know Jesus Christ as their Lord and Savior. Somehow, we have come to believe that the end of our responsibility is to come to church a couple of times a week, pray when we can, read the Bible every now and then, and live a life that is slightly cleaner than the world around us. We have forgotten the truth that Christianity is a militant, activist faith. Our calling is not to endure to the end; but to storm the very gates of Hell, Matthew 16:18. Our orders are not to sit by while the world drops off into Hell; our orders are to go into the world and tell them the glorious news of a crucified and risen Savior Who specializes in saving souls, and in changing lives and eternal destinies.

While the church has pulled the covers of complacency and apathy about her and has fallen into the deep slumber of self-satisfaction and comfort the world has continued its headlong plunge toward Hell. Even while we sleep, the door of evangelism in America is closing. Just couple of years ago it was announced that 50 colleges and universities are closing their campuses to evangelical Christian groups. They do not want these Christian ministries to share the Gospel. They will allow them to operate on campus if they will sign a pledge promising not to attempt to evangelize the students on campus. A Christian ministry that cannot and will not share the Gospel does not server to bear the name Christian!

Other things have changed as well. Thirty years ago, in America, you could approach the door of a total stranger, tell them who you were and what you wanted, and they would open the door, let you in and listen as you shared with them the Gospel. That day has passed!

Introduction: Despite the conditions around us; in spite of the difficulties and dangers; in spite of every excuse we offer, The Great Commission still stands! God still expects His people to take His message to a lost world so that they might hear the wonderful words of life.

I wonder, has ‘The Great Commission’ become ‘The Great Omission’ in your life and mine? Are we as a church doing everything we can to find inroads of outreach into the world around us?

I want to take a fresh look at The Great Commission today. I want to share four facts from these verses that give us much needed insight into The Great Commission. I want to preach on the subject Great Commission or Great Omission?

What does ‘The Great Commission’ involve?

1. WE HAVE A DIVINE MANDATE (v. 19)

(i) The mandate of The Great Commission is to “Go.” This is a word of action! We cannot “go” if we are sitting still. We cannot “go” if we stay where we are. We cannot “go” if we do not make a move.

(ii) This verb literally means “as you go.” As we pass through this world we are to carry the Gospel message with us, sharing it with everyone we meet along the way. There are two ways we can do this.

• It involves our Lifestyle – Matthew 5:13-16. Like salt, our life should create a thirst in people for the Lord. Our joy, our peace, our differences from the world should cause them to want to know why we are like we are. Our lives should be like a great spotlight which directs its beam toward Jesus. If He is the focus of our lives, men will see Him lived out through our lives day by day!