God's Mission Briefing
Matthew 28:16-20 (NIV)
16 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, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.
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 everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."
I) Is The Mission For Me?
4 Reasons the Great Commission is for ALL believers:
1) When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted.
Matthew says the eleven disciples met Christ. The eleven were the prominent ones, but apparently there were over five hundred believers present, all seeing Him at once (1 Cor. 15:6). The reference to "they" and "some doubted" (Matthew 28:17) seems to indicate that this was the great appearance to the mass of believers mentioned by Paul. Christ had already appeared to the eleven on several occasions. They already knew the reality of His resurrection. It is unlikely that they were the ones who were questioning at this time
The Preacher's Outline & Sermon Bible – Matthew, (Chattanooga: Leadership Ministries Worldwide, 1991), WORDsearch CROSS e-book, Under: "B. The Messiah's Final Commission to His Disciples, 28:16-20".
Jesus apperaed at least 5 times to His disciples before thos meeting where His gives them their commission to "Go and make disciples" but the scripture says :but some doubted". I have a very hard time believing that any of the 11 still had doubts. That being the case I believe that we can make a good case for there being other followers present who heard this commissioning. If that is in fact the case, I believe that they would have understood that these words of Jesus were for them as well. After all Jesus did not begin by saying, Listen up you 11 who have been following me around this is just for you." If there were other people present, and I think there were, and if they understood these words of Jesus to apply to them, and I think they did, why should we not blieve that they are for us as well?
Mark 16:14-18 (NIV)
14 Later Jesus appeared to the Eleven as they were eating; he rebuked them for their lack of faith and their stubborn refusal to believe those who had seen him after he had risen.
15 He said to them, "Go into all the world and preach the good news to all creation.
16 Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.
17 And these signs will accompany those who believe: In my name they will drive out demons; they will speak in new tongues;
18 they will pick up snakes with their hands; and when they drink deadly poison, it will not hurt them at all; they will place their hands on sick people, and they will get well."
Luke 24:33-39 (NIV)
33 They got up and returned at once to Jerusalem. There they found the Eleven and those with them, assembled together
34 and saying, "It is true! The Lord has risen and has appeared to Simon."
35 Then the two told what had happened on the way, and how Jesus was recognized by them when he broke the bread.
36 While they were still talking about this, Jesus himself stood among them and said to them, "Peace be with you."
37 They were startled and frightened, thinking they saw a ghost.
38 He said to them, "Why are you troubled, and why do doubts rise in your minds?
39 Look at my hands and my feet. It is I myself! Touch me and see; a ghost does not have flesh and bones, as you see I have."
John 20:19-23 (NIV)
19 On the evening of that first day of the week, when the disciples were together, with the doors locked for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you!"
20 After he said this, he showed them his hands and side. The disciples were overjoyed when they saw the Lord.
21 Again Jesus said, "Peace be with you! As the Father has sent me, I am sending you."
22 And with that he breathed on them and said, "Receive the Holy Spirit.
23 If you forgive anyone his sins, they are forgiven; if you do not forgive them, they are not forgiven."
John 20:26-29 (NIV)
26 A week later his disciples were in the house again, and Thomas was with them. Though the doors were locked, Jesus came and stood among them and said, "Peace be with you!"
27 Then he said to Thomas, "Put your finger here; see my hands. Reach out your hand and put it into my side. Stop doubting and believe."
28 Thomas said to him, "My Lord and my God!"
29 Then Jesus told him, "Because you have seen me, you have believed; blessed are those who have not seen and yet have believed."
John 21:1 (NIV)
1 Afterward Jesus appeared again to his disciples, by the Sea of Tiberias. It happened this way:
NOTE: You do not have to have all the answers in order to accept Christ and worship. Some questions we have will be answered as we mature. Other questions will only be answered when we get to heaven.
The question becomes whether or not I recognize that I am a sinner, that as a sinner I am separated from God . If I die in this state of separation than it will last for eternity in hell. However, God showed His love for us by having Jesus pay the penalty for our sin. I can accept that payment of my debt and avoid a Godless eternity by:
Believe that Jesus is in fact the son of God and the atoning sacrifice for my sins
Repenting of my sin
Confess Christ before man
Being baptized into Christ for the forgiveness of my sins and the gift of the Holy Spirit.
One final thought then. Is there any question that you have that is worth spending eternity separated from God?
HAVE THEM TAKE OUT SPRITUAL SURVEY CARD AND COMPLETE
2) Therefore go and make disciples of all nations
Jesus commissioned His followers. He commissioned not only the eleven apostles, but all who were present, more than five hundred disciples. However, note something of crucial importance: it was impossible for that generation to reach the whole world in its lifetime. Therefore, the commission given to the first generation of believers extends beyond to all generations of believers. The very same charge given to them is given to us. Our Lord charges us with the very same words, "Go ye therefore, and make disciples of all nations...."
, The Preacher's Outline & Sermon Bible – Matthew, (Chattanooga: Leadership Ministries Worldwide, 1991), WORDsearch CROSS e-book, Under: "B. The Messiah's Final Commission to His Disciples, 28:16-20".
3) Teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you
If one of their primary commands was to teach the new believers everything that they had been taught to do, then they would have taught new believers to go and make disciples. That means US!
4) And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.
The age to which Jesus is refering started with His resurrection and it will end with His second coming. So why would Jesus have promised His presence and power to do something until His second coming if He only meant for the 11 to carry out the task. It seems obvious to me that we are to carry on with this task of going and making disciples as well.
II) What Is The Mission?
Therefore go and make disciples of all nations
1) What Is A Disciple?
Merriam- Webster Dictionary: 1 : one who accepts and assists in spreading the doctrines of another: b : a convinced adherent of a school or individual
The Greek ìáèçôήò, ïῦ means m disciple, pupil, follower
Barclay M. Newman, A Concise Greek-English Dictionary of the New Testament, (Stuttgart: German Bible Society, 1993), WORDsearch CROSS e-book, 110.
In the NT it is the rendering of the Gk. mathetes, “learner,” and occurs frequently. The meaning applies to one who professes to have learned certain principles from another and maintains them on that other’s authority.
Merrill Unger, The New Unger's Bible Dictionary, (Chicago: Moody Press, 1957), s.v. “,” WORDsearch CROSS e-book.
As a part of this a disciple then shares what he believes with others as well.
To often we have made the word go an imperative. In the original it is not. It can better be read "As you are going" or "Where ever you go"
The imperative is on "making dsiciples". This is not to suggest that going is not important. It is just to say that it is not about going somewhere special but where ever you find yourself going we should be about the task of "make disciples." The whole command is in fact an imperative and something that Jesus expected ALL of His followers to do
Matthew 28:19 (GW)
19 So wherever you go, make disciples of all nations: Baptize them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit.
2) How do I fulfill this mission?
a)Teach - Evangelsim
This is where evangelism starts to take place assuming that the proper ground work has been laid. What do I mean by ground work. You must, in most cases, develop a relationship with the person to whom you want to share your faith. They must see that what you are sharing goes beyond the theoretical and is really a part of who you are. So the question then becomes what do you teach?
i. Your story
Start by sharing how you came to faith and what that decision has meant to your life. It is not necessary htat you have what I call a "rags to riches" story. But it is absolutley necessary that you be able to put into words your own faith journy struggles and all.
ii) His Story
This is the time to share the gospel message in its simplest terms.
Romans 3:23 (NLT)
23 For everyone has sinned; we all fall short of God’s glorious standard.
Romans 6:22-23 (GW)
22 Now you have been freed from sin and have become God's slaves. This results in a holy life and, finally, in everlasting life.
23 The payment for sin is death, but the gift that God freely gives is everlasting life found in Christ Jesus our Lord.
Romans 5:8 (NIV)
8 But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.
Romans 10:9-10 (GW)
9 If you declare that Jesus is Lord, and believe that God brought him back to life, you will be saved.
10 By believing you receive God's approval, and by declaring your faith you are saved.
Romans 6:1-11 (GW)
1 What should we say then? Should we continue to sin so that God's kindness will increase?
2 That's unthinkable! As far as sin is concerned, we have died. So how can we still live under sin's influence?
3 Don't you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?
4 When we were baptized into his death, we were placed into the tomb with him. As Christ was brought back from death to life by the glorious power of the Father, so we, too, should live a new kind of life.
5 If we've become united with him in a death like his, certainly we will also be united with him when we come back to life as he did.
6 We know that the person we used to be was crucified with him to put an end to sin in our bodies. Because of this we are no longer slaves to sin.
7 The person who has died has been freed from sin.
8 If we have died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him.
9 We know that Christ, who was brought back to life, will never die again. Death no longer has any power over him.
10 When he died, he died once and for all to sin's power. But now he lives, and he lives for God.
11 So consider yourselves dead to sin's power but living for God in the power Christ Jesus gives you.
HAVE THEM REMOVE THE INVEST INVITE CARD FROM THEIR BULLETIN. READ IT TOGETHER AND HAVE THEM FILLOUT WITH THREE NAMES.
b) Baptize - Immerse
There is a great deal of disagreement upon the place that baptism plays in slavation. So let's take a moment to clear up some misunderstandings.
i) Baptism does not in and of itself save you.
We are saved by grace
Ephesians 2:5 (GW)
5 We were dead because of our failures, but he made us alive together with Christ. (It is God's kindness that saved you.)
Ephesians 2:7-8 (GW)
7 He did this through Christ Jesus out of his generosity to us in order to show his extremely rich kindness in the world to come.
8 God saved you through faith as an act of kindness. You had nothing to do with it. Being saved is a gift from God.
Grace = A Gift that makes glad
As with any gift it is not really yours until you accept it. Which brings us to our second lesson on baptism:
ii) Baptism is the act of accepting this free gift
Colossians 2:9-12 (GW)
9 All of God lives in Christ's body,
10 and God has made you complete in Christ. Christ is in charge of every ruler and authority.
11 In him you were also circumcised. It was not a circumcision performed by human hands. But it was a removal of the corrupt nature in the circumcision performed by Christ.
12 This happened when you were placed in the tomb with Christ through baptism. In baptism you were also brought back to life with Christ through faith in the power of God, who brought him back to life.
Galatians 3:27 (NLT)
27 And all who have been united with Christ in baptism have put on the character of Christ, like putting on new clothes.
Acts 2:38 (GW)
38 Peter answered them, “All of you must turn to God and change the way you think and act, and each of you must be baptized in the name of Jesus Christ so that your sins will be forgiven. Then you will receive the Holy Spirit as a gift.
Titus 3:5 (GW)
5 he saved us, but not because of anything we had done to gain his approval. Instead, because of his mercy he saved us through the washing in which the Holy Spirit gives us new birth and renewal.
Acts 22:16 (GW)
16 What are you waiting for now? Get up! Be baptized, and have your sins washed away as you call on his name.'
1 Peter 3:21 (NIV)
21 and this water symbolizes baptism that now saves you also--not the removal of dirt from the body but the pledge of a good conscience toward God. It saves you by the resurrection of Jesus Christ,
Mark 16:16 (NIV)
16 Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever does not believe will be condemned.
C) Teach - Discipleship
This teaching is the act of dscipleship. Helping the infant believer to grow and to mature in their new life.
This is the reason we offer Growth Groups. It is our expectation that everyone who attends New Hope will attend these Growth Groups. If you are not, it is like not eating. You will become malnourished and eventually you will spiritually die. Not in the since of losing your salvation but you will not grow you will remain an infant believer forever.
James 1:5-8 (NIV)
5 If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him.
6 But when he asks, he must believe and not doubt, because he who doubts is like a wave of the sea, blown and tossed by the wind.
7 That man should not think he will receive anything from the Lord;
8 he is a double-minded man, unstable in all he does.
1 Corinthians 3:1-3 (NIV)
1 Brothers, I could not address you as spiritual but as worldly--mere infants in Christ.
2 I gave you milk, not solid food, for you were not yet ready for it. Indeed, you are still not ready.
3 You are still worldly. For since there is jealousy and quarreling among you, are you not worldly? Are you not acting like mere men?
HAVE THEM REMOVE THE FEARLESS GROWTH GROUP RESPONSE CARD FROM THEIR BULLTIN AND COMMIT TO ONE OF THE THREE TIMES INDICATED.
Conclusion: There can be no doubt of these two things. 1) We are to be about the work of making disciples. 2) To do this we must be maturing in our own faith.
