April 23, 2001
Get more information about Bible Study for Texas here.
May 27 Lesson
More than Great Commission in Matthew 28
___Matthew 28:1-20
___1After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb.
___2There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. 3His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. 4The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men.
___5The angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. 6He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. Come and see the place where he lay. 7Then go quickly and tell his disciples: 'He has risen from the dead and is going ahead of you into Galilee. There you will see him.' Now I have told you."
___8So the women hurried away from the tomb, afraid yet filled with joy, and ran to tell his disciples. 9Suddenly Jesus met them. "Greetings," he said. They came to him, clasped his feet and worshipped him. 10Then Jesus said to them, "Do not be afraid. Go and tell my brothers to go to Galilee; there they will see me."
___11While the women were on their way, some of the guards went into the city and reported to the chief priests everything that had happened. 12When the chief priests had met with the elders and devised a plan, they gave the soldiers a large sum of money, 13telling them, "You are to say, 'His disciples came during the night and stole him away while we were asleep.' 14If this report gets to the governor, we will satisfy him and keep you out of trouble." 15So the soldiers took the money and did as they were instructed. And this story has been widely circulated among the Jews to this very day.
___16Then the 11 disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. 17When they saw him, they worshipped him; but some doubted. 18Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."
___By Scott Collins
___I heard a market researcher say that a survey he conducted recently showed nearly every respondent agreed his or her health was extremely important. But when the next question on the survey asked respondents if they practiced good eating habits to ensure good health, most admitted they do not. Isn't it funny how we so often know what we should do, but we do it so seldom?
___Take the Great Commission as an example. As followers of Christ, surely we would confess that spreading the gospel is a crucial part of what we believe. Yet knowing what we should do and doing it are two different issues altogether.
___There are probably a lot of reasons why this is true when we think about Christ's command in Matthew 28:19-20. Some of those reasons are theological--we have made the Great Commission something professionals do when they are "called" to ministry. Some reasons are practical--we're busy people, and squeezing one more thing into our hectic lives is nearly impossible. I mean, discipling, baptizing and teaching can get pretty time-consuming. Yet these verses of Scripture from Matthew 28 tie together the power of the resurrection with the purpose of the church and promise of Christ.
___The power of the resurrection
___It is dawn on Sunday morning as Mary Magdalene and the "other" Mary (the mother of James and Joseph, Matthew 27:56, 61) make their way to the tomb expecting nothing more than to honor the body of the dead Jesus by properly anointing it for burial, since this procedure had been ignored earlier due to the Sabbath. Imagine their fear (v. 5) as Matthew records that a "violent earthquake" shakes the ground. Then even more startling, the "angel of the Lord" rolls back the giant stone that blocks the entrance to the tomb.
___The guards sent by Pilate to watch the tomb are so terrified that Matthew records they "shook and became like dead men." The angel, however, reassures the women in verses 5-8 with perhaps the greatest words ever uttered to human beings: "He is not here; he has risen, just as he said."
___While this whole scene was undoubtedly breathtaking and terrifying for those at the tomb that early Sunday morning, the account does contain some elements of irony and even humor. Imagine these highly trained soldiers fainting in a heap at the appearance of the angel while the women, obviously in fear themselves, nonetheless maintain some level of composure.
___Beyond that somewhat humorous scene is the irony that the first individuals commissioned to "go quickly and tell" (v. 7) are women. Was it a matter of convenience that two women happened to be the first on the scene? Or was it a part of the overall plan of God that the two Marys be the first to carry the resurrection story. The answer may be a lot of both.
___Because of their dedication and commitment to Jesus, these women got up early that morning and went to the tomb. The truth from this is that, often, the greatest blessings we receive are those that grow out of an act of commitment, whether we are men or women. Had they not been there, they would not have received the blessing and honor. At the same time, God's plan needed people of faith who would quickly, accurately and willingly convey the message of the empty tomb. My observation from more than 40 years in Baptist churches is that more times than not, it is the women in our churches who best fit this description.
___As they rush from the tomb to fulfill the angel's command, Matthew describes the women as being "afraid yet filled with joy." What a strange but wonderful sensation that must have been. While it is admittedly a weak comparison, this combination of fear and joy describes the way I feel when I get on one of those tangled metal contraptions we call roller coasters.
___As they are going with the angel's command to tell the disciples, Jesus "suddenly" appears. To calm their fears, he greets them with what could best be translated a casual "Hello!" or "How do you do?" Their response was humble worship of their Lord as they fell and clasped his feet. Jesus essentially restates the angel's command to "go and tell" the disciples to meet him in Galilee. "There they will see me." Where would you go to see Jesus?
___These first 10 verses of Matthew 28, while often overlooked in favor of other resurrection accounts in Mark and Luke and because most attention in this chapter falls to the Great Commission, nevertheless demonstrate the wonder working power of Christ. He has overcome death and the grave. Surely anyone with this kind of power should be listened to.
___The purpose of the church
___Matthew 28:16-18 forms the preamble of the Great Commission. As the 11 disciples (Judas has gone) gather in Galilee, Jesus appears to them as he has promised. Like the women, "they worshipped him." Unlike the women, "some doubted." Do not blame them for their doubt and do not assume what you would have done. The scene set, Jesus asserts "all authority in heaven and on earth" as belonging to him.
___Is this some new power given to Christ after the resurrection? Did he not in fact have all power before the resurrection? Yes, he did. To deny Christ's full power and authority prior to his death and resurrection is to deny his deity. This is not a cause and effect. He was God before the resurrection; therefore, he was not "more" God after it. Rather, the difference is his restraint. For example, he could have called 10,000 angels, but he chose not to. It is ironic that his ability to restrain his use of power is further proof he had power.
___Now, however, as Jesus meets with the disciples, he is unrestrained. And what does he do with this newly unrestrained power? Does he command the forces of nature to extract revenge? Does he use it to coerce belief? Does he use it to prove himself? No. Instead, Jesus uses his authority to commission his believers, to give to the church its purpose for existence. That purpose is most succinctly stated with the word "go." This command stands in contrast to earlier commands to "go not" and to the particular coming of Christ to the Jews first (Matthew 10:5; 15:24). Now we have the unrestrained command to go to all nations. And so we have the first part of the church's purpose in this passage--coming to worship Christ (verse 17) and then having worshipped, going forth to fulfill the next purpose, namely, "having gone, therefore, make disciples."
___To be sure, a part of making disciples is to make converts. As Hendriksen points out, the term "make disciples" places somewhat more stress on the fact that the mind, as well as the heart and the will, must be won for God. A disciple is a pupil, a learner. It is necessary that sinners learn about their lost condition, God and his plan of redemption. But mere mental understanding does not make someone a disciple. To be a disciple--a learner--you must have someone willing to teach you, which fits nicely into the command for those of us who believe to go and to teach everything that Christ has taught us.
___Another purpose of the church given by Christ is baptizing these new disciples. The command to baptize and the command to teach are both subordinate to the command to make disciples. These are two activities in coordination with each other, but subordinate to making disciples. This command to baptize a person after that person has been made a disciple stands in contrast to the idea of infant baptism, for prior to baptism, the disciple must be made ready; he or she must have first been made a disciple. Note again, the authority of the baptism. It comes in the name of the Trinity--the Father, the Son and of the Holy Spirit. God instituted baptism, and therefore we baptize in his name, not in the name of a local Baptist church, as some have contended.
___Finally, the purpose of the church is to teach obedience to the commands of Christ. To our credit, one thing Baptists have done well for decades is Sunday School. I have been in Sunday School most Sundays of my life. I keep thinking that eventually I will graduate. But the fact is, the more I learn about God's word and Christ's commands, the more I realize I need to keep being taught. I am grateful for churches in my life that have sought to fulfill this command and for faithful women and men who have taken seriously this purpose of the church.
___The promise of Christ
___Matthew concludes his gospel with a promise from Christ. But unlike so many human promises, this is not a conditional statement. There are no ifs, ands or buts. Jesus' statement is a fact. As Williams emphatically translates verse 20: "And I myself will surely be with you all the days, down to the very close of an age." Jesus is confirming the fact he himself is with us forever as we go about fulfilling his Great Commission.
For thought and discussion
___
___
___
___
___
___
___
Get printer-friendly version of this story
Send this story to a friend
News of religion, faith, missions, Bible study and Christian ministry among Texas Baptist churches, in the BGCT, the Southern Baptist Convention ( SBC ) and around the world.
Contents/ Masthead / Why We're Here / Links / Archive / E-mail us/ SUBSCRIBE!
