Ed and Patsy now live in Athens, Alabama and are members at the Pepper Road church. As administrator of this blog, he enjoys sharing thoughts about spiritual maters. Not only his thoughts but good articles from other authors. He is also thankful to have been able to preach the unsearchable riches of Christ for over sixty years.
Matthew’s account of what is generally called “The Great Commission” is quite interesting in its wording as translated in the American Standard and more recent translations of the New Testament. The ASV reads
“Go ye therefore, and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them into the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I commanded you and lo, I am with you always, even unto the end of the world.” (Matthew 28:19-20)
Notice
The first phrase tells what to do
Go make disciples.
The next two phrases both modify the first by telling how to do it
1. Baptizing them ….
2. Teaching them to observe all things the Lord commanded.
One has not made a disciple until both modifying conditions are done. It like telling one to “Go therefore and build a house of brick, laying the foundation erecting the superstructure.” The thing to be done is to build a brick house. How? By laying the foundation and erecting the superstructure. The job is not done until and unless both modifiers have been completed.
Disciples are not made by just baptizing them but also by teaching them to observe all the Lord commands. In other words, teaching them to totally commit themselves to observing all things commanded. They will not know at the time all things commanded, but as disciples they will learn more and more of what they are commanded as they grow. But when they learn a thing commanded, they have already committed themselves to obey it. They have been taught from the beginning that they are to observe it. One of the things that made them disciples was their commitment to observe all things commanded.
I must admit that it took me a while after I began trying to preach the gospel to learn what this passage was really saying. After it dawned on me that this was the import of this commission I changed some of my ways of answering questions from folks as I tried to bring them to the Lord.
Before, a person might ask if they would have to give up a certain thing or practice they really liked or would they have to start doing something they did not particularly look forward to doing if they became Christians. I used to try to take each individual item brought up and try to give reasons why I believed or did not believe they would have to give that up or why I believed or did not believe they would have to start doing what they were concerned about.
Now, when such a question comes up, I simply ask the person if after being baptized, he learned from scripture that he would have to give up the thing that concerned him, would he be willing to do it? Or if he learned that he would need to start doing the thing he was concerned about, would be willing to do it? If he says that he doesn’t think he would, I tell him we still have some more studying to do. Why? Because he is not ready to be a disciple until he is committed to obeying all things that he learns that the Lord has commanded him.
This is the kind of commitment that Jesus had in mind when he said
“For which of you, desiring to build a tower, doth not first sit down and count the cost, whether he have wherewith to complete it? … So therefore whosoever he be of you that renounceth not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple.” (Luke 14:28, 33 ASV)
Notice that the cost counting comes before the building begins.