The Mission To Evangelize The World Series

2. THE DIVINE PLAN FOR MISSIONS. 19

(Mat 28:19 NIV) 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,

(Mat 28:20 NIV) and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you..."

In one main imperative verb, which is “Make disciples,” and three subordinate participles having imperatival force, Jesus told his disciples what he wanted them to do.

Jesus gave them a mandate to move out of their immediate domain to do missions. He said, therefore, go. Or to translate it from the Greek one would translate it as, therefore, “as you are going” or “since you are going.” It is not accident that the word translated apostles is the Greek word apostolos which means one sent. In his book, God Who Sends, Dr. Francis M. Dubose, a one time head of department of Missions at the Golden Gate Baptist Seminary of Mill Valley California said that “Missions means sending.” A missionary is one sent with the message to preach the good news to the lost. Jesus said to his disciples to go into the world. To do missions, we must endeavor to get out of our comfort zones in order to win others for the Lord. It must be noted that every mission-minded church must be a sending and a going church. In his book, Kingdom Principles for Church Growth, Gene Mims said, “A church that does not go to lost persons and share the gospel with them is like a restaurant that has food prepared but refuses to serve the hungry.” After telling them to go, he gave them three instructions as to what they should do when they go.

First, they are to make disciples of all nations. In other words, they are to be involved in global missions. Their main task here is to nurture persons that they encounter into the experience of discipleship. A disciple is a learner or a pupil. To make them a follower of Jesus is to witness to them and bring them to the fold of Jesus Christ. To make them to follow righteousness. With Jesus’ instruction here, there is a shift in paradigm in their missionary strategy. They are not to restrict themselves to the Jews alone but the whole world. It is interesting to note that the word translated nations is the Greek word ethne from which we got our English word, ethnic. This word means tribes, people groupings, nations, racial groups, and non-Jews. We need to know that as of today there are about 22,000 people-groupings in the world. The gospel of Jesus must be preached to all these people before the end will come. Jesus said the following in the word of God. (Mat 24:14 NIV) And this gospel of the kingdom will be preached in the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.

Second, they were commissioned to incorporate new converts into the kingdom of God. He told them to baptize the believers. The way that Jesus presented this doctrine settles one important doctrinal issue in Christendom; which is: only believers should be baptized. After they have won persons to Jesus, then they must baptize them. This word, baptize, is the Greek transliteration of the Greek word, baptizontes which means to immerse, submerge or dip into something. This baptism is an initiation into the kingdom of God, which is administered under the authority of the entire Godhead. It must be noted that this practice was continued in the early church. The bible says in (Acts 2:38 NIV) Peter replied, "Repent and be baptized, every one of you, in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins. And you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit.