• The Great Commission Question

    By: Kristen L. McNulty

    Reprint rights available on request. Email the author at kristenmcnulty@hotmail.com.

    There is a question that I believe each and every one of us should ask ourselves and ask ourselves often at that. The question is: what am I doing in my life right now to fulfill the great commission?

    The great Commission, given to us in Matthew chapter 28, was Jesus' last recorded instruction to us as His followers. Here’s what he had to say, starting in verse 18:

    "Jesus came and told his disciples, 'I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. Teach these new disciples to obey all the commands I have given you. And be sure of this: I am with you always, even to the end of the age.'" Matthew 28:18-20 NLT


    The Answer To The Question


    So after that refresher of what the great Commission is, let me repeat the question I believe we all should be asking ourselves on a regular basis: what am I doing in my life right now to fulfill the great commission? If the answer to that question is an oh or a I don’t know or nothing, then you and I are not living out our faith and following Jesus in obedience, because following Jesus means doing what he has instructed us to do and this is it.

    On a daily basis we need to be living out the great commission, making disciples both in our own backyard and around the world, baptizing them in the name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit and then teaching these new disciples to obey the commands of Jesus. This is the calling that has been placed on every single one of our lives. How we carry out this calling may differ from one person to the next, but let us make no mistake, it is still our calling to carry out whether we think we have the gift of evangelism or not. We have been saved and have tasted the glory of God’s wonderful grace and now it is our privilege to be a part of bringing that message to others. Both out of obedience to our saviour but also as gratitude for the gift. As David Platt wrote,

    "Every saved person this side of heaven owes the gospel to every lost person this side of hell…. We owe Christ to the world—to the least person and to the greatest person, to the richest person and to the poorest person, to the best person and to the worst person. We are in debt to the nations." David Platt


    This Kind of Commitment Isn't Easy


    So back to the question, what are you doing in your life right now to live out the great commission? If you know what you’re doing and you’re actively engaged in living out the great commission, consider this a pat on the back and an encouragement to keep going strong. I know living in a world where we have so many things vying for our attention, this kind of radical commitment isn’t easy, but I can promise you when you cross the finish line into glory one day, it will have all been worth it.

    If you don’t know what you’re doing to live out the great commission or you know that you aren’t doing anything, consider this a plea from your sister in Christ to not let one more day go by without you throwing yourself headfirst into living out your faith in this way. Faith is belief yes, but as we know from the books of James, faith without works is dead. And in Matthew 28 we know the kind of works we are expected to engage in, works that have a direct effect on spreading the Gospel, making disciples and then strengthening those disciples in their walk of faith and obedience to Jesus. That’s the kind of ministry we are called to, not ministry that makes us feel good or simply entertains the people who are already disciples of Jesus, but disciple making and disciple shaping ministry both in our own communities and around the world.

    If You Don't Know Where To Start


    If you don’t know where to start, my best advice to you is to find a church of believers who are already actively a disciple making church and get involved in their work. It’s tempting to want to go to a church where it’s all about us and our comfort and our wants and our needs, where ministries are all inwardly focused on those who already believe. But a church where it’s all about the lost and the gospel and making disciples is a church worth going to because it’s a place where we both can live out the great commission and be encouraged by others who are doing the same. Christianity isn’t a solo sport. When Jesus sent out His disciples, He sent them out two by two, not alone. So having a group of people who have the same commitment to the great commission as you do can make all the difference!

    Closing off with a quote from Hudson Taylor:

    "The great commission is not an option to be considered; it is a command to be obeyed." Hudson Taylor


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