The Great Commission

[th1bill]

Mat 28:18 And Jesus came up and spoke to them, saying, "All authority has been given to Me in heaven and on earth.

Mat 28:19 "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit,

Mat 28:20 teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age." (NASB)

The above passage is known, best, as The Great Commission. On January the first of 1990, Jesus, through the Holy Spirit of God gave birth to a 44 year and 11 month old future Bible teacher that believes every word written in the Bible to be the inspired Word of God.

That statement deserves explanation before I go on. Some, it should be all, will notice that I have quoted the NASB, a modern day translation. Every Bible Student in the world knows that the scriptures are written in Hebrew, Aramaic and Koine Greek, not English. So, do I, having spoken foreign languages in the past believe that the NASB, Word for Word translation is perfectly accurate even though I know for a fact that no language can be translated word for word, one hundred percent of the time?

Yes, I do. You might ask,

[Porter-77]

Greetings, Bill ...

I believe it is a waste of time (even potentially harmful) to witness to people unless they are ready.

When are they ready? When the Holy Spirit tells you they're ready.

But, mass evangelism seems to be another story.

I.E. presenting the gospel to a people group for their first time, just for example.

Many evangelists have been chosen and called to go (with confirmations) to do mass evangelism.

What about those missionaries who went to Africa 100-200 years ago and were killed in the first week?

Some people say they were great martyrs. I tend to think they weren't called by God to go.

What do you think?

Edited September 30, 2010 by Porter-77

[th1bill]

Greetings, Bill ...

I believe it is a waste of time (even potentially harmful) to witness to people unless they are ready.

When are they ready? When the Holy Spirit tells you they're ready.

But, mass evangelism seems to be another story.

I.E. presenting the gospel to a people group for their first time, just for example.

Many evangelists have been chosen and called to go (with confirmations) to do mass evangelism.

What about those missionaries who went to Africa 100-200 years ago and were killed in the first week?

Some people say they were great martyrs. I tend to think they weren't called by God to go.

What do you think?

I disagree but let me explain what always gets me into trouble with the average "Christian" today and you will have a background to work with concerning me. My blog is titled "Basic Christianity" and the title says it all. Everything I believe and every rule I submit to is from scripture. Today, Christianity is considered to be a religion instead of a relationship. This is found to be true inside the church today, also.

This is born out by a survey of the "Faithful" by the Barna Group in the mid eighties. The "Faithful" were defined as those that attended "Church" no less than three times a week. The survey was double blind and no-one knew who answer with what reply. The questions asked were about belief in the basic tenants of the faith such as, "Do you believe in the Virgin Birth, do you believe that the death of Jesus atoned for your sin debt," and the least belief, "Do you believe that Jesus is returning to rapture you out of the Earth?"

This group of people, from differing denominations, amounted to less than fifteen percent of the combined Church Population and the percentage that believed that Jesus is returning for us was less than 10% of the 15%. A follower of Jesus is willing to die for his or her faith! Unlike the Media Lie that places us in the ranks of the Muslims, we will not kill anyone to conquer the world, that's up to Jesus/God and not us.

I have a good friend living under an active volcano in Guatemala that has established churches there and led thousands to the foot of the cross in spite of the yearly death tolls due to the Hurricanes, Tropical Storms, mud slides and belching of the volcano. If Jeff dies today in an eruption or a mud slide, he will join the ranks of these men you speak of here.

You see, when a man or a woman makes Jesus their LORD, that transaction is completed immediately, not at some time in the distant future. A study of Biblical Slavery and Lordship will give you a very grounded view of what I speak. We are purchased with the price of the blood of Jesus, making us His slaves to do with as it pleases Him. Hard theology... I know but it is scripturally sound.

[OneLight]

Jesus tells us in Mat 28:19a "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations". What we, every Christian, are to do is disciple, take people under our wings and help them grow in Christ. This is done in the closeness of a relationship, not in the time frame of a night or a week meeting. Evangelism is not discipleship. We have to separate the two. An Evangelist may come in and introduce people to Christ, or through them start a spark in a persons life, but without discipleship, the spark dies or the new believer turns away after the Evangelist leaves. We are given a far more personal position through what Jesus tells us in Matthew 28:19.

[Porter-77]

Bill,

You have written some inconsistencies:

-- Your friend in Guatemala wasn't butchered in the first week with no converts, etc.

-- Isn't God allowing more and more disasters worldwide to shake the people up

so they will try harder to find Him?

And what is all of this ... "You see, ..." stuff.

Are you trying to set yourself up as some kind of expert?

Is that why I'm the only one responding to your thread?

Do you have the baptism with the Holy Spirit?

If not, I wouldn't be so sure of your spiritual ideas.

Edited October 2, 2010 by Porter-77

[Fez]

So what do we do about The Great Commission given to us by Jesus? We do the same thing that some web sites I frequent do, we make ourselves available to those that seek us out.

Actually, no.

As OneLight quoted..

Jesus tells us in Mat 28:19a "Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations".

We are to go, not sit and make ourselves available for those who stumble across our path. We don't sit behind a computer and make ourselves available. We go. We get our hands, and our feet, and our bibles dirty. We go.

In the case of a Christian, it requires Absolute Faith and constant Bible Study. You should have a minimum of five years of constant Bible study and not a day less.

Actually, no.

We need knowledge yes.

But what I need more than constant bible study is the Holy Spirit guiding me.

It's called faith, and He called me the moment He saved me.

I don't have the time to waste on 5 years of study, there are those who have not heard, and no time to waste.

We were directed, and we went.

umm... how many years experience and "study" did the disciples have when Jesus gave them the commission?

[Porter-77]

Fez has got it right.

Ever seen the movie, "The Inn of the Sixth Happiness"?

This nobody lady is called by God to go as a missionary to China.

Of course, her church leaders laughed, "You're not qualified."

But, they didn't know how God wanted to use her, did they?

God knows the heart, and He knows what skills, etc. that He has given to her.

She works hard to save enough money to go, and she goes.

I won't spoil the great story of what happens.

Edited October 1, 2010 by Porter-77

[Guest man]

Everything I believe and every rule I submit to is from scripture.

In the case of a Christian, it requires Absolute Faith and constant Bible Study. You should have a minimum of five years of constant Bible study and not a day less.

Got a verse for that?

[nebula]

umm... how many years experience and "study" did the disciples have when Jesus gave them the commission?

If I understand correctly, their whole lives. Learning the Torah and Prophets were a part of their culture - to be taught from parents to children continuously.

[th1bill]

Everything I believe and every rule I submit to is from scripture.

In the case of a Christian, it requires Absolute Faith and constant Bible Study. You should have a minimum of five years of constant Bible study and not a day less.

Got a verse for that?

2Tim 2:1-15

And the time period, like most rules is a matter of experience. When I was in Vietnam I was the senior crewchief my constant prayer was for more experience.

The day I arrived at my field location, before I could get off the aircraft a 19 year old pilot boarded calling out my name. He had gotten the low down from my 201 file and knew that my next mission was not even close to the first. He told me that he was the best pilot God had ever put on this Earth and that he knew I was the best crewchief he would ever had and then he asked, "You will crew for me, won't you? I told him that I would only fly with the best... it's too dangerous out there in the jungle for less.

Many have called me foolish and the pilot wise but the truth is that all our pilots were kids, they all called me Pop and I was just 24. So my choice of pilots was for a young man with no fear and his was for a man with better than five years loving, crewing and pampering a Huey Chopper. Now, I'm over 65 and cannot fly because I'm terminal but life has taught me that there is wisdom with age and the first letter, guiding the Corinthians is reputed to have been written by Paul after about five years and I find these and other markers in the scriptures important.