Make Disciples Of All Nations

Matthew 28
Make Disciples Of All Nations

     “All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth. Go therefore and make disciples of all nations baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”- Jesus

     I think that there is an amazing thing that has happened here. Before Jesus death on the cross He had given all authority to God and placed Himself in the lowest position with no authority but what was given from His Father. He gave Himself up to be under the jurisdiction or law of men with complete trust that His Father controlled the hearts of men and all things that concerned Him. Now, He has told us that all authority in heaven and on earth have been granted to Him. Justice and mercy are in His hands for all has been given to Him.

     As he ascended into heaven He gave us our job He commanded us to go forth and make disciples and to teach all that He has taught us. So the question is, how are we responding to this call to action? Are we dragging our feet, hoping that others will do enough work so that we won’t really need to help out? Are we ignoring the command all together? Or do we not even know that we have been commanded to do this? 

     Well here is the thing. If you saw a car accident and found that you were the only person around, your concern for there safety would make it impossible for you to not do something to help. Even if you didn’t know any first aid you would still do the best you could for them. The first time you experience something like this you will realize that it is the last time that you want to be in that position unprepared. Especially if there had been something simple that you could have done that would have prevented the person from being crippled for life or worse, dying. A little bit of knowledge would have been a tremendous help to the person and their family.

     Think about how many people around us are dying spiritually. They are headed for eternal death. Just try telling even one of them how to find God and you will start to realize how unprepared you are to help. Now lets go even farther, what if that person knew their soul was in trouble and asked you for help? What would you say to him that would assure him and answer all of his questions as to the safety of his soul? I think that we will find that all that we have to say will sound empty and more like a band-aid over a gaping wound than a healing touch that can truly close it.

     We are all unprepared for the challenge of soul surgery. A doctor has to go to school for seven years to even come close to operating on a person. How much more prepared should we be to help rescue a person’s soul? We need to put ourselves through soul surgery school. What school is this and how can we attend? There is a class you can take each day where you get to watch and learn from the Master Surgeon. First He will require you to study the Bible and to pray (to do some classroom work). Studying and praying in that little room also known as your prayer closet. Then He takes you out and introduces you to His patients that He is diligently working on. Next He will show you some of His worst patients who upon being healed were so thankful to their physician that they have dedicated their lives to working with Him so that they might show their appreciation for what He did for them.

     We can never be too prepared for rescuing people. There is always more that we need to know and scenarios that we have never been in before. We must spend time with the Master Physician and do all that we can to learn from Him. Let us answer the call to go forth and teach all that He has commanded us and to live as He has taught us to live. Let our actions go hand in hand with our words. Let us not wait for others to do jobs that we can do. Let us not hesitate because there are lives at stake with each passing moment. Let us realize that we have indeed been called and given a job. Let us not convince ourselves that He meant someone else when He said those words. There are tragic accidents all around us and we are often the only ones around to see them. You won’t be able to use the excuse that “nobody told me that I was supposed to do something.” The accident speaks for itself there should be no need to explain that the person in the accident is dying and needs quick attention.

     So let us not delay to learn all that He has commanded us so that we are ready to teach and help all those who are in trouble. Let us develop a keen eye that sees people needs so that we will be better able to help them in time. But most of all, let us learn what it means to truly love our neighbors so that we are seriously concerned for their wellbeing.