Matthew fittingly draws his account of the earthly ministry of Jesus to a close. We see in Matthew 28:19 that the eleven are commissioned to “make disciples of all nations. This is telling us that the disciples would be empowered to spread the good news of the message of Jesus Christ.
We see that power which Jesus Claims is Absolute. Jesus told them in verse 18 that, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me.” Not simply the highest power, but all power. This means that Jesus is Lord of all and that is something no king, dictator, president or any other political or military power has ever been able to claim.
We read in Revelation 1:5, “Jesus Christ the faithful witness, the first-born of the dead, and the ruler of kings on earth.” Too many times even the Christian forgets this great truth. We have the ruler of all the earth guiding and directing our lives.
In verse 19 Matthew speaks the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit. The singular is employed, the name, not the names. Jesus possessed absolute power because He participates equally with the Father and the Spirit in the one name of God. His authority is divine and hence universal.
Our faith should be strong because Jesus possesses all power. There is nothing that we can’t do through the power of Jesus Christ. Because of that power, the Church can face the great task that the Lord has assigned it. Let us go forward backed by the power of Jesus Christ.
Verse 19 is quite clear, “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations.” Note that none are omitted from the authority He exercises, so none are excluded from the salvation He offers. These eleven were called to begin the mission of sharing the Good News of salvation through Jesus Christ.
Jesus gathered His disciples and He taught them. Then He sent them out to speak for Him. This is what the Church essentially is, a people who live under the lordship of Jesus Christ, worshiping and witnessing at His command and bringing the message of salvation to a world lost in sin.
We read in verse 20, “Lo I am with you always.” Jesus is like a gallant military leader that went into battle with the troops. He is not a rear-line commander. He shares the field with His troops. That field is the mission field around us that is lost in sin and needs to come to know Jesus Christ.
Jesus will be present when we worship as He is with us this very moment. The words of verse 20 are all we need to know and they are also words that should give us great encouragement.
Have you ever had to do something that you felt was very difficult? I think all of us have experienced this from time to time. This is part of living in this world of ours. As Christians we should never feel we are alone because Jesus promises to never leave us. Everywhere we go we go with the presence of the Lord.
I cannot think of a more difficult assignment than to share the message of salvation with a world that is so wrapped up in the things of the world. The writer of Hebrews tells us a great promise from the Lord in Hebrews 13:5. We read, “for he (Jesus) has said, “I will never fail (leave) you nor forsake you.” This is a truth that I have claimed all the years I have been in ministry and it is a truth that all of you should claim.
Remember that Jesus will be present when we witness, and His presence will guarantee that we will have power for the task He has called us to do for Him. Now it is up to each one of us to decide how we are going to respond to the great commission.