The Great Commission | A Sermon on Matthew 28:16-20

Introduction
If you could have any superpower, what would it be?  What would you do with it?  I asked people on Facebook and here’s what they said:

• Patience
• Time travel - so I could hit all my grandchildren’s ballgames and not have to choose!
• The ability to heal - both yourself and others
• Omniscience - to be all knowing
• The power/charisma to convince people
• Ultimate faithfulness to be able to turn all concerns to Jesus and accept his Will unconditionally with Praise and Glory to God.
• Teleportation
• Invisibility
• The ability to fly
• be to cure cancer
• be to instill love and compassion into every person’s heart
• to be able to duplicate themselves
• Ask powerful questions that helped people reflect on how much they are loved by God such that their character would manifest the fruit of the Spirit
• To ensure that no children go to bed hungry

In our passage today, Jesus says He has been given a super power:  all authority in heaven/earth; then He tells what He wants to do with it.

Matthew 28:16-20
¹⁶ Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. ¹⁷ When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. ¹⁸ Then Jesus came to them and said, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. ¹⁹ Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, ²⁰ and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age.”

“…but some doubted”
Before we talk about Jesus' authority and what He wants to do with it, I want to point out the first thing that grabbed me in this passage because I think it’s really important.  It says they worshipped Jesus, but some doubted.  They are with the risen Jesus, in the flesh, but some still doubted.  

That amazes to me! Then I realize I have also personally seen Jesus do some amazing things. 
He has provided for me – out of a broken, impoverished home; and I'm still here when many of my friends didn't make it.  God granted me a beautiful wife.  He helped me raise three successful kids.  He saw me through 25 years of ministry - ordination, ministry struggles (staff changes, addictions, fires, floods, disaffiliation).  God has been with me through all of this, yet sometimes I still doubt.

So, if you sometimes doubt, don’t beat yourself up.  Jesus still loves you whether you are brimming with confidence or struggling or just hanging on trying to believe.  And Jesus still gives you a mission.  The mission is based on His authority, not our certainty.   Jesus says, “ I am with you always…”

Authority
Now let’s talk about Jesus’ authority.  What would you do if you had “all authority in heaven and on earth”?  Jesus had all authority.  He could have used it to make people bow down to Him, to serve Him, to build His throne.  He even could have used His power and authority to snap HIs fingers and fix the whole world all by Himself in an instant.  But he didn’t.

Jesus chose to use His authority to commission us.  Rather than doing something all by Himself, He gives us the honor of doing it with Him.  He must have done that for a very important reason, because we’re idiots!  So, there must be something about the God of Heaven and Earth inviting His children to get involved that’s really important.  I think it is part of the healing process for us to help God in His work to save our world.

How do you use your influence?  Do you use it to control?  Protect yourselves?  Elevate yourselves?  Do you use it selfishly or do you use it to empower others?  Jesus used His authority to empower us to do something.  What exactly did He empower us for?

Verses 19-20 tell us we are to make disciples, baptize, and teach.  Let’s look at each of these.  We are to make disciples.  This is the main command but do we know what it means?  It doesn’t just mean to win converts, gain new church members, or get people to attend church.  We’re called to make disciples.

We are called to make disciple.

A disciple is a follower of Jesus.  

A disciple is someone who learns from Jesus.  

A disciple is someone who begins to live like Jesus.  

And a disciple is someone who makes disciples

Jesus also told us to baptize.
Jesus also commissioned us to baptize people.  Baptism publicly identifies a person with Christ.  It says, they are a member of God’s family.  

Way back in the Old Testament, God called Abraham to leave his home and go to a promised land he would show him.  And God said He would make Abraham the father of a great nation that would be God's special chosen people.  And God told Abraham that every child should be circumcised at 8-days old.  Circumcision would be the sign that they were God's chosen people.  Them, in the New Testament, the Apostle Paul said baptism is the new circumcision--the sign that Christians are God's people.

It is our tradition in the Methodist Church to baptize our children to claim them for Christ—to say they are part of the family of God.  When they grow up, they choose Christ for themselves.  Ultimately, we baptize people because, someone who is baptized has a new identity in Christ.  People today identify themselves in all kinds of ways:  parent, American, a Georgia bulldog fan, introvert/extrovert, etc. You can be all those things, but Christ should be your primary identifier.  Baptism is the moment we say, ‘I belong to Jesus now.’

Jesus said: “Teach Them..”
Jesus commissioned us to teach people to obey everything He commanded.  We’re not just teaching them about Jesus, because knowing information about Jesus is not the same as following Jesus.  We’re to teach people to obey Jesus’ commands.

What Jesus commissioned His followers to do is like raising a child.  Think about it.  We’re called to bring people into God’s family and then teach them how to live.  Then, they go out and bring more people into God’s family and teach them how to live.

If we’re not helping people grow in Christ, then we’re not fully doing what Jesus called us to do. 

Holy Communion
So, here we are.  Some us worship.  Some of us doubt.  We do both at different times--and sometimes a the same time!  Jesus doesn’t wait for perfect faith.  He doesn’t hold back His mission.  He speaks with all the authority of  Heaven and Earth and He commissions us to make disciples, to baptize, to teach.

But before we go out into the world to serve, to try and live out this calling, Jesus invites us to come to Him.  Because it begins with what Jesus has already done for us.  

One of the most sacred ways He reminds us what He’s done is Holy Communion.  At this table:

• We remember His sacrifice
• We receive His grace
• We experience His presence

And I would remind you something we’ve learned today: 
this invitation isn’t just for people with strong faith. 
It’s also for those who still have questions and doubts.

So today, if you have confidence—come.
If you have doubts—come.
If you long to believe—come.
Because Jesus meets us right here in all of these.

The same Jesus who said, ‘Go and make disciples,’ also says,
‘Come to the table.  Taste and see.’

 

Two Very Different Stories | A Sermon from Matthew 28:11-20

Introduction
Today is Mother’s Day — and I think we all know, when it comes to parenting, moms just do it better. They’ve got that mix of patience, wisdom, and unconditional love that’s hard to match.
They’re the ones who bandage scraped knees, remember every permission slip, and somehow manage to find your lost shoe when you're already late.

Now, dads—we try. But let’s be honest, our parenting instincts don’t always hit the mark like a mother’s does.  In fact, that reminds me of a story… 

Little Billy was always getting into trouble — at home and at school.
His mom was at her wit’s end.  One day, the school called.
The voice on the line said, “Mrs. Johnson, your son’s been telling lies.”
She hung her head in frustration, not knowing what to say.
Her husband calmly took the phone and said, “Who is this?”
The school repeated, “Your son’s been telling lies.”
The dad paused and said, “Well, tell him he’s doing a great job—because we don’t even have kids!”

Now that’s one way to tell a story—but it’s not exactly the truth, is it?
And in today’s Scripture, we’re going to look at two very different stories that came out of the same event—the resurrection of Jesus.
One story is rooted in lies and fear.  The other is grounded in truth and faith.
And the question for all of us this morning is:  Which story are we living?

Matthew 28:11-20
¹¹ As the women were on their way, some of the guards went into the city and told the leading priests what had happened. ¹² A meeting with the elders was called, and they decided to give the soldiers a large bribe. ¹³ They told the soldiers, “You must say, ‘Jesus’ disciples came during the night while we were sleeping, and they stole his body.’ ¹⁴ If the governor hears about it, we’ll stand up for you so you won’t get in trouble.” ¹⁵ So the guards accepted the bribe and said what they were told to say. Their story spread widely among the Jews, and they still tell it today.

¹⁶ Then the eleven disciples left for Galilee, going to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. ¹⁷ When they saw him, they worshiped him—but some of them doubted!

¹⁸ Jesus came and told his disciples, “I have been given all authority in heaven and on earth. ¹⁹ Therefore, go and make disciples of all the nations,^[b] baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit. ²⁰ 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.”

Two Very Different Stories
I’m struck right off the bat in this passage by the clear contrast between these two stories.

The Soldiers:	The Disciples:
Lived to spread a lie	Died to tell with truth
Were paid to cover up	Were commissioned to go proclaim
Acted out of fear and greed	Responded with worship and obedience
Story was bought and empty	Story was costly and full of hope

How do we know the soldiers’ story was a lie?  One reason is: In the Roman military, falling asleep on duty or failing a guard assignment was often punishable by death. This was a well-known and strict rule to ensure discipline and accountability. If the soldiers had actually allowed the body to be stolen, they would have faced execution — yet they remained alive.  Why?  Because someone had to live to tell the lie.  If they were executed, there would have been no supposed "eyewitnesses" to tell the lie that the body was stolen.

Now contrast that to the Disciples experience.  They died to tell the Truth.  While the soldiers were paid money to tell the lie, the disciples gave their lives to tell the truth.

Peter was crucified upside down in Rome.
James (son of Zebedee) was beheaded by sword in Jerusalem.
Andrew was on an X-shaped cross in Greece.
Philip was crucified or possibly stoned in Phrygia.
Bartholomew was flayed alive and beheaded in Armenia.
Matthew was stabbed with a spear in Ethiopia.
Thomas was speared to death in India.
James was stoned to death in Jerusalem.
Thaddaeus was clubbed to death in Persia.
Simon the Zealot was sawed in half in Persia.
John was the only disciple to die a natural death. He was exiled to Patmos, then later died in Ephesus.

Each one paid for telling the truth with their lives. People don’t give their lives willingly for a lie.
They are much more likely to lie in order to save their lives—like the soldiers at the tomb.

Cover Up or Boldly Proclaim
The story of Jesus’ resurrection was a threat to the religious leaders and the Roman authorities.
Christ’s ultimate miracle showed His Heavenly Kingdom was more powerful than any kingdom or authority on earth.  If this news got out, people would turn against the Romans and the religion of Jerusalem.

So they had to cover it up.  It must’ve really burned them up—having to hand over hush money to soldiers they would’ve rather executed them on the spot.

In contrast, Jesus commissioned the disciples to go and boldly proclaim the truth to the world. It wasn’t easy—and it cost them dearly. But there’s peace in telling the truth. Truth carries its own reward: a clear conscience, a steady heart, and the joy of walking in step with God. 
And there’s the reward of belonging to the eternal, unshakable Kingdom of God—knowing that nothing this world offers can compare, and nothing it throws at you can truly harm you, because your life is secure in Jesus Christ.

Fear or Faith
The soldiers acted out of fear.   Their lives were at stake and Roman executions were brutal (just look what they did to Jesus).  When faced with the choice to tell the truth and be tortured and killed or to take a bribe to spread a lie, they took the easy road. I wonder what happened to them?  The Bible doesn’t say (and there are no strong, widely accepted church traditions about their fate either).
Matthew makes sure to say their lie was still circulating at the time he wrote his Gospel (several decades after the fact), showing how persistent and powerful misinformation can be.

But their lies could not overcome the power of God’s truth, because the disciples acted in faith.
They believed that Jesus had truly risen from the grave, and they courageously devoted their lives to obeying His commission to spread the Good News.  And history reveals this simple yet powerful reality: faith conquers fear, truth outlasts deception, and the light of the resurrection continues to shine—generation after generation—through those who dare to believe and obey.

Which is Your Story?
At the end of Matthew’s Gospel, we see two very different stories.  One was bought—a lie crafted to hide the truth. It was cheap in value, but costly in consequence.  It was a story rooted in fear, told to preserve power, and it ultimately led nowhere.

The other story was costly—not just in gold, but in obedience, sacrifice, and faith.  The disciples didn’t gain wealth or and easy life from their story.  What they gained was purpose, peace, and the promise of eternal life.  Their story is still being told, because it’s filled with hope—the kind that changes lives and lights up a dark world.

So what do we do with that?  Because every one of us will face the same kind of choice:
Will we cling to what’s easy, safe, and self-serving,
or will we step into the truth, even when it costs us something?

We live in a world full of false stories—stories that tell us to compromise, to cut corners, to live for ourselves.  But Jesus calls us to something better.  He calls us to live in the light, to walk in the truth, to be people of integrity, courage, and hope.

So here’s the challenge:  Which story are you living? 
Is your life being shaped by what’s bought and empty,
or by what’s costly and full of eternal hope?

Choose the story that lasts.  Choose the story that’s true.
Choose to follow Jesus—the Risen One—wherever He leads.