Reignite your mission
Every four years the summer Olympics begins with an event that captures the imagination of the world: the lighting of the Olympic flame. At the end of an international marathon relay, one final runner enters the Olympic stadium. After traveling by foot, by bicycle, by boat or by air, sometimes over thousands of miles, the torch finally enters the stadium in the hands of a final runner who, to the thrill of millions, ignites the enormous Olympic flame.
Wouldn’t it be exciting to be one of the bearers of the flame? Picture it. Each stride throbs with a sense of mission. Your fingers carefully encircle this forged symbol of Olympic competition. All fatigue fades as adrenaline fills you for this once-in-a-lifetime moment. Your experience would be a family legend. Grandkids would show your picture to their friends and boast, “That’s my grandpa (or grandma) there. He (or she) carried the torch to the Olympics!” Can you imagine holding that piece of tradition in your hands and knowing that, for a brief moment, you were the link in that historic chain?
As Christians, we carry a torch.
We carry a flame of so much greater value that there is no comparison. The pomp and circumstance of the Olympics pales against the eternal significance of the ministry with which Christ has entrusted us. Proud athletes carry the Olympic torch accompanied by global applause, while Christians through the ages have borne the torch of the gospel despite centuries of persecution and trial. The flame we carry is not a symbol. It is the light of God that is desperately needed by a dark and dying world.
There is no better way to rediscover passion for the life we’ve been given to live than to return to the point where Jesus first passed the torch to His disciples. Understanding what He said in that pivotal moment will enable us to clearly understand our mission in this life.
The original handoff
Matthew records the words we call the Great Commission at the very end of his gospel. They were probably among Jesus’ very last words to His disciples. Last words tend to be very important words. I clearly remember my father’s last words to me over 20 years ago. He carefully chose words he knew I needed to hear. Words he wanted me to remember and live by. Words he lived his life by. I believe Jesus did the same.
The fact that we call this passage the Great Commission may intimidate you. The word “great” may make you think that this commission is given to “great” Christians or “great” missionaries. That’s not me! I can’t do that!
But Jesus’ last words to His disciples were nothing more than a few short words designed to summarize Christ’s life. The disciples’ job, Jesus was saying, was to do for the rest of their lives what He had done in His. It was an everyday commission, given to every believer for every moment of his or her life. Jesus is charging His disciples to make other disciples who will make even more disciples, just as Jesus did. The Great Commission is every Christian’s task.
Let’s take a closer look at these final verses of Matthew. It was a day of challenge, a day for handoff. From the very beginning Jesus had told His disciples of His desire to make them “fishers of men.” He had involved them in ministry. He had taught them His priorities and allowed them to observe Him in action. But things were different now. He had been crucified and raised from the dead, and the time for His ascension was near.
Over the course of 40 days between His resurrection and His ascension, Jesus appeared to His disciples approximately ten times. Sometimes He appeared to individual disciples, sometimes to a group of them. Only once does Jesus announce His appearance before it happens—and this is the time, this meeting in Galilee. Excitement was running high. The women disciples were spreading the news that the angel had given them: “Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me” (Matthew 28:10).
Who all was Jesus planning to meet that day? I am convinced this was the gathering of the 500 that is referenced in 1 Corinthians 15:6. Matthew writes, “Then the 11 disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go” (Matthew 28:16).
This doesn’t mean that only 11 disciples total were present with Jesus that day. It simply could mean that the 11 had to travel from Jerusalem to Galilee, but there were already disciples in Galilee. I believe there were at least another 489 present. This is significant because many argue that Jesus’ (Great) Commission was only given to the 11, Jesus’ closest companions.
In reality, Jesus gave this charge to every Christ follower. The commission is “great” because it has to do with the gospel. Even so, it is an everyday commission for every believer for every moment of their everyday lives.
It is important to recognize, too, that Jesus did not commission His disciples to take on this task in their own strength. Before He commands His listeners to make disciples, He tells them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me” (Matthew 28:18). After the commission, he assures them, “I am with you always, to the very end of the age” (28:20).
Wrapped around this Great Commission is a promise of the active and manifest presence of the Lord. This is no small promise! Jesus invites us to share His life, His passion, His calling. And He promises that any person, any family, any church that commits itself to doing what Jesus did can expect and claim that active manifest Presence in their midst! Jesus loves to show up in a supernatural way when we seek to do what He did.
This post is excerpted from 4 Chair Discipling © 2019 by Dann Spader. Used by permission from Moody Publishers.
 | Dann Spader has dedicated his life to disciple-making and teaching others how to take someone from a seeker to a reproducing disciple themselves, all by following the pattern Jesus laid out for us in scripture. More than 750,000 people in 90 plus countries have been trained to make disciples emulating the life of Christ through organizations and initiatives he has led. He is the Founder of Sonlife Ministries and currently serves as Founder and President of Global Youth Initiative (an alliance of organizations in 95 countries committed to "equipping leaders for movements of multiplication”). Learn More » |
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